Newbie Dave's Anovos build

[davethedeal[TK]]

Hello All! I'm a first time builder and wannabe 501ster from Wisconsin who just got started with my kit last week. I am already running into questions for which I don't know the answers, so I decided to start this thread to try and stay on track.

 

I bought an Anovos kit from someone that had purchased it as a pre-order waaay back in the day but never started it. As such, I received it in the Big Black Box that it lay dormant in for all those years. Happy day!

 

The only issues with the kit are a lack of any soft goods (easy enough to fix) and some scratching on one of the thighs. The protective coating is still on the ABS, but these scratches look deep enough to have gone through it. I'm hoping I'll be able to clean that up with some light sanding and Novus.

 

First thing I did was the initial trimming, which was fun and went by quickly.

 

I started out with the idea of using lexan scissors for the entire process to avoid any chance of slipping with a razor and causing unnecessary damage. That idea lasted through about 2 pieces, then I switched to the knife - so much easier! However, I did have one of those slips I was afraid of on a shoulder bell. I'm hoping to repair this by putting some scrap on the inside and gluing it up to support it and prevent that from tearing any further. 

 

 

After finishing the trimming and reading through ukswrath's tutorial a couple times, I've started working on trimming it to fit. This is where I now have questions. Right off the bat I should note that I am going to attempt to make most of the modifications ukswrath made to make his kit Centurion-quality, but am not necessarily planning to actually apply for that level of certification. My goal is to get this kit finished before the end of the year, so if I run into Centurion level modifications that are going to significantly slow things down, I'll be skipping them. Hopefully I can at least reach EIB.

 

Question 1:

The tutorials are saying to leave 1/2" gap between yourself and your armor to avoid it being too tight and constrictive. Does that mean I pull the armor tight against one side of my arm and measure the gap on the other side and it should be 1/2", or are we talking 1/2" of clearance all around between my arm and the armor? I'm assuming the former, and that's about where I'm at on my first piece. Is this what I'm aiming for, or should I be removing more return edge?

Please ignore the fact that my ruler starts at 17"... its a cut-down yardstick.

 

Question 2:

When we say the cuff on the forearm should have no return edge, are we talking absolutely no return at all? Is a very slight lip like I have here acceptable for Centurion, or do I need to take this down until it is just flat plastic from the sleeve to my wrist?  

 

Question 3:

I've read other threads where folks are concerned about how much empty space there is between the cuff end of the forearm and their arm, and I have the same concern. I'm thinking of trimming that end down a little bit, but am unsure if that is wise because I don't have the gloves and don't really know how much they will thicken up my wrist. How bulky are the rubber gloves around the wrist area?

 

Thanks for any help anyone can provide!

 

 

 

 

Edited March 30, 2019 by davethedeal
Removing photos

[Harbinger[IPM]]

You should be able polish those scratches out no problem.

 

Question 2 - No return edge. A little bit of curve on the outside where the plastic bent around (where it would have met the edge) is okay but there should be NO inside lip/return edge whatsoever.

 

Question 3 - Gloves, unless you add a liner like some do, add minimal bulk, but I would still do any trimming after buying those just to be safe. FWIW my forearms are snug, I can get them on/off but it is a little tight - but that's the look I wanted. Too big and they look boxy to me.

Edited November 2, 2018 by Harbinger

[HSM76[TK]]

For final polishing Novus works great for me, but for removing deeper scratches I found, that sandpaper with 600 grit for pre treatment (for very deep scratches) and than 3000 grit and 7000 grit work better, as it is more precise in my opinion. 

[davethedeal[TK]]

I've been struggling a bit with reducing the return edges on the front of the limbs so that they aren't too much wider than the cover strips.

 

Question 4:

Does this cover strip look about right? Or do I need to wrestle with those return edges a bit more to make them narrower?

 

Edited March 30, 2019 by davethedeal
Removing photos

[TheSwede[TK]]

4 minutes ago, davethedeal said:

Does this cover strip look about right?

Hey Dave

The width look great However it seem a bit long, it should end at the ridges

[davethedeal[TK]]

14 minutes ago, TheSwede said:

Hey Dave

The width look great However it seem a bit long, it should end at the ridges

 

Thanks for the reference photo. Seeing the amount of return edge on that real example actually makes me feel a lot better! I'll get that cover strip trimmed down before gluing - this was just one of my many test-fits to see how it looks. I'm hoping to start gluing later this week. 

[davethedeal[TK]]

I finally received some magnets I ordered from ebay and got started with gluing. I've started with the forearms, and right off the bat had trouble with trying to hold the two pieces together with one hand while applying clamps with the other. Also, the split between the pieces kept getting bigger when I put on the clamp. I figured out that part of the problem was that the clamps themselves were too wide and were pushing the pieces apart. Cutting down the clamps with scissors helped with that issue. Then I found that I could run a piece of stronger masking tape down the inside of the seam and that held everything together nicely, allowing me to use two hands for the rest of the operation.

 

 

I bundled up my magnets in cloth sachets like I saw on a post here in the FISD forum, and glued my first piece together! 

 

I tried to clean up the excess glue that squeezed out of the joint, but I am a little concerned that my clamps are going to get glued to the armor... 

Edited March 30, 2019 by davethedeal
Re

[HSM76[TK]]

No sweat if you use E6000, you can get the off. There should be no problem. Pull the carefully off and you are fine. 

 

[ukswrath[Staff]]

[KindofaBigDeal[501st]]

Looks great trooper, keep up the good work. Can't wait for you to join Devastator Squad and the WI Garrison!

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Coming along nicely, keep up the great work

[magni[TK]]

Always great when that first piece is done! Progress!!!

 

 

 

[davethedeal[TK]]

I made it to my first ever armor party this weekend, and am glad I did. I got some good advice, and also got to see other armor in various states of construction/repair. I did have a bloody mishap with a razor knife, and the propane heater was cranked up high enough to make me sweat under my layers, but there were no tears involved - so at this point I can at least say blood and sweat have gone into the construction of my armor.

 

 

I was a bit concerned about all the excess glue on the parts that I have glued so far, and had read that the way to deal with that is to rub it with your finger. I thought that was a load of crap once I saw how tough this glue is, but a Bossk (sorry guys, I can't remember names too well) demonstrated for me and sure enough, it works if you rub long enough. While I doubt anyone will be clicking on this thread for tips on their own build, I have come up with an innovation to save your fingertips. A silicone spatula works just as well to remove the excess glue that is smeared over the surface, and doesn't leave behind any marks. Just rub vigorously.

 

 

For the spots where there is thick glue, cutting some loose with a knife then pulling on that piece works well enough as the rest of it then peels away kinda like string cheese. 

 

I've got more glue curing now and 2 more cover strips to glue up tonight and then I'll have the arm pieces complete... except for a couple hours still to be spent removing excess glue...

Edited March 30, 2019 by davethedeal
Removing photos

[TheSwede[TK]]

Just keep on trucking and you`ll be a Stormtrooper before you know it

[davethedeal[TK]]

I've been working on installing Mr. NoStripe's brackets. I've reinforced all the connection spots with an extra piece of ABS that I glued in place with regular superglue. One of those popped loose last night and I'm wondering if its because CA glue is like that, or if its because its about 30 degrees Fahrenheit in my garage and the cold is making it weak. But that's not my question.

 

Question 5:

When I went to install my first screw, I saw that I have this head hanging out in space looking stupid. I see the same thing in UKsWrath's tutorial so I know its not just me, but is that screw head screen-accurate? I can't tell on the reference photos of screen-used armor I've looked at. Did they use a machine screw like this and leave it sticking out like that? We aren't really working with enough material to countersink it, but maybe a pan-head screw would look better? Ultimately just an aesthetic thing, but its eating at me...

 

Question 6:

I have wide feet. I checked with TK boots and they don't have anything close to my size. Imperial Boots specifically says their boots are 'narrow fit' and it sounds like they take months to deliver anyway. I'd be just as happy ordering a wide-fitting Chelsea boot and fixing the color myself. My question has to do with the seam on the side of the boots. I'm having trouble finding any wide ones with the exact same seam as seen in the CRL. The CRL doesn't specify anything about the seam on the side. Does that side seam matter for Centurion approval?

I'm looking at these boots: https://us.asos.com/asos-design/asos-wide-fit-chelsea-boots-in-black-leather/prd/8192254

Would those work a) for Centurion approval and b) are they tall enough that the shins would not get hung up in them?

 

 

Edited December 16, 2018 by davethedeal

[ukswrath[Staff]]

A 5. With the Anovos the reason I don't counter sink them is I din't want to run the risk of cracking the armor given how thin it was. On thicker armor I counter sink a bit. 

A 6. Chelsea boots are relative common these days. Finding a style with a seam in the center instead of the back shouldn't be too hard to find. Heck I was in a pinch and found a pair at Kohls earlier this year $75. They look just like my TK Boots or Imperials. 

[davethedeal[TK]]

The problem isn't really finding Chelsea boots with the seam in the center, its finding that in a brand that has sizing for wide feet. I'll keep looking.

[ukswrath[Staff]]

15 minutes ago, davethedeal said:

The problem isn't really finding Chelsea boots with the seam in the center, its finding that in a brand that has sizing for wide feet. I'll keep looking.

Understood, I have wide feet and they had wide boots 

[Rat[TK]]

[davethedeal[TK]]

Only a little progress has been made over the past 2 weeks due to a wedding last weekend and Thanksgiving yesterday, but I didn't want to leave you popcorn eaters hanging for too long. I'm finally seeing some progress! I've finished the gluing of the arm pieces as well as the long, arduous task of removing the excess glue. Today I glued up the fronts of the thighs.

 

I've put in orders at Amazon and Ebay for the snaps and whatnot and am hoping to get started on the internal strapping soon!

 

 

Edited March 30, 2019 by davethedeal
Removing photos

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Coming along nicely, can never have enough magnets, clamps or tape. Keep up the great work you'll be finished in no time  

[magni[TK]]

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

If you haven't done the calves yet I would strongly suggest using a few ABS scraps (1 inch wide or so) to make interior cover strips for the fronts.  The calves get quite a workout from being opened and closed a lot, so that adds some reinforcement on that seam.  They don't have to be pretty, lol, as no one sees them anyway and it will not affect approval at any level.

 

Something else I would suggest is to reinforce the neck and sides of your chest plate (see photo) in the same way you did the return edges for the brackets using the scraps from your build.

Anovos armor tends to split in these areas, and if you reinforce them now you won't have that problem.  Keep up the great work!!  

 

[KindofaBigDeal[501st]]

Keep up the good work! 

[davethedeal[TK]]

Progress has been slow due to life getting in the way, but I am just about finished gluing all the limb pieces together. 

 

One notable difficulty has been getting the backs of the thighs glued up. The two surfaces aren't flat where they join, and its especially bad on the right one. I wanted to try and glue it up all at once (rather than gluing one side, waiting for it to dry, then gluing to the other side) so I attempted to use my vice to compress the piece to make the surfaces flat and hold everything in place. That was a failure, mostly because I couldn't really see the area under the vice's jaw and things weren't really lined up like I thought. I think the technique has merit, but my execution was poor.

 

One side glued up nicely while the the other side had a 1/4 inch gap between the cover strip and the thigh. Today I ripped that bad side loose, removed the glue, and re-did it using a variety of other clamps and tape to make the join flatter. 

 

I had another issue when attempting to fix the mismatch at the top of my right bicep. When I glued that piece up, I lined up the bottoms of the two pieces, and that made the top look like this:

 

 

To deal with this, I clamped a piece of wood on the inside of the bicep so that the top of the piece of wood served as guide, heated up the misaligned part with a heat gun, then bent it over.

 

 

That technique worked splendidly, but then the perfectionist in me decided to heat it up some more to try and make it even more perfect. Unfortunately when I did that, the two pieces shrunk a bit. I didn't know the ABS would do that - lesson learned. So now I've got this gap in my upper bicep. My first thought is that this will be concealed under my shoulder bell and I don't need to fret over it, my second thought is to use some ABS paste to try and fill it in.

 

I've also experimented with using a bag of sand to hold down elastic that I'm gluing inside the armor - in this case where I'm attaching the bicep to the forearm. Its just another technique if anybody is interested. I figure it does a pretty good job of applying even pressure all over the surface of the elastic so it will glue down as flat as possible.

 

 

Today I also hit a milestone - I finished off my first tube of E6000!! That has to indicate progress! This project has been taking a lot of time, but as I'm nearing the end of gluing the cover strips on I'm really starting to see it come together. I'm excited to move on to working on the straps and suspension.

 

Edited March 30, 2019 by davethedeal
Removing photos