Squeaky[TK] Posted November 27, 2013 Author Report Posted November 27, 2013 biceps from RS before trimming trimmed quite a bit of the return edge since they are not visible. I left some return on the top rear edge to give some thickness when my arms are bent. left ample room for bending, will glue strips and do the final trimming after everything is fitted. Quote
gazmosis[501st] Posted November 28, 2013 Report Posted November 28, 2013 Nice looking build so far!!!!! Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted November 30, 2013 Author Report Posted November 30, 2013 cutting the 15mm strips for the biceps and forearms. forearms before trimming, lots of return edge that needs to go. test fit reveals a lot of overlap so I begin with trimming the raised seam on top. Allowing 7mm from the raised edge of each side to permit gluing of the 15mm strip. taping up the butt seam for now. strips will be glued after final fitting. the top of the forearms has limited trimming so I did that first adding some curvature to the inside top forearm for mobility. may cut more for screen accuracy later. Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted November 30, 2013 Author Report Posted November 30, 2013 cut the obvious flashing off the shoulder bells. trimmed the return edge. taped up the elastic straps for now. it's been mentioned that the shoulder bells are symmetrical but on the RS bells there is clearly a more bulbous side on each bell. after trying a few combinations its clear that having the larger bulbous side in front aligns the center ridge better with the biceps ridges. Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted November 30, 2013 Author Report Posted November 30, 2013 shoulder elastics these are the elastics that come from RS. I sanded the chest plate location where the elastic is to be glued to provide a good surface for adhesion. wiped the area with isopropyl alcohol to clean. applied E-6000 to the surfaces and clamped until cured (24hrs) applied E-6000 to the other end and glued it to the back plate. attached the elastic for the right side ab plate applied E-6000 to the snap plate also let it cure for 24hrs Quote
troopermaster Posted November 30, 2013 Report Posted November 30, 2013 Have you glued the snap tab inside the back plate? Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 1, 2013 Author Report Posted December 1, 2013 Have you glued the snap tab inside the back plate? oops. no wonder it is so hard to snap together Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 1, 2013 Author Report Posted December 1, 2013 going to try out the Under Armour heatgear as the under suit. will have to black out the logos first test fit. the forearms are not attached and sitting too low. the shoulders are not trimmed and seem a little big. the straps should be shortened. the butt plate flares out too much at the sided. may have to move the brackets outward to bring it in. other comments? Quote
Tolo[TK] Posted December 1, 2013 Report Posted December 1, 2013 (edited) Nice build! It's funny how I know you are in Canada by reading Mastercraft on your claps loll. Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk Edited December 1, 2013 by Tolo Quote
The5thHorseman[501st] Posted December 1, 2013 Report Posted December 1, 2013 I would say it's more your biceps being too high than your forearms sitting too low. For the butt plate i guess you could leave it like that, or use boiling water to slightly reshape it, or even use white duct tape like the trooper on the left Quote
gazmosis[501st] Posted December 1, 2013 Report Posted December 1, 2013 YOur forearms could always be adjusted when you attach the strap between the bicep and forearm. Before you go farther on your belt, it looks like it is sagging in the middle. You might want to reconsider your snaps to tighten that up before attaching your waist belt Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 2, 2013 Author Report Posted December 2, 2013 Thanks for the comments Tolo Mastercraft tools in every Canadian shred Horseman Biceps are taped to the shoulder straps, maybe if I use bicep hooks then the biceps will come down. Hot water sounds like a good option. Not sure about using duct tape Gazmosis The belt does sag. I am using the snaps in the ab plate from RS and the belt also had the rivets already set from RS. I will prefit the ammo belt before attaching it to the canvas Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 2, 2013 Author Report Posted December 2, 2013 fixed the right shoulder elastic. had to pry the snap plate off. this E-6000 is strong but came off clean. great stuff. attached the right side ab strap Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 3, 2013 Author Report Posted December 3, 2013 OK switching gears a little. decided to start the bucket. here is the RS bucket, bumpy cap, eye bump, wavy tears and all. starting with the teeth I took a dremel with sanding tube to sand down the top edge from behind. actually I found that this didn't work so well. kinda pushed the material around rather than remove it. tried different speeds as well. changed to the dremel cutting bit with better success. used a flat needle file for the edges. I see some have rounded edges but I see the original teeth more like rails between the upper and lower lips. sharp corners would give this effect. teeth done eyes are rough cut with the dremel cutting tool again eyes trimmed. RS does not provide enough material for a good return edge on the eye sockets. my only complaint so far. the view within Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 7, 2013 Author Report Posted December 7, 2013 bought some gel insoles for the boots. these have a thick sole which should lift me up a little. I am getting close to the ideal 5'10" height of the original stormtroopers. (I wonder if there will ever be a higher level than centurion where troopers are the screen-correct height and weight ) the thighs out of the box has lots of extra material to accommodate bigger sizes. I drew a line at 9mm from the raised edge to allow for gluing the 20mm cover strip up front. lots of overlap in the back after the initial fitting. Will cut it down after fit test. also trimmed the front of the lower legs for a butt joint and the 20mm cover strips. the return on the top of the shins need to be trimmed down for comfort. some funny mismatching going on at the bottom but no worries since it has to be cut down to fit over the boots. First full fit test. the forearms and thighs are not strapped up so they are still sitting low. this is such an important step, I need to take my time to make sure the mobility, comfort and gapping is correct before cutting and gluing. its taken me six weeks to get to this point working a bit each night. i'd like to progress faster but silly things like work, feeding the children and washroom breaks are getting in the way Quote
Clamps[TK] Posted December 7, 2013 Report Posted December 7, 2013 Next thing you know you'll be blaming Saturday night partying for slowing you down. Ps. Kidnap Keith and make him show up later . Quote
The5thHorseman[501st] Posted December 8, 2013 Report Posted December 8, 2013 I think you should really start gluing halves together. It's been the most time consuming step to me, e6000 takes forever to dry. Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 15, 2013 Author Report Posted December 15, 2013 As mentioned the PVC is softer then the ABS. This shows that after scoring with an exacto blade the PVC bends instead of snaps. For the beginner this is nice stuff to work with. backside of coverstrip is sanded for better adhesion bicep is taped on the inside to maintain alignment and prevent E-6000 from oozing in. Bicep surface is also sanded for adhesion. Generous amounts of E-6000 applied to cover strips. Both biceps halves glued at the same time Nice clean seam on the inside once tape is removed. If you don't put enough glue then this is what happens. Not a big deal, just add more glue and re-clamp. shins done the same way Quote
Locitus[Admin] Posted December 16, 2013 Report Posted December 16, 2013 Great progress! Keep using originals for reference. About the shoulder bells, they were never symmetrical on the originals. Anyone who say they should be is either a fool or thinking of inaccurate armour. Brian Muir who sculpted the suits has always said all parts had unique left and right hand sides. Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk Quote
The5thHorseman[501st] Posted December 16, 2013 Report Posted December 16, 2013 Great progress, i love the tip of writing the onset gluing time on tape near the cover strip Great progress! Keep using originals for reference. About the shoulder bells, they were never symmetrical on the originals. Anyone who say they should be is either a fool or thinking of inaccurate armour. Brian Muir who sculpted the suits has always said all parts had unique left and right hand sides. Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk Yes and the fact some armor makers have same shoulder bells for both shoulders just drives me crazy!! You can't adapt rightly a right shoulder bell on the left shoulder, it's just impossible!! Grrr, i hate the AP shoulder bells... Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 26, 2013 Author Report Posted December 26, 2013 hey guys thanks for the comments. forearms trimmed, taped on the inside, sanded, alcoholed and glued. shins with overlap needing removal, gluing and clamping. sniper plate before trimming. The sniper plate is an odd fit. Only three small contact points. Applied liberal amounts of E6000 and clamped. Thighs required a lot of trimming. Applied E6000 to the few contact surfaces between the shoulder straps and chest plate. After 24 hour curing this proved to be not enough adhesion. Had to clean it up and start again. Cut scrap pieces to build up the valleys. Opted for a stronger adhesive since I don't need to reposition these pieces later. Quote
Squeaky[TK] Posted December 28, 2013 Author Report Posted December 28, 2013 25mm strips on the rear of the thighs. knee pack uncut edges trimmed to 3-5mm corner radius'd (too small) increased radius to be more visually accurate. holes drilled for split rivet assembled onto thigh Quote
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