EASY’s AM ARMOR ANH STUNT BUILD

[A.J. Hamler[TK]]

Hooray, another AM trooper!  You are going to love how this looks.  Best kit out there.

 

[Easy[TK]]

Added some stickers and the S-trim. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A little paint on the outside and mic tips. Inside screen, and headgear.

 

I have a hard hat liner in my other bucket , I like it but would like to know what else I can get and where to get it. I’ve seen some nice looking padding. The liner that came with the kit is too small and it just bobbleheads on me.

 

You may have noticed the bucket in the background. My granddaughter, 2yrs, loves to troop around the house with me. 

[Frank75139[501st]]

I thought the other bucket was a TK peeking out over the sofa to see what was going on. Helmet is looking good.


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[Easy[TK]]

Grandtrooper. 

 

Edited January 11, 2019 by Easy

[68Brick[TK]]

Nice job on those ears! Good looking bucket. Don't be afraid to peel off those stickers and paint the details for higher levels of certification. See if you can get that brow trim to sit level with the eyes. It looks odd. Keep up the good work!

[TheSwede[TK]]

Helmet is looking pretty good

 

I noticed a few things though that possible could make it even better and was just wondering what type of screw you used here? For higher levels (Centurion) ear screws are slotted, flat topped.

 

And looking at the tube stripes on this side they look a bit wonky, could be the photo but if it´s not then they should be about a pencil width from the cheek.

 

And if you are going to redo them you might want to look at this thread as it appears you have them reversed. Not a deal breaker when it comes to approval but if you want to make it more accurate

 

[tydirium1[TK]]

The brow kinda has that puzzled Spock look. Pardon the other side reference. Lol. You can easily adjust the brow.

[Easy[TK]]

On ‎12‎/‎18‎/‎2018 at 6:02 PM, Ripper_L said:

done, thanks for the heads up!

Sorry. I didn't know to put it in a special thread. Thanks.

[Easy[TK]]

2 hours ago, TheSwede said:

Helmet is looking pretty good

 

I noticed a few things though that possible could make it even better and was just wondering what type of screw you used here? For higher levels (Centurion) ear screws are slotted, flat topped.

 

And looking at the tube stripes on this side they look a bit wonky, could be the photo but if it´s not then they should be about a pencil width from the cheek.

 

And if you are going to redo them you might want to look at this thread as it appears you have them reversed. Not a deal breaker when it comes to approval but if you want to make it more accurate

 

I am considering pulling those stickers off the sides, I dropped the left one while lining it up and it looks odd. I might try painting them but will need to find a stencil. The screws on the bottom of the ears are what I was told to use by a very qualified builder. I like the flat ones personally. 

Not sure what you mean about them being reversed. Ok...I figured it out. Never really noticed that subtlety.

Edited December 19, 2018 by Easy

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

2 minutes ago, Easy said:

Not sure what you mean about them being reversed. 

The front of the stripes are angled , if you look from the sides you have yours like this (back) \\\\\ (front) and they should ideally be like this (back) ///// (front)

 

You can see in the images below:

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Just note that the angle \\\\\ of the stripes shouldn't hold you up for basic approval, it's just the ideal look, I wouldn't pick it.

 

You should be able to get your stickers off again, I have managed too in the past, I first apply some painters tape over the middle of the tube stripes, then with a sharp blade I ease from each edge of the stripes and slowly pull away, with patience they will peel off and then you can reapply.

 

If you do decided to paint a good tip is to apply a base coat of white, this is in case you have any bleed through in the corners of the masking tape, the white will bleed and fill any gaps then you can go over with blue, I believe trooperbay sells masking templates.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

4 hours ago, Bud Spaklur said:

Trooper bay also sells replacement decals. I know because I ordered them.

Yes as have I, but Dave mentioned he may try painting if he could find templates.

 

Many of us have trooperbay decals, was the only place for Dave M’s at one stage

[TheSwede[TK]]

6 hours ago, Easy said:

The screws on the bottom of the ears are what I was told to use by a very qualified builder. I like the flat ones personally. 

And it should be flat

 

Edited December 20, 2018 by TheSwede

[Easy[TK]]

I pulled the stickers and relaid them. I also replaced the lower screws with flat ones. I’m much happier with the look of both. 

 

I cut cut up a hard hat yesterday and started trimming the liner mounts to fit in the lid. I’ll mount them with Velcro to start and if I find it’s a good fit I might glue them in. I like the liner in my other bucket so this should be pretty easy. One of the things I like about this one is that I don’t need to twist it onto my head. It goes on and off straight. 

 

I’ll put the pics up later. 

Edited December 20, 2018 by Easy

[Easy[TK]]

Got some new paint brushes from Santa…and a bottle of 40 Creek. Shall we begin?

 

I masked off the ears for paint. 

 

Looks pretty good good so far. I started here then the teeth after. It’s a good idea to do a coat then let it set up for a while then do another coat…then let it dry. I know this because I didn’t do that. 

 

I think I did a pretty good job on the teeth. Starting to look like a trooper. I also redid the side vent stripes. I’m happier with them but still might do them again. 

 

The vocoder looks ok. Will do some touch-ups on it after it dries a bit. While doing the vocoder I pawed up the teeth and ears that weren’t yet dry. Patience. It’s been preached every step of the way and it’s necessary. Lesson learned. 

 

The unmasked ear. I painted the screws white, all flat heads now, and touched up the areas that bled into the masking. 

 

Here you can see the results of impatience. The black went on too soon and the grey bled through. I’ll fix it later. 

 

I ordered some helmet padding on amazon. My plan is to paint the inside of the bucket black. I’m also going to try to make some custom covers for the inside screws and nuts if the padding doesn’t cover themaqa. I’m tossing around the ABS paste mould idea or a heat and press to fit ABS cap. Also still tossing around the idea of painting the tears and traps. The stickers look good but paint has a feel I like when I touch it…and it just seems to look a bit nicer. 

[Easy[TK]]

Decided to paint the inside of the bucket. This is the first coat. Yes it’s a brush on not a spray. It’s called Gun Metal. 

 

The second coat really looks like I want it. Most will be covered with padding and fans etc. but it will look great when done. 

 

May as well do the Hovi mic’s. 

 

Mics drying and screens ready.

[Easy[TK]]

Here it is. Outside is done. I was told that it’s not symmetrical and I can clearly see that. The imperfections add personality. 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 29, 2018 by Easy

[Easy[TK]]

Starting work on the limbs. First is a forearm. There are two distinctly different forearms. Not sure which is left or right. The difference is one is slightly longer with a deeper cut into the inner forearm piece. I’m told they are interchangeable so, based on movie stills, I’ve decided to use this piece on the trigger arm. It will be my right arm piece. The reason is that this arm will generally be bent farther when holding the blaster so ideally for comfort. 

 

So this will be the left forearm. I matched the left and right inners with their outers, trimmed off the lower return edges and did a fitting on my bare arm. I marked the inner forearm for trimming. Only the inner pieces will get trimmed because the outer pieces came trimmed properly. I marked the cut lines with a pencil and made the first cut…oh me nerves…which is the edge that will be on top and the straightest cut. 

 

The second cut cut is on an angle that will give the forearm the taper it needs to fit the arm nicely. After the first cut I taped the cut edge to the outer arm and fit it again. You can see the old line has been replaced with one that works better.

 

I use the aluminum ruler to score straight lines. 

 

A few passes with the blade then I snap it nice and cleanly. I usually do some light passes in the groove just to make it a nicely trimmed edge. 

 

I use tape and magnets to set it up and try it on. You can see the trimmed edges and the taper.  I line up the return edge end, at the elbow, and will trim the wrist end for a nice smooth line around. I’ll be using inner and outer strips to complete it. 

 

The cuts are really straight and mate nicely with the outer arm. No sanding has been done to the cut edges. 

Notice the stack of magnets on the left…it picked up a screw bit as I moved it across the table. The bit was still there from the bucket build. Put your stuff away when you’re done with it folks. It’s neater, you won’t likely lose stuff or damage stuff. 

 

Left forearm trimming and fitting. First the wrist end return edge goes. 

 

Again a quick fit and marking for the sizing cuts. 

 

Here we can see the difference in the two forearms. 

Right forearm has a slight taper at the top. Left has a fairly straight, 90 edge at the top. 

 

From Victor Matts, maker of this armour, of AM Armor:
The right forearm tapers at the top as this allows the right arm to be bend more easily when carrying a blaster, while the left arm extends more straight, holding the barrel of the blaster farther away from the body.

 

The strips run up the top and bottom of the arm so this cut should run this line. 

 

With the cuts made an the halves taped I did a test fit. Everything lines up nice and it’s ready for the inner and outer cover strips. Some troopers only use outer strips but I like the strength the inner strips add. 

 

The first inner strip ready to be glued in. 

 

I applied E6000 to the strip and secured it with clamps at the ends and these very strong magnets in the middle. 

 

Inside view. I doubled the magnets inside for better pullin power. The strip will seat perfectly flat to both halves. I’ll be doing inside strips only to start with to form the pieces. The outer strips will go on once I’m satisfied with the final fit. 

Edited December 29, 2018 by Easy

[StrmTRPR85[TK]]

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Looking good Dave 

[Easy[TK]]

Continuing with the arms, this is the right forearm with the final trim lines marked. I put the undersuit arm on and did a quick fit to see how much I could take off. There will be about 1/8” left as a return edge. I’ll likely fill the gap with ABS paste I have on hand. 

 

Made a 15mm cover strip for the outer forearm. Just having a look because…well because I just want to. 

 

Something I do before gluing is rough up the gluing area with a couple passes of the sandpaper. It makes a little better bonding surface.

 

Time for some bicep sculpting. With a little help I did a quick fit and mark for cutting. The AM Armour is plenty deep…Dwayne the Rock Johnson might not need to trim it…and it’s proportional to the arm. Even cuts off every edge and another quick fit and they’re ready for inner strips and glue. 

 

I made the inner strips from the cut pieces. Gluing them on to one half first makes it much easier to set and glue the other half. 

 

This is the nice surface to set the other half

 

This is why I like the inner strips. When the pieces are glued together after trimming they don’t always line up square the way they came. When this dries I’ll pull the pieces together, glue and clamp them to set up. The inner trip will add strength to areas that are naturally somewhat stressed.

 

Here it is with the inner strips holding.

 

The back half is trimmed and the other half will be trimmed to match. Sanding will finish it if needed. 

 

Time to start the right side.

 

Again the inner strips on one side first…the back half this time because I can.

 

Once the inner strips cured enough on the remaining bicep and forearm I glued the halves together. This pic is of the final edges being joined. The bicep was very easy and needed only normal clamping to set the edges straight and even. The forearm was a bit tougher to bring together. I preset a strap with clamps to set it up. Once set I removed the clamps and slid the strap down to open the arm up. I carefully applied some e6000 to the strip and slid the strap back into place then clamped it. There was a couple uneven edges so I added the magnets (2 sets of 4in/4out) to set it right. Time to let it dry. I’ll make the rest of the 15mm cover strips while it cures. 

Notice the wrist end of the finished forearm in the pic. Some trimming and smoothing will be required. I’ll do this once I’m ready to test fit with at least the chest and back armour assembled. I’ll know better then how much wrist clearance I’ll need for decent movement and minimal gap between the parts. 

 

Here are all the parts glued and set with inner strips, and one outer because I just had to see it. Got a little first order supervision happening. 

 

The left forearm looks like a pretty straight tube but it’s not really. The red on the wrist is not blood. It’s marker I used to make trim lines. I trimmed the left wrist back flush now because it at a good length for my arm as it is. This arm will be the most extended which the blaster so I’m hoping to cover the arm with minimal gaps between the sections. 

 

The cover strip didn’t seat as nicely as I’d like. There were noticeable glue bubbles showing under the edge. I ran a bead of white E6000 down that edge to fill it in and tidy it up. E6000 grabs dirt and really stands out so if this dries as nice as I hope for I’ll put a little white paint over it to seal it. 

 

15mm cover strips ready for the left forearm. It’s fun how plans change. I was going to leave the cover strips until later but I just can’t get over how strong the one I did is. 

Notice the clamp on the right arm. I wasn’t happy with the way the glue set at the wrist. The halves weren’t flush at the but joint so I pulled them apart slightly, about 2” up the arm, and removed some glue. (This is where the benefits of E6000 are evident…it’s easy to work with and redo,if you’re not happy with your work). I squeezed some new glue in and clamped it. Should be better tomorrow.

 

One strip glued on. Again the magnets set it squarely down.

 

Both strips glued, clamped and set with magnets.

 

Heres a close up view of how the magnets really pull it together. 

 

I had to put this pic in because you can really see the quality of the AM kit. The surface is like a mirror.

 

Bicep cover strips, 15mm, are ready for when the forearms are done curing.

 

So these came today. From PropsEmporium in England. A bit tight on these big hands but they work. Nice surprise that they came ready to wear.

 

The left forearm is done. Both cover strips are on. 

 

The strength that inner and outer cover strips add is incredible. The right forearm has only one outer strip on and it has much more flex with a squeeze. 

 

Last strip for the right forearm. Lots of clamping power to keep it on the contour.

 

Left bicep gets the outer cover strips.

 

I should have shown this earlier but I just didn’t occur to me until just now. The marks you see there are to center the strip when the clamp is on. You can’t really see if it’s centred with the clamp on it so I use the strip to mark each end and adjust it if needed with the clamp in place. 

 

All pieces glued and drying.

 

A view from the Death Star. All return edges will be trimmed later. Once these are ready I’ll move on to the leg armour. 

Edited January 11, 2019 by Easy
Added next steps

[Frank75139[501st]]

Everything is looking great. I apologize if this was previously stated but do you plan on keeping all the return edge?


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[Easy[TK]]

10 hours ago, Frank75139 said:

Everything is looking great. I apologize if this was previously stated but do you plan on keeping all the return edge?


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I’m trimming the return edges to about 1/8” later, maybe a little more depending on how they fit or if they bite. 

[StrmTRPR85[TK]]

You can always remove more as needed.  Much harder to put back on.

[whosdachief]

On December 17, 2018 at 8:49 PM, Easy said:

Since I don’t have brushes yet, and can’t sit still, I started the assembly. 

Setting and clamping was tedious. The bucket is not symmetrical, which is screen accurate, so I found it a bit difficult to keep everything lined up. 

 

I had to get my big vice grip clamps to set the tubes to the face where I needed it to drill. I tried to keep the contact area where it would be covered by the ears in case I marked it up. 

 

The ABS is flexible enough to come together nicely. Drilling here will make a nice transition of the pieces. 

 

Both holes drilled, same on the other side. 

 

AM supplies all the correct screws to build a bucket. The Master, Eric Dyck, uses rivets, which I might switch to because I don’t like all the hardware inside, nuts and screw ends sticking inward. Maybe the padding will cover it, we’ll see.  

 

Both sides look good. I followed the steps in the build video by Eric Dyck as I went. It’s a great help.

 

The right ear needed very little work to fit this well. 

 

Very little gap front or back. 

 

Right side, looks pretty good. 

 

Left side seems acceptable. 

 

I think it will be really nice once the mic’s, neck seal and paint is done. 

Thanks Eric for the personal help on this. 

 

The brow is not exactly as I’d hoped. More stunt on the left and hero on the right. Oddly enough it’s lower on the squint eye which only seems to enhance the look of ‘aiming’ for a shot.  I might be the only stormtrooper to hit his target. I measured the height of the traps and the right side is 1/4” taller than the left. I may trim it across to even it out. Not sure what to think of it right now. 

Glad my videos could help, and there is a comment on this video regarding the bottom ear screw

 

Edited January 8, 2019 by whosdachief
Added photo