Marx's AP build

[68Brick[TK]]

Looking Good Marx. Two critiques ... your rounded corners on your belt should be 45 degree bevels. The edges of the drop boxes shouldn't pass the edge of the (plastic part of the ) belt. I just completed my belt as well.

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Thanks Brick!

 

I thought that it was to 45 degrees and do have it marked, so i'll be changing that. I noticed the boxes on other builds being in the correct spot (as you mentioned in relation to the belt plastic) so I'll have to do some interesting recovery work to move them over. They are currently riveted as a part of the belt to canvas rivet.

 

Keep them critiques and suggestions rolling! They are much appreciated!

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Did a few things as soon as I got off work.

 

First was to begin the shimming process by.....applying the shim! I measured both sides and scoured and snapped an extra piece of ABS that was the proper height and had enough length to allow for future measuring with assistance. There is a bit of a gap, but this was somewhat intentional as the shimming tutorials (check out Tusken RTT's thread on shimming for all your shimming needs. (I wonder how many more times I can fit shimming into a sentence.)) This gap is suggested to allow room for more of the ABS paste to settle and strengthen the bond. Having spent a few hours today pouring over Tusken's and others shimming tips and tutorials, I felt confident enough to go ahead and get the ball rolling:

 

 

I believe I have the correct orientation as numerous threads suggested the return edge could only be on the top as the bottom is usually cut from the butt. 

 

The gap mentioned earlier and is the same on the other side:

 

 

I also cleaned up the belt per the earlier critiques thus my boxes are situated correctly and the ends have 45 degree angles.

 

 

I was able to find the correct "Chicago screws" at Lowe's today, so i'll be able to connect the holster as soon as I rediscover the picture of the correct measurements that I either saw on MechaPumpkin's or Somatophlayx's build. Probably both.

 

Until next time

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

When you put the ABS paste to join the shims, make sure you use a paint brush and really push it in those gaps. Build up layers and try to get it smooth as possible. ABS paste will get tacky very quickly so you'll need to work fast. Let it dry for a day or two and sand it down flush with 100 grit then follow up with some 1000 grit wet sand paper to smooth it back up. Don't worry about cutting out the notches until you've sized it and trimmed the shim down if necessary. I gotta throw up some updated pictures of mine. Realized I made my shim a lot wider than I needed and had to trim down a lot and had to redo the notches. Once you have the kidney flush with the ab plate, do the notches and holes for the split rivets. 

[Tusken RTT]

It's going to look great!  Also dont forget to do a dry run before you do the paste to see if you need to bend the shims inwards so they contour better around you.  Very tough to bend after you do the paste.   The wet sand paper portion near the end is a great tip also!  

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Thanks Jason and Scott for the tips and encouragement. I had a chance to fit the Kidney to the AB piece yesterday and have set my rivets already. I'll be getting some pics up of the progress made this evening. I plan on getting some snaps made and laid into the torso pieces with the goal of having the entire upper body completed this week sans bucket. May have the lower half complete if I have enough ABS for thigh shims and outer coverstrips.

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

Glad we are able to help. I definitely learned a lot from Scott and a few other's builds on how to do the shim. Looking forward to your updates.

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

As promised, the update photos of what was accomplished at yesterdays armor party. Again, thanks to members of the Georgia Garrison for the expertise and aid!

 

Kidney w/shim was fitted to AB and trimmed accordingly. I had rivets on hand and set to it; unfortunately, I did forget the washers, so hopefully that doesn't come back to haunt me. Oops. Still have to paint the rivets and screws, but I will do that last.

 

 

The AB/Cod piece rivets:

 

 

Cod rivet:

 

 

AB snap!

 

 

Oh SNAP! It's the Butt snaps:

 

 

Aligned the TD screws correctly; only need to apply the caps and the front panel after a bit of cleanup on the paintjob.

 

 

My best trim yet! Finally found the secret sauce to making it straight

 

 

Turns out, I just needed better clamps to hold onto my material and ruler...

Also, as it is the left one, I aligned the bottom since the top will be hidden by the sniper plate. Still may trim both, but progress!

 

I'm working on making snaps now to hopefully set inside these pieces tonight. I can see the finish line (even if it is still a ways away!)

 

May leave the ABS paste cleanup until after acceptance (if possible), so that I can go ahead and start trooping. E-11 should be here tomorrow and hopefully the bucket will be sorted out shortly. Might be able to be efficient enough with the ABS I have to make the outerstrips and thigh shims, but we'll see.

Edited July 20, 2015 by MarxKnight91

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Almighty work was accomplished this day!

 

Laid in snaps for the Ab/Cod, Kidney, and Butt pieces with elastic based snaps. Also utilized some webbing material for the butt joining the kidney snaps, but may have to redo them in favor of elastic, as it sides a bit off to one side.

 

Here is an inside look:

 

 

Now, it feels great to have something to try on, but there are some issues to resolve. The butt does flair a bit on the sides, but as i've mentioned, I may be able to resolve that with some longer elastic straps on one side. Also, the kidney rick flairs a bit; I will first treat it with water and probably finish it off with the "tabs" to keep it locked on the inside of the ab. 

 

The butt rick flair issue

 

 

It isn't that bad when i'm wearing it; I accentuated the overlap and gap a bit to give a better idea of the issue in the photo. Same goes with the sides below:

 

 

I'll probably close shop for today. I need to finish off my belt, thighs, calves, shoulder bridges, and TD. Still a long list, but it grows shorter.

 

Until next time

 

WooooooOOOOOOO!

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

RussellR2D2's thread shows a great method to get the butt from Rick Flairing out. For the kidney, it would have been easier to heat bend it before gluing it in place but since that ship has sailed, get a big bucket from home depot and put some boiling water in it and submerge one side at a time. Get the bend you need and cool it in cold water. Another suggestion to keep it together is making the split rivets functional by putting the elastic in between the rivets on the kidney and ab. It'll be permanently attached like a clam shell but it'll hold straight and flush if done right. On the right side you can use snaps but in the center make a slot system to keep it aligned. Once again, gotta recommend RussellR2D2's build thread for that suggestion. One last suggestion, don't know if you plan on it or not but I would put some ABS paste on the outside and inside seems of  your kidney shim. It'll make it stronger and the outside will look like it wasn't shimmed at all if done correctly. I will take some pics of mine tonight to show you what I mean if that doesn't make sense. 

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Ahaha, that pic is perfect, Jason!

 

Incidentally, after I took the pictures of the snaps and was uploading them to photobucket/here, I was reading his thread. I was referencing those fixes at the end of my last update along with Tusken's ABS paste fixeroo. Can't hurt to have more reference pics to look at; i'll look for your thread this afternoon Jason.

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

I have since gone back and had to trim the width of the new joining piece but this is the gist of it. 

 

http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/30727-look-sir-droids-mtk-build-wip/?p=411497

[ukswrath[Staff]]

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Not a lot of photo evidence of major work done today as it was mostly all logistical, but I did connect my holster to the belt via Chicago screws.....

 

 

And just in time to, as this beauty was delivered just minutes later!

 

 

I also made another run to get more black elastic and decided to try my hand at making some suspenders for the bottom half and thighs, as well as a way to mount my speaker system.

 

 

Very happy with how it came out and i've already applied some snaps to the inside of the ab. I'll wait to have an extra pair of hands to put in some on the kidney. 

 

Dilemma at the moment is to either:

 

A. Begin making tabs and corresponding 'locks' to finish off the torso, or

B. Begin making shims and cover strips for the legs

 

A good problem to have, either way. 

 

Cheers 

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

Finish the torso so you can put it on to accurately size the thighs 

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Lots completed over this weekend. I was able to get my brother to help me align and glue the shoulder bridges on, which allowed for the completion of connecting the back and the front. I got the cover strips on all but my left shin, as it was drying from the e6000, and marked where my shin velcro needed to be and where the thighs needed to be cut/shimmed; more on the thigh at the bottom.

 

Picture time!

 

 

Complete with floating bridges

 

 

 

 

Picture looked better on my phone, but you can still make out the pencil line for the velcro. Comes over pretty far...

 

 

The thighs are taped shut where they fit pretty well; you can see that the bottom overlaps to reduce the wide open knee issue, but will require shims going up. I am at somewhat of a loss on how best to go about doing the shims; the ridge line proposes the most vexing issue, along with having the shims match the contour of the original shape of the thigh. Advice here is most welcome.

 

The fronts look amazing, though, with the cover strips! 

 

 

Remaining to-do list:

 

1. Shim and coverstrips on thighs

2. Connect completed arms to shoulder bridges

3. Connect thighs to supporting belt

4. Place velcro on shins

5. Mount sniper plate

6. Mount batter pack

7. Glue cover buttons to belt

8. Paint rivet heads

9. ab buttons and apply

10. Find that elusive bucket

11. Apply to 501st

 

Bonus levels

11. Open brown box containing DLT-19 when it arrives

12. Complete HWT pack and order pauldron

13. Apply abs paste to shim ridges and paint tabs black on kidney

14. Apply for EIB

15. Apply for Centurion

 

 

 

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Remaining to-do list:

 

 

1. Shim and coverstrips on thighs

2. Connect completed arms to shoulder bridges

3. Connect thighs to supporting belt

4. Place velcro on shins

5. Mount sniper plate

6. Mount batter pack

7. Glue cover buttons to belt

8. Paint rivet heads

9. ab buttons and apply

10. Find that elusive bucket

11. Apply to 501st

 

Bonus levels

11. Open brown box containing DLT-19 when it arrives

12. Complete HWT pack and order pauldron

13. Apply abs paste to shim ridges and paint tabs black on kidney

14. Apply for EIB

15. Apply for Centurion

 

 

Slight update to the to-do list as I put in the shoulder bell connections to the shoulder bridges on Wednesday.

 

 

Love having it on and can't wait to knock out more this weekend. As evident in the pic, I still need to put in the tab on the left side (picture's right) to close up the gap and limit the protrusion. Forearms will need disassembling and some trim to make smaller, but i'll still put foam in it to help keep it from moving. 

 

Saw on a few other threads that the coverstrips can be a little wider to enable closure, especially at the top of the thighs. I believe this will be the best course of action in completing them. 

 

I also have ordered an MTK bucket. Hopefully it arrives soon and I can knock it out pretty quick.

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Wow looking excellent

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Thanks, Tony.

 

Not sure why the pictures don't show up as well as they do in photobucket... I plan on using velcro to attach the belt. Haven't gotten to that just yet, hence the fallen belt in the pic. 

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Remaining to-do list:

 

 

1. Shim and coverstrips on thighs

2. Connect completed arms to shoulder bridges

3. Connect thighs to supporting belt

4. Place velcro on shins

5. Mount sniper plate

6. Mount batter pack

7. Glue cover buttons to belt

8. Paint rivet heads

9. ab buttons and apply

10. Find that elusive bucket

11. Apply to 501st

 

Bonus levels

11. Open brown box containing DLT-19 when it arrives

12. Complete HWT pack and order pauldron

13. Apply abs paste to shim ridges and paint tabs black on kidney

14. Apply for EIB

15. Apply for Centurion

 

Another mini armor party has led to the completion of the shins proper, with velcro added to both and front cover strip added to the remaining shin.

 

 

The DLT 19 came in on Monday and I could not be happier with it. It's extraordinary! I have a pic of it, but it doesn't do it justice, so i'll have to take another soon. We also were able to come up with a good solution for shimming the thighs. I didn't think I'd need to on the left one, but the right was definitely going to need it.

 

Using this Centurion's approval photo as a basis, we applied a shim to the edge of one side to then meet the other flush.

 

The Reference:

 

 

The Result:

 

 

 

The tape marks where the shim will meet the thigh. A cover strip will cover the diagonal cut and be strengthened by a larger inner cover strip. Completion of that thigh will probably occur tomorrow evening. Once they are both completed, some trimming to make the pieces meet and not poke or snag will finish them off.

 

Inching ever closer. Hopefully the bucket comes in soon, as I hope to be done by Dragon Con. It'll depend on if I can get the bucket completed fast enough, I think.

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

I grew up in GA and never went to Dragon Con My mom and sister still live there so maybe next year I can travel down and troop with you. I'm interested to see your progress with your thigh is coming. I added more E6000, clamps, and magnets to mine this morning hoping that I can start applying ABS paste tonight. 

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Make it happen, Jason! It'd be great having you there; the parade on Saturday is awesome, at least from a spectator standpoint (till I get to troop in it!). 

 

I'm confident the thigh will turn out pretty well. I had a Centurion thigh on hand, which is being converted to a Deathtrooper, that was a physical reference, along with the photo above, and you can barely notice the shim. I'll be waiting to do all my abs pasting till I complete it; I'm pretty sure I can get basic 501st approval to start trooping with just a few seams and then begin making upgrades to the armor to make it look better. I'm keeping an eye on yours to see how it turns out, so keep them updates coming!

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Came home this evening to a small brown box! Thought it might be the oil pan I'd ordered for my HWT but as it turned out.......

 

 

A wild Bucket appeared!!

 

Super psyched about it and pretty happy in the my build timeline that it arrived; already having experience now with the armor, I dove right in and marked the areas to be trimmed while the inner cover strip on my thigh dried.

 

 

 

Gotta check the CRL's to make sure I get the teeth number right, but I'm thoroughly looking forward to this part of the build.

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Awesome!

[MarxKnight91[TK]]

Went to work on the bucket this evening; started the day with looking over a few builds and TrooperBay's videos, but that hasn't kept the Dark Side from gaining control of me on this thing. The eyes were difficult to trim out properly due to the angles but I think I got it to a good status. Was going to begin dremeling the teeth to get them started but thunderstorms in the area thought differently. 

 

An updated picture on the thigh shim work, as I forgot to add one on the last update. It still needs its coverstrip, but I walked away from the work zone to take a break from the bucket.

 

 

Trimmed the sides on the faceplate and 'hood' of the helmet...

 

 

And just had to try it on.

 

 

Attempted to get a good lineup across both sides to get ready to rivet once I had the teeth together, but I couldn't get it the way I liked it with the available tools. My clamps that I attempted to use on the inside of the eyes to hold the brow in place like in the TrooperBay videos were too big, while my magnets were breaking left and right. A lot of firsts on this part of the build: first injury when I was cutting down the inside of the eye to my thumb; first magnet break (x3 as it turned out); and first overwhelming urge to throw a piece of armor against the wall when the bucket moved on the 28th attempt to align it.

 

So I moved onto trimming the ears. First one was great, I could clearly see the indentions on where it needed to be trimmed to.

 

 

But the otherside was not as forthcoming:

 

 

This bucket will take some work. Shout out to, I believe, Altair's build thread that I was looking at while working on the helmet. 

 

I'll soon be back at the helmet, but there are other areas that still need attention on the rest of the suit. Goals for tomorrow will include the thigh outer strip, sniper plate, trimming of the battery pack, and dremeling of the teeth and ears. I've also entered into a contest to enter my application for approval by Sunday, so miles to go before I sleep!