Team Armor Build [NE]: ESB in Northern California

[Haribon72[TK]]

Re-use the cut out as an inside joint cover and backing.   Glue this piece only first and let it set over night.

 

Sand off both sides of the cut off.    Make trims on the ends if necessary.

 

Glue, clamp, magnets, and let it cure overnight.

 

Continue the same process on the other thigh, finish it up, and call it a night.   I used blue painters tape to keep the ABS cement from leaking to the front of the thighs.  Right now there is no cover strip to the front.   There's a reason to my method.  Bingo wasn't around this evening.   So we'll continue the thighs this weekend.

Edited October 16, 2015 by Haribon72

[Haribon72[TK]]

Lower Legs

This how I build them in preparation for fitting.  This is the same process as the thigh assembly.

 

This is how I identify the left and right lower legs.  The CRL shows a bigger return edge on the left leg.

 

Here are two legs (side by side).

 

One is shows 10mm

 

One shows 5mm.

Edited October 17, 2015 by Haribon72

[Haribon72[TK]]

The legs with 10mm edges, I will use them as the left lower leg.

 

The legs with 5mm will be the right leg (with the ammo pack).

[Haribon72[TK]]

Cutting.

 

Measure from the top of the ankle to the bottom of the knee.

Mark the armor and cut all of the bottom off (following the old curvature).

 

The distance between Bingo's top ankle and bottom of his knee is 12.5 inches.   (The actual distance was 13.0 inches but we removed 1/2 inch more for the TK boots clearance).

Edited October 17, 2015 by Haribon72

[Haribon72[TK]]

Next, remove the return edge of the top of the armor.  We don't need it.

 

Use a strong utility knife for cutting.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Sand off the debris

[Haribon72[TK]]

Next, we're going to cut off the front part of the lower leg to make a 20mm butt joint.

I'm starting from the inside again because it has a clean line for measurement.

 

We want 10mm on each side.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Sand it down using our home made belt sander.

 

We saved our cut out piece to make our 20mm cover strip for the inside only!

[Haribon72[TK]]

Glue the cover strip to the inside (don't forget to sand it down before gluing).

 

Once you finish gluing the lower legs together, the armor will need to set overnight.  Again there's no cover strip to the front lower legs.

We are creating a clam shell for Bingo to put his legs into so we can get a nice measurement before we trim the back of the legs (lower and thighs).

That's the idea to my method.

 

Ready for the clam shell fitting this weekend.

Edited October 17, 2015 by Haribon72

[Haribon72[TK]]

This is the ABS cement i'm using.  It came with the kit.

 

You can buy this cement on Amazon:   WELD ON 771 ABS (make sure its MILKY color).

 

Note:  This cement is strong with a cement odor when wet.  After it dries, the odor is gone.   After applying it, it takes about four hours to cure and set.    Overnight is best.

If you need to remove or disassemble an armor piece, you will be using a chisel and light hammer to separate the cement bond.  I like this cement because it will hold better than E6000 (also I can't stand the smell of E6000 - even after it dries). 

 

 

Edited February 18, 2016 by Haribon72

[Haribon72[TK]]

Let's work on the sniper knee.

 

I'm going to leave 7mm at the top of the knee.

 

Adding more cut out areas to give it a movie look.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Best way to cut it off.   

 

1. Solid surface

2. One by four wood

3. Sharp utility knife

4. Patience (take your time)

 

 

Burr the edges and sand.

 

Done.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Ammo pack for the thigh.

 

 

 

Done.

 

We're going to heat bend the ammo pack this weekend.  We don't want to bend it now because we still have to clam shell the thighs on Bingo.

 

Okay.. have a great evening (or day).    To be continued . . . 

[Superbee[TK]]

Nice job so far, this is really helping me out ! :-)

[Haribon72[TK]]

Let's paint the Ears.

We decide to paint the ears first and then install them later.  Its easier to paint them seperate rather than on the helmet.

I purchased a punch set to make perfect circle as stencils. 

 

 

We want to use a quarter of the circle to get clean curves.  

[Haribon72[TK]]

Here's the look before painting the outside black border.

[Haribon72[TK]]

 

Time to add the grey.

 

Allow to dry overnight and we will re-visit with an exacto knife to clean off the smear marks.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Let's prepare the forearms for Bingo.

 

Reference reminder.

 

Identifying the left forearm.

Left arm has eleven square dips.

Edited October 21, 2015 by Haribon72

[Haribon72[TK]]

Right arm has twelve square dips.  Yes, I know these are ANH references, but it just makes sense to get the forearms identified. 

Edited October 21, 2015 by Haribon72

[Haribon72[TK]]

Remove all the return edges first.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Next, we size them up to Bingo's forearms (length first).  We will remove the wrist and elbow areas later.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Biceps.

Identify left and right. 

 

Size them up to Bingo's biceps.

 

Cut. 

 

Cut off the return edges.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Tape it back up, mark, cut, and shape them to screen accuracy. 

[Haribon72[TK]]

With the bicep cut-outs, we made the j-hooks.    Now there's a lot of discussion about the hooks for ESB.    We're going to make and add them for trooping use and avoid any further discussions.

 

Done.  Set aside for now. 

[Haribon72[TK]]

Shoulder Bells.

Jingle Bells.

la la la la la!

 

 

The swoop going to the left the left. 

 

Added snaps and labeled them for easy identification.  Set aside for now.