SpacesNoTabs AP Stunt build

[SpacesNoTabs]

One thing I noticed is that some of the armor pieces have a very slight raised edge or lip on the parts where they were trimmed for me. It's very subtle but I assume I should sand this down a bit to ensure the plastic is flat when I glue on the cover strips?  See the top edge in the image below [still trying to figure out the best process for adding pics so the one below is pretty crappy resolution!  I'll figure it out  ]

 

Edited May 24, 2022 by SpacesNoTabs
Comment

[Sly11[Admin]]

yes you can give then a light sand to slightly flatten the area, but also do the same on the cover strips.

If you need to cut these they will always have a noticeable lip on the edge of the cut. You can quickly take that off by running a steel ruler on an angle down the length and a slither of abs from that kicked up sedge will curl off.

I posted an image of that technique in another thread a few years back so will try and find that to post here.

 

[SpacesNoTabs]

Tried making my first cover strips yesterday.  The plastic was way more difficult to cut than I anticipated!  I used a standard razor blade, and it probably took me about 15 minutes to get it scored enough to where I could snap it.  

 

 

 

 

Once I got it cut, it was a nice strip and I sanded a bit, though it still had some very slight edges on it where I cut.  I was using 120-grit.  The second one I tried was a disaster though!  I was attempting to cut it, holding the steel ruler as a guide for the razor blade, but either the blade or the ruler would slip and bad things happened.  Not sure if you can see crazy cut lines on the image below.

 

 

So, three questions:

1) Should I be using a different type of blade for cutting the plastic or is it simply a time consuming process?

2) Any tips for making sure my cuts stay in line?

3) The images I post using imgur (after i have resized them) have pretty poor resolution.  Any tips on posting better quality images?

[TKSpartan[Staff]]

7 minutes ago, SpacesNoTabs said:

Tried making my first cover strips yesterday.  The plastic was way more difficult to cut than I anticipated!  I used a standard razor blade, and it probably took me about 15 minutes to get it scored enough to where I could snap it.  

 

 

 

 

Once I got it cut, it was a nice strip and I sanded a bit, though it still had some very slight edges on it where I cut.  I was using 120-grit.  The second one I tried was a disaster though!  I was attempting to cut it, holding the steel ruler as a guide for the razor blade, but either the blade or the ruler would slip and bad things happened.  Not sure if you can see crazy cut lines on the image below.

 

 

So, three questions:

1) Should I be using a different type of blade for cutting the plastic or is it simply a time consuming process?

2) Any tips for making sure my cuts stay in line?

3) The images I post using imgur (after i have resized them) have pretty poor resolution.  Any tips on posting better quality images?

 

Hi, Chris, 

 

In my case, I used the same type of Blade, It's a time a patient consuming the very first  armor build , once you are used to, you will see the cuts go better and in line.

 

Your images looks ok to me, clear. 

 

Keep up the good work.  

[TheSwede[TK]]

Perhaps you are putting to much force on the blade, going very light at first would be my advise. Think of it as scoring the plastic rather than cutting it. A couple of gentle passes and a few with a bit more pressure is uasually all it takes, atleast on 1,5mm and then you wiggle it back ’n forth and OH SNAP!! 

Edited May 26, 2022 by TheSwede

[SpacesNoTabs]

Ha ha oh snap!  Thanks guys, I'll try being a little more patient.  Good to know I'm on the right track!

[wook1138[TK]]

57 minutes ago, SpacesNoTabs said:

Tried making my first cover strips yesterday.  The plastic was way more difficult to cut than I anticipated!  I used a standard razor blade, and it probably took me about 15 minutes to get it scored enough to where I could snap it.  

 

 

 

 

Once I got it cut, it was a nice strip and I sanded a bit, though it still had some very slight edges on it where I cut.  I was using 120-grit.  The second one I tried was a disaster though!  I was attempting to cut it, holding the steel ruler as a guide for the razor blade, but either the blade or the ruler would slip and bad things happened.  Not sure if you can see crazy cut lines on the image below.

 

 

So, three questions:

1) Should I be using a different type of blade for cutting the plastic or is it simply a time consuming process?

2) Any tips for making sure my cuts stay in line?

3) The images I post using imgur (after i have resized them) have pretty poor resolution.  Any tips on posting better quality images?

Hey Chris.  As mentioned above, start with some light passes of the blade, then apply a bit more pressure.  AP plastic is 2mm - so it will be a little harder to score and snap than some other kits.  I found I had to use a pair of plyers to grip the plastic to bend it to a point where it "snaps".  Especially when the piece I'm cutting off are on the thin side.  I always found the "how to" videos so frustrating - it looks so easy for them, but many of those kits have thinner plastic.  

[SpacesNoTabs]

16 minutes ago, wook1138 said:

Hey Chris.  As mentioned above, start with some light passes of the blade, then apply a bit more pressure.  AP plastic is 2mm - so it will be a little harder to score and snap than some other kits.  I found I had to use a pair of plyers to grip the plastic to bend it to a point where it "snaps".  Especially when the piece I'm cutting off are on the thin side.  I always found the "how to" videos so frustrating - it looks so easy for them, but many of those kits have thinner plastic.  

That makes sense.  When I measured the plastic, it seemed like it was 2mm.  I get why it's harder to snap now.  

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

You will find that the knife blade with blunt pretty quickly, with a nice sharp blade you only have to score a couple of times then bend and snap.

 

You may also notice when you bend and snap you are left with a little edge, you can easily run some sandpaper down this edge or turn the cover strip over so it's not seen.

[SpacesNoTabs]

42 minutes ago, gmrhodes13 said:

You will find that the knife blade with blunt pretty quickly, with a nice sharp blade you only have to score a couple of times then bend and snap.

 

You may also notice when you bend and snap you are left with a little edge, you can easily run some sandpaper down this edge or turn the cover strip over so it's not seen.

Thanks! I tried using sandpaper but I was using 120 and it didn't seem to take it off. Perhaps I need a lower grit or just need to work at it more. 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

1 hour ago, SpacesNoTabs said:

Thanks! I tried using sandpaper but I was using 120 and it didn't seem to take it off. Perhaps I need a lower grit or just need to work at it more. 

Yep a little more elbow grease, I use 120 also  

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

10 hours ago, SpacesNoTabs said:

2) Any tips for making sure my cuts stay in line?

I have been finding that the AP cover strip pieces are pretty long and yes, they are thick.  
I have been marking the width along the strip with pencil lines, then clamping the ruler along the cover strip at the edge of my table to make it stay in place.  Initially I tried holding the ruler as I cut but it was hard to not move it as you moved along the length of the cover strip.  With the clamps, you can just slide the blade along. Lean the blade slightly into the ruler to keep it tight to the desired cut line.  I find 3 or 4 fairly light scores allow me to snap the strip off.  Sometimes you need to give it a good pry with your fingers or I have even put it against the table and leaned on it to start the bend.  Once one side starts to bend though, the rest follows along easier.

 

 

Edited May 27, 2022 by Doggydoc

[SpacesNoTabs]

30 minutes ago, Doggydoc said:

I have been finding that the AP cover strip pieces are pretty long and yes, they are thick.  
I have been marking the width along the strip with pencil lines, then clamping the ruler along the cover strip at the edge of my table to make it stay in place.  Initially I tried holding the ruler as I cut but it was hard to not move it as you moved along the length of the cover strip.  With the clamps, you can just slide the blade along. Lean the blade slightly into the ruler to keep it tight to the desired cut line.  I find 3 or 4 fairly light scores allow me to snap the strip off.  Sometimes you need to give it a good pry with your fingers or I have even put it against the table and leaned on it to start the bend.  Once one side starts to bend though, the rest follows along easier.

 

 

Those are really good ideas about the clamping. I'm going to have to give that a shot

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

For folding you can also hold each side with pliers, add some plastic to the teeth areas so they don't bite in then fold. The hardest I found was ATA armor, that stuff is thick and you really have to score well.

[SpacesNoTabs]

Even though my armor is pre-trimmed, I still want to size it to make sure it's correct.  I have one of the biceps and am trying to tape it like so many others do, but my pieces aren't rounded enough and create more of an oval kind of shape.  Am I doing something wrong here?  What can I do to temporarily put these in the shape they need to be so I can test it out?  

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

That's pretty standard on a lot of armor, you will find once you start gluing coverstrips on the ovals will flatten a little more. You can need a bit of pressure to get the covers strips to lay flat, clamps, magnets and tape can help, for the really bad ones push down first so they are rounder and apply the tape, it should hold once the glue has dried. You also need at least 24 hours for E6000 to dry properly and any pieces under pressure need a little more so 48 to 72 hours is best. It can be a slow process but there's always other things you can be doing while waiting for glue to dry  If once you have one side glued you can check to see how much the other side will come flat, if you still can't get them right they may need a hot water bath.

 

Here's another AP thread that talks about oval forearms, may be of help 

 

 

[TheSwede[TK]]

The original armor is also oval and despite the fact that one would think that it should be round your limbs are more or less an oval shape, making for that organic look and feel that the ANH suits almost felt as they had grown onto the body. To test this, just extend your arm, palm up and look at the shape and you’ll find that it’s more oval than round

[wook1138[TK]]

10 hours ago, SpacesNoTabs said:

Even though my armor is pre-trimmed, I still want to size it to make sure it's correct.  I have one of the biceps and am trying to tape it like so many others do, but my pieces aren't rounded enough and create more of an oval kind of shape.  Am I doing something wrong here?  What can I do to temporarily put these in the shape they need to be so I can test it out?  

 

Did you trim the ridges off?  AP is designed to have the ridges on the biceps, so they can get pretty tight if trimmed. That said, as long as they fit, you are good. And if you do find them tight, there are ways to fix that. 

[SpacesNoTabs]

1 minute ago, wook1138 said:

Did you trim the ridges off?  AP is designed to have the ridges on the biceps, so they can get pretty tight if trimmed. That said, as long as they fit, you are good. And if you do find them tight, there are ways to fix that. 

 

They came like that.  I have very dainty arms...

[wook1138[TK]]

59 minutes ago, SpacesNoTabs said:

 

They came like that.  I have very dainty arms...

Lol. Understood - I have the ridges intact but I also have considerable padding inside the biceps to make them fit. Anyway, the lack of ridge is more screen accurate anyways. 

[SpacesNoTabs]

Here are a couple pics pre-glue.  I am having a heck of a time keeping the armor flat where I join them so unfortunately the pictures are full of tape and clamps and magnets.  I guess I'm just looking for confirmation that I'm doing this approximately correctly I sized it to my (extremely massive and powerful) bicep.  The cover strips go from top to bottom and I clipped the corners off of them as I've seen in some reference images.  Going to dive in the deep end and glue this sucker this weekend...

 

 

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Do one side at a time, wait until completely dry before gluing the other side.

 

Apply downwards pressure on the top of the cover strip, the plastic will flex quite a bit, then wrap tape around tightly. Once you have one piece of tape wrapped around push downwards again then apply tape, your first piece may be a little slack now so you can retighten.

 

You also may want to just clean up the ends of your cover strips, look a little rough and could catch when moving.

 

@ukswrath bicep assembly 

See how much tape I needed to use on some sections of this build

 

 

I also have a "how to" in one of my commission build threads, again lots of tap

 

And in case it hasn't been mentioned you need to rough up both armor pieces and coverstrips with some coarse sandpaper, this will help the glue to adhere better  

[SpacesNoTabs]

Thanks!  Unfortunately I didn't see all of your post before I did the gluing   So, I glued the first side and i'm just not digging it.  

 

First off, I have dried glue all over the place.  Secondly, the cover strip doesn't sit completely flat over the joint as you'll see in some of the pics.  I agree the cover strips are rough.  Do I just need to sand it?  Kinda hard, now that it's glued!  Also, the other side is so spread apart, it's gonna be another difficult one to glue together.  Maybe this is where the hot water bath comes in?  Could use some tips on that.  Anyway, a bit discouraged because I feel like my first attempt really didn't go well, but that's how I learn!  At least, that's what I tell my 6-year old.  Mistakes are good

 

 

 

 

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Pushing down hard so the piece bulges outwards then wrapping tape around tightly will help to keep the cover strip flat while the glue dries, but any pieces under pressure need longer to dry, I wait 48 to 72 hours before removing the tape.

 

Read what I posted above, most pieces will come together using a little pressure and tape.

 

NOTE how much tape I have used to keep the cover strips laying flat

 

If it was me I'd remove that cover strip, sand the end so it looks nice, then re-glue.

 

E6000 excess glue will come off, either rubbing with your thumb, or using popstick or even scrap sharp pieces of ABS plastic, just keep cutting off the dull end. You can also use polish to help with stubborn spots but try to use one of the same color or it can get stuck under the corners of your cover strips.

 

 

[SpacesNoTabs]

So apart from cleaning up then cover strips, we're the lengths ok? I've looked at various references and videos and thought I had a good size but then I see other peeps doing longer ones so I'm unsure!

 

And does anyone else have as a hard a time working with these magnets as I do? Man, I must have weak fingers haha