Cricket's RS Stunt Build (for the Vertically Challenged)

[Cricket[TK]]

Man going back and looking at it again, It does look like you may need to add a piece just maybe not as severe as the pic with the dotted line.

 

sent from my phone

Yeah, I agree with ya, Jorge.  (sigh)  I should easily be able to make a 'mirror' of the right forearm.  

 

Glad to have some ABS paste on the ready!  (clearing the table, rolling up sleeves, and opening a window...)

[Alay[TK]]

Not sure that I understand 100%, but here's a suggestion: leave this as is, work on some other stuff, and then come back to this. Investing more time into something that's frustrating you now may not be as productive!

 

 

I agree with this... continue on, come back after giving it some time on the back burner

[Cricket[TK]]

Good advice, troopers!  Thank you for the support!

 

I contacted Rob over at RS about my dilemma, and I'm pretty certain that he took pity on me.  He's sending me out a new forearm, and including guide lines to cut for my small size.  Such amazing customer service from RS Props!  They're really going above and beyond.

So, what else to do today?  Oh, well I can't mess up cover strips too much, can I?  These are all for my legs since the cover strips for the arms are done.  I've got enough to do the insides and outsides.



Since I was scoring and snapping, I thought I would make some bicep hooks from the other ABS I picked up from Amazon.  I used the method as outlined in Ukswrath's tutorial for these.  



I think I need a new pair of gloves...



They're not as pretty as his, but they'll do the job.

 

[lucnak[TK]]

Those look great! Keep it up! And happy to hear about customer service from RS!

 

 

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[illusionz_09[TK]]

Those look great! Keep it up! And happy to hear about customer service from RS!

 

 

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i second that! nice job

[Addertime[TK]]

Biceps came out great!

 

I like your magnet covers. At first I wasn't sure what I was seeing.

 

In my experience, the forearms and shins were the pieces I tinkered with the most and they still move around oddly but I think that's just how it is.  My TM forearms were each pretty unique. One was about a half inch longer than the other one. I decide to leave them, trusting Paul's quest for authenticity. In the end, the imperfections and differences that seem glaring while building are less noticeable when it's all together.

[Cricket[TK]]

Thanks for the encouragement, troopers!  

I really needed that because I spent two- yes TWO- hours yesterday searching the FISD trying to find the measurements for the corner angles for the belt.  I thought I'd bookmarked or noted this info somewhere several months ago, but nooooo.... or it's there and I can't find it.  I feel like Gretel in the forest with my trail of breadcrumbs sometimes.

I finally found it buried in a thread, though- as a graphic posted by Gazmosis (thank you!).  And I'm reposting it here because I know I'll lose it again somehow.


Working on joining and gluing the fronts of the thighs and trimming down the belt today.  Trying not to get too excited about watching the DragonCon parade tomorrow.  Wishing I could participate... next year, though!
 

 

 In the end, the imperfections and differences that seem glaring while building are less noticeable when it's all together.

So true!!  Thanks for that reminder.  

[Addertime[TK]]

 Trying not to get too excited about watching the DragonCon parade tomorrow.  Wishing I could participate... next year, though!

 

 

Ah, DragonCon, I'm envious. I've always wanted to go.

Have fun and take lots of pics!

[Troopacoola[TK]]

Thanks for the encouragement, troopers!

 

I really needed that because I spent two- yes TWO- hours yesterday searching the FISD trying to find the measurements for the corner angles for the belt. I thought I'd bookmarked or noted this info somewhere several months ago, but nooooo.... or it's there and I can't find it. I feel like Gretel in the forest with my trail of breadcrumbs sometimes.

 

I finally found it buried in a thread, though- as a graphic posted by Gazmosis (thank you!). And I'm reposting it here because I know I'll lose it again somehow.

 

Working on joining and gluing the fronts of the thighs and trimming down the belt today. Trying not to get too excited about watching the DragonCon parade tomorrow. Wishing I could participate... next year, though!

 

 

So true!! Thanks for that reminder.

Does this help?

 

 

Marc

[Cricket[TK]]

Does this help?

 

 

Marc

Hey Marc, 

 

Yep, it does! Thank you!  I also just found this one.    When it rains, it pours...

 

[Addertime[TK]]

The lengths on both the belt and knee packs are specific to your build.  I noticed that different armor makers have different proportioned blocks on the belt and that directly affect the visual location of the fasteners. Disregard the 1 1/2" and 3/4" dimensions on the belt and look at the reference photos in the gallery section to get a good feel for the placement. A study of the Centurion application threads will show you that no two are exactly the same.  Also, the belt and body pieces kind of need to happen at the same time. I stressed a lot over the order of operations and with good reason and I still managed to screw up a bit. The male snaps on ab piece need to happen first as you need to set the female part on the belt before permanently affixing the plastic packs to the cloth belt.

Edited September 2, 2016 by Addertime

[Cricket[TK]]

The lengths on both the belt and knee packs are specific to your build.  I noticed that different armor makers have different proportioned blocks on the belt and that directly affect the visual location of the fasteners. Disregard the 1 1/2" and 3/4" dimensions on the belt and look at the reference photos in the gallery section to get a good feel for the placement. A study of the Centurion application threads will show you that no two are exactly the same.  Also, the belt and body pieces kind of need to happen at the same time. ... The male snaps on ab piece need to happen first as you need to set the female part on the belt before permanently affixing the plastic packs to the cloth belt.

 

Good advice, Michael!  I haven't started on any of the body yet, so I'll hold off until then.  For this build, I feel like a squirrel with ADD.  Jumping from working on one part of the armor to another without much idea why.  But progress is being made, just in little bits here and there.  I'm sure that one day I'll look around and go, "I'm done.  When did that happen?"

 

I had actually completed assembling my right arm, but I didn't like how it looked when hanging straight down.  I decided to rip out the glued in elastics at the bicep/forearm and try repositioning things so all the parts fall in better alignment.  No pics for that, sorry.  

 

I've glued in some inner cover strips for my shins, and I'm happy with them so far.  I'm waiting to install the exterior cover strips because I still need to alter the fit.  I won't have much problem reducing the width of the shins, but I'm not entirely sure about trimming the length.  I know I need to trim from the bottom.  But my question is:  "How much from the bottom?"

 

I suppose I need to know where the top of the shin should be in relation to the knee when the leg is extended.  I can't tell much of anything from the screen shots because the undersuits hide the knees a bit.  I'm guessing 20mm-25mm below the knee?  Can anyone confirm?  Thanks!

 

[Addertime[TK]]

"I'm done.  When did that happen?"

 

Yep. That's how it will happen. Not to worry, then comes the tinkering phase.

 

On my shins, the return edge on the top of the shin sits right at the base of the patella when my knee is locked. 

 

 

My shins are full length. I fall right in the target zone for TK armor at 5'10".  I suppose it also depends where it sits on your boots. Do you have your boots yet?

Edited September 5, 2016 by Addertime

[Cricket[TK]]

I suppose it also depends where it sits on your boots. Do you have your boots yet?

That photo is beautiful!  I hope my armor turns out just as nice as yours.

 

Yes, I have my boots- complete with lifts inside.  With my boots and helmet on, I grow from 5'4" to 5'7".  I will probably be able to fit another 1/2" of lifts inside my boots once I've worn the boots for a bit.  They're more comfortable than I expected them to be.

 

So here's a pic of how the untrimmed shins currently fit me.  

 

 

They look more like GoGo boots at this point, which is not the look I'm aiming for.  The tops of the shins completely cover my knees.  Walking is a joke!  So from what you're saying, the tops of the shins should rest just at the bottom of the knee caps, right?

[Addertime[TK]]

Haha! I said mine looked like go-go boots too. Leave the shins stuck to the boots when they're sitting in the corner for increased conversation about them.

 

Yeah, for me, the top of the shin is right at the base of the knee cap. I can just barely bend my leg to 90° and the back of the calf armor bites into my leg. That's untrimmed. I wanted all my photos done untrimmed and then I plan to tailor it slightly for comfort later. It's screen accurate to remove a crescent from the back of the calf and thigh armor but I would like to keep as much plastic as possible because I like the look.

 

You might want to push them a bit lower on your boots before you begin trimming. 

Edited September 6, 2016 by Addertime

[Cricket[TK]]

Haha! I said mine looked like go-go boots too. Leave the shins stuck to the boots when they're sitting in the corner for increased conversation about them.

 

 

Hahaha!  Somehow, I think that the conversations about the boots would be much more interesting in a man's office rather than a woman's.  

 

 

You might want to push them a bit lower on your boots before you begin trimming. 

Yeah, I was having some issues with them moving up as I was taking pics.   I can now see why some people like to use the elastic stirrup method to keep the shins grounded!  I will be moving along with these today by trimming about about 5mm, trying them on again, repeat trimming, etc... and see where that takes me.  

 

Something that other Vertically Challenged individuals may want to remember: as you trim the length, you also have to adjust the width each time you re-fit.    And I have to trim off a lot.  I wish it was as simple as just cutting off the ends and calling it a day.  This adds an entirely unique challenge to those of us in closer proximity to the ground.  

 

Another lesson learned yesterday... I understand the need to wear my leggings when fitting now.  My legs look like I was attacked by a rabid acklay.

[Cricket[TK]]

And like the squirrel with ADD I go... working on arms instead of shins.  It's all progress, right?

Does this arm look okay?  I had the elastic on my shoulder attached on my back with painter's tape, which is why I'm holding my arm in a not-entirely-relaxed position.  The shoulder bell kept wanting to slide off! 



When the shoulder bell was secure, the armor actually felt quite comfortable.  No biting of any kind going on as I moved my arm around.  My biggest grumble is with the latex gloves feeling a bit too big for me, but I'll live.

I do believe that some TK wear aqua blue shoes when off-duty.  This one does, at least.  

[zv288bot[TK]]

Looks amazing!! Of course, no one expected less (no pressure no pressure).

Edited September 7, 2016 by zv288bot

[Alay[TK]]

Take off some of the return edge on the shins tops and if necessary blow out the backs of the shins for added mobility. Makes walking possible

 

The length looks pretty good on them in my opinion.  I wouldn't take much off length-wise... maybe 1/2" and see where that lands you.  I'd also suggest fulling building/gluing them before making them shorter so you can get a good fit test before any cuts.

 

Your arm looks great; Make sure the shoulder strap is pulled nice and tight when you attach it to the chest-back strap and it will sit perfectly.

 

Latex gloves just plain suck.  Smallest ones I can find look goofy on my hands and feel awful after an hour of sitting in them.  I'd suggest using hard plastic handguards glued to nomex flight gloves for trooping... super comfy!

[The5thHorseman[501st]]

Arm looks great. I wish all 501st stormtroopers had arm strapped like that!

[sylverbard[TK]]

Dollar store gloves. But still a small size may be large.

[Cricket[TK]]

Thanks for the arm/glove feedback!

I've glued the shins on the front with a cover strip on the inside for now.  I've trimmed a little more and taped it to fit.  Feedback on the fit would be massively appreciated!

The pics below show where the shin rests now.  Is the space near the knee and shin okay?  Or should I make it larger... or smaller?

 

 

 

And this is how far I can bend my leg right now.

 

If I make the area around the ankle a little looser, the shin sits naturally further down.  I really like the tapered ankle look, though.  I don't know if I should make the shin any shorter at this point.  The shin is fairly comfortable to walk in, but will need to have the back cut out in order to make it up and down stairs without killing myself.   Thanks for any feedback, y'all!  

[Racermouse[TK]]

Thanks for the arm/glove feedback!

 

I've glued the shins on the front with a cover strip on the inside for now.  I've trimmed a little more and taped it to fit.  Feedback on the fit would be massively appreciated!

 

The pics below show where the shin rests now.  Is the space near the knee and shin okay?  Or should I make it larger... or smaller?

 

 

 

 

And this is how far I can bend my leg right now.

 

 

If I make the area around the ankle a little looser, the shin sits naturally further down.  I really like the tapered ankle look, though.  I don't know if I should make the shin any shorter at this point.  The shin is fairly comfortable to walk in, but will need to have the back cut out in order to make it up and down stairs without killing myself.   Thanks for any feedback, y'all!  

I shortened my shins just a tad from the ankle. Shins are fairly easy to get right for us vertically challenged. I also cut out the backs so I can move better. I made the ankle holes slightly to tight which results in the shin pieces rising up over the shoes when walking, but it's fixed now wit a strap that goes under the heal.

Thighs, another thing.

Edited September 7, 2016 by myys

[Alay[TK]]

That looks great Cricket!  Are the backs overlapping in those pictures? Hard to tell for here.

 

You'll probably end up wanting to throw some internal padding on the outside to make them sit how you want and "bulk up" the knee area on yourself.

[Addertime[TK]]

Looks like you're there, Christine!

 

Someone told me when I was building to leave enough space to be able to insert three fingers into a piece of armor with the muscle flexed. That works out to about a half inch or a little more of space and it seems to be a good rule of thumb. I also did what Rasmus did and made the ankles a little tight which tends to make the calves ride up so learn from our mistakes and leave a little more real estate around the ankle so gravity can do more of the work. But again, lookin' good.