StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 5, 2018 Author Report Posted February 5, 2018 It's one of those things can't please everyone. Also gotta go by the maker. I asked Walt about his kit that he has the molds for. I'll take the makers opinion any days. 1 Quote
ukswrath[Staff] Posted February 6, 2018 Report Posted February 6, 2018 Hey Jeff I've never worked with Walt's armor before so I'm only commenting here to maybe shed some light. We have several Centurions with WTF armor, some with shin assemblies like what I believe Paul is trying to convey and the other two like yours. Here are the links. After the links I posted a couple ROTJ shin reference photos. Though I believe Paul has a valid point what Walt has told you about his armor is, well, it's his armor so who am I to argue. You'll have to be the judge of what is what, this is your armor. Hope this helps https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/43897-tk-38987-requesting-centurian-status-anh-stunt-wtf-372/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/43656-tk-19233-requesting-anh-stunt-centurion-status-wtf-367/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/43371-tk-33729-requesting-centurion-status-anh-stunt-wtf-359/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/40912-tk-11731-requesting-anh-stunt-centurion-status-wtf-313/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/39526-tk-12864-requesting-anh-stunt-centurion-status-wtf-288/ 3 Quote
Harbinger[IPM] Posted February 6, 2018 Report Posted February 6, 2018 The Anovos guys had similar debates, FWIW. Shin-gate. 1 Quote
ukswrath[Staff] Posted February 6, 2018 Report Posted February 6, 2018 2 hours ago, Harbinger said: The Anovos guys had similar debates, FWIW. Shin-gate. Yep, even though we pretty much have it figured out nowadays 1 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 6, 2018 Author Report Posted February 6, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, ukswrath said: Hey Jeff I've never worked with Walt's armor before so I'm only commenting here to maybe shed some light. We have several Centurions with WTF armor, some with shin assemblies like what I believe Paul is trying to convey and the other two like yours. Here are the links. After the links I posted a couple ROTJ shin reference photos. Though I believe Paul has a valid point what Walt has told you about his armor is, well, it's his armor so who am I to argue. You'll have to be the judge of what is what, this is your armor. Hope this helps https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/43897-tk-38987-requesting-centurian-status-anh-stunt-wtf-372/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/43656-tk-19233-requesting-anh-stunt-centurion-status-wtf-367/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/43371-tk-33729-requesting-centurion-status-anh-stunt-wtf-359/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/40912-tk-11731-requesting-anh-stunt-centurion-status-wtf-313/ https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/39526-tk-12864-requesting-anh-stunt-centurion-status-wtf-288/ Thank you Tony! A few of the centurion request you provided I have had a chance to review before getting more involved with my build and as I have gotten more involved in the building. I have gotten a lot of great feedback from everyone on the build process and truthfully I'm surprised at how much the shins is a heated debate and like you said some have it assembled how I have it and others like Paul suggested, so in the end it only matters how it fits you and how it looks. Now as I look closely and try the shins on each leg it feels to me that my long sides go on the outside and short on the inside. The trick I understand from Walt is to go with the curve on his shins. I came to this conclusion based on the curve on the short piece following the calf curve just as Walt suggested to me. It even looks similar to the ROTJ pics you provided as well. Edited February 6, 2018 by StrmTRPR85 typographical 3 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 6, 2018 Author Report Posted February 6, 2018 3 minutes ago, ukswrath said: Yep, even though we pretty much have it figured out nowadays Happy Shin-dependence Day! 4 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 9, 2018 Author Report Posted February 9, 2018 Trimming Ears, we all know it is a struggle and I may have only messed up on the left one time and the right two times, but I was lucky enough that in my WTF kit I was supplied with three ear pieces. I decided I would try for the really close fit but if I didn't get it no big deal as gaps are screen accurate. I will skip the messed up ear documentation and follow what worked for me With my left ear I trimmed it out, and lined it up on the bucket. Than I took my dremel with the sanding drum and sanded/carved out where the tube vent is to get a general shape Getting closer Sanding the ears down really is a task of what you do in the front can change how it sits in the back. I would hold the ear in place where the top two screws would go and see where I had my large gap and needed to come down. Sometimes I needed to sand more in the back to bring the front down and other times I needed to take more off the bottom and top to bring the middle closer to the bucket. Left Ear Right Ear Straight on My left ear I ended up moving back as I felt it was a bit too far forward (pic to be updated soon) I think I am going to sand a bit more of the front of the left ear to match the gap of the right ear a bit. I think the gaps will give it a bit more uniquness to the build as not everyone will have the same gap. "This is my gap, there are many like it but this one is mine. My gap is my best friend. It is my life" 3 Quote
ukswrath[Staff] Posted February 9, 2018 Report Posted February 9, 2018 Nice work Jeff. If you're concerned about the difference in alignment between the ears you can always use this technique, align the upper and lower ear screws with the rear line of the front traps. Edit: Btw it doesn't have to be exact. 3 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 9, 2018 Author Report Posted February 9, 2018 1 minute ago, ukswrath said: Nice work Jeff. If you're concerned about the difference in alignment between the ears you can always use this technique, align the upper and lower ear screws with the rear line of the front traps. Thats exactly what I ended up doing when I moved the left ear back a bit. That is the real secret to those trapezoids. Of course I did not snap a pic of the new placement after I did it. I was so happy to be done with those ear Quote
ukswrath[Staff] Posted February 9, 2018 Report Posted February 9, 2018 THT . Keep up the great work Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 9, 2018 Author Report Posted February 9, 2018 Walts kits come with the correct brass screw necessary to attach the ears to the bucket. My issue was I lost one of them and was unable to find it. Lucky me, Ace Hardware carries the exact brass screws necessary for the job. I picked up and an extra one just in case I lost another. Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 16, 2018 Author Report Posted February 16, 2018 Now that I had my ears trimmed up I dissembled the bucket (face plate and helmet shell) to mount the lens and move on the plasti dip spray the interior black. For mounting the lens I opted to use these small screws I picked up from Ace Hardware. I do not recall the size exactly. I than drilled a hole in the middle of my lens that came with my kit (it was cut up in some odd ball shape so I still have to clean it up a bit if not order a new lens). Than I used a dab of E6000 on the head of the screw centered it on the inside of my mask and used a magnet to hold the screw in place until the E6000 had cured completely. End result is I still need to put in the screws on the side to hold it in place and bring the lens closer to the face plate to eliminate some gaps from that can be seen from the front 1 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 17, 2018 Author Report Posted February 17, 2018 So I was looking over my right forearm and noticed that I do not have my halves symmetrical.....will this be an issue for level 3 approval? Do the cover strips need to be parallel?? Wrist Side Elbow Side 1 Quote
TheSwede[TK] Posted February 18, 2018 Report Posted February 18, 2018 Idealy the halves are equal, the way yours are shouldn’t be an issue though so from what I can see you’re good to go 1 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 18, 2018 Author Report Posted February 18, 2018 15 hours ago, TheSwede said: Idealy the halves are equal, the way yours are shouldn’t be an issue though so from what I can see you’re good to go Thank you Daniel! It is reassuring that I haven't mucked it up...yet Although I have ultimately decided to make it more equal halves. I removed the coverstrip on one side and trimmed a small amount from the lower half to make the havles more equal. Once the E6000 is fully cured I'll get some better pics up. Test fitting with the one side taped together after trimming resulted in a slightly more snug forearm but still fits and feels good. 2 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 18, 2018 Author Report Posted February 18, 2018 Working on wrapping up my left shin (no more shin gate ) On Walts kit he has one side that is longer than the other, usually the longer goes on the outside (confirmed by Walt and Rocky) and you have to confirm by the curve in the parts. Mine goes on the outside. Obviously pairing up the long and short means we must trim the long side down at the ankle to match up with the shorter. I took a pencil and sat it on the edge of the short side and marked the long side where I would need to trim. I cut close to the line and ended taking my dremel sander to the rest to bring it in line and shape the remainder of the ankle Next came trial fit with undersuit and my boot. Fits great and feels good too! I have a small amount of trimming/removing a bit more of my return edge by the knee but nothing too pinchy. Last was to attach the rear coverstrip. I made mine 25 mm and placed to my best half on the shin and allowed the other half to overlap. Added some E6000 and a few clamps and sit and wait Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 18, 2018 Author Report Posted February 18, 2018 On Walts the Ab and Butt plate are pulled in one piece, so one needs to cut these apart. No I didn't make my wife trim my armor with me on Valentines day, we just still have the table cloth up Also trimmed up the chest, back and ab pieces while I was at it. Abs Untrimmed: Abs Trimmed: Chest Untrimmed: Back Untrimmed: I forgot to take pictures immediately after I trimmed back some of the excess edges on the chest and back but those will be included once I get to that section Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 18, 2018 Author Report Posted February 18, 2018 (edited) As my desire to use brackets to attach the front and back of the chest, abs, kidney, and butt plate only to discover that I have a slight issue with the kidney and butt plate..... there is no return edge on the top of the butt plate and bottom of the kidney plate after cutting them apart So whats a cadet to do? Well we make a return edge. I found another build thread (Crickets thank you) that did this using a heat gun and a jig. So I started with making my jig The idea is to sit the butt plate and kidney plate over the jig and heat the plastic and bend to create a new return edge using the jig to make a nice 90 degree angle Before I actually put the kit and started to heat it up I opted to work on some scrap first. I opted to try using a sealing iron versus a heat gun to give myself better control. This I did all free hand before I made the jig. My goal was to get a feel for how to mold the ABS and how long to hold the iron on place. I'll be giving it another go with the jig and scrap to get a better overall feel for heating and making the return edge. Edited February 19, 2018 by StrmTRPR85 typographical Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 19, 2018 Author Report Posted February 19, 2018 Alright first practice with the jig and a piece of scrap I took a fairly large piece of extra cover strip that Walt provides (he gives you a lot) and clamped it onto my jig, set the iron to max heat and started my practice run It did not take long for me to be able to shape the ABS with using the iron I started with a little at a time moving the iron along the back where I wanted it to bend. I found it best to heat one area than move over to heat that area and than back to the original area I was heating to make bending it easier, rather than fighting the "memory" of the sheet of ABS. And after a little more time spent working on it After looking at my practice work I thought that it went pretty easily and that I had made my self a nice 90 degree bracket for reinforcing the kidney and butt plate where I will make the return edges on them. I cut the wings off and lined it up on the butt plate and what did I find..... PERFECT FIT!!!! The wings that I cut off I am shaping for the sides of the butt plate to make additional reinforcing brackets plus more practice before the real thing. I will repeat the same steps for the kidney as well. 1 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 19, 2018 Author Report Posted February 19, 2018 Well I went for it. Started to make my return edge on the top of the butt plate. But the butt plate on the jig and a few boxes to hold up the other end. I found working on the kit from this angle was much easier than the scrap as the part I wanted to bend was in front of me and pusing down. Starting in the middle I put the edge of the sealing iron on the line I drew and allowed it to heat up than gently and slowly rolled the sealing iron down over the jig to bend the ABS into my return edge. The sealing iron did leave a few edges that I will sand out to give it a smooth appearance. I started with 120 grit sand paper and wet sanded the edge as I had originally have a very sharp 90 degree and I wanted it to have a more rounded appearance. I will be working up with sand paper to 2000 grit wet sanding along the way to give it a great luster. Overall much easier than I thought it would be to make the return edge. Next up the kidney plate! 2 Quote
StrmTRPR85[TK] Posted February 19, 2018 Author Report Posted February 19, 2018 On 2/18/2018 at 12:35 PM, StrmTRPR85 said: Thank you Daniel! It is reassuring that I haven't mucked it up...yet Although I have ultimately decided to make it more equal halves. I removed the coverstrip on one side and trimmed a small amount from the lower half to make the havles more equal. Once the E6000 is fully cured I'll get some better pics up. Test fitting with the one side taped together after trimming resulted in a slightly more snug forearm but still fits and feels good. Right forearm all fixed! Much more even and a bit more snug but still feels great. I'm tempted to do the left arm to make it more snug too.... Quote
ukswrath[Staff] Posted February 19, 2018 Report Posted February 19, 2018 Jeff you're an animal. Awesome work . Reminds me of when I had to rebuild my ATA 1 Quote
Harbinger[IPM] Posted February 20, 2018 Report Posted February 20, 2018 8 hours ago, StrmTRPR85 said: Well I went for it. Started to make my return edge on the top of the butt plate. But the butt plate on the jig and a few boxes to hold up the other end. I found working on the kit from this angle was much easier than the scrap as the part I wanted to bend was in front of me and pusing down. Starting in the middle I put the edge of the sealing iron on the line I drew and allowed it to heat up than gently and slowly rolled the sealing iron down over the jig to bend the ABS into my return edge. The sealing iron did leave a few edges that I will sand out to give it a smooth appearance. I started with 120 grit sand paper and wet sanded the edge as I had originally have a very sharp 90 degree and I wanted it to have a more rounded appearance. I will be working up with sand paper to 2000 grit wet sanding along the way to give it a great luster. Overall much easier than I thought it would be to make the return edge. Next up the kidney plate! Looks great! Much better than my attempt, but I didn’t have a jig either... Quote
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