potato's ANOVOS TK build

[potato]

Hi all, long time listener first time caller.

 

I pre-ordered the ANOVOS kit way back in 2015 at Star Wars Celebration Anaheim. After receiving the kit there was much ooh-ing and aah-ing as I sifted through the mountains of white plastic, and dreams of one day owning a completed armor set.

 

It was then put back into storage (along with hopes and dreams) for almost a decade. But there's no time like the present! I've finally decided to complete this build or die trying, with a goal of completion by Halloween. I've lurked these forums and followed many build threads over the years, so I figured starting my own build thread would be a good way to document and share my journey like those that have inspired me along with getting some valuable feedback,

 

About a year or so ago, I actually took the pieces out and rough trimmed everything. Thanks past-me!

 

 

Decided to start with the right forearm first, here it is trimmed, sized, and inner cover strips attached. Didn't do a great job cutting straight so there is a bit of a gap at the butt joins. Imperial inspector Kiki disapproves of my shoddy work.

 

 

Currently working on the left forearm and both bicep pieces. Just attached inner cover strips for left forearm, biceps are trimmed and sized but waiting on the arrival of more magnets before attachment of inner cover strips.

 

Edited July 11 by potato

[Tilheyra[IPM]]

Welcome! Ask as many questions as you want and need! We're here to help!

 

Looks like you have been doing ample research from what you have mentioned, so you are off to a great start!

 

44 minutes ago, potato said:

Didn't do a great job cutting straight so there is a bit of a gap at the butt joins.

 

That's the beauty of cover strips! No one will really know as long as you get all the other measurements right!

 

It's good that you are using interior cover strips (although, you can get away with just an exterior cover strip in areas with less stress and tension). That will especially become important when you work on the lower leg armor, as the opening the lower legs to take them on and off puts a lot of stress and tension on the front joints. 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Hello and welcome aboard, here's my way of getting straight lines:

 

First I like to mark trim lines with a pencil, easy to rub off again.



Being ATA it is a little thicker ABS than most other armor so I like to use a rotary tool with a cutting disk to roughly trim. Time for the first cut



For those pieces having cover strips added, arms/biceps 15mm, thighs/shin fronts 20mm and backs 25mm, divide by 2 and you have how far you need to trim from the outside ridge.

Here is the first thigh so 1/2 of 20mm is 10mm, so measure from the curve section ends on the top of the ridge by 10mm. I like to use a steel ruler and clamps to get a nice straight line.



As this is a build for Jerry I'm going to leave some extra material on the backs of pieces for a test fitting, I prefer to have the fronts a standard size and adjust the rears if needed, you can always trim off but it's hard to add on .



I like to use a sanding drum attachment to get excess ABS off.



Also go around all the edges with some fine sandpaper to get rid of any sharp edges, you don't want "armor bites"



Then to get those lines really straight a long sanding block.



Normally I would trim everything in one go but due to some issues with my hands I find it's easier to take a break from trimming and do some assembly.

On to assembling the thighs, I use some painters tape and clamps to fit the pieces together to make sure they align well top and bottom.



Then tape across the centres to pull them together.



You can then lay a piece of tape down the length of the inside of the thigh.



Pull off the outside tape and make sure you rough up the pieces with some sandpaper where the cover strips will fit.



Time to make some cover strips. I like to use one long ruler and another to measure widths, mark with a pencil, then score down 3 or 4 times, you can then snap the piece off.




Lay the cover strip on top of thigh and mark then trim length and round the corners to take away the sharp edge.




When you are happy you can then add some E6000 glue down the middle of the cover strip, spread with some scrap ABS and with clamps and magnets apply to thigh. I also like to use painters tape on any sections that don't pull down quite enough.



As I said earlier I won't be gluing the backs until we have had a trial fit.
 

Not going to bore you will assembling every single piece, besides when I'm on a roll I tend to forget to take photos 

 

Continue with the other thigh, then shins, biceps and then forearms. Just make sure you have the correct width cuts and matching cover strips.



 

[dblcross[TK]]

Your build looks great so far. I found that a larger diameter magnet work well on holding cover strips down.

 

[potato]

I was worried that the butt join gap would result in a weaker glue joint due to the reduced surface area for cover strip to armor contact, but it seems pretty sturdy so far. For the leg pieces that are subject to more stress I'll definitely try to get the butt join straighter and cleaner.

 

I'm tempted to buy a belt sander but I have enough neglected power tools as is... Maybe I just need to reassure myself I'll definitely use it again in the future... Right?

 

Will definitely need more/bigger magnets as that's my limiting reagent right now.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

40 minutes ago, potato said:

I was worried that the butt join gap would result in a weaker glue joint due to the reduced surface area for cover strip to armor contact, but it seems pretty sturdy so far. For the leg pieces that are subject to more stress I'll definitely try to get the butt join straighter and cleaner.

 

I'm tempted to buy a belt sander but I have enough neglected power tools as is... Maybe I just need to reassure myself I'll definitely use it again in the future... Right?

 

Will definitely need more/bigger magnets as that's my limiting reagent right now.

I found I only used my belt sander once in all my builds, I found it a bit aggressive, more control with a hand sander, can be as simple as wrapping sandpaper around a piece of wood, anything flat will work. 

 

Masking tape can be a good substitute to clamps and magnets, for those areas which won't fully close add some downwards pressure while masking and usually they will stay flat.

 

E6000 I normally leave for at least 24 hours, any parts under strain/stress I leave for 48 to 72 hours depending on weather temps.

 

Adding inner cover strips can give you extra support, especially on areas which will be opened and closed, I just use left over trimming scraps. Always make sure you rough up bother areas with coarse sandpaper to help the E6000 to grip too. 

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Welcome Stephen. You got this trooper

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

Welcome Stephen. Looking good so far. Make sure to ask if you need anything. As you probably already know, there is a great support team here. 

[potato]

Thanks for all the responses, everyone is so supportive and welcoming.

 

Only a small update since last, just finished the inner cover strips for the bicep pieces.

 

 

 

Next I plan on doing some final sanding on the return edges of the arm pieces, and then attaching the outer cover strips.

 

I know the forearm pieces are asymmetrical, but I noticed the right forearm is more oblong than the left forearm. Wanted to check if that's normal and acceptable, or if I need to make some adjustments before proceeding.

 

 

When test fitting the bicep pieces, the circled part below is a little pokey. Since it'll be mostly covered by the shoulder bell I assume it'd be okay to shave it down a bit?

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

 

 

 

 

The forearms are like that on a lot of kits, I did heat my rounded one and made it a little more oval just as I have skinny arms and gives a better appearance. Using any heat does take some practice and you consider the modification you should practice A LOT before attempting.

 

Yes you can trim the excess area, you don't need a return edge so it's easy to trim

 

 

[potato]

Thanks for the quick response. The forearms fit fine, so I think I'll let sleeping dogs lie.

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Welcome to the wonderful world of wonky armor. Looking good. Looks like Glen has got you covered

[potato]

Was distracted by Elden Ring for a bit, but now that I'm all finished with that it's back to work.

 

 

Glued on the outer cover strips for the biceps and forearms, did some final sanding and I think I'm done with them for now. Maybe I shouldn't have, but I peeled off the protective plastic on the outside as a reward. Very satisfying.

 

 

 

Started sizing the left shin first. This piece was the most difficult to work with (so far). It was a bit awkward to hold the pieces and check the fit against my leg, especially trying to check how it looks in the back. The first time I glued the front inner cover strip I didn't use enough glue and it snapped apart when I pulled the back opening apart to fit around my leg. A little scary, but just a little time loss and a lesson learned.

 

Satisfied with the fit for now, any guidelines on how much boot should be showing under the shin? I should've taken pictures of the knee area to get feedback on how high the shin piece should sit on your leg.

 

 

Sure is hard taking a picture of your calf. Here's hoping the rest of the kit will be easier.

[JBar[TK]]

Armor is coming along nicely. Looks like you got it but I liked this simple shin and thigh fitting trick using tape

Edited August 9 by JBar

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

19 hours ago, potato said:

 

Sure is hard taking a picture of your calf. Here's hoping the rest of the kit will be easier.

A good tip is to wrap some painters tape (masking tape) around pieces while testing for fit.

 

There are no guidelines of how much shin sits over the boot, many trim both sides to match as well as trim for comfort, you don't want them rubbing on your ankle when moving around. On occasion some give a hot water bath to get the pieces to sit together better, makes adding the rear cover strip a little easier.

[potato]

After further research, I think I'll hot water bath the back of the shin to get the calf closure pieces more flush.

 

 

I'm a little intimidated so I'd like to make sure I got the process down right: It looks like most people use masking tape to hold the shins into the final/desired shape, then put it into the hot water bath? After enough time has passed for the plastic to soften (maybe a min or so?) the piece can then be put into cold water to set in its new shape?

 

Does the plastic protective layer need to be removed for the hot water bath?

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

1 hour ago, potato said:

After further research, I think I'll hot water bath the back of the shin to get the calf closure pieces more flush.

I'm a little intimidated so I'd like to make sure I got the process down right: It looks like most people use masking tape to hold the shins into the final/desired shape, then put it into the hot water bath? After enough time has passed for the plastic to soften (maybe a min or so?) the piece can then be put into cold water to set in its new shape?

 

Does the plastic protective layer need to be removed for the hot water bath?

I would remove the protective covering, if you leave it on it may hinder the process.

 

Trying with a test piece or scraps will give you an idea of heat and when it may bend. I close the pieces a little more than what you want to achieve as it tends to relax once you remove the tape. 

 

Some helpful info in this build thread 

 

Cricket also uses some heat in this build thread

 

[potato]

Thanks Glen, very useful build threads to follow, those two have probably been the most informative regarding hot water baths that I've seen.

 

I was able to fit the shin piece in my kitchen sink, so I boiled two large pots of water and poured them into the sink which was enough water to submerge the back half of the shin. I only submerged the back half of the shin because I was worried about weakening the E6000 bond on the front cover strips, despite seeing many pictures of others just dunking whole armor pieces (glue joins and all) into buckets of boiling water.

 

After letting it sit for 75 seconds, I pulled the piece out (while wearing dish washing gloves), and pushed in the right side of the back enclosure to be more flush with the left side. While it re-shaped pretty well, the right side of the back enclosure was much more curved than the left, and flattening it out ended up making the shin piece too tight.

 

I attempted a couple more hot water baths in later days to pull it back out a bit, but was unable to do so successfully. I switched to using my heat gun which allowed me to better direct the heat, recurve the right side of the back enclosure a bit, and give my calves a little more breathing room. Wish I remembered to take more pictures in between and during the process, but final before and after below:

 

 

 

For the sniper knee, I'm finding the front and outer side fit pretty flush with the shin, but the inner side is a bit wonky. Almost like it's too long and tall? I'm thinking I might need to shorten it both length and height wise to better sit flush with the top shin return edge, maybe do some more heat shaping, but wanted to consult with the masters first.

 

Outer side (looks good):

 

 

 

Inner side (too long/tall?):

 

 

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Some makers do need some twist to get them to sit right, you can also trim if too long. I used a combination of clamps, magnets and lots of tape to pull the sniper plate so it sat straighter and left it like that for 72 hours

 

You can also trim the inner curve on the sides

 

Not the best of references but you can see the sharp inner 

         

[potato]

Continuing work despite the lack of updates. The shins have been a pain in the thermal exhaust port and have reduced motivation a bit. After multiple fitting and heating sessions I finally arrived at what I believe to be adequate, which will do for now. 

 

Cover strips are on, but have not attached velcro yet.

 

 

The rear cover strip is a bit misaligned due to the back seam not being completely flat/flush. It's just near the ankle though, so hopefully velcro join strength won't be too compromised. Could I heat bend the cover strip slightly to match the curve?

 

 

Also did initial fitting and inner cover strips for the thighs which was uneventful (but I'm thankful for that after the shins). I will likely have to trim a bit more from the top later, so will wait on attaching the outer cover strips.

 

 

Thermal detonator was also a quick win. Was going to stick with whatever screws were provided, but phillips head just looks so out of place so I'll get the correct ones later.

 

 

 

Now for the fun part! Doing some initial fitting for the chest/back/ab/kidney/butt. Any recommendations appreciated.

 

Ab, kidney, and butt taped together. I think this is a good placement. Butt piece will need heat shaping on the sides so they don't flare out so much.

 

 

 

With chest piece:

 

 

 

Gap between back and kidney looks a bit too big, but ab can't really go any higher because... you know. Maybe I can heat bend the back shoulder flaps to allow them to hang lower?

 

[JBar[TK]]

Nice work. As far as the calves I spent a ton of time too shaping them only to realize that industrial strength velcro hold them together properly once they're on your legs and attached together. So I'd take a break and see how they work once put on before worrying too much more. You can always tweak them more later.

 

As far as the posterior armor flaring I hope you see this in time because that's actually normal and you don't need to do any shaping. So let me save you some time and check out this post I recently made:

Basically all you have to do is put metal (like me) or plastic V tabs in your armor and it will easily stop the flaring. This took me about 15 min to do vs potentially hours of shaping

 

Lastly your back armor should hopefully be able to drop down quite a bit once you have it connected to your chest. By the time you give yourself some extra shoulder strap slack and let the elastic rest on your shoulders I think your back armor will drop way down

[potato]

Thanks that's great! Anything that helps me do less heat shaping is a win to me.

 

 

[potato]

Finished just in time for Halloween, even won the costume contest at work! Thanks for all the help from the members here, the advice and information was invaluable.

 

Still lots of room for improvement and fixes, but that will have to wait for another time.

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Congratulations, hopefully we will see you also apply for EIB  

[JBar[TK]]

I would hope you'd have won. You're a freaking stormtrooper! That's amazing and congrats. I'll also add that going for EIB was incredibly rewarding and I learned so much more about the costume. I think you'd be well on your way. Looking great