Emma's First ANH Stunt [WTF] - any help is appreciated!

[EmlanThane]

Ok, today I installed the TD clips. YAY Progress!  Here are some details of my process:

 

First, I used my Trusty Blue Tape to hold the clips in place as evenly as possible, and used a thin sharpee to mark more clearly where I needed to drill.

 

I made sure the clips were up as tight as possible against the end caps without being crooked. It's not perfect, but it doesn't have to be...?

 

I then drilled all four holes without removing the clips. I used a 5/64 drill bit (tested on extra plastic before actual use) to make a pilot hole that the screws could then "cut into."

 

I took my screws and hand-twisted them into the pilot holes until they stood on their own. I then used another drill bit (that barely fit the tiny slots in the screw heads, I don't remember the size, sorry) to drill the screws most of the way in.

 

Once all four of the screws were mostly in, I used a Q tip to dab some E6000 under each one.

 

 

 

Lastly, I tightened the screws all the way with the drill, making sure the clips were as lined up with the end caps as they could be. Here's the finished product:

 

 

As you can see, I need to pick away some E6000 once it dries as well as touch up the paint. Then I can add the plate and then... I'm done! Well, with that piece. But it will be good to have one thing completely finished (I am still waiting on my helmet brow trim to arrive!).

 

How does it look? I'm kind of surprised and happy with it 

[zv288bot[TK]]

Looks great!

 

sent from my phone

[MoSc0ut[TK]]

Perfect! My clips aren't all the way next to the caps and I still got my EIB. It'll also be good for Centurion. When I have some time I'll fix my forearms and get fix it so my drop boxes stay in place and submit, (they slide a little on my belt at the moment), you're well on your way! Great job!

 

 

Jim - TK50899

Edited September 21, 2016 by MoSc0ut

[EmlanThane]

Yay... exciting things are happening! 

 

First of all, I went to Hartford Comic Con this weekend, and represented The Connecticut branch of Saber Guild (a smaller Lucasfilm-recognized group that focuses on Jedi, Sith, and Lightsaber Choreography). However, I also got to meet the 501st Connecticut Garrison. If any of you who saw me this weekend are reading this, thank you for being so friendly! It was awesome to meet the people I'll eventually be spending more time with. Also a huge thanks to Andy, who gave me a set of helmet fans, and Ray, who let me use the special Dh-17 for blast-a-trooper. Meeting you all was one of the if not the most memorable part of the weekend.

 

Back to actual building, I finally found time to take my final steps toward completing the Thermal Detonator. The final reveal is tomorrow, but today is the progress.

 

Using math (gasp!) I measured and marked the center of the TD plate and the gray space between the end caps on the tube. I lined both up to where I liked, marked the corners of the plate, removed the plate and finally sanded in between those corners to make gluing a lot better. I hope I sanded enough..

 

Next I used a popsicle stick to apply E6000 to the back side of the plate. In the future, how thick should the layer of glue be? Did I spread mine out too much? It's hard to find pictures of E6000 in-action, so this was my best guess.

 

 

 

 

Lastly, I re-lined up the TD plate, pressed it down and applied my Trusty Blue Tape to hold it for the next 24 hours. The suspense is killing me!

 

 

Soon...

 

 

   Soon...

Edited September 27, 2016 by EmlanThane

[EmlanThane]

DRUM ROLL PLEASE!

 

.................................

 

TADA! Here is the COMPLETED Thermal Detonator! WEEEEEEEE!     

 

Not perfectly straight, as you can see, but.. oh well. It's the best I can do right now!

 

 

I might polish up the plastic bits and somehow remove all the scratches on the metal clips eventually. I've seen people add felt to the backs of the clips to prevent the metal from marking up the plastic too- is that recommended? I'll probably do that eventually.

 

I hope this bit of gap is okay. I couldn't really fix it. Myeh.

 

That being said, here's the TD "in action." Please enjoy this picture of me in my pajamas (You can't tell, but I'm wearing a Yoda shirt) and the gloriousness that is my first completed piece of the build (Ah yes, the awkward butt shot to capture the thermal detonator in-use).

 

 

 

This is an exciting day 

 

*Happy squeals into the distance*

Edited September 28, 2016 by EmlanThane

[Cricket[TK]]

Yay for thermal det completion!  Looks great.  Actually, I'm a bit jealous.  I still need to paint the screws on mine.  

 

Congrats, and onward!

 

 

[EmlanThane]

Alright, it's time to move on to the next step. I am thinking about trimming the shins! My question: How does one keep a return edge consistent around a curve? As in when I cut the pieces how do I make sure it's even? What is the return edge typically? I have seen the "ideal length" vary. When it comes to trimming the sides of each shin half, should I leave some of the flat edge (pictures will come soon) that could eventually glue onto the cover strips in the front or back or cut all flat parts off right up to the curvy side part? Does that make sense? It might help when I can get a picture up.

 

I am thinking of installing my eye lenses with the putty-socket method. I think I'll have to head to the hardware store again. My rubber trim should be coming SOOOOON.

 

Every time I pass my TD I smile and think "I did that!" ...I can only imagine how I'll feel when the whole thing is finished 

[Cricket[TK]]

When it comes to trimming the sides of each shin half, should I leave some of the flat edge (pictures will come soon) that could eventually glue onto the cover strips in the front or back or cut all flat parts off right up to the curvy side part? 

 

I'm assuming that you mean the flat edge on the fronts of the shin pieces, right?  Don't trim off all the flat part.  

 

You'll want to keep these numbers in mind:

 

Cover Strip Sizes

• Thighs (front and back)- 20mm
• Shins- 20mm
• Calves- 25mm
• Arms- 15mm

Your shin cover strips that will be glued to the flat parts of the shins should be 20mm (or very close to that).  So you'll want to have half of that number on your flat shin edge.  At an armor party I was told to add an extra millimeter or two to that number so you have a little ridge still showing on the sides of the cover strips.  Short answer:  keep around 10mm (or a little more) of the flat sides of the shins.  When you put the two halves of the shins together, you'll have a perfect base for your 20mm cover strip.  Does that make sense?  

 

Here's a pic of the crappy job I did trimming my shins.  Not straight at all, but I finally got them to fit.  The one on the right is trimmed and shaped to fit me, the one on the left is after I attached it, but before I altered it to fit.

 

As I understand it, the fronts of the shins are constant for everyone.  The backs of the shins are where you make your size adjustments for width.

 

And one of the shins with the 20mm cover strip.

 

And if I'm off on this, someone please step in to correct me.  

 

 

How does one keep a return edge consistent around a curve? As in when I cut the pieces how do I make sure it's even? What is the return edge typically? I have seen the "ideal length" vary. 

 

As I've read it, a typical return is 6-8mm (or somewhere between 1/4"- 5/16").  If I want to create a fairly consistent cut line around the curved pieces, I tape a pencil to my finger and trace the edge like this:

 

 

And always cut less than you think you'll need to.  You can always sand stuff off, but it's a pain in the butt to put it back.  Ask me how I know.  

[zv288bot[TK]]

Sound advice!

 

Sent from my KFTHWI using Tapatalk

[MoSc0ut[TK]]

To add my two cents to this: don't trim any off the back of the calf at first. Preparation is key! Make 6 20mm cover strips (thighs use 4, shins use 2) and 2, 25mm (back of shins or "calves")

 

Trim the front of the shin, leaving 11mm on each side. Do this by measuring 11mm in from where the armor transitions from the curved side to the flat part. I did this 3 times one each shin to ensure that it was consistently 11mm from top to bottom. Draw a line connecting the dots with a straight edge. I use a metal flexible ruler.

 

Trimming the shin piece off. To get a good cutting surface I move my cutting mat to the edge of a table and wrap the shin around the edges of the table with the part I'm going to cut on top. I suggest the score and snap method with WTF armor. This is done by lightly scoring along the line you just drew. Do the first two or three passes with very little pressure. On the third or fourth pass gradually increase pressure. I do this 6 or 7 times in total. The first couple passes build a small channel for the blade to follow. The last 3 or 4 create depth.

 

Now pick up the shin and grasp the part your trimming and snap it off by flexing it first away from the side you scored then back towards you working from one side to the other. It is a bit intimidating at first but it works great and is much faster and less messy than a dremel. Sand the edge with some 150grit and your done!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[EmlanThane]

To add my two cents to this: don't trim any off the back of the calf at first. Preparation is key! Make 6 20mm cover strips (thighs use 4, shins use 2) and 2, 25mm (back of shins or "calves")

 

Trim the front of the shin, leaving 11mm on each side. Do this by measuring 11mm in from where the armor transitions from the curved side to the flat part. I did this 3 times one each shin to ensure that it was consistently 11mm from top to bottom. Draw a line connecting the dots with a straight edge. I use a metal flexible ruler.

 

Trimming the shin piece off. To get a good cutting surface I move my cutting mat to the edge of a table and wrap the shin around the edges of the table with the part I'm going to cut on top. I suggest the score and snap method with WTF armor. This is done by lightly scoring along the line you just drew. Do the first two or three passes with very little pressure. On the third or fourth pass gradually increase pressure. I do this 6 or 7 times in total. The first couple passes build a small channel for the blade to follow. The last 3 or 4 create depth.

 

Now pick up the shin and grasp the part your trimming and snap it off by flexing it first away from the side you scored then back towards you working from one side to the other. It is a bit intimidating at first but it works great and is much faster and less messy than a dremel. Sand the edge with some 150grit and your done!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Wow! Awesome advice! Thank you! Because my shins are not super skinny I'll leave most of the back untrimmed at first anyway. And I won't trim the bottom until I get the boots.

 

I will need some courage to score-and-snap-- on another project a few days ago I sliced my finger with a hobby blade! This time I'll be sure to wear gloves (I did not have access to them at the time of cutting my finger) and I'll get an actual cutting mat. I might even make my cover strips FIRST to practice cutting and snapping straight lines (since there is plenty of extra cover strip material).

[EmlanThane]

I'm assuming that you mean the flat edge on the fronts of the shin pieces, right?  Don't trim off all the flat part.  

 

You'll want to keep these numbers in mind:

 

Cover Strip Sizes

• Thighs (front and back)- 20mm
• Shins- 20mm
• Calves- 25mm
• Arms- 15mm

Your shin cover strips that will be glued to the flat parts of the shins should be 20mm (or very close to that).  So you'll want to have half of that number on your flat shin edge.  At an armor party I was told to add an extra millimeter or two to that number so you have a little ridge still showing on the sides of the cover strips.  Short answer:  keep around 10mm (or a little more) of the flat sides of the shins.  When you put the two halves of the shins together, you'll have a perfect base for your 20mm cover strip.  Does that make sense?  

 

Here's a pic of the crappy job I did trimming my shins.  Not straight at all, but I finally got them to fit.  The one on the right is trimmed and shaped to fit me, the one on the left is after I attached it, but before I altered it to fit.

 

As I understand it, the fronts of the shins are constant for everyone.  The backs of the shins are where you make your size adjustments for width.

 

And one of the shins with the 20mm cover strip.

 

And if I'm off on this, someone please step in to correct me.  

 

 

As I've read it, a typical return is 6-8mm (or somewhere between 1/4"- 5/16").  If I want to create a fairly consistent cut line around the curved pieces, I tape a pencil to my finger and trace the edge like this:

 

 

And always cut less than you think you'll need to.  You can always sand stuff off, but it's a pain in the butt to put it back.  Ask me how I know.  

So... how DO  you know to always cut less? 

 

But seriously thank you. This information is extremely helpful. The WTF armor already comes with very little excess return edge so I will have to be careful cutting that- but the finger and pencil method is something I should try. And your shins look great! Is it a given that I will have to do a hot water bath to mold them together? And because the fronts of the shins are set in stone should I glue those together first and then test fit to see how much to trim away on the back? I'll go check out your thread again right now 

[MoSc0ut[TK]]

Wow! Awesome advice! Thank you! Because my shins are not super skinny I'll leave most of the back untrimmed at first anyway. And I won't trim the bottom until I get the boots.

 

I will need some courage to score-and-snap-- on another project a few days ago I sliced my finger with a hobby blade! This time I'll be sure to wear gloves (I did not have access to them at the time of cutting my finger) and I'll get an actual cutting mat. I might even make my cover strips FIRST to practice cutting and snapping straight lines (since there is plenty of extra cover strip material).

The key to not cutting yourself is to go slow and make many small passes. This method also help prevent the blade from slipping sideways. Also whenever possible, make sure any body parts are not in the path of the blade! I have yet to find cut resistant gloves in my size at any local stores. I use the cloth gloves that have a nitrile coating. They have good dexterity, they are cheap, and if you're careful, even if the blade tries to get you you can usually react fast enough that only the glove is damaged and not your flesh!

 

You may also want to consider doing all the fronts of the leg parts all at once as it's the same concept for all. When those are ready to go we can go over sizing the backs. That is the (not so) "fun" part!

 

I forgot to mention that 1/4" is way too much return edge. Mine is somewhere between 3mm - 5mm, which is close to 1/4" but not quite, mine are closer to 3mm. Just enough to give the armor the "appearance" of thickness. If you leave 1/4" you will regret it after your first troop!

 

Jim - TK50899

Edited October 3, 2016 by MoSc0ut

[68Brick[TK]]

Great advice given by Jim. The front of the armor is where the cover strip measurements have to meet spec. The back can be as wide as needed for sizing.

 

Get yourself a sharp utility knife (no the break-off blade types) and a metal yard stick for the score and snap method. Really helps with long straight cuts.

[Cricket[TK]]

I forgot to mention that 1/4" is way too much return edge. Mine is somewhere between 3mm - 5mm, which is close to 1/4" but not quite, mine are closer to 3mm. Just enough to give the armor the "appearance" of thickness. If you leave 1/4" you will regret it after your first troop!

 

 

Good to know, Jim!  Mine are on the thicker side, but don't give me any issues right now.  I'm sure you know best on this, though because my shins have only seen action up and down stairs at home- not a full-fledged troop!    I'll keep my Dremel on standby for this mod...

 

BTW, I wish I had seen your tips about shin trimming before I did mine.  Your explanation is great!

[MoSc0ut[TK]]

Good to know, Jim! Mine are on the thicker side, but don't give me any issues right now. I'm sure you know best on this, though because my shins have only seen action up and down stairs at home- not a full-fledged troop! I'll keep my Dremel on standby for this mod...

 

BTW, I wish I had seen your tips about shin trimming before I did mine. Your explanation is great!

Good plan and I'm sure your shins will be fine! I'll try to reply sooner to this thread or you can PM me if your are at a critical decision point.

 

My first troop was a 1 mile parade and it was 98 degrees out. I found every pinch point and spot that had too much return edge quickly! I also boosted Neosporin and band aid stocks prices single handedly!

 

I still have a few spots to fix. It's a never ending labor of love!

Edited October 3, 2016 by MoSc0ut

[EmlanThane]

So here's the plan: I'll trim the shins! BUT something else awesome came in.

 

FINALLY MY NEW RUBBER BROW IS HERE!

 

I carefulllllyyyyy trimmed a little bit away at a time. I also angled the backs of the trim so that the rubber could extend farther past the sharp corner junction between the sides and top. The edges are straight (ish...) this time. How does THIS look?

 

 

 

The ends kind of sag a little bit. Do you think I should eventually add a dab of glue or something?

 

I'll get to assembling everything on the bucket soon as well. 

 

Excellent...

[MoSc0ut[TK]]

Looks great! Once you install the face and ears the brow won't go anywhere.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[illusionz_09[TK]]

Looking Good!

[68Brick[TK]]

Looks good. a couple small daps of glue will ensure it doesn't come off or droop on you. With only a couple daps of glue, you could remove it in the future if needed.

[Ryth_[501st]]

Had to use a wee bit glue to keep it from sagging down. Stuck forever now - yay

[EmlanThane]

 

 

And always cut less than you think you'll need to.  You can always sand stuff off, but it's a pain in the butt to put it back.  Ask me how I know.  

 

 

I am preparing to trim the shins (I tested the waters a little bit last night and am ready to go through will the whole thing today) and I checked your thread and saw you trimmed the top return edges off the shins.... oh...    You made a great recovery from it though haha. Your thread is awesome 

[Cricket[TK]]

Oh!  I didn't recover from cutting off the top returns of the shins.  I had them replaced.    I'm not that good with ABS paste.  

[EmlanThane]

Oh!  I didn't recover from cutting off the top returns of the shins.  I had them replaced.    I'm not that good with ABS paste.  

That's what I meant haha. I guess inflection doesn't come through via writing. 

[EmlanThane]

*I am having trouble resizing and reorienting tonight's pictures so they are going to be extra large, and some will be tilted. I apologize if they are harder to look at! Photobucket is being weird  *

 

 

Ok! Shin time! Woohoo!

 

So, I started by trimming the bottoms of the shins, freehand with my lexan scissors because I know that I will 100% have to trim them again later down the line to fit me better height-wise, so it would be good practice using those scissors!

 

I used a pencil to trace the return edge on the tops of the shins. There's some indents between the actual mold and the excess plastic-- I let my pencil follow along that line naturally. Frustratingly, it's not 100% even (the lines I drew and cut on). I'm not sure how even it is supposed to be. I can always even out the return edge once I put the pieces together... but right now it's not consistent. It's really hard to maneuver those sharp corners with scissors, or make sure the line you are cutting is still straight (so you won't cut on a slant and decrease the return edge as you move along).

 

I'll let you be the judge of my return-edge cutting abilities. Here are the bottoms that really don't matter anyway since i am going to cut more off and they shouldn't have any return edge to begin with, but it's the rough, rough trim so that's okay- I might as well post the picture! This was done just so I can size them on my legs if I want to.

 

 

And here are the tops, the most important picture of the night. I suggest zooming in to see the details. How uneven does it look?

 

 

 

Another thing- the return edge gets really scratched up from the scissors turning and snipping. I'm not sure if polish can completely erase some of them. Blargh.

 

I have yet to trim the sides because I want to have some practice cutting long straight lines first, so....

 

I also practiced making a cover strip! Here's my procedure- I will not show how I make every cover strip but this is how I think I should keep doing it. 

 

I use a ruler to mark (here 20 mm) away from the edge, a few times along the strip (The WTF kit comes with several extra long planks of thin ABS for this purpose).

 

 

I connect the dots with a straight edge (my flexible metal ruler) and score several times along the line, against the ruler with an exacto knife. It is still going to take some more practice!

 

 

I snap off the piece with pliers. Heads up: don't use pliers with teeth. I accidentally did this time and left little dents in the plastic. That's why this was a practice! Ah hah!

 

 

So, next, I should practice making more cover strips and then cut the fronts of the shins, each 11 mm. But for now, I am looking for feedback. This is much different than the other stuff I worked on before, so I am a total newbie!