Looking for tips on Strip covers for bigger legs...

[Tiderion]

So you might say I didnt "skip leg day"... Mostly just giant legs muscles, but either way, I've got a solid 1-1/2" gap in the back of my thigh armor on either side, and about 1/2" on my calf armor.

 

All the "how to" photos I can find for the butt joint/strip cover method looks like their armor can actually meet underneath, but perhaps that isn't necessary?  

 

Can someone give me some tips on this, preferably with some photos.  I'm a little lost at this point =\

 

 

Looks good from the front so far, though.

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

Which armorer did you use, Ethan?  You can usually order extra ABS pieces from the manufacturer.  Some photos of the back would help, and you may have a few other issues, but we can help.

[tkrestonva[TK]]

You can either (1) use the standard 20mm cover strips on the front and make up the difference with shims and wider strips in the back, (2) use larger but equally-sized cover strips in both the front and back (mine are 30mm wide but because they look proportional to my larger-sized thigh and shin armor you wouldn't know the difference unless you took a ruler to them), or (3) a combination of both techniques.

[Tiderion]

I bought a set of SDS battle spec armor.  If I used ABS to make extra wide cover strips on the back, would that cause trouble with any kind of application and/or centurion certification?  I did use shims to get them to fit, but it looks pretty ugly from the back =\.  I'd like to use something that was a better fit for the armor.

[Tiderion]

You can either (1) use the standard 20mm cover strips on the front and make up the difference with shims and wider strips in the back, (2) use larger but equally-sized cover strips in both the front and back (mine are 30mm wide but because they look proportional to my larger-sized thigh and shin armor you wouldn't know the difference unless you took a ruler to them), or (3) a combination of both techniques.

 

When you say standard, does someone sell these somewhere, or are you just saying that's the commonly accepted size for them?

[tkrestonva[TK]]

When you say standard, does someone sell these somewhere, or are you just saying that's the commonly accepted size for them?

It's just the commonly-accepted size. I suppose someone could sell them to you, but it makes more sense (to me) to make your own. The difficulty will be in getting sheets of ABS that is a color match to your SDS kit.

[Tiderion]

It's just the commonly-accepted size. I suppose someone could sell them to you, but it makes more sense (to me) to make your own. The difficulty will be in getting sheets of ABS that is a color match to your SDS kit.

 

Yes, I'm finding that out as we speak.  I can either roll the dice and buy a relatively cheap ABS sheet online ($10-20), or go directly to a store that's local to me, of which there aren't very many, and pay a lot (70-80 for the same sheet).  In regards to my previous response though, If I were to make a cover strip that's 1 1/2" - 2" wide to connect the two pieces, would that cause any issues with Centurion certification or general enlistment?

[Pretzel]

Hi Ethan,

 

not sure what armor you got, but for me I was overly excited and bought the wrong armor for my size. I had to add shims to my thighs to get them to fit. You can check out my build thread and sift through the pages. You will find how I shimmed them. because of the shim, I was able to blend it together nicely and was able to use the correct size strips.

 

Hope it helps.

[kman[TK]]

Yes, I'm finding that out as we speak.  I can either roll the dice and buy a relatively cheap ABS sheet online ($10-20), or go directly to a store that's local to me, of which there aren't very many, and pay a lot (70-80 for the same sheet).  In regards to my previous response though, If I were to make a cover strip that's 1 1/2" - 2" wide to connect the two pieces, would that cause any issues with Centurion certification or general enlistment?

 

You shouldn't have a problem with basic acceptance into the 501st, but higher level approvals (particularly Centurion) might be an issue if you are wearing armor that simply doesn't fit you well, forcing you to use wide strips that drastically change the visual proportions of the armor.

 

Most armor can have shims built into it that will allow you to use more normally-proportioned cover strips, but it's a good amount of work.

 

At some point, you might consider selling this armor and looking into armor that's built with larger troopers in mind, instead.