SlooperTrooper

Here is what I ended up with for final strapping... I used straight nylon on most, with elastic for the sides. Plan on putting in some side shims later for potential EIB certification on the kidney plate to abdomen (I am 5'11" at 190 lbs, look for the thigh mods later). Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I know these reference photos are probably in 100 places in this forum already, but these are UBER helpful so it never hurt to repost them... TY everyone who have made these possible and reposted without permission. BILLHAG TK-1650, Troopermaster, and everyone else who I neglect to credit... You rock, total awesome sauce! Holster sewing pattern... Here are paint shades of easy to find US and UK hobby store colors... And here are BILLHAG's TK-1650s most excellent snap placement diagrams! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

So making progress... AP is a little tough at times (this is a 18 month old mold at this time) as it seems to be a true mirror and no left/right pieces. Both biceps have thumbprints, and the turns on shins are symmetrical... Regardless, strapping are begun! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

"The hammer is my penis..." Can we say that here? Regardless, for those who are not familiar with the great Joss Whedon's greatest work of Dr Horrible's Sing Along Blog (aka Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, and oh right half of Marvel films and TV not to mention Cabin in the Woods)... Look him up under "pure genius". Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I don't actually recall how long the Tutorials link under Getting Started has been down on white armor.net, but your best resource is to look at other troopers build threads. <br><br> Make sure to look at a few of them as peeps have different approaches and techniques. It makes for good reading, especially late at night when you should be sleeping instead of reading trooper assembly forums and ticking off your partner with the screen light.

Lots of progress last few days... Check the latest updates... Spent half a night making snap plates. Fingers are burnt, but two dozen are built and ready to install! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Thanks Airborne, though exactly why I need a little more armor now Took over the family room. Wifey is not entirely impressed but helping as much as she can while she plays solitaire... After unpacking the big brown box for the second time I got straight to work on final trims and snap plates. Seems I have more courage these days to tear right into a pile of abs with snips... Bells are done! Used 2-part Epoxy (5minute quick dry) on the snap plates and e-6000 on the elastic. Interesting Note: ordered more e-6000 on Amazon today. Seems there are now two grades, automotive and craft. Bought the automotive because it is a buck cheaper and that seems to be what my other tube is. Setup a shin strip to dry overnight (oh woe is the cure time on e-6000, another 7 days just to get the front joins done)! Never enough magnets!!! Using the butt join and cover strip method for potential EIB certification later. Probably should have ordered more magnets when I asked Amazon for the e-6000... Right shin will need some sanding after it dries, maybe I should have started with the left to cover my sloppy joins with the sniper plate. Time for a beer! (Who am I kidding I've been drinking since noon.) Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Hah, found it! For those who were not aware, I spent the last year and a half falling in love, getting married, and starting a new life with four step kids. That said, it is now.... TIME TO FINISH MY AP BUILD!!!! I am taking over the family room as the trooper workshop and using the next two weeks full-time to finish this set (and paint the deck)! Now let's get started! (again) Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

WALT!!! Congrats on the twin boys (again)! Seriously, I think I need to see some suits face to face before I mutilate this set... PS: hoppy Easter Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks max!(max?). Should I pull the point all the way down to to cheek tubes? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Oh right, forgot the ear seam pics!!! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ok, so went crazy and made my first ABS paste. Used two tablespoons of Acetone with two tablespoons of Dremel shavings, and another tablespoon of 1/8" square trim bits. Left it for 30 minutes in a glass shot glass and stirred every 5 minutes with a wooden clay tool. Came out GREAT! Nice a thick with some chunks that could be worked well into the seams... So... The results were very scary, and it was late so I went to bed. Today, after 3 hours of hand sanding (Futurama, South Park, Tosh.0) I got it up to a 600 grit and am very pleased! My Home Depot only carries up to 800 grit, anyone know my best bet for 1200+ before I hit the Novus? West Marine? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ask lots of questions, everyone here has lots of experience and advice (apart from myself, I'm just a noob ignore everything I tell you . If you find a good trim chart let me know, I'm still befuddled on where I want return edges on my AP kit! That said, so far it seems to be pretty hard to screw it up. My only major mistake so far was putting a drill bit through my left index finger cause I wasn't paying attention. And don't forget to have fun! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So finished my ears. Think it's a passable job for my first lid. Thanks to everyone for all the tips and advice. All that said, not really happy with the gaps. Going to try a little ABS paste to fill and sand. Hopefully that will do the trick... Also knocked out my neck gasket and belt. Thanks to my awesomesauce daughter and her wizardly sewing machine skills! The belt is standard canvas duck, but I used headliner/headboard material for the gasket since it had the foam backing. More to come, but still need advice on return edges to finish my trim... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So back in business and tearing through the full trim. Helmet is almost done, pics soon... Now for my first major question. Is there a diagram that shows which edges of which pieces have return edges and how large they are? The trim lines on the AP kit seem to vary quite a bit and I don't want to hack too much off! For instance the top of the kidney plate has a natural 1/4 - 1/2" return edge, while the bottom has none (since it is a single pull attached to the butt which needs to be cut). Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk