How's your mobility / flexibility?

[TheBlooperTrooper[TK]]

Hi everyone!

 

After recently kitting up for the first time in several months I've discovered that my armor just doesn't quite fit the same. I'm considering modifying my kit (mainly by reducing return edges on the legs and butt plate along with strapping adjustments) to give me some bonus mobility and maybe even the ability to crouch. How do you all deal with mobility or the lack of it? Any tips you can pass along to help get back some mobility and flexibility in mine?

 

Thanks!

 

Edit: After looking around some more I saw a lot of detail about mobility cuts on the backs of the thighs / shins. Beyond keeping whatever trimming to just the raised bits is there any guidelines or recommendations anyone would have for that? Also, has anyone trimmed the height of their thigh pieces? My AM 2.0 kit seems almost tall for me even now and I'm entertaining the idea of working on that down the road to give my ANH Stunt kit the maneuverability of a Rogue one TK. I've attached a photo of my recent kit up for now to try and get the idea across. Please note that I'm not standing perfectly straight so the leg pieces do not appear to be lined up while symmetrically but are still the same size.

Edited June 22, 2021 by TheBlooperTrooper

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I'm 5 11 so didn't need mobility cuts, can bend my legs/knees quite well but I still can't bend my knees all the way, it's just how it is. 

 

Helpful references for mobility cuts here: 

 

[AsBlondeAsLuke[TK]]

Love this reference for the mobility cuts. Thank you!

 

[CallMeMrTibbles[501st]]

I'm 6'4" and bizarrely have needed mobility cuts (can't really explain why, just that it's far more comfortable). Don't like that it's left large gaps at the back of my knees, but still managed to pass centurian, so can't be that bad!

Important thing with mobility cuts, if you want to go for lvl 2 or 3 they must not extend beyond the raised ridge.

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

How about mobility for upper body, specifically arms to head? I have some voice controls in my helmet that are extremely hard to reach as the bicep contacts the forearm, making the bend in the arm to touch my chin area extremely difficult. Anyone else have this problem, possibly solutions?

[CallMeMrTibbles[501st]]

Just now, fishgoh0nk said:

How about mobility for upper body, specifically arms to head? I have some voice controls in my helmet that are extremely hard to reach as the bicep contacts the forearm, making the bend in the arm to touch my chin area extremely difficult. Anyone else have this problem, possibly solutions?

Yes, same problem.

I am considering trimming a little more in the curve of the elbow pit part of the forearm to allow more easy bending, but its a fine line before you could remove too much.

The armour definitely wasn't designed with practicality in mind!

 

I don't have voice system yet, but I do have fans and hearing assist, both of which have controls in the helmet. All I can suggest is to try as much as possible to position your system such that the controls are as easy to reach as possible (easier said than done I realise).

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

5 minutes ago, CallMeMrTibbles said:

Yes, same problem.

I am considering trimming a little more in the curve of the elbow pit part of the forearm to allow more easy bending, but its a fine line before you could remove too much.

The armour definitely wasn't designed with practicality in mind!

 

I don't have voice system yet, but I do have fans and hearing assist, both of which have controls in the helmet. All I can suggest is to try as much as possible to position your system such that the controls are as easy to reach as possible (easier said than done I realise).

 

Same with the fans; given the shoulder bell strapping, I don't think there's anywhere on the lower half of the bucket I can reach. I can definitely reach the temples to take off the helmet.

 

I wonder how much can I take off from either the bicep or forearm before it affects approval?

[CallMeMrTibbles[501st]]

4 minutes ago, fishgoh0nk said:

I wonder how much can I take off from either the bicep or forearm before it affects approval?

That bit I'm not sure. Best to run that exact question to someone like a DO to check.

 

When you say shoulder bell strapping, do you mean because your shoulder bells hit against your chest plate?

If that's the case then do you have any curve on the inside edge of your shoulder bell, as if not this might help.

I'll have a look for some ref pics to show what I mean

[CallMeMrTibbles[501st]]

Here's a link where the shoulder bell curve is discussed. Might help

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/28085-angled-shoulder-bells/

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

13 minutes ago, CallMeMrTibbles said:

When you say shoulder bell strapping, do you mean because your shoulder bells hit against your chest plate?

If that's the case then do you have any curve on the inside edge of your shoulder bell, as if not this might help.

 

9 minutes ago, CallMeMrTibbles said:

Here's a link where the shoulder bell curve is discussed. Might help

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/28085-angled-shoulder-bells/

 

Yea, one of the troubles I have is getting dressed solo; reaching across my chest or attempts to bring my elbows closer to the center of my body causes the bell to contact my body. I did not attempt to cut any more material off the bells in fear of creating too much gap between it and the chestplate. I'll do some more calisthenics in the suit and see what can be done and where it contacts, but from the reference you provided, the cuts would be made as such?

 

[CallMeMrTibbles[501st]]

That looks good to me, but.... I'm no DO or armourer, so before trimming check in with someone that signs off on outfits. I'd hate for you to ruin your shoulder bells if I gave bad advice!

If you don't have a local/garrison armourer to check with then post that pic and question here:

 

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/forum/191-tk-pre-approvals/

 

For sure you'll get the right answer there 

Edited July 2, 2021 by CallMeMrTibbles

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

Hi James.

 

before any cut, I would like to suggest to check this video about dressing solo. It has been so useful to me, but most of the time when trooping and if it's possible , I ask for some help from fellow troopers mainly with arms . Note that in order to gain more mobility you can turn the forearm curve to allow more space between  the bicep and forearm.

 

 

Hope this can give you some light. 

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

Something like this

 

 

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

1 hour ago, TKSpartan said:

Hi James.

 

before any cut, I would like to suggest to check this video about dressing solo. It has been so useful to me, but most of the time when trooping and if it's possible , I ask for some help from fellow troopers mainly with arms . Note that in order to gain more mobility you can turn the forearm curve to allow more space between  the bicep and forearm.

 

 

Hope this can give you some light. 

 

Funny, this dressing video was probably one of the first 10 videos I watched immediately after ordering the armor. It's like I've finally come full circle.

 

I can do everything minus putting on a shoulder bell after the first shoulder bell has been donned. I think I might need to alter the method, I notice he's raising his elbow high for chestplate clearance. Let me give that shot.

[CallMeMrTibbles[501st]]

Seem to remember Ross telling me his armour is thin, I think only 1mm abs, so is very flexible compared to most armour. Makes it look easy!

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

3 hours ago, CallMeMrTibbles said:

Seem to remember Ross telling me his armour is thin, I think only 1mm abs, so is very flexible compared to most armour. Makes it look easy!

Indeed !  a couple of times I have tried to put on my shoulder-arms section I have ended doing contortionist like movements and a nice back pain  

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

6 minutes ago, TKSpartan said:

Indeed !  a couple of times I have tried to put on my shoulder-arms section I have ended doing contortionist like movements and a nice back pain  

 

LOL, the RWA video makes it seem so effortless, my thighs are too big to step into a snapped cod piece armor, so I have to reach down there to secure it; I pull a pectoral muscle every time

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I'm 5' 11" and must be one of the lucky ones, I can put everything on without issue and with ease, can dress is 5 minutes, didn't need mobility cuts either, and although I don't sit in chairs I do sit on their arms or corner of a table.

 

All comes done to your height, weight and armor. If you are tall you really shouldn't have mobility cuts as it does leave a lot of black showing in the rear.

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

6 minutes ago, fishgoh0nk said:

 

LOL, the RWA video makes it seem so effortless, my thighs are too big to step into a snapped cod piece armor, so I have to reach down there to secure it; I pull a pectoral muscle every time

 

I disconnect the lower rivets to open the armor and get inside . 

 

 

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

4 minutes ago, TKSpartan said:

 

I disconnect the lower rivets to open the armor and get inside . 

 

 

 

Yup, but do you keep it disconnected after you get in? Reaching down between the legs is not impossible, just not easy

 

So I tried to reach my chin and other shoulder to put on the bell, the contact points are circled in red. Are there any approved methods to reduce the contact points within the green dotted lines I can make? I tried the forearm rotation, if I'm not wearing the compression under suit, it definitely pinches skin even at > 90 degree arm bend. If I wear the under suit, regardless of the rotation, I can only make it about 80 degrees of an arm bend, not enough to let me reach the other shoulder or touch my face.

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looks like you have a little room to bring the biceps up, you could then have a bigger gap between them and your forearms

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

9 minutes ago, gmrhodes13 said:

Looks like you have a little room to bring the biceps up, you could then have a bigger gap between them and your forearms

 

I fear bringing up the bicep too high will squeeze the chestplate from the sides to bow in the front. I'm guessing this is actually a mobility cut so the inner bicep doesn't interfere with the torso?

 

 

Would that need to be trimmed to accommodate it's ascension?

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I think you will find a lot of the Stormtroopers found the suits uncomfortable and couldn't get full movement and they had people to help them dress, they had minimal gaps and would hit in a lot of places, you can see this by the amount of cracks that appeared in the armor during filming. 

 

You will find your arms can hit the chest no matter where the biceps sit, but you are wearing an outer plastic suit, not a dinner suit 

 

Personally I'd try to bring the biceps up a little and see how it feels, you shouldn't need to trim anything off them. 

 

Look how far up the biceps are here

[fishgoh0nk[TK]]

I discovered that since the forearm to bicep strap is on the outside of the elbow, the bend is actually stretching, pulling my bicep down as the arm bends in the process. I can redo some of the elastic strapping to raise the bicep. Thanks for all the info.

 

Needless to say, my mobility dreams have somewhat been quashed, better put away my cardboard mat and Adidas shoes.

[CallMeMrTibbles[501st]]

I'm 5' 11" and must be one of the lucky ones, I can put everything on without issue and with ease, can dress is 5 minutes, didn't need mobility cuts either, and although I don't sit in chairs I do sit on their arms or corner of a table.

You have truly mastered the dark arts!

If you are tall you really shouldn't have mobility cuts as it does leave a lot of black showing in the rear.

Yep. I think I'm just put together badly