My Thigh Fix

[HansDC[TK]]

While everyone was having the time of their lives at Celebration 7 last week, I decided to tackle something that I have been meaning to fix instead of hating on the fact that I wasn't in Anaheim.

When I rushed to complete my suit to begin with (long story short had a birthday party to attend in a TK), I messed my thighs up and cut off too much. Not knowing about how to shim things properly, I did what I did and I was happy with it. 

 

What I ended up with was a 50mm cover strip at the back of both thighs. No one has ever pointed them out or noticed them so I never really gave it much thought. That was until I started fine tuning and looking at it more. 

Steve (Gazmosis) was kind enough to pass me for EIB standards, but after private discussions we agreed that 50mm was too much out of the buffer zone if I were to shoot for Centurion. So they had to be redone. 

 

After much procrastination it was time to get to it in between troop weekends.....so here it is.

 

PS> I apologise for the 'smudges' you see in the pics. Its from some dirt on the back of my phone camera lens. Dunno how it got there. 

 

Here are my thighs before the mod. Experimented with ABS paste as I tried to make them 'prettier'...

 

 

The dreaded jagged cuts. I refused to use E6000 for my build so most of the suit is put together with CA. It would have been easier to take apart and less messy had I used E6000, but no regrets. I hate that stuff. 

New shims on the very top. The old ones I cut out below it. 

 

 

Then glued the shims in...

 

 

 

I can't remember where I saw this product being used, but it was on one of our troopers build thread. Whoever it was - Thank You! This stuff is the best putty i've used to far on plastic. I strongly recommend this for larger fixes. I got mine from eBay, but I'm sure you can find it at good hobby stores.

 

This stuff is pretty easy to work with and you can shape it with some water on your fingers kinda like clay. 

 

 

 

Some trimming and then the sanding. I used a scraper thingy to get most of it off, a dremel for some hard to get chunks, and 3 grades of sandpaper to finish off. Also put the 25mm cover strip on. 

 

 

 

Lastly the paint. Wasn't sure what to use. Had some of this 'Satin Blossom White' and decided to use it. Now I'm thinking I should have used something a little more glossy...

 

 

 

 

Here is a before and after photo...
  

 

 

 

What do you think? The white actually matches very well, so I didn't paint the entire thigh. Just the backs where needed. I wanted to leave the wear and scratching I already have on the front and sides from trooping. 

A few more minor tweaks and hopefully I'll be ready to apply from my centurion badge. 

Thanks for tuning in troopers!

Edited June 19, 2016 by HansDC

[Starfox2010]

Holly molly!  Great job

[SteampunkSith]

Excellent job!

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

One word... WOW!  Great job, Hans!

[Tusken RTT]

Way better!  Awesome- the JB weld or putty you used method really seems to be the way to go, with the painting afterwards.  Straight ABS paste will work, but so much more work to me to get the correct end result.  

[Tolo[TK]]

Nice job well done!

 

 

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[gazmosis[501st]]

standing and applauding!!!

[Chills[TK]]

Thanks for posting this. I'm going to have to shim my thighs, so this looks like the way to go. I'll start looking around for that epoxy sculpt. 

[jodo28[TK]]

Thanks for posting this! I cut off too much also, I'll give this a try.

[Skypig]

Great work.  I don't want to sound like an a jerk, put people get so worked up about building their kits.  It's plastic, you can fix it.

Edited September 5, 2015 by Skypig

[Murderink[501st]]

Awesome thread dude, I am about to do the exact same thing on the new kit I got as the thighs as a bit too small for me, probably due to all the stairs I climbed while in Mexico .

 

 

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[bdgr[501st]]

Fantastic job.

[dak[TK]]

Awesome job and thread. Thanks for sharing

[Pretzel]

WOW! I finally found what I needed to reference for a similar problem I am currently dealing with on my thighs and well, quite frankly for my arms as too. First time builder myself, and when trimming, I trimmed both front and back to get the armor to fit me.

 

I succeeded for sure! But, then came the butt joints and realizing my error. The strips for my arms are ~30mm. The strips for my legs are ~45mm So YES! Way too much lol. I never worked with that putty before, and some recommend creating ABS paste.

 

Now that I understand the process of shimming 100% ( A HUGE THANK YOU TO THIS THREAD!!! AND HANS! <3 ) After the gluing, sanding etc.. I noticed you used a paint. Would you apply that before the "Polish" process, and what did you use for polishing?

 

Thanks.

Edited May 17, 2016 by Razgriz

[HansDC[TK]]

PM replied Preston!

[TD42115[501st]]

Hans, awesome job. i need to do this my self.. 

[Novak Dimon[TK]]

Great job with your thighs!<br>

I forwarded your thread to a comrade with the same problem. <br>

Cheers <br>

Christian

[BigRagoo / TK 22681[TK]]

My thigh backs a very similar to your originals. This will be very helpful!! Any issues getting basic approval with larger back cover strips?

[Sn4k3]

It looks very good mate

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[BigCara[TK]]

Awesome guide and great job. Probably going to have to do the same to my thighs.

Do you recall what grade sandpaper you finished with?

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