CableGuy[TK] Posted January 13, 2018 Report Posted January 13, 2018 Cleaning up the tube stripes. Well, I have to admit I was worried, but after a little scraping with a toothpick, I am quite pleased. Right side done. Left side still has some wet spots. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Yep - who would have thought that a run of the mill toothpick would be such a valuable tool for helmet painting. ;-)Looking great. :-)Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote
TheSwede[TK] Posted January 13, 2018 Report Posted January 13, 2018 That looks great! And as you say, the tab and slot will fix the right side, it looks so much better without the overlap And the back plate sits better too and I agree with you regarding the thighs, some trimning and all is good - it’s all comming together very nicely The toys - well...atleast you can use it as reference for amount of black showing Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 13, 2018 Author Report Posted January 13, 2018 If I don’t have time to build, then I’ll make up for it elsewhere. Pancakes for the kids...Ok, this one was for me. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Author Report Posted January 14, 2018 Not much work tonight. Trimmed and glued the thighs and I got my sewing all lined up for tomorrow or whenever I can convince my wife to do it or at least show me how. I needed to add quite a lot of taper to the thighs. This is after trimming. I’ve skinny getaway sticks. I tried taping them up and hitting them with the heat gun on low. It helped a little. Back cover strip on and glue drying. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote
Frank75139[501st] Posted January 14, 2018 Report Posted January 14, 2018 Lookin good. Oh and I’ll be over for pancakes tomorrow. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Author Report Posted January 14, 2018 I went to size up my sew-on snaps to my shoulders bells. The snaps looked too big. I used 3/4” elastic. It seems I should of used 1”. So I tore out the 3/4” stuff and will replace. It came off way too easy so it is a good thing I did it. I forgot to sand the plastic before gluing. 3/4” pulled off too easily So, I have a belt for the thigh support system. 3” elastic that will loop over the belt. 2” white elastic for shoulders with line 24 snap locations roughed in. And my new 1” elastic for the shoulder bell to shoulder strap connection. Just sizing up the 3” elastic. I haven’t decided how I will attach to thighs but I’m leaning towards snaps. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote
Steaditrooper[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Report Posted January 14, 2018 You are getting so close to finished! Looking great Greg! Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Author Report Posted January 14, 2018 2 hours ago, Bud Spaklur said: I don’t know about you guys, but the pants are cool. Reminds me of Rex Kwon Do from Napoleon Dynamite! Wook- you made that clip by boiling and bending, and then just glued it on, right? On the bicep there. Is that just preference or is that centurion status stuff? Build’s great, btw Wook! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Haha. Yeah, the pants... that is what happens when I let my 5 year-old son dress me. The clips are pretty much a necessary thing - they help hold the biceps up and keep things in place. I used boiling water to shape the pieces, but if you have access to a heat gun, I would recommend that - makes it easier to bend. One of the hooks worked well with the water, but with the second one I just held it over the open flame of the gas range to get the final shape - the pieces were cracking along the seam otherwise. And yes, they are just glued on. I'm actually going to redo these with a heat gun and shape them with more of a bend (more of a tight "u" shape instead of the open "v" shape) - they stick out too much and tend to catch my chest armor from time to time. Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Author Report Posted January 14, 2018 4 hours ago, Sean said: You are getting so close to finished! Looking great Greg! Thanks Sean. Yeah, just one weekend of dedicated time and I could probably finish things up (more or less). The wife is taking the kids to visit grandparents at the end of the month - so that should be my chance to finish. Here is hoping for good traveling weather. So close, indeed! Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Author Report Posted January 14, 2018 What about like Command Hooks? Is that blasphemous for suggesting anything other than the ABS plastic??? Do you have a page in your build somewhere showing the hooks being made and where you connect them? As long as they are white, I don’t think it matters, but I’m not sure. I think I talk about what I did on page 3 or 4, I didn’t take a lot of pics. The trick is to make them long enough so the bottom can be glued to a flat part of the inner bicep and the hook part is high enough to hold your bicep at the right height. That will depend on the length of your arms. Check out ukswraths am 1.0 build - I think he had better details if memory serves. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote
TheSwede[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Report Posted January 14, 2018 (edited) 4 hours ago, Bud Spaklur said: Is that just preference or is that centurion status stuff? Just preference - and not necessary in a sence that it`s the only option. I don`t use them and my armor lines up just fine without the risk of said clip catching on the armor. To keep the bicep from sliding down to low I have them connected with elastic straps (some use webbing) on the outside ridge of bell and bicep, to my knowledge not screen-accurate though but I don`t like the look of the bicep clips (which can be seen in the movie) - personal preference So the choice is yours Edited January 14, 2018 by TheSwede 1 Quote
Steaditrooper[TK] Posted January 14, 2018 Report Posted January 14, 2018 (edited) 7 minutes ago, Bud Spaklur said: How in the world do you people even see that stuff in the movies?! Lol! Like some of the observations you guys make are crazy! (In a good way) Matt, I watched ANH on New Years Day and saw things I had never seen before after 40 years of watching it (100+ times)! After immersing oneself in 'Stormtrooper Everything' while building, you learn so much and see so much more than you imagined possible. p.s. Hi Greg. Edited January 14, 2018 by Sean 3 Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 15, 2018 Author Report Posted January 15, 2018 (edited) Ok, as I get closer to finishing this build, I now have to deal with all the things I've been avoiding. Number one - the sniper knee. If you have AP armour and you have done any research, then you probably know the deal. The left shin does not line up very well with the sniper knee. There are a bunch of threads that talk about this. So after reading those threads and watching TK1636's youtube video (Complete TK Armor Build Tutorial 36 of 45 Shins and Hooks), I came up with a game plan. The trick (consensus) seems to be to raise the left side of the the left shin. So as part of my preliminary flitting, I did that. Anyway, with this amount of offset (see picture), I only lose about 1/4" to 3/8" off the bottom of the shins. This was really the only information I was trying to get from this fitting - I know I have to trim the back seam a bit - but I'll do a final fitting and trim after the front strips are on. I taped the sniper plate on. You can see a bit of a tilt in the sniper plate. I don't have a picture, but the sides are taped to follow the return edge on either side. I must admit, in person this looks way worse. I'm finding it helpful to take pictures of everything and assessing the pictures before letting my OCD freak out. I've just taped on a scrap piece of coverstrip for the fitting of the sniper knee. I didn't take any pictures, but I did give the sniper knee a bit of a hot water bath to see if could get a head start on the shaping. I'm not sure it did very much. I also had to remove some material from lower edge of the sniper knee. There was a little return edge (coming back towards the shin) along the bottom of the sniper knee - removing this will make it easier to shape the piece later. I also had to remove any and all return edge from the bottom of the shins. So I removed whatever I could and sanded it down. I'll do a final sanding when things are glued and I've trimmed for the offset. Gluing inside cover strips to front of shins. Like everything in this kit, the shins were pre-trimmed. The trimming got a little tight in some spots, so the two halves will not perfectly butt up to one another in a few spots - this happened with the thighs too. The inner coverstrip makes this easy to deal with, plus this piece will receive a lot of stress during dressing/undressing so I'm really going to put the E6000 to it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Edited January 15, 2018 by wook1138 add text 1 Quote
TheSwede[TK] Posted January 15, 2018 Report Posted January 15, 2018 1 hour ago, wook1138 said: I also had to remove any and all return edge from the bottom of the shins. That`s only a good thing..and screen accurate 2 Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Posted January 17, 2018 (edited) Dana (QuartZ’s ANH Anovos stunt build) noted some dimples in the armour due to possible chemical reaction between E6000 and the snaps. I added some pics there showing my issues with this. It is worth heading over there and checking out the discussion. I had no idea this was even a thing. There are a few posts about it on this site - but I guess I missed those during my initial research. He is an example (which looks worse in the pic than in person): Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Edited January 17, 2018 by wook1138 Typo Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Posted January 17, 2018 5 minutes ago, Bud Spaklur said: Wtf?! So what do you do to prevent that? Short answer is, "I don't know". Turns out that E6000 may react with the metal of the snaps - creating heat - and then resulting in, well... you saw the picture. Some of the recommendations have included: avoid getting E6000 on the actual snap (metal). I don't know how this could be reasonably achieved while still getting enough E6000 on the snap base. use high quality snaps (I used Tandy brand snaps - they were supposed to be good). Ukswrath (Tony) mentions what snaps he uses in QuartZ's thread. I used nickle plated snaps - maybe stainless steel is better? be mindful of how you position and clamp the snap while the glue dries. Maybe I need to add some kind of support to the back side (the side in the image) so the snap does not get pushed through the ABS. QuartZ also discussed some methods he tried to avoid the issue as well. That said, this does not appear to be a common issue with other builders. I did notice that the E6000 will react with the magnets - I have some yellow discoloration where the magnets (especially if the outer protective coat has been compromised or chipped off) came in contact with the ABS and E6000 during drying. I'm using magnets bought at Lee Valley and the E6000 was bought in Canada - which may be slightly different from what is sold in the US. Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Posted January 17, 2018 29 minutes ago, Bud Spaklur said: Wtf?! So what do you do to prevent that? Oh yeah, I also read somewhere that E6000 reacts to pressure - it heats with applied pressure. Not sure if this is true or not, but something else to consider. So, don't apply too much pressure. Yeesh. Quote
Frank75139[501st] Posted January 17, 2018 Report Posted January 17, 2018 I thought I saw somewhere somebody glued the snaps to a small 1” ABS plastic plate, and then glued the other side of the plate to the ABS directly- so it acted as a barrier of protection.....could this/is this advised? Any of the gurus want to weigh in here???Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkNot a guru here but I glued all my snaps to a scrap piece of plastic then glued that to the armor. I’ve got different armor but I had no issues. I’ve checked the snaps and they don’t appear to be reacting to the glue. Most of them I used a different glue with because it stuck better but some have e6000. I thought it would be helpful in snapping everything with an extra little bit of space. Also I’ve had no issues with magnet discoloration but wrapping them be helpful. I’m wondering if environment has anything to do with it, like humidity and temp. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Posted January 17, 2018 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Bud Spaklur said: LOL! So let me get this straight- apply pressure, but DONT apply pressure....apply glue, but don’t let the glue get on anything.....use snaps, but don’t let them come in contact with the plastic...... So why’d you get Canadian E6000? Also wondering if wrapping snaps in a layer of painters tape will help with discoloration? I thought I saw somewhere somebody glued the snaps to a small 1” ABS plastic plate, and then glued the other side of the plate to the ABS directly- so it acted as a barrier of protection.....could this/is this advised? Any of the gurus want to weigh in here??? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Ha ha. Yep, that is about it. I'm in Canada - so, Canadian E6000. Yes, I do try to wrap the magnets with painters tape - but, stuff happens. QuartZ did try to use electrical tape on the actual snaps to stop the reaction. I didn't do this. So, to follow... you make the snap plate (snap set to small piece of ABS or nylon) then attach another piece of ABS to the back of that, then attach the whole thing to the armor? I haven't seen that but that would protect the armor from the metal. Edited January 17, 2018 by wook1138 Quote
TheSwede[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Report Posted January 17, 2018 Perhaps to much glue was used, it does get hot and more glue - more heat in combination with what others already said with snap-plates straining the armor for a longer period of time..never used E6000 though, used snap-plates on my TX build with zap-a-gap and that stuff gets really hot but nothing happend with the armor (Anovos). That stuff cures in seconds. Now I only use the ”movie-way” hence no snap-plates. So...try using less glue and see what happens Quote
TheSwede[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Report Posted January 17, 2018 (edited) 18 minutes ago, Bud Spaklur said: I think you’re adding a step of plastic in there....so I’ve seen somewhere on here making that they set snaps in the nylon/elastic, then attaching that strip to a small plastic plate, then attaching the back of the plate to the armor. I sketched this so that you could see what I meant. Basically just a piece of abs between the armor and the snap. Is this standard for a snap plate??? And are you saying that Quartz put a small piece of electrical tape on the back of the snap and glued that directly to the ABS? Are you supposed to make snap plates this regardless? Are the plastic ABS plates supposed to be drilled and a snap to fit through it with the elastic attached? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk How to make snap-plates (standard) However I wouldn’t bother with the lines, just use the knife with the ruler aaand you usually don’t use a rivet, just the snap (male/female) Edited January 17, 2018 by TheSwede 1 Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Posted January 17, 2018 42 minutes ago, TheSwede said: Perhaps to much glue was used, it does get hot and more glue - more heat in combination with what others already said with snap-plates straining the armor for a longer period of time..never used E6000 though, used snap-plates on my TX build with zap-a-gap and that stuff gets really hot but nothing happend with the armor (Anovos). That stuff cures in seconds. Now I only use the ”movie-way” hence no snap-plates. So...try using less glue and see what happens Yep, I think the amount of glue and the amount of pressure was the issue. I do remember getting a lot of glue on this piece, and because I was concerned with the magnets I used clamps that may have been too strong. This one is, by far, the worse one and it stands out in memory as having all the suspect conditions as mentioned. Quote
wook1138[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Author Report Posted January 17, 2018 55 minutes ago, Bud Spaklur said: And are you saying that Quartz put a small piece of electrical tape on the back of the snap and glued that directly to the ABS? He actually 3D printed his ABS snap plates (no nylon, just one piece of plastic). But yes, tape went on the back of the actual snap part and was glued right to the armor. Did the video help? The snap plate is usually just one piece of ABS or nylon webbing with a snap. I haven't tried adding a piece of ABS (or nylon) below the plate for protection. Not sure how this would affect the overall adherence of the snap base. Quote
TheSwede[TK] Posted January 17, 2018 Report Posted January 17, 2018 2 hours ago, wook1138 said: This one is, by far, the worse one Still, no one will ever notice - looking forward seeing you suited up Quote
Harbinger[IPM] Posted January 17, 2018 Report Posted January 17, 2018 I went ahead and started a new thread for this now that it's spilling into multiple build threads: Quote
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