Geaux Saints

I finally threatened to file a refund request to Paypal and miraculously heard from them after no responses for a month. They said the refund email was the first one they received (even though I made sure each email I sent had my previous one attached-which they saw I had sent). They said they didn't know what was going on and that they had sent my replacement parts several weeks ago along with an email saying so, neither of which I have received. Regardless, they refunded my money. I told them if the parts they claimed they sent show up I'll send them the money back. I'm not holding my breath.

Remember, you can always trim more, but you cannot add back, so trim some and see how it looks. If it needs more, then trim a little more.

Paul told me the depth should be 15 mm.

Great pointers! Thanks! A little test trial felt like the chest piece was digging a little in under my arms. How much return edge should be there?

Started working on the strapping tonight. Paul suggests painting all the screw heads before strapping which would make sense because they would be a little more difficult to reach once strapped together....not impossible, just difficult. Unscrew one screw from each bracket so that you can put one end of the strapping loop over it, then retighten the screw. Paul suggested to start with the kidney first (make sure you have attached the side strapping to the abdomen with split rivets before finishing the bracket strapping). Add all the loops to the kidney first. Attach the butt piece, then the back. Next attach the chest to abdomen. Here's kidney to butt plate. Kidney to back. Chest to abdomen with a closeup of one of the chest brackets. And finally a very rewarding sight to see. Ladies and gentlemen.....we have a torso!

Remember....that 100 mile journey starts with that first step. I decided the first thing I would do (after loving on the Big Brown Box) was just open it up and look at the parts. With my kit, it was pretty obvious from most of the parts where the trim lines were, so I decided to go ahead and start trimming all the pieces. I used a pencil to run along the trim edges to give me a reference point. Remember, there are tons of reference pics and people here to help you with the trimming. If ever in doubt, take a picture and ask. Once you trim all the pieces, you get that feeling of accomplishment and that determination to get started building. Lexan scissors are a MUST. I didn't get mine until about half way through my trimming, and regretted not getting them earlier. Also, remember....MEASURE X times (where X= 2 or more), then cut. Never be afraid to ask questions. That's what we are all here for. And lastly, don't forget to just have fun with it. Most makers of the kits can/will make individual parts if you mess up, so IF you do make a mistake, it's not the end of the world.

Thanks, Craig. I take from the Master (Paul), and pass it on. Good luck with your build, as well!

Started working on the joining strap between the forearms and biceps. All of this procedure was per Paul's instruction. You want about 50 mm of the 50 mm wide elastic to be inside both the forearms and biceps. I marked the length with tape. Start by marking the middle of the forearm. The elastic needs to be off center on the ridge side of the forearm. Clamp and magnet strip in place. Measure about 10 mm off the outer joining strip of the bicep, and then glue 50 mm of the strip inside of it. Ideally there should be about 25 mm between the curve of the forearm and the bottom of the bicep. The smaller the gap reduces pinching and helps prevent the large gaps between the forearm and biceps when the arm is relaxed at the side.

Just an FYI......be sure to account for the thickness of your boot tops when deciding on the thickness of the bottom of the calves. I just did a trial test with my shins and boots on and it is really snug around the top of my boots. Also, the top of my calves are digging into the back of my knees like a mofo. Where is the best/proper place to trim to provide more space? I'm also getting the butt jab from the top/back of my thighs. Where is the best place to trim for this as well?

I used this same paint reference, but did not read closely that the Blue Angels Blue was the TRADITIONAL color, and the French Blue was the REVISED color for the tube stripes and ab buttons. I bought both, and only ended up using the French Blue. Just a little FYI.

IMO, it looks like the end caps are flared up a little and may need a small trim. The detonator plate needs to be centered between the end caps like Paul's pics show.

Take some Pepto before you make that first cut.....you'll want to throw up. J/K! Seriously, though, the best thing to do is open the box and start trimming the excess plastic off.

Just wanted to make sure I wasn't doing something wrong. I noticed the bigger gap once I started to put the hook straps in place.

Here's the finished sniper plate.

My ImageShack pics aren't showing up this morning. They were working last night. ??????

OK....I've come across a concern with the rear overlap strip for the shin hooks. The overlap sticks up some when the edges are brought together (I have not glued the elastic straps with the hooks, yet.) Opinions? Fixes? Did I do something wrong? This is me applying some pressure behind the strip. That seems to flatten the strip where it should be.

Ha! So true.

Thanks! I can't wait for that first full body test fit.

EDIT: FOREARM REVISION I decided to see if I could redo my forearms because I forgot to close the ridge to the width of the joining strip. I pried off the joining strip, cleaned off the glue, and then resized and taped the forearm. A quick test fit, and they felt good. I taped up the overlap and then marked the midpoint of each overlap. I had cut a 10 mm ABS strip to mark my 20 mm cover strips on the legs (10 mm on each side), but I also tape it down and use it as my straight edge. I lined up the marks and taped it up for one final fitting before cutting....measure X times (where X=2 or more), cut once. Cuts were made, and the cover strip was glued down. I think this looks better.

I think you will be very satisfied with it. If not, you can return it or keep it and not be out a lot of money. By the way, their sizing chart is pretty accurate.

Good luck.

Mine are really comfortable, but I don't know how they compare to what you're asking about. At the price they cost, it's pretty cheap to find out.

Tonight after Trick or Treating with the kiddos (I was so disappointed in not having my armor done in time for tonight), I started working on the back of the shins. I'm using the "bra hook" method for my shin closure. First I measured and marked the half way point on my joining strip, since you only glue half of it to the shin. I then scored and applied glue to the side of the strip to be affixed to the shin. From my observations of Paul's pics of this process, it looks like the glued side will be the outer half of the shin you are working on. For example, for the right shin (pictured)....if you were looking at the back of the shin, the strip would be glued on the edge of the right (outer) shin piece. The free floating part of the joining strip will be over (but not glued to) the left (inner) shin piece. For the left shin, you would glue half of the joining strip to the left (outer) shin piece (looking from behind), and the free floating part of the joining strip would be over the right (inner) shin piece. I made sure my midway marks were lined up on the edge at both ends, then I clamped and "magneted" the mess out of it. After this dries, I will attach the hook straps and drill the holes for the hooks. On a side note, I should have gotten more magnets. I bought 10 large (1") and 20 small (1/2"). My son and I broke 2 large ones right away playing with them. Like stated on the forum, these rare earth magnets will shatter if they come together too fast and hard. Believe me, they like to jump to each other....and they LOVE to pinch the crap out of your hands and fingers (I have plenty of blood blisters to prove it), so be careful.

I'm a newbie, but have been studying a lot of threads before I got my armor. I'm definitely learning as I go, but as a newb, I realize the importance of pictures to go along with the info. I'm trying hard to provide what I can. I hope it helps in some way. WHO DAT!

Thank you. The helmet painting has been the most rewarding and most enjoyable part of my build so far.