kman

It's a pretty small piece to fill in. I'm almost looking forward to the challenge! It's only after EIB, so it's not something we need to do right away, at least. Are you sure you don't have pieces 22x22? The surface texture can be made fairly irrelevant if you use ABS paste and sand it perfectly smooth. I've seen others get a mirror finish over ABS paste, so it must be possible. Regardless be sure to save all of your scrap. You never know how much color-matched ABS paste you're going to need down the road!

REGARDING SHIMS: This question regarding the notch and it's placement in, and relation to, the shim, came up earlier in this build thread. I made my shims by extending above the notch, not filling below then recreating the notch, and it looks correct to me. TrooperMaster agreed, Airborne Trooper did not, but at the time, it has not been formally settled yet by anyone with approval authority. That is no longer the case. Here's one of my shims: (Note I have not filled the seam yet to make it disappear, and due to this issue, I won't be, for this incarnation) Here is the discussion I mentioned, quoted from earlier in the thread, where TrooperMaster explains his reasoning: Why would he 'need' to do that? Do you not understand the concept of the notches on the kidney plate? If you need to shim your waist then this is the correct way to do it, although they look better glued in from the inside rather than the outside. The shim should come from above the notch as it is an extension of the kidney and the but plate line up with the notch. I understand the 'rules' on here but they do not really apply to my way of thinking. The notches are different sizes on each side and they only appear on more accurate kits. I feel if someone is too big for the their armour then it looks much better to simply extend the part above the notch. If your armour does not have a notch then simply make a shim that starts 22mm above the lower edge of your kidney plate. It is kind of one of those things that does not really concern me since my kits come with the notches but I do not like to see others stressing out over something that is minor. If your kit does not have the notch then do not worry about it since it probably does not have a lot of other details it should have. Personally, I agree with TrooperMaster's line of thinking, and feel I've done it in an appropriate manner. But there is an official stance on it, now, it would seem, and Ukswrath and the others have ruled my method out for Centurion. It's fine for basic through EIB, apparently. Shims are fairly easy to make, so I'm not sorry I decided to go the simpler route just to get it built. And obviously making a 1" longer shim (roughly) isn't going to be difficult. Filling in that notch is going to be obnoxious, though, so there's that. :/ I don't 100% agree with the decision, but I definitely don't feel strongly enough about it to try to start any argument with anyone, so I'll be complying and modifying them when the time comes to shoot for Centurion. It'll be an interesting challenge, at least!

Looks like that settles it! I should be good through EIB, but then I'll need to re-do my shims longer, and work the new notch into the design.

Interesting technique, varnishing the template to seal it. I'll have to keep that in mind for when I eventually do mine, too!

The same question came up in my build thread. As I understand it, it's not something that has been fully settled yet. Shims are fairly easy to make, however, so I decided to go the simpler route just to get it built, and see how the dust settles. I made my shims by extending above the notch, not filling below then recreating the notch, and it looks correct to me. TrooperMaster agrees, Airborne Trooper does not, but as I said, to my knowledge it has not been formally settled yet by anyone with approval authority. Safe to say there is NO issue for basic, it's only a question for higher level approvals. Here's my shim: Also bear in mind, you really can't even see this detail once you're suited up with a belt on. (Note I have not filled the seam yet to make it disappear, partially until this issue is fully resolved, at least as to my personal build) Here is the discussion I mentioned, where TrooperMaster explains his reasoning: Why would he 'need' to do that? Do you not understand the concept of the notches on the kidney plate? If you need to shim your waist then this is the correct way to do it, although they look better glued in from the inside rather than the outside. The shim should come from above the notch as it is an extension of the kidney and the but plate line up with the notch. I understand the 'rules' on here but they do not really apply to my way of thinking. The notches are different sizes on each side and they only appear on more accurate kits. I feel if someone is too big for the their armour then it looks much better to simply extend the part above the notch. If your armour does not have a notch then simply make a shim that starts 22mm above the lower edge of your kidney plate. It is kind of one of those things that does not really concern me since my kits come with the notches but I do not like to see others stressing out over something that is minor. If your kit does not have the notch then do not worry about it since it probably does not have a lot of other details it should have. Personally, I agree with TrooperMaster's line of thinking, and feel I've done it in an appropriate manner. I'm curious to hear Ukswrath's take on the matter, though.

So far, my only snap plate source has been a source of angst. LOL No one local seems to have 1-2mm ABS sheets, only thicker (like 10mm+). I suppose I could use a sign from HD, but haven't committed yet. TrooperBay carries it, but at an obscene price (PLUS shipping!) I might just use the nylon webbing method, which is what I did for the only ones I've put in thus far.

I just edited, so you might want to refresh and re-read. I use the hammer tool. I think there is a pair of setting pliers available but I seem to recall mixed reviews. Read Darth Aloha's build thread for some commentary on those. I haven't used the Dritz snaps, but I've read they're ... ok. They'll get the job done and lots of people use them. BUT the quality isn't quite as good as the Tandy ones. Good enough, yes, but AS good, no. On the sticky equipment list by JustJoseph, in the "Getting Started" forum, the Dritz ones are specifically recommended against, although again, plenty of people have used them successfully: http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/31404-supply-list-for-your-tk-build/: "7. Line 24 snaps- For strapping. You will need at least 30, and do NOT "cheap-out" on these, but purchase quality ones. (Steer clear of Wal Mart "Dritz" snaps). Tandy is recommended."

Those are the correct type, in general. BUT you should know that Tandy has changed their snaps and these are the new style. (I know because I bought them from that same link) The tops (working parts) are the same, but the bases have changed visually. The new snap bases have "TANDY" printed all over them, instead of the plain bottoms that the originals had. This doesn't matter for snap plates, because the bottoms are hidden between the plate and the armor anyway. But it DOES matter for the two on the butt plate (and for the "male snaps" on the ab plate), because you can actually see those and "Tandy" looks kinda funny, IMO. (They're also flatter and less textured so you can read the writing) As to how many, that depends on how many snaps you need to make. Single snap plates vs. double snaps plates. And give yourself a number of extras for screw ups. Count the snaps needed for the style you're using, and then you'll know. A number of people say just buy a bag of 100, but that's definitely going overboard unless you're doing double snaps everywhere AND screwing up a lot. I'll see if I can grab pix of new style vs old. Butt plate snaps: New style vs. old style: You can see how the new style ones would be pretty obvious. Yes, technically it's not an especially visible location when you're actually wearing the armor, but it would still bug the heck out of me. What I can recommend doing (if you want to copy me completely ) is get this kit: http://www.amazon.com/Tandy-Leather-Factory-24-Snap-Fasteners/dp/B003W0IIJK/ The kit includes 10 of the original style snaps in silver, and 10 brassy ones (which are useless, for this project, at least) AND the setting tool that you probably want/need to set these things anyway. That gives you enough of the original ones to cover the visible snap areas, and then you can use the new "Tandy" printed ones for all the hidden snap plates. Also, FWIW, I don't know if it's still on sale but Tandy was having a sale of a 100-pack of the new style snaps for like $30, direct from Tandy. (Online or in store, I believe)

You left out step 16: 16: Repeat steps 11 and 15.

Done.

Looks awesome! The only think I can think to recommend is a little bit of foam on the outside edge of the left thigh, just about your knee area, which will push that thigh in just a touch and keep it more centered over the sniper plate. Also the handguards seem a little more tan compared to the rest of the armor? Other than those, though, which are easy fixes, you look ready for higher levels than basic to me!

Ooh, I'm jealous of the pretty lighting in your studio shoot! I really need to get a decent backdrop setup...

If you're a body builder, you'll need shims in MOST armor. The biceps are definitely snug on me, but I squeak by not needing shims. There's a little extra black between the shoulder caps and the chest plate, but nothing unreasonable. Still adjusting the shoulder bells a bit, probably adding a new strap to pull them in a little tighter, but they're definitely workable. (and this is without heat treating the shoulders to open them up more)

Ok, that's interesting. I didn't catch that you have the TrooperBay hand guards, and not the JustJoseph ones. I wonder what the difference is, that one bonds better than the other, without any special steps?

Looking good! It's super exciting to try everything at once on for the first time, right?! Looks like you may want to consider giving your right shin a hot water bath to help correct the mis-aligned back edge. The same thing happened with mine. Tape it where you want it to be, and after a little over a minute in near-boiling water, everything relaxed into place nicely.

I'm 6'3" 220lbs. Anovos fits fine with some simple side shims (for my girth) and heat bending the shoulder straps of the back plate up (for my height). Any taller than me and you'll likely need an ab shim as well.

Strange. Might want to ask Joseph what he did? http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/35702-latex-hand-guards-for-centurion-level-anh/?p=472843

Host reports back nothing was amiss, although some permissions were set wrong by the Piwigo installation for some reason. They've scanned thoroughly, however, and there is no malware or security issue with the site.

Nomex is fine for basic acceptance. Odd that the E6000 wouldn't adhere to the latex. JustJoseph did it and it worked well for him!

It's looking a lot better! I think you're going to pleased in the end.

If you don't mind, what firewall are you using? Is there a RTBL of some sort? I'm having my hosting company check over the site to make sure nothing is actually wrong, but everything seems shipshape from what I can tell so far.

I'd be awfully curious to know what exactly the issue is that's being flagged. My site is not hosting any malware. The only thing running on it is Piwigo, which is open source image gallery server software.

Yes, everyone has that. As Tony said, the velcro under the holster is most likely reinforcement to help the belt keep a holster with a heavy blaster in it from tearing through. Some people with especially heavy blasters put a piece of hook-side velcro (the scratchy other half) on the ab plate to help keep the whole thing up. If you're moving everything to a good, stiff belt like one of Rob Kittell's, it's not necessary. (unless maybe you have an obscenely heavy E11) I don't think anyone truly knows why that extra bit of velcro is at the end. It doesn't seem to be needed by anything.

Brave man to tackle that much repainting! TrooperBay's rank strip stencil seems pretty good. I got one on a whim, in case I want to repaint at some point, but I'm going to leave the decals for now, unless someone tells me they need to be moved to approval.

Here's a pretty good one: http://www.tonybarnett.plus.com/snaps.html And of course this this thread from here on FISD: http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/20999-howto-make-snap-plates-3-different-ways/