Spraying the inside of your armor with Truck Bed Liner???? Why It might be a good Idea!

[Ericnathan811[TK]]

Hello everyone, and welcome to my science experiment! A long while back, when I was deep in the model-making side of the internet, I remember hearing that truck bed liner could be used to strengthen Styrene. Many years later, when building my armor, for some reason this stuck with me. I winded up spraying some on some of my spare model-making styrene (HIPS .5mm) and testing it out. After a bit of bending, twisting and folding, there was not a single crack. Compared to an untreated piece it cracked 10 seconds in. 

 

So naturally I decided to spray the inside of my armor as a form of extra protection. It's been a long while since i did this, and I wanted to try it again to see if it really did work. Because It still confuses me. So this is that test:

 

Here are two identical pieces of the same styrene as before:

 

 

 

This is the spray:

 

 

 

I sprayed one piece, but left the other untreated. then left to dry

 

To test their crackability, I folded each of them like this:

 

 

 

Then I took a small hammer and tried to totally fold that edge

 

Here are the results:

 

 

 

This seems obvious to me, but the bed liner does seem to have a a crack-resistance to it (although not 100% fool proof)

 

And in case you're wondering what the inside of my armor looks like now:

 

 

 

Pretty dang cool if you ask me.

 

I'm not asking you to spray your armor, but I would love for those of you with access to other types and thicknesses of styrene like ABS to test them out. I would love to see the results and how they differ. And wether or not spraying truck bedliner is the new META 

[Harbinger[IPM]]

I did this to the inside of my helmet, more to cut down on light leakage, but totally worth it IMO.

[Bulldog44[TK]]

Very cool. I saw some of that rubber paint coating to try but think it would come off rather easy so this is certainly better to try. Thanks for sharing! 

[T-Jay[TK]]

Sprayed the inside of my helmet black for the same reason as Brien (@Harbinger) with simple spray paint.

 

I totally love it but it got some light wear and tear during the 40+ troops made with it. Guessing that won't happen with Truck Bed Liner.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Sprayed mine with just a basic satin black to stop any reflection to be seen through lenses. 

[Motogpnut]

Hello everyone, and welcome to my science experiment! A long while back, when I was deep in the model-making side of the internet, I remember hearing that truck bed liner could be used to strengthen Styrene. Many years later, when building my armor, for some reason this stuck with me. I winded up spraying some on some of my spare model-making styrene (HIPS .5mm) and testing it out. After a bit of bending, twisting and folding, there was not a single crack. Compared to an untreated piece it cracked 10 seconds in. 
 
So naturally I decided to spray the inside of my armor as a form of extra protection. It's been a long while since i did this, and I wanted to try it again to see if it really did work. Because It still confuses me. So this is that test:
 
Here are two identical pieces of the same styrene as before:
 

 
 
This is the spray:
 

 
 
I sprayed one piece, but left the other untreated. then left to dry
 
To test their crackability, I folded each of them like this:
 

 
 
Then I took a small hammer and tried to totally fold that edge
 
Here are the results:
 

 
 
This seems obvious to me, but the bed liner does seem to have a a crack-resistance to it (although not 100% fool proof)
 
And in case you're wondering what the inside of my armor looks like now:
 

 
 
Pretty dang cool if you ask me.
 
I'm not asking you to spray your armor, but I would love for those of you with access to other types and thicknesses of styrene like ABS to test them out. I would love to see the results and how they differ. And wether or not spraying truck bedliner is the new META 

Have you tried sticking anything to it? Specifically velcro. Do you get good adhesion to the bed liner? The helmet idea sounds great. But my concern would be whether the velcro would stay. I’m currently considering just lining the entire helmet with the hook side of the Velcro but I know I won’t be able to cover everything. If the bed liner protects, darkens and is able to handle the adhesive from the Velcro, well then I have a winner for sure.

[Ericnathan811[TK]]

I have attached Velcro to it for foam under my shoulder bells! I did not notice any difference between this surface and the surface of the plastic. So take that how you will!

[tat2trooper[TK]]

Pretty nice going to have to try this out.

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

Been doing this to my ABS helmets for years! Velcro sticks just fine. I wonder if spraying the whole suit adds a noticeable amount of weight or not, and if it protects the edges from cracking - I notice the OP has ROTJ-style trim around it... Either way, I'm very open to gathering more info if anyone else wants to try! 

[Harder[TK]]

49 minutes ago, TheRascalKing said:

Been doing this to my ABS helmets for years! Velcro sticks just fine. I wonder if spraying the whole suit adds a noticeable amount of weight or not, and if it protects the edges from cracking - I notice the OP has ROTJ-style trim around it... Either way, I'm very open to gathering more info if anyone else wants to try! 

 

I did this.  Its magic.  I admit I needed to clean up a little of the edges, so taping off correctly is the key.  I have not decided to do the inside of the armor for two reasons.  1. the RSP authenticity stickers with my suit ID and name in it would be an issue...  And 2. I have had to modify slightly and or repair some snaps etc. already.  I know that once I am awarded Centurion (Because I will... WILL have it), that perhaps I will change my mind, but I can not do the armor until I have that rank first.

 

 

Edited February 22, 2021 by Harder

[TheRascalKing[TK]]

15 minutes ago, Harder said:

I did this.  Its magic.  I admit I needed to clean up a little of the edges, so taping off correctly is the key. 

^THIS^

Since it's "abrasion resistant", trying to sand or polish it off SUCKS, so absolutely mask well. Just wanted to state that again for the sake of this thread haha

[Sly11[Admin]]

Interesting, i must experiment with this rather than the Plasti dip.

I have had issues with Velcro sticking so could be the better alternative by the looks.