BIDS

Congrat's on receiving your RT-Mod, it's beautiful armor. Please find my replies in BLUE , have fun with your build.

Update - Shoulder Bell Strapping I finished off the strapping on the shoulder bells by adding a snap plate to the bicep so it could be attached to the bell to avoid any possibility of it sliding down past the bottom of the bell. This strap is elastic to give some flexibility for movement ect. These pictures show the strap with the extra tab to join onto the shoulder bridge strap. Completed Arm Assemblies Update - Thigh Strapping I put the armor on so I could figure out where the thigh straps had to be attached, and I also put on the arm assemblies so that I could figure out the length required for the shoulder bell straps. Front & Rear Pictures, Thigh straps taped on to check height I used Nylon for the snap plates, again with velcro sewn on, and 4 snaps per leg. For the strap I doubled over the elastic for maximum strength and the least chance of premature stretching. The strap slides over the belt I use to suspend the thighs. These pictures show the belt used to suspend the thighs with I've got a pair of suspenders ready in case I need to use them. I won't know until after a couple of troops, but the suspenders will allow the height of the thighs to be adjusted for height by lifting or lowering the belt slightly.

Update - Bicep to Forearm Strapping After reading through FISD I decided that I wanted to join the Forearms to the Biceps to avoid the large elbow gap seen on some builds when the arms are down at the sides. As with the rest of the strapping I've probably gone way to Heavy Duty, but I hope it pays off in the long run with reliability. From what I read it's recommended to have 50mm of elastic glued into both the forearm & bicep, but instead of gluing the elastic straight onto the forearm I wanted to have the strap replaceable for when the elastic stretches. As with my torso straping I used nylon snap plates, again with velcro, and this time with 4 snaps per end. Also this way I can break the armor down for packing into the smallest possible storage. Snap plates glued in Elastic strap made Forearm & Bicep ready to join Forearm & Bicep Joined Forearm & Bicep folded back Fitted, straight arm Fitted, bent arm Update - Shoulder Bell Strapping For the shoulder bells I again used nylon snap plates, with velcro & double snaps. I made another paddle pop stick spacer so that the clamp would apply even pressure to the snap plates. I didn't want to glue the shoulder bell bottom elastic directly to the plastic, once again so that the strap could be replaced when it stretches. So that the strap pulled directly to the edge of the bell I made up some retainers out of scrap ABS. I made these with a split so that the elastic strap could be removed & refitted even with snaps fitted. I then glued the retainers into the bells followed by the snap plates. Trial fit with elastic. Back to the anvil & punch again for the straps. 1 side strap in place. Showing the strap being fed into the slot in the retainer. Strap snapped in place. Update - Bicep Hooks To stop the shoulder bell straps from sliding up off the bicep & allowing it to slide down too low I made up some retaining hooks and glued them onto the biceps. This shows the shoulder Bell assembled with the Bicep. This shows the entire arm assembly together. A few fitted pictures with the arm assembled.

Thanks Isaac.

I must admit that when I saw the proposed changes to the Centurion requirements I was a bit disappointed as I was just about to start the build and as I'd only researched overlap I didn't really know what to do. I had an AP organized as I was hoping to have it built for a troop (one of our 3 biggest of the year) and with the vote still pending we couldn't touch the arms or legs. Luckily we could go on with the torso until I found out what happened and got advice on how to proceed. Rob's armor is beautiful and originally I thought it was a bit of a crime to cut off the overlap for the sake of cover stripping, especially as initially I thought that overlap was stronger due to the surface area. Now that I've both researched it and built it I realize that the inner strips allow just as strong a bond, and in my opinion the extra material actually makes it feel more solid (more like what I think actual armor would feel like). I also liked using the CA glue on the outer strips as it's easy to use, especially when working yourself without an extra set of hands as it tacks of quick enough while still allowing for a little wiggle time, and using the clear plumbers mate on the inner strips. I feel the plumbers mate allows any gap in the butt join to be filled and the inner strip to be perfectly welded in place. I guess most of my trepidation came from not understanding the different methods, and now that I've got my head around it I'm happy I've gone that way.

Thanks Glen.

Thanks Jesse, how's yours going after our conversation on the weekend? Thanks Eric, I hope my build ends up being as helpful to someone as yours has been to me. I've printed off a hard copy of yours and it lives in my armor box with various folders of reference material. Have you decided yet if your going to use RT-Mod again for your Centurion build? Yeah I guess I started this build at the worst/best possible time. Worst in that the cover strip method (Centurion required) has taken a bit to get my head around, Best in that it means I end up with a more accurate suit in the long run. With RT-Mod's popularity growing we can begin our takeover, 1 giant sized trooper at a time (to borrow a saying from Eric). I just hope I can do Rob's work justice with this build as his armor is beautiful.

Thanks very much, that's high praise indeed coming from you, and I really appreciate you keeping an eye on my build as I want to avoid any costly mistakes if possible. As you know I plan to apply for EIB/Centurion so please keep that in mind when you see my application All jokes aside I'm enjoying the build & hope in continues to go well. Please sing out if you see anything I need to address.

I got the same comment on my Local Garrison

Thigh Update Started on Inner Shims for the thighs tonight. As you can see in the following picture the bottom of the thigh has the mold detail. I decided I wanted to continue the shim right through the length of the thigh, front & back, including the mold details for strength. I cut the shim slightly longer than needed and then hit one end with a heat gun. Once it was supple I quickly clamped the strip between scrap timber (to keep it square & flat) and used a clamp to form a flat "s" in the end to take the shape of the mold detail. Once cool the shape stays and I then adjusted the overall length to suit and glued the strip into the thigh. During the process I found it easier to heat the end of the strip, and then once supple to clamp it into the thigh which allowed it to form exactly to the shape of the mold detail. This ensures the best possible surface contact area to glue to. Once I'd glued in both front & rear inner strips I trimmed the thigh to tidy them up (I had left the outer strips slightly over length when I assembled them to allow for this trim). Here is the front of the thighs after trimming Here are the rear of the thighs after trimming This shows both front & rear inner shims Test Fit Progress Now that I've got all the Arms & Legs assembled I got excited & had to put it on to see how it was coming together. Keep in mind that the Torso still doesn't have it's crotch strap to pull it all together, but at least I could put the belt on to make it a little better. Also the biceps are just pulled on without any strapping, and the shoulder bells are simply sitting there. I taped the thighs up onto the Cod to get an idea of the gap at the knees and groin. All in all I'm pretty happy and seeing it this close gives me more incentive to keep going. Getting very excited. I forgot to put the neck seal on, but I think once it's on the logo on the undersuit shouldn't be visible (it's a hero seal so has the large front & rear bib). t looks like it's too tight & that I can't move my arms, but it's just that I had to stand that way to stop the bicep sliding down & the shoulder bells falling off.

Shin Progress Glued the Front Inner Shims into the Shins. Bottom Front & Rear Outer Strips Trimmed to length Right Shin Test Fit Velcro Glued In I wasn't happy with the Gap (shown in the above pictures) left at the Front Top of the shin from the Trim it arrived with to suit Overlap. I trimmed the uneven overlap to give a more symetrical appearance. Test fit with both Calves Complete (except for Sniper Plate on Left)

Good on you Sam, have fun with the build. I'm in the middle of an RT-Mod build at the moment as well and enjoying it immensely, especially now that I'm over that "first cut anxiety". Post up pic's as you go, I know I for one live vicariously though the builds here, especially when I've hit a snag. Sometimes it's all you need to see a hint or tip to push you over the edge to keep going.

BICEP PROGRESS This shows 1 glued & clamped, and inner strips cut for the other side. Outer Top 20mm Cover Strip Outer Bottom 30mm Cover Strip Inner Strips Left Bicep Fitted Right Forearm Fitted

Looking good mate, keep the pic's coming.

Nice build on the Hero mate, and that's a beautiful E11.

Hey Tony, thanks for that. You won't be dissapointed in Rob's armor mate, it's awesome. I'll keep the thread updated as I make progress.

Got the following answer from Mathias :- "Filling the 4th tooth isn't required but recommended", Maybe I should add "strongly recommended", since the teeth are such an important part of what makes a hero "hero".. I'll see how I got with the rest of the build. I might have a practice run on some spare ABS to make sure I can get the patch perfect.

Thanks Dennis, I've pm'd Mathias for confirmation.

No worries mate, after reading your post I was considering that. I'll see what the powers that be have to say.

Nice Hero Derrek. At least you get the "aren't you a little tall to be a storm trooper"! Much better that what I'm afraid I'll get, "aren't you a little fat to be a storm trooper"! You can join the ranks of Economical Assult Trooper (EAT), but I'll need to stick with Fortified Assult Trooper (FAT) I'm afraid.

Hi Steffen, Sorry mate I missed your post while I was uploading the build. Yeah you're right it does have the marks where the 4th tooth could be cutout, so I guess it is the same face plate as the stunt. Here are some pictures of the buckets side by side, Hero on the Left, Stunt on the Right. Hi Dennis, Yeah Rob has upgraded his Hero Ears to have the 3 Bumps, and when you request a Hero EIB Build he assembles the Bucket with 2 screws per ear. Do you think the extra mark for the 4th tooth will cause me problems with EIB/Centurion?

Thanks Jesse, I read your build thread, have you gone any further? I was nervous as well and I'm lucky enough to have made a good mate in my Garrison who helped me get started, trust me once you've done the first cut it's not so scary anymore.

HERO BUCKET / BUBBLED LENSES Just some pictures to show the bubbled lenses fitted. I've only got them taped in temporarily to check fitment. These are from Riveting (Steve) right here on FISD. His service is excellent and as he's in New Zealand these were the quickest (and cheapest on freight) accessory I've received for my TK yet. I think they look amazing from out side, and to be honest the vision is not as bad as I thought it would be. Providing I've got my head up high enough in the bucket to look directly through them its ok. It's only when you look through the edge of the bubble that it's an issue.