Zarlon

Okay guys and gals, I have another question for you... The abdomen piece on my ATA kit is warped pretty badly. Is this normal and how do I fix it? Below are a few photos that hopefully show what I'm talking about.

It's a small space but at least it's something

I actually had some time to get more work done today. Before I begin with my progress I thought I'd show off the cool print I got for my work area. Today I started working on the lower leg sections. Here is the before photo The first thing to do was to measure the sides and trim the excess plastic. By this point in the build I'm starting to get the hang of it so it doesn't take as long any more. Once I got everything trimmed it was time to sand down and smooth out the return edges. Notice the Darth Vader band aid on the finger? This is what happens when your finger gets too close to a belt sander. I recommend you don't do that. Next up is to cut and glue the back strips into place. They are now drying overnight.

Thanks! That belt sander makes a huge difference!

Great job! Looks like you had fun.

That's awesome. Such fun videos!

Yeah...the s a really handy post. I'm not sure why they haven't pinned it yet.

Thanks for the feedback!

Yep...definitely stay away from the acetone! Mineral spirits are what I use to remove excess paint.

It is Testors 1138 gray. This is one of the two gray paints recommended on the very helpful Helmet & Ab paint detail reference guide linked below. http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/8117-helmet-ab-paint-detail-reference-guide/?p=103308

OK Steve I took your advice and used the belt sander to grind down the ears. How does this look? Here is the before... And the after... + I also hit the eyes a little more.

I'll be there for the last weekend but my armor won't be ready in time to march. Hopefully I'll get to meet some of you though.

Congrats on your first troop Joe! Looks like you had fun.

Yes...those are neo magnets.

Thanks for the link. I just placed an order.

Great feedback guys! I guess it really is a matter of preference.

Thanks Tony! I actually tried the ruler idea but it kept sliding around the cutting table and annoyed me:)

hai so desu yo

For this post I wanted to give you all a little tip on how I've been cutting the cover strips. Below is a picture of one of the plastics sheets that comes with the ATA armor kit. As you can see Terrell has written down the size of the cover strips. When it comes to cutting I now have the following procedure down pat. 1. Mark the cut line with a pencil. 2. Use a piece of painters tape to "connect the dots" of your pencil mark, 3.Once again measure the distance of your painters tape to make sure you have the correct width. 4. Carefully score the plastic along the edge of the painters tape. I usually run over it twice pressing rather hard the second time. The goal is to get a good line scored without cutting all the way through. 5. Flip the plastic sheet over so that the side you scored is now facing down. 6. Bend the plastic along the score line starting from right to left. Keep bending all the way to the left side. Once that's done I give the edges a sanding with paper or on the belt sander and then its ready to be glued on.

I got a little more work done on the thighs tonight. I cut the front cover strip and glued it on. Now the 12 hr. curing process begins.

Awesome. Thanks for the confirmation!

I got a little more done on the right thigh piece yesterday and today. I had already glued everything once but after looking at it I didn't like the way the seems were matching up so I pulled the back portion of it apart and went back at it again. Below is the finished result. It still has a bit of a gap but I think I'll accept it for now and maybe come back to it later. One thing I did do to try and make the gap a little less noticeable was to put a piece of leftover plastic on the back side. This gave it some stability and closed the gap a bit. Is this gap acceptable? What do you guys think?

Take all of the advice mentioned above, don't get discouraged, and don't expect perfection. I know this is easier said than done but keep at it. I was extremely frustrated with mine and still don't like they way they turned out but I've moved on. You'll get there just try and enjoy the ride

As promised, it's time for another update. This time around I've been able to start the thighs. I started by trimming most of the return edge off (I left about 1/8th of an inch) and sanding the edges of the inner and outer thighs. I started to use painters tape to mark my cut lines. This trick has really worked out well for me. It was also at this point that I went out and got a respirator mask to help keep the plastic dust out of my lungs. Once i got the edges trimmed it was time to glue the inside strips in place. While the strips were drying I did some more trim work. Once the right side of the thigh was dry, I glued the left side and then let it dry overnight.

Just checking in to let you all know I'm still alive and I'll be posting an update soon. Work has been crazy lately so I haven't had as much time to build.