Fish's ANOVOS Build Thread - Aspiring for L3

[TheSwede[TK]]

5 minutes ago, fishgoh0nk said:

I think in removing that edge, it would be a lot more comfy, but I'm curious as to how close the posterior and cod will need to be aligned, using the elastic strap.

Ok one more post.....Removing that edge would be fine and...a pic of my clamshell but that´s just for my body, the lenght between the parts and strap vary between different body types but might give you an idea

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

5 minutes ago, TheSwede said:

Ok one more post.....Removing that edge would be fine and...a pic of my clamshell but that´s just for my body, the lenght between the parts and strap vary between different body types but might give you an idea

thanks for sharing!

[TheSwede[TK]]

3 minutes ago, fishgoh0nk said:

thanks for sharing!

anytime

[menschie[TK]]

Keep in mind that, when you remove a return edge, it has way more flex, fit and comfort. The crochal and buttocular region (the taint, really) is a perfect example of that. 

[CableGuy[TK]]

I think Colin (menschie) is correct that you CAN reduce or remove a return edge in certain areas IF you need to. HOWEVER, screen used had usually at least a few millimetres of return in most areas.

 

 

Personally, I have varying degrees of return edge across my armour parts and have NO discomfort at all. My return edges are sanded for comfort (no snagging) and proportional to the armour part in question. Also, I fitted my armour to my frame based on the armour parts having those return edges so it still fits like a glove.

 

I’d personally suggest that you consider return edges part by part before thinking about removing them. :-)

 

[menschie[TK]]

100% this^

 

I basically kept mine as identical to movie warn as I could. For bits like cod, the lower bits on the butt, etc. I removed ... I also made them very smooth like you. Basically, I’m just letting him know that going max return edges all around (sometimes more than a cm by the looks of it) isn’t always the best option. Considering each part, looking at screen reference, fitting to yourself, etc. is for sure the best approach. Well said!

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

 

I fabricated a return edge for the rear thigh - I don't plan on cutting a semi circle as it does ride high enough for me to bend my knee 90degrees without problem. I plan to do this for the right thigh as well.

 

 

I'm digging the way the front turned out.

 

 

I'm going to start the brackets soon on the torso, I started by painting the screws white. Wish me luck!

[TheSwede[TK]]

The back of thighs turned out great so far, some ABS paste and sanding on the lower ridge and you’re golden

For the front I have a suggestion, have the coverstrips end just were the ridge comes to a point, screen suit for reference - and...good luck and keep up the great work

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

On 7/3/2018 at 3:58 AM, TheSwede said:

The back of thighs turned out great so far, some ABS paste and sanding on the lower ridge and you’re golden

For the front I have a suggestion, have the coverstrips end just were the ridge comes to a point, screen suit for reference - and...good luck and keep up the great work

 

I cut away from the cover strip as advised - still too low? Should I cut some more?

 

 

The rear thigh shim turned out pretty good - there were a few spots that didn't have enough E6000 and yields a flex - I used a thin applicator and added some more underneath, now just waiting to dry. I'll post a new picture of when its ready for ABS pasting.

 

 

I think i need some help with the calves. The right rear closure just BARELY closes. On a more swollen day, I feel like the closure gap will be about 1-2mm.  The cover strip should cover this right?

 

Should I shim? I feel like I should as the upper calve (insider, near knee cap) is kind of tight. If so, I would shim the inner flap?

 

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

One question about strapping the torso - any reason why everyone tends to put snaps toward the top of the shoulders? Is it bad to have it lower? Just wondering  I can see the shoulder bells could pull the strap (if longer because it's snapped lower), but you get less of a snap bulge at the top (more hidden)

 

[TheSwede[TK]]

8 hours ago, fishgoh0nk said:

I cut away from the cover strip as advised

Looks great

 

8 hours ago, fishgoh0nk said:

The cover strip should cover this right?

Yes it will and you glue 10mm to the armor leaving 15mm the cover any gap -  I have a question though, is that your undersuit? If it is I would try and find a tighter one, you don`t wont it to bunch out between armor parts and a tighter one will also help with the fit. And...did you size your shins with the boots on?

 

8 hours ago, fishgoh0nk said:

I feel like I should as the upper calve (insider, near knee cap) is kind of tight.

Do you have alot of return edge left? If so, removing some might help.

 

3 hours ago, fishgoh0nk said:

 I can see the shoulder bells could pull the strap (if longer because it's snapped lower)

That`s the reason and the snap won`t be seen at all

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

9 hours ago, TheSwede said:

I have a question though, is that your undersuit? If it is I would try and find a tighter one, you don`t wont it to bunch out between armor parts and a tighter one will also help with the fit. And...did you size your shins with the boots on?

LOL you caught me... i was only wearing 1 pant on a leg, and only pulled up to my thigh, I had the other leg in my teeth as a i took the picture. The undersuit definitely isn't as baggy as it appears. I'm also ordering from Imperial Boots this week for shoes - I guess I can use a pair of dress boots to do the sizing, thanks for reminding me.

9 hours ago, TheSwede said:

Do you have alot of return edge left? If so, removing some might help.

I also do have some return here - I will try removing some until it helps. Thanks!

[TheSwede[TK]]

1 hour ago, fishgoh0nk said:

i was only wearing 1 pant on a leg, and only pulled up to my thigh, I had the other leg in my teeth as a i took the picture.

 copy that

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

Just got some ATA biceps in to replace the left one I ruined. This is a ATA right bicep compared to an ANOVOS bicep right.

 

 

Just curious - will mixing parts affect approval?

[TheSwede[TK]]

57 minutes ago, fishgoh0nk said:

will mixing parts affect approval?

Not if they match up

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

Frankenstein bicep - The ATA biceps have a huge 12mm return edge, and I'm guessing the coverstrips would need to be around at least 20mm - to maintain the current ANOVOS suit's 15mm arms (bicep and forearms), I used a sealing iron to flatten the return edge on the inner bicep, filed, sanded and polished it to minimize the remaining evidence of a fold. Even though this turned out well, fitting the flattened ATA inner with the ATA outer bicep would not allow me to use a 15mm coverstrip to cover both edges, all 15mm would sit on the return edge of the outer bicep - I cannot remove any more material here as the bicep is already quite snug.

 

 

I can either flatten the outer ATA bicep's return edge... which, again is risky... or use the ANOVOS outer bicep:

 

 

The hybrid looks pretty good - fits the bicep and I can maintain a 15mm coverstrip.

 

[Left to right: warped ANOVOS inner left bicep (too small), hybrid (ATA outer + ANOVOS inner), ANOVOS right bicep)

 

Apparently 400 grit isn't enough to use NOVUS polish yet- so I'm waiting for the mail to come with some 600, 800, 1000 and 1500 grit paper. Once I get the bicep polished up, I'll assemble and trim to fit.

 

Ab to Kidney - using Tony's guide - I cut out 1.5 inch webbing strips and popped in 2 holes, 20mm apart. I figured since we'll be using the rivets with webbing, and my body is pretty flexible, the holes would need reinforcements. I decided to add a layer at the places where the rivet holes would be:

 

 

Also to figure out where to drill, I made little 1.5 inch strips of tape with holes marked 20mm apart and taped them to the outside of the torso and kidney. These will be my indicators for hole drilling. The tape was attached when the seam was together, as tight as possible, then cut with a knife to separate for my working convenience.

 

 

 

Ab Buttons - decided it was a good time to do this. I found it easier to score the backside of the button panel where the return meets the face, and just keep slicing. Doing this yielded a very easy way to trim while yielding an extremely straight edge.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 8, 2018 by fishgoh0nk
words

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

Got the waist belt snap holes drilled and reinforced - just waiting for the E6000 to fully dry before add the male snaps on the outside:

 

 

Added the brackets for the chest and back - I wanted to do the chest first because it's really hard to tell where to mount the brackets on the abs. I'm hoping with the brackets mounted, I'll have enough vertical visibility to see the brackets and mark the ab holes appropriately. I also added the shoulder snaps - using double like how Kman did his.

 

 

The back bracket reinforcement was a bit too long, started an upward bow, so I have to use a clamp to hold it down for the glue to dry. I didn't sand down the reinforcement, backside had slick text (no parking sign)... hope it stays.

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

Wow, didn't think reinforcing the bracket system with extra plastic would be this arduous. Well, in my case - i had to re-cut a lot of the reinforcement bars to fit the narrow return edges I have in my build. Some of the holes were a little too narrow or too wide, so I had to re-make about a quarter of them.

 

 

Another thing that made it take a while was letting the glue dry before adding the brackets... I had to add brackets to some because the return edge was so narrow, I needed the screw post to stabilize (couldn't use clamps or magnets). After installation, they seem to be holding up pretty good.

 

 

I added reinforcement to the cod split rivet as well, waiting for that to dry before I tacked on the elastic. There's some e6000 on the rivet, will come off easily

 

 

Like Tony's build - I used the handguard elastic included in the kit - but instead of cutting the 8 inch band to 4 inches (single layer), i kept it as a double layer, added layer for more strength and to protect my nether regions from the split rivet

 

 

Next steps:

 

1. Finish the shoulder elastic and mount the shoulders

2. Attach the webbing and split rivets on the ab/kidney left side

3. Make and attach the ab's right strap

4. Bracket / strap together

5. Make sure posterior will fit with Tony's 5/8 and 1-3/8 S popper placements

 

Here's how it looks so far.

 

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

Looking GREAT so far, James!  Before you glue those ab button plates on, I would recommend trimming them down even more.  One of the things I see a lot is that the 4 button plate is too large, (note the 1/8 inch  space on the side and 1/4 inch space on the bottom of the image below right).  Even though the "hump" that the large plate sits on is slightly trapezoidal in shape (larger at the bottom), keep the large plate rectangular.  

                                                                                                                                                                                                 Reference image

                       

 

Keep up the fantastic work!  

[Commander Gree[501st]]

On ‎6‎/‎23‎/‎2018 at 3:46 PM, fishgoh0nk said:

I'm a guy that likes to go big or go home, like I stated in the title, I'm shooting for Centurion/L3 approval, so hopefully I won't have a troopers accuracy regarding that ; thus, any approvers reading this, please let me know if I made any errors.

Well first off welcome, you have come to the right place for what your doing, and HEY! what do you mean by this statement? remember Vader directed us to let that scum go in order to find the rest of the rebels. Remember "only imperial stormtroopers are so precise" just giving you a hard time, but please don't insult our marksmanship, we troopers take pride in all that we destroy and concur. Join us! Good luck with the build and hope to see you at L3 status! 

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

8 hours ago, justjoseph63 said:

Looking GREAT so far, James!  Before you glue those ab button plates on, I would recommend trimming them down even more.  One of the things I see a lot is that the 4 button plate is too large, (note the 1/8 inch  space on the side and 1/4 inch space on the bottom of the image below right).  Even though the "hump" that the large plate sits on is slightly trapezoidal in shape (larger at the bottom), keep the large plate rectangular.  

                                                                                                                                                                                                 Reference image

                       

 

Keep up the fantastic work!  

Thanks for the tip Joseph! I'll start that as soon as my second coat of paint has dried (didn't like the rough texture of the first coat).

4 hours ago, Commander Gree said:

Well first off welcome, you have come to the right place for what your doing, and HEY! what do you mean by this statement? remember Vader directed us to let that scum go in order to find the rest of the rebels. Remember "only imperial stormtroopers are so precise" just giving you a hard time, but please don't insult our marksmanship, we troopers take pride in all that we destroy and concur. Join us! Good luck with the build and hope to see you at L3 status! 

Haha thanks! I jest, I jest all in good fun!

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

I have a question regarding the shoulder covers and how high / tilt / cant of the chest plate to back plate.

 

It feels natural on my body to have the shoulders of the chest sitting lower than back.

 

However, when the cover strip sits, it's so bowed that there's almost no contact I can make with the chest plate.

 

If I wear the chest a bit higher, the cover strip sits better, but still requires a good amount of pressure to keep it down between front and back

 

It seems like the only way to get the covers to seat well is if I wear the chest WAY high up, much higher than the shoulders of the back, unless I use a hot water bath to reshape the covers. Can someone show me how these should be worn? Ideally I wanted to install the cover straps on before I begin riveting kidney to abs. Thanks!

Edited July 10, 2018 by fishgoh0nk
word

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

Looks like you should be fine with the length of the shoulder bridge you plan on gluing to the chest. 

 

Can you post a photo of the front view that shows how far the shoulder bridges come down on the chest?

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

15 minutes ago, justjoseph63 said:

Looks like you should be fine with the length of the shoulder bridge you plan on gluing to the chest. 

 

Can you post a photo of the front view that shows how far the shoulder bridges come down on the chest?

I was in bed, but I wanted answer you asap as I don't seem to catch you in the day -- good thing I took some photos earlier yesterday of placement. These were taken in succession.

 

Edit: I took this before gluing the snaps/straps.

 

Would you recommend a hot water bath for the covers? If i were to glue as-is, I fear there would be a lot of strain on the current angle.

Edited July 10, 2018 by fishgoh0nk
clarification of time frame for photos

[Pretzel]

I see the front view, but I do not see your shoulder bridges? Maybe I am blind lol. Let's see how far the shoulder bridges go down to your chest.