themaninthesuitcase Anovos ANH Stunt Build

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

As the UKG are going to be the ones to approve my armour my primary WIP thread will be there. They have a strict approval system and so I want to give my self the best chance by doing the majority of the work there.

 

That said I do want to have a thread here, as they don't allow discussion. To allow for this I will be mirroring my posts over here, but deferring the them on any real decisions that need to be made.

 

And now back to our regularly scheduled program.

 

Big brown box day has now happened:

 

 

Wasn't feeling so well yesterday so it sat un-attended for a while but early afternoon I felt good enough for an obligatory bucket list moment:

 

 

In the evening I started with an inventory and checked all part where present. I did a quick check for issues but nothing too detailed.

 

 

Whilst I was checking everything was there I also used a chinagraph to re-mark all the part numbers on the inside incase the number label comes off.

 

During this time I checked out the belt and I can completely understand why people aren't sure about this. The holster is made from quite a thick leather and the fabric used for the belt has no ability to hold it's shape at all. Even the drop boxes cause it to fold over.... I've ordered some super glue remover and will be testing this on some off-cuts. Hopefully this will make removing the rivet covers easier and reduce risk of damage.

 

Inventory done I tried to put all the parts into the armour bin I purchased. This is the one you can get for around £20 for various DIY stores. I'd prefer the Stanley style one but at £100 it's not going to happen. Unfortunately all the excess plastic means it didn't all fit so seeing as I have to keep the shipping box anyway it all went back in there. The bin is being used as tool and trimmed part storage for now.

 

 

I elected to start my trimming experience with the hand guards. The reason I went for them was I plan to get flexible ones so they are essentially surplus to requirements and so ideal to learn the material.

 

I used the chinagraph to trace out the cut line and attempted score and snap.

 

 

The glossy material is tricky to get that first clean cut on. Though once you have something to follow then it's pretty easy. What I did find though was some parts didn't snap so well. It's almost as it the rear layer of some material is different and just flexes rather than snaps. Mixed luck across all the parts I trimmed last night. In the end most trimming was done with some curved lexan scissors. They took a bit of getting used to but are great now I have the hang of them.

 

Next I trimmed the thigh ammo pack. I clamped on a steel rule and scored the long edges and then used the scissors on the ends. The curves where refined with a small file and assorted sand paper. The curves on each end don't match but were accurate to the trim line.

 

 

The final part I trimmed before time ran out was the inner right bicep. This is one of the more hidden parts being on the inside and under the shoulder bell so seemed like a good place to learn again.

 

This went without much issues, I scored and snapped the straight sides but had the "flex" issues on one side so returned to the scissors to finish. Again after rough trimming I used my set of files and papers to refine the curves and remove all the material to the line.

 

 

Finishing this part has given me a lot more confidence in trimming and will probably continue with the biceps before completing the arms and then moving onto the legs next.

 

I'm in no rush to get the trimming done. I'm happy with my slow and stead route using hand tools and won't be cracking out the dremel any time soon.

 

 

Full gallery of images is here with some bonus stuff not here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/themaninthesuitcase/albums/72157660102753074

Edited April 17, 2018 by themaninthesuitcase
Correct title

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Oh for what it's worth the supplied snaps seem pretty junky. On the pre-made snap plates I can already see rust! I'll be buying all new snaps and won't be using any of those supplied.

[sylverbard[TK]]

You did take the plastic coating off if it as there right?

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

You did take the plastic coating off if it as there right?

Not yet, it's only on the outside as far as I can tell and that gets cut through. The flex when snapping issue I saw was definitely the actual material not a cover plastic.

[sylverbard[TK]]

Inner surface could have a more brittle density from cooling faster on the aluminum buck and not slower in air.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

More time on the rough trim this evening.

 

Carried on with the biceps before moving on to finish the arms.

 

 

Again was having trouble with score and snap. The material just wants to tear, so I am sticking with the lexan scissors. This does mean I can no longer feel my thumb.

 

I decided to tape a few parts together to start testing the fit. This was a real break through moment and the whole thing is feeling more real now. The wife also seemed to think is was hilarious watching me trying to figure out how to wear them.

 

 

I've yet to trim the return edges on the fore arms. I believe I have the right line but would like a double check. Also whats the preferred method to remove this return? The scissors could probably get me pretty close than back to the course grit paper?

 

 

Armour bin is filling up with trimmed parts, a long way to go but the end result will be worth it.

 

 

Previously I mentioned superglue remover. This came to day and is based on Nitromethane. Sadly this will melt ABS it seems, I put a few drops on an off cut and after a few minutes it went pretty soft. If I am careful I might be able to remove glue from the back of the rivets once they are off but nothing much more than that. Looks like the best way forwards is to drill out the rivets from the back then to carefully remove the caps afterwards.

 

I also picked up some cotton balls and buds to clean up the paint on the helmet but that's a job I'll do when waiting for glue to dry.

[Revyl]

 

 

Previously I mentioned superglue remover. This came to day and is based on Nitromethane. Sadly this will melt ABS it seems, I put a few drops on an off cut and after a few minutes it went pretty soft. If I am careful I might be able to remove glue from the back of the rivets once they are off but nothing much more than that. Looks like the best way forwards is to drill out the rivets from the back then to carefully remove the caps afterwards.

I was wondering about the CA glue as well. I suppose most if not all chemical products able to dissolve CA will also attacl the ABS. But iirc freezing will make CA go brittle. I wonder if putting the belt into the freezer over night might make it brittle enough to break easier for prying the caps off.

 

 

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[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Sadly I don't think I'll be able to get the belt in our freezer, way too much food in there!

 

 

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[artimorty]

Sadly I don't think I'll be able to get the belt in our freezer, way too much food in there!

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Hi there Chirs. I think I red somewhere in an anovos' build thread that somebody posted that CA glue isn't very fond of water and that a good way to go removing it would be using hot water on the snap cups of the belt. Sorry I couldn't get you the reference but it's late here and I'm getting sleepy while I search that on the forums. Also in DBoz thread he used a pocket knife to carefully remove those bottoms.

You can check that second option here:

http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/35115-dboz-anovos-tk-build/page-2

Hope that helps...

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Hi there Chirs. I think I red somewhere in an anovos' build thread that somebody posted that CA glue isn't very fond of water and that a good way to go removing it would be using hot water on the snap cups of the belt. Sorry I couldn't get you the reference but it's late here and I'm getting sleepy while I search that on the forums. Also in DBoz thread he used a pocket knife to carefully remove those bottoms.

You can check that second option here:

http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/35115-dboz-anovos-tk-build/page-2

Hope that helps...

I have seen that and he seems to have done well. Though I've also seen people rip the rivet out leaving a nasty hole. Just trying to stack the odds in my favour. I'll have to do some tests with the freezer and some scrap.

 

Got all the 25mm/1" elastic today, already have some 6mm white. I'm struggling to find any 2" and 3", same with the number 4 hooks. Will have to hit the Internet for these.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

After destroying my search history I've sourced all the 2" and 3" elastic as well as the size 4 hooks and some 14mm sew-on poppers for the shoulder drop.  All this was cheaper than the elastic alone on amazon so hopefully going to a small hobby site pays off.  If anyone in the UK wants to try them it was HabbyCraft, I can't recommend them yet as I have only just ordered but will update on if they are any good.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

I finished the trimming last night. Going back to the first pieces I did I can see I got a lot better at trimming as time went on. Seems the combo of score and snap and relief cuts with the scissors worked well. I did trim a few parts such as the shoulders with only the scissors as I found score and snap to risky on these more curved parts.

 

I haven't done gluing yet but I have offered up a few combinations of parts to check for fit and I think I won't have to do too much trimming. There's a few returns that seem overly large but I will get some pictures taken and ask for advice before any further trimming. On the plus side it looks like the parts should fit me pretty well and I won't need any shims and the gaps will be about right.

 

I'll probably start the glue up with the biceps. I'll be use the method where I glue a strip to one side of the shell then the other rather than trying to do both sides of 1 strip at once. I also will need some advice on the correct trimming to fit but I'll get some photos of the parts in the order I plan to do them.

 

edit: Forgot to mention I've had an email about the under armour now. Should have it by the middle of next month. Though in the interest of getting cracking I have a top I should be able to use and a pair of my wifes old leggings. The leggings are a bit thicker than the underarmour but are pretty tight so should perform a similar function.

Edited February 10, 2016 by themaninthesuitcase

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Also just ordered the cheap FMA tactical helmet pads from eBay seeing as the decent ones are prohibitively expensive to get to the UK. Though thanks to the lunar new year the estimated delivery time is approx. 1-2 million years (aka sometime before the end of March). Worst case I'll stick with the hard hat liner for a while and then switch out once they arrive.

 

I also need to find a good alternative to plasti-dip. In the UK a 400ml rattle can is £11, or 250ml of the paintable is £8. Plus delivery of £6. If I can find something just as good locally I can potentially make a reasonable saving. However unless this is a known good substitute I may as well just get the dip. The cost of trying 2-3 things is a false economy.

 

And finally, seeing as it's a shopping day, what thickness ABS is recommended for snap plates? 1mm seems like it would be a shade too weak, 2mm to inflexible. Is 1.5mm the happy medium?

[kman[TK]]

Following. Looks like you're doing well! One thing with Score and Snap is you'll want to be sure to use snips to cut the corners. I find that helps a LOT.

 

Definitely no on the CA dissolver, for belt disassembly. I'm going to try the freezing trick, personally. Be careful of the hot water idea, because that will soften the ABS as well as the CA glue, for sure. (that's one way to reshape without using a heat gun)

 

For snap plates, I think 1mm is probably just fine. That's the thickness of the Anovos ones. There's not that much pressure on any one plate, after all. And the thinner plate can curve easier to sit flush with the armor. 1.5mm would be fine as well, just be sure the stems on your snaps are long enough to securely go through.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Progress report with some pictures this time:

 

From trying on various parts it looks like I'll be a reasonable fit for the armour. I should be able to get no side gaps as is. I was also worried about the legs as they look very slim when you see pictures but I need not have worried.

 

 

Excuse the hairy legs!

 

The only real mistake I made when trimming was a slight slip when doing the lower side of an inner thigh. The image below shows the damage. Cosmetically I'm not worried but will I need to do anything for stress relief reasons?

 

 

When trimming the shoulder bells I started with score and snap and had serious issues with the plastic not snapping. I nearly had a few tears and on the corner it delaminated slightly. To remedy this I used some plastic cement and clamped the split for a while. As this will be under 0 stress I am happy with the solution. The 2nd bell was cut with scissors to avoid the issue.

 

 

I'm pretty happy with how the main ab plate came out:

 

 

Though the secondary one came out a shade smaller than I'd like. I found the curved edge hard to score on and had to come in more than I'd have liked. Ultimately it looks fine though.

 

 

Fully trimmed all the parts now fit in the armour bin, this gives me more confidence they will do so still even once assembled.

 

 

I also have now started the gluing process. I am using E-6000 for this, and this is my first experience with this. I tried to be sparing to reduce waste from squeeze out. I think I've covered enough though I think next time I'll use a bit more glue.

 

I measured out the cover strips using the parts and smoothed the corners. I've seen corners square, rounded and with 45 deg cuts. I like the squarer look my self so just dulled the corners on some 240 grit. I also used this to roughen the back of the cover strip for a bit more mechanical grip. I didn't do this on the armour for fear of going to far, I simply peeled back the protective coating.

 

I also marked a centre line on the rear of the strips to aid alignment when gluing. I'm not overly concerned with them being 100% perfectly aligned as the armour is famous for its flaws, this simply helped me line the parts up.

 

 

For the gluing I squeezed out a small amount of E-6000 into a paper plate and used a glue spreader liberated from either Starbucks or Costa, I forget which, to apply a thin layer to the back of the cover strip. This was then lined up and clamped using the smallest clamps from Wilko (75p a go!). I need to buy more of these, 10 isn't enough.

 

 

For those wondering the A tells me which side it was as I cut both the strips before glueing.

 

After doing both sides on both biceps I ran out of clamps and was half way through my 20mm magnets. I have some 10mm magnets but they will need to be doubled up to be strong enough to use them. Progress will probably slow a lot now as I need to allow the glue to dry and it sounds like I might only be able to do one part at a time. I'll test the strength of the bond on the biceps once 24 hours has passed to make sure it

 

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Following. Looks like you're doing well! One thing with Score and Snap is you'll want to be sure to use snips to cut the corners. I find that helps a LOT.

 

Definitely no on the CA dissolver, for belt disassembly. I'm going to try the freezing trick, personally. Be careful of the hot water idea, because that will soften the ABS as well as the CA glue, for sure. (that's one way to reshape without using a heat gun)

 

For snap plates, I think 1mm is probably just fine. That's the thickness of the Anovos ones. There's not that much pressure on any one plate, after all. And the thinner plate can curve easier to sit flush with the armor. 1.5mm would be fine as well, just be sure the stems on your snaps are long enough to securely go through.

I did use the scissors to snip the corners, you're right it does help a lot. I also used it for relief cuts on curves to keep the snap as straight as possible.

 

I think for the belt I'll probably drill out the back of the rivet then put the rest into the freezer. I've also read that CA is weaker in shear so a twist might be less risky than prying it off.

 

For the snaps the CO of the UKG has suggested I used 1" webbing so I'll probably follow that advice.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

I gave the E-6000 a poke before I left for work (at 6AM ).  So after 8-9 hours the bond already seems to be pretty strong, I'll have no worries about popping the clamps and carrying on right after dinner this evening.

[Airborne Trooper[501st]]

You're so organized! My build took up a folding table in my kitchen for like 8 months and it was a mountain of chaos. 

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

You're so organized! My build took up a folding table in my kitchen for like 8 months and it was a mountain of chaos.

I have to be organized, I don't have a dedicated build area and with 2 2 year olds running around NOTHING can be left out!

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Finished the biceps off this evening. I taped them up previously to test fit and if anything they are a shade small so I may need to trim back the return later.

 

 

I still need to remove the excess E-6000 but I'll do this once the other side is done.

 

I made a start on the forearms as well. I started by trimming to 7.5mm at the thinnest parts to allow for the 15mm cover strip. I erred on the to wide side rather than to thin so it may be a tad wider in places. One arm looks to line up nicely though the 2nd doesn't.

 

 

Do I need to do anything special or just tim the strip as below?

 

 

I've also drawn a suggested cut line to remove the wrist return. Does this look about right?

 

 

And I finished up with a first fitting. They seem to be about right as is so hopefully nothing drastic to change. Once I've done the return I'll glue the front and seek better guidance on the proper fit for these.

 

[kman[TK]]

For the forearm, I'd let the cover strip for #17 there extend to be the size of the longer piece, edges chamfered as usual. Make the decision on trimming, or not, later down the road. It's normal on screen-used to be that way.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

This update covers 2 nights of work:

First is this small gap on the top of a bicep okay? It's no more than 1mm.



The left forearm, which was the one that aligned okay, now has the front cover strip fully glued on. I've yet to size the part so the rear is still to follow.



I mocked up the adjustments to the right forearm. I've moved the front edge up about 5mm, this leaves about the same at the top.



Closer detail on the amount I want to move:



And the proposed wrist trim line:



I have now made a start on the thighs.

I started by trimming down the cover strip area:



One inner, I think the left, has a large flare on the cover strip area. This caused a bit of a head ache. But after looking at a few pictures I went with the following as per UKWraths build.



Once both sides where trimmed this gave this:



I've now glued the cover strip to both the outer thighs now. Once this is set I'll add the inners. This feels line it will need a bit of rough handling to hold in place. Hopefully a few clamps, magnets and a lot of tape will be up to the job.



You should hopefully be able to see where the cover strip starts, leaving the lower section free as per the reference images I stole from a UKG build thread.

I finished up for the evening by using some of the cover strip off cuts to bulk out the back of the shoulder straps. This will add some extra surface area when I glue them to the front chest plate.



Next jobs planned will be to trim the front of the calfs and add the front cover strips. Once all the clam shell parts have their fronts glued I'll need to source some under armour and start sizing. I'll be cutting nothing before I get appropriate advice as this would be easy to mess up.

[kman[TK]]

Good idea padding out the shoulder strips like that.  I wish I had thought of it!

 

If mine come off, I'll use that technique.  (if they stay on, I guess it's not necessary!)

Edited February 14, 2016 by kman

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Having a night off today, I've been having a habit of working longer than I should on a school night so need to catch up on some rest.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

Back on the horse tonight. Turns out I now own many clamps.

 

 

I started by adding the 2nd half to the right thigh. I did a rough test fit previously and I am hoping I'll only need to glue up the rears of the thighs. Once both are glued and set I'll tape them up and take some photos to confirm the fit. I would have done both sides but I only had 3 pairs of the stronger magnets left which wouldn't have been enough.

 

 

I looked at some other builds and reference today and I decided I was happy with my proposed cuts for the right forearm and went ahead with them. After cutting I checked the length against the left and the 2 parts are now around 1mm different in length so this seems to hint I did a reasonable job.

 

 

The cover strip was added one half at a time.

 

 

The 2nd half was added about an hour after the first half was glued, this was long enough for the glue to have set enough to remove the clamps and add the 2nd part. I added some tape this time to help pull the parts together whilst the glue goes off.

 

 

This is how I've looked most evenings. That glue isn't good for you, so if you don't look something like this you're daft. Yes, I know I need a new respirator. This one is clogged as hell and getting hard to breath through.

 

 

I also started adding the elastics. After consulting various builds I started gluing some 1" elastic about 5mm from the bottom edge from the bell. I glued around 5cm to the bell. I started by marking out where the elastic would glue to allow me to glue the bell rather than the elastic as this seemed like it would be tidier.

 

 

Once this was marked out I filled the area with glue to about 5mm from the front edge of the bell then clamped on the elastic. I moved the clamps about for a bit to ensure the whole surface was pushed into the glue.

 

 

Seeing as I've not had any input on the length of elastic, and build threads seem to span taught to very loose so I elected to just glue one side of each bell. To reduce waste I haven't cut the elastic so I now have 2 shoulder joined by 1m of elastic. Once the length is confirmed I'll cut, seal and glue the other side.

 

 

Finally the reason why I'm replacing the included harness: The velcro is rubbish.

 

 

This is around the 4th or 5th time this has happened. Once they arrive from China I'll replace the harness with some air soft tactical pads. This should also allow the helmet to sit a little higher which will give me more movement. I'll also need to adjust the visor as it sits on my nose and isn't exactly comfortable.

 

Tomorrow I will attach the 2 halves of the other thigh and start trying to figure out the sizing for the forearms.