DarthBiscuit's R1TK Build (Jimmiroquai kit)

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

18 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

You could also remove the stitching and shorten the elastic and resew  

That's what I did - took about 6" off them. And X-shaped as opposed to Y-shaped? Almost like someone thought of that before linking you ;P

 

Literally the only place I glued on the entire suit was one side of the biceps. I'm afraid gluing and flexing it open anywhere else would damage the suit. Ultra thin Velcro all the way.

 

For filling the oval, I did like a flexible 2-part epoxy, then a skim coat of filler over the top with good results.

I'd caution against going straight to gloss white on the sanded fiberglass. 2X says it's primer but it's also about being able to SEE imperfections before final coat. I'm pretty sure you'll see a bunch of pinholes, especially around the edges, if you do. Spraying primer helped me find and sand these, as well as the high and low spots - especially in the thighs. Handguards might be okay, but prime the thighs forsure, imo.

Edited July 19, 2020 by TheRascalKing

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

19 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

You could also remove the stitching and shorten the elastic and resew  

 

Anywhere that would flex it would be better to paint before gluing as the paint could crack along the join. I had no issues spraying into crevasses, I normally do a light coat or two in any crevasses first before painting the rest of the pieces. 

I don't really want to mess up their nice stitching, but your recommendation makes me think I could over lap the back straps and sew them (I'll post pics if I go that way). I'll probably wait until I fit the barrel and figure out how much I'll cut off, then I'll know where to snap the suspenders and how long they'll be!

19 hours ago, ticopowell said:

E6000 will stick to gloss alright, sanding the surface helps but you should be alright. You can always test it on a scrap piece and see how much force it takes to remove it after letting it cure for 72 hours

I think you've both convinced me that gluing before painting gloss will be best!

1 hour ago, TheRascalKing said:

That's what I did - took about 6" off them. And X-shaped as opposed to Y-shaped? Almost like someone thought of that before linking you ;P

 

Literally the only place I glued on the entire suit was one side of the biceps. I'm afraid gluing and flexing it open anywhere else would damage the suit. Ultra thin Velcro all the way.

 

For filling the oval, I did like a flexible 2-part epoxy, then a skim coat of filler over the top with good results.

I'd caution against going straight to gloss white on the sanded fiberglass. 2X says it's primer but it's also about being able to SEE imperfections before final coat. I'm pretty sure you'll see a bunch of pinholes, especially around the edges, if you do. Spraying primer helped me find and sand these, as well as the high and low spots - especially in the thighs. Handguards might be okay, but prime the thighs forsure, imo.

Actually, these aren't the ones you linked, but I did follow Related Items, so you still get credit ;-) I think the difference was I originally looked at normal suspenders (that were Y) and you pointed me toward hockey goalkeeper suspenders (standard X). So good call!

 

I may only glue the biceps as well. The wrists of the forearms seem a little narrow, so I may need them detached to put on (maybe glue one side, velcro/magnet the other?). I still haven't decided how to attach the shins. I don't want them fully glued in the front, since they'll crack at the top/bottom. I'm thinking a short strip of glue in the middle (to hold their position) and then elastic inside across the top/bottom. I may be able to get away with just velcro instead since my stuff has some give to it...

 

I ordered more resin hardener since I still have some resin left. I'll use the to fill the oval, then sand it and even it out with putty.

 

You got me, Justin. I'll prime. You're right, and I was just trying the quick way. Better to do it right the first time!

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Naptime got messed up today, so I didn't have long to work...

 

I focused on the thighs, so I can re-resin the interiors tomorrow. Sanding went well, then I used one of my trusty files to clean the cover strips. Such great detail in Jim's armor! The seam where he attached the front to the back needed a lot of sanding. I'm sure that's the spot Justin referred to when promoting primer!

 

The repair I made looks great (that off-white spot on the top right)! I had put E6000 in the crack, let it cure, applied resin to the interior and exterior, then laid a square of fiberglass cloth across the inside. It flexes just fine with the rest of the thigh!

 

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Filled some imperfections on the hand plates with putty. Yes, that's a Play-doh knife ;-) I'll sand them tomorrow and then apply some  primer to the exterior.

 

 

My hardener came in, but I had just 4 ounces of resin left lol! It was enough for today, so hopefully I don't need resin for anything else!

 

I applied some resin to a few cracks in the barrel.

 

 

Then I redid the thighs. I had a bit left, so I did the thigh ammo belt, and spread the rest across the trauma plate.

 

 

I still have a lot to sand, but I think I'm done for today.

 

I've been typing up my to do list, trying to catch everything that's coming up for this armor. It doesn't seem like much until I expand each task into its parts (trimming, multiple coats, sanding, washing). And then I realize how many pieces I have to do all of that to! Good thing I have 3 months before Halloween (and who knows what COVID'S going to do to that)...

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Every piece adds up in the end, moving along nicely

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Only had time to sand the putty on the hand plates today and rinse them off. Hopefully tomorrow I can spray primer on the exterior and sand them again.

 

 

Nothing else got done today as we were super busy.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Another step closer 

[Sly11[Admin]]

Stay on target, this is getting there

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

I cleaned off the hand plates, set them up, and primed!

 

 

I had to spin it around and get low to really coat everything. It took 5 coats, and I gave a few minutes between each.

 

 

I'm going to wet sand it tomorrow, but can only see a couple pinholes that might need filling!

 

I also sanded the repairs on the barrel and the cured resin on the thighs, trauma plate, and knee ammo.

Edited July 23, 2020 by DarthBiscuit

[11b30b4[TK]]

DarthBiscuit, your build is coming along nicely.  Keep at it.

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

I wet sanded the primer to 400 and washed them off.

 

 

While they air dried, I sanded the resin and exterior of the shins.

 

 

I have a question regarding assembly of the shins (which also applies to the biceps and forearms). Jim made these pieces so each half has a cover strip, which helps match the halves to each other. I have heard that coverstrips need to overlap toward the interior (so someone standing next to you doesn't see the seam). That is impossible with Jim's kit, since the left half has a cover strip and the right half has the other. My question: does it matter which way I wear these shins? Either the front cover strips face inward and the back face outward (like in the pic above), or vice versa. Am I worrying too much about something that doesn't matter?

 

Anyways, after that, I applied more putty to the hand plates. The primer really helped point out more imperfections. I looked through my old posts and saw that I was more liberal with the putty on the bucket, to ensure it filled holes and stayed in. So I rubbed putty into the hand plates, instead of scraping it off. Tomorrow I'll sand it to 220 and prime again! I'm pretty sure that'll be enough primer on the hand plates.

 

 

I was thinking about adjusting my process. Instead of doing a step for every piece (sand everything, prime everything, sand everything, paint everything), I was thinking about staggering pieces. So while I wait for the hand plates to dry, I can trim the barrel, or putty the chest and back, etc. Then I saw @11b30b4recommended that to someone else and I'm sold! That process should help give me an occasional sense of progress and accomplishment. I just need to make sure I size everything together and trim correctly the first time...

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Interesting he made them that way but I guess because the fronts are glued they shouldn't appear open, they will however look like a cover strip is glued on, with the inside you could match the look of a cover strip glued on by perhaps running a fine pencil down the ridge so it appears like a shadow, (or even some acrylic wash and wipe away excess).

 

 

 

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Thanks @gmrhodes13. Any R1TKs have input on Jim's cover strips?

 

I only got a little done today. It's my 11-year anniversary and apparently letting her help me sand is not "romantic" :-) 

 

Sanded the putty to 220.

 

 

Primed coat #2.

 

 

Tomorrow I'll wet sand the hand plates to 400 and then spray satin on the interior. Then the next day I'll spray gloss white on the exterior. Last thing will be soft velcro!

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Wet sanded to 400 and washed them off.

 

 

Prepped to spray satin white inside. 

 

 

2 coats and they're white. There are some pinholes, but I'm not worried about precision on the interior. Did anyone else fix interior imperfections?

 

 

I might not spray gloss on the exterior tomorrow, as waiting only 24 hrs could affect the paint interactions (as depicted in my helmet spraying).

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Good idea, the wait is a pain but well worth it just in case  

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

I sanded a few more things today. That's the last of the major pieces! I still need to sand the boxes and the TD.

 

 

Working on the shoulder bells, I'm a little worried that Jim sent me 2 lefts, or 2 rights, and not 1 of each. In the pic below, I taped the strips together and then aligned the edges so the curve makes a circle. The lower edges should go straight across so they match in the front, and then match in the back. You can see that they don't align straight across. Even in the first pic you can see the strips going the same direction, when they should be opposites. Maybe I'm scrutinizing too closely and it'll look fine once on, or maybe it'll be more obvious to see one shoulder bell look shorter than the other... Thoughts?

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Personally I'd probably trim to match, not that much material would be lost

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Personally I'd probably trim to match, not that much material would be lost

Yeah that'd be easy enough. Shouldn't be bad since there's no return edge or anything. Thanks!

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Today was productive!

 

I finished preliminary sanding!

 

 

Then I sprayed gloss white on the hand plates. It went pretty well, except for a few pinholes. I'm not sure if they'll require fixing, or if they won't be noticed... I might just dab some paint onto those spots later on.

 

 

 

I went to putty the chest, back, and shoulder straps, but saw they needed washing first. I untaped the straps and noticed a big crack on one! I'm not sure if putty will be good enough for it... Has anyone else made Jim's fiberglass straps work, or do I need to buy plastic ones?

 

 

Washing off the pieces almost made me realize I didn't fill the oval!! I'm glad I didn't throw away my resin tin...I was able to drip out just enough, add a few drops of hardener, and fill the oval! I have to prop it up while drying or the resin just swaps to one side... I'll sand that down tomorrow.

 

 

I also see that I wasn't too attentive when sanding these pieces (they were the first I did and I didn't have my worklight on) so I'll sand them a bit more tomorrow too. Better to start with a smooth surface than fix later!

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I noticed with the flexible fiberglass that it can get cracks in some places, I had two on my sithtrooper prior to painting, appears they are usually on curves or any place that would bend, I ground out some of the cracks, then used bondo (auto filler) then added fiberglass resin and matting behind for extra support, seems to have done the trick. I also found when storing be carful how you pack, a bicep got squashed and had to use some tape to hold the shape back in the normal position and it came good. I'm not sure if the flexible fiberglass hardens over time but just be aware it can move. 

 

Whit is a funny it can show lots of imperfections as they appear dark in color, I doubt it will be noticed so really up to you if you want to fix the pin holes  

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

So, within the required hour, I sprayed some gloss into a little puddle on paper, then used a toothpick to poke some into the pinholes. It worked! They're still there, but much less noticeable since there's paint in them now. 

 

 

I cutout some squares of velcro (one hard and one soft) and stuck them on the hand plates.

 

 

And they look great! I should've gotten a picture wearing them... I think they're a little big for me, which is obvious when I close my fist, or maybe the velcro squares should be larger, but I think they'll work.

 

 

After that, I sanded the chest, back, and shoulder straps more attentively. I washed them off, and then applied putty to the back and straps (before I ran out of time). I probably could have filled a bit more resin, but hopefully this putty will even it out without cracking. I used a toothpick for the pinholes so I could actually fill them.

 

 

I'll putty the chest and sand these pieces tomorrow.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Coming along great

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

Here's a pic wearing my gloves!

 

 

I applied putty to the chest, since I ran out of time Wednesday. I set it in the sun and moved on, giving it 30+ to dry.

 

 

I sanded and washed each piece. I applied a bit more on the oval and to a few spots I missed on the shoulder straps. Let them dry while working other pieces, then sanded and washed again. The scratches on the chest and the oval seem flush now!

 

 

 

I hope to prime these pieces tomorrow, since I shouldn't have to trim anything...

[DarthBiscuit[TK]]

I had to adjust my setup so I could prime these 4 pieces. I put them each on a box and used that to move it in and out of there. I'd spray one, then switch it with another, and again, until I got them all, then wait a few minutes before hitting them from another angle.

 

 

It took just over an hour but they're coated! I see a few rough spots, holes, and scratches. I'll wet sand to 400 tomorrow and putty fill again.

 

 

After that, I took some putty to the barrel. I don't know what happened with this piece, but I had to fill A LOT!! I took a new approach, based on my extensive experience of puttying 5 pieces lol. I'd just rub the putty around with my Play-doh knife to spread it across the imperfections but not leave too much to sand later.

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Nice little paint area there, I have space between the sheds and house so I normally make a tarpaulin booth, sides, roof and floor, takes some time setting up but well worth keeping the overspray at bay.

 

A good tip to find imperfections is to give a very fine mist coat of black over your spray putty/primer, when you wet sand it will leave areas of black were there are any imperfections or pinholes  

 

Nice work