Chopper857's ANH TK Stunt build

[Chopper857[TK]]

bit more research to confirm a few things and now ammo boxes in position

 

 

Ammo boxes and rivets covers on main belt now just need to be glued in place   

[Chopper857[TK]]

whilst in riveting mode I worked on the lower knee ammo box 

 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

ok moving on the main body parts of the Armour i laid out the rear kidney plate as master and followed this though on  to the back and butt plates 

 

 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

following the same methodology i laid out and drilled the ab and chest plates 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

getting brave and having done yet more research laid out and drilled for the side rivets 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

right now testing out the elastic loops i made earlier used 2 " on the rear plates and 2.5" inch loops on the front 

 

 

then i attached the first set of bifucated rivets on the side 

 

 

then finally joined both halves together

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

last bit of drilling added the cod strap (used ukswraths dimensions on this bit)

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

moving towards a test fit i secured the ab closure strap and attached the shoulder elastic straps to the back plate only aiming for a 40 mm gap  with the shoulder snap dead center 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

added the shoulder bell strap elastics and taped in place the biceps trying to follow original placements

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

secured the main thigh strap elastics in place will white out as originals later on 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

Ok right now for my first real test fit please be aware there is a lot of tape on the go as i am trying to judge for fit and placement so any feedback greatly received. also the shins are currently the bane of my life so that's  why they are a bit gappy and wonky 

 

 

 

[fragarock[TK]]

Looks really good for your first test fit, great job. I'd say you could adjust your shoulder bells a bit to reduce the gap between your chest. The back of the bells looks pretty good though. May have to shorten the strap, see how it looks.

 

I had real problems with my RS shins meeting up until the back. Try a few boiling water baths, that did it for me.

 

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[Chopper857[TK]]

Cheers man , yeah the tape was pulling on the shoulder bells, will just pull the strap in a bit and glue in place hopefully that will sort it. Will the bath trick work with PVC ?? Really worried about the bloody shins but the guys at RS are looking at some photos were I had concerns for me, hoping for some helpful hints..

[fragarock[TK]]

Cheers man , yeah the tape was pulling on the shoulder bells, will just pull the strap in a bit and glue in place hopefully that will sort it. Will the bath trick work with PVC ?? Really worried about the bloody shins but the guys at RS are looking at some photos were I had concerns for me, hoping for some helpful hints..

Sorry I missed the fact that your kit was PVC. I don't know if you can reshape it in hot water but I would think so. RS would be able to tell you for sure.

 

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[troopermaster]

What is the problem with the shins?

 

What are you using to keep them closed - hooks or Velcro?

[Chopper857[TK]]

will be using the hook and elastic method  to pull them together my right one is sort of ok but on the left looks like i went wonky trimming for size  and have a largish gap in the middle between the two sides if i take off much more top and bottom its going to get snug, . but RS have said they will send me a new set to have another crack at it .(cannot fault the team at RS).

Also i just cannot seem to get the tops to line up at the rear as well !!! or am i over thinking it !!!

 

just one more thing with the RS shins being identical left and right. The right shin will have a lower edge on the out side of the boot,  would you adjust  the base of the shins even or would you just  re trim  the left shin so you also  have a longer side on the outside of your boot ??

 

thanks 

[troopermaster]

Okay, so you have trimmed them too much by the sound of it.

 

The RS shins are identical left and right and the backs do not line up perfectly due to them being made up of outer parts only. This is quite normal with the original armour. Do not worry too much about the backs not lining up. You can trim out the tops behind the knee into a 'V' shape to take your eye off the mismatch or leave them as is - either is good in my opinion.

[themaninthesuitcase[Admin]]

I don't have RS but Anovos but I had a similar issue, from what I am told the Anovos ones are very similar to RS.  One of them has a definite twist to it, not just me several have had this.

I use the hook method to close them which helps but they still have a small misalignment, but it wasn't an issue at clearance not 1 person has ever mentioned it.  I suppose with velcro you could force it into line but then you're loading the part which can't be good for longer periods.  

 

Some have used warm water to slowly reshape the plastic but I don't think it's worth the effort given how small the difference is.

[Chopper857[TK]]

Cheers for the words and advice gents, much appreciated

[Chopper857[TK]]

ok whilst waiting for my new shin to arrive i have stripped back down everything for a clean up adjust and fit.

 

first off re visited all the screws on the main body strapping system for a countersink and paint job 

 

 

then finally glued in place shoulder elastic and snap 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

Have now glued in place shoulder bell straps, re measured for placement after feedback form test fit then reduced a bit more also went through the process of attaching shoulder to bicep to foreman in line with screen references 

 

 

and done 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

a little bit of painting done, hands are not as steady as i could of hoped for 

 

 

and then whilst that's drying i finished off my belt 

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

with one eye on EIB and even Centurion managed to source a couple of little upgrades for my bucket once I have gone through base approval.

 

[Chopper857[TK]]

well new shin has arrived  . feeling slightly more confident this far into my build here's a short storyboard for shins 

 

1. marked 5 mm return on top of shin and trimmed to that and flushed  through base returns 

2 made new templates of base sweeps for laying out any re positioning later 

3. scored and snapped 2 new cover strips 20 mm front and 25 mm rear 

4 scored and snapped on front edge 10mm away from form change 

5 joined two halves together with duct tape and sized against my shin centralizing score line across both halves at rear 

6 fitted front and rear cover strips

 

now basically back to were i was prior to messing up two weeks ago and not stressing about rear alignment to much 

 

 

[68Brick[TK]]

Nice!