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revlimiter

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Posts posted by revlimiter

  1. IMHO you want to have breathing room between your body and the armor. It makes things quite comfy for summer trooping and would allow for a thicker undersuit for winter trooping. I wouldn't waste a lot of time looking for a super thick drysuit or anything like that.

     

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PGF4CTH

    I use these airsoft pads for armor padding. They're thinner than the "tactical" helmet padding and the kit is cheap. And there's a TON in the kit. I have the small rectangular ones in my forearms and knees (at the elbow and at the knee front) to prevent armor bites and keep the knees spaced away from the thighs.  I've recently added the small square ones to the backs of my thigh armor at the knee to keep the front as close to my skin as possible and it feels very comfy that way.

     

    I have nothing in my torso for padding, but understand open cell foam is often used in the tummy region. You likely do not want to pad your back as our bodies use that area to help us regulate temperature. If your back is cool, you can happily work outside in 100*F+ weather. If your back is hot, 80*F weather is miserable.

    • Like 1
  2. For rear cover strips, please check out my EIB application.

     

     

    89400-cent-48.jpg

    As per Mark's advice, my front strips and rear strips line up. I *did* achieve centurion with the armor, but the ideal alignment is not having the front and rear strips at equal locations. You want that rear strip to be centered with the back of the thigh as per Joseph's drawing.

     

    AgNzFje.jpg?1

     

    So, while the top on your thigh photo looks good, the bottom could stand to be centered if possible. Or at least closer to center than mine is.

     

    And then, of course, the rear shin cover strip needs to line up with the thigh line and your rear boot line.

     

    Legs are weird. :6::laugh1:

    • Like 1
  3. 8/20/22 - Camaro Club of NM Make a Wish Carshow

    My 21st TK troop, 18th troop of the year.

     

    This troop was a Make A Wish benefit car show put on by the local Camaro club. It was also a day with 24+ hours of rain forecast. That's pretty unusual for NM, so I did a thing to my rubber E-11.

     

    troop2022-18-1.jpg

    Yes, that's an E-11 umbrella with duct tape action.  It was hilarious! Kids and adults alike loved it and I sauntered around all day with my pretty pink blaster umbrella.

     

    troop2022-18-2.jpg

    I also registered my car for the carshow, thereby giving a small donation to Make A Wish.  My TK kit fits in the trunk just fine... just not with room for anything else in there. 

     

    troop2022-18-5.jpg

    Umbrella. Also pauldron because it does an amazing job of keeping heat inside the armor. Or rather, not letting it out. I was toasty and dry the whole troop. Gonna be useful this winter.

     

    troop2022-18-3.jpg

    Happy Make A Wish workers, featuring umbrella.

     

    troop2022-18-4.jpg

    My car is in this shot, really.  Also umbrella.

     

    troop2022-18-6.jpg

    We hijacked this poor citizen's vehicle. Baby Yoda made us. He's our ring leader.

     

    and lastly...

     

    troop2022-18-7.jpg

    When the sun shines, we'll shine together
    Told you I'll be here forever
    Said I'll always be your friend
    Took an oath, I'ma stick it out 'til the end
    Now that it's raining more than ever
    Know that we'll still have each other
    You can stand under my umbrella

    You can stand under my umbrella.

    • Like 3
  4. On the topic of having to refit the armor... yeah, it's not ideal. The amount you're having to refit seems extreme. But please take this perspective - you have a fully built suit of armor to start from as a guide.  As someone who received the box of untrimmed ABS sheets, that's HUGE. I was totally and completely overwhelmed by the box, so much that mine sat in storage for around 4 years.  Getting to start from a "finished" place and modify it for your body is a lot easier task to undergo IMHO.

     

    Not trying to apologize for AP or white knight or anything. Just saying that in retrospect I would have happily paid $700 more to start from where you are than from the untrimmed box starting line. It sucks yours wasn't a bit better fit, but it's still a good starting point. 

     

    Anyways, back to the armor. :salute: Yours is looking better and better. But... why is there such a gap between the abs and chest? Mine overlaps by about 2". I believe your ab/kidney/cod armor needs to come up much higher than you have it. That would let the thighs come up higher and possibly fit better.

    • Like 1
  5. 89400-cent-18.jpg

    This may help you a bit. This is my own strapping. All of it is nylon strapping with the exception of the center strap on my back plate. That one is elastic and allows for bending. Well, the cod strap and white shoulder straps are also elastic. All the rest have no flex and are double snapped.

     

    Nylon strapping keeps things tight and in the right place.

     

    And the cod strap goes just right up there in your business. No room for the breeze if you know what I mean.

    • Like 1
  6. That looks like some good trimming.  I would not suggest you spend much more effort on the ab/kidney armor. My own AP armor fits me very similarly to what you've got now. I'm 5'11" and 160 lbs, so quite similar build. The AP armor is just not extremely sleek in the midsection without a lot of reshaping. Anovos fits much differently, but AP fits about like what you've got.  And what you've got isn't bad. It can go to Centurion that way. It's just not as sleek as some other armors you'll see online.

     

    For your thighs, do all of the adjustment and trimming in the back. Since Mark got the front glued together, just leave that. Remove the rear cover strips (inner and outer if both are installed) and get the thighs to the height you want (which is VERY high). Then overlap them and tape the crap out of them so that they hold the shape. Several more test fits and then see if you feel like they need more or less room. Then slice a straight line up the center back and re-glue the halves together.

     

    Thighs really help to have an assistant.

     

    Shins are done in a very similar manner. Get the front glued and happy, then slice the back up the center.

    • Like 1
  7. (20) 8/13/22 - Elijah's Toy Drive 2022

    20 TK troops!

     

    troop2022-17-1x.jpg

    This troop was a memorial toy drive in honor of a little boy who died of cancer five years ago. We had a decent showing with 7 troops. It was Brandon's first official troop in TK armor (center pic).

     

    troop2022-17-2x.jpg

    Our group with the organizers.

     

    troop2022-17-3x.jpg

    This large fellow showed up. With Green Lantern photobomb.

     

    troop2022-17-4x.jpg

    Thor and Mr Pool. Both looking dapper.

     

    troop2022-17-5x.jpg

    With some rebels and the Galactic Academy.  I noticed Han's gun placement once I was sitting at the keyboard and about fell over laughing.

     

    Good times!!

    • Like 4
  8. 3 hours ago, MaskedVengeance said:

    Very cool mod to your shoulder elastic! Did you actually use velcro, or is it actually just a piece of nylon strapping? Either way, basically it's simply providing structure, correct? But the rest of the white elastic still maintains some flex. When I first started reading I thought you were going to employ something similar to the metal pieces that ROTK and Shoretroopers use in their shoulder connections.

     

    Additionally, that's an insane amount of snaps in your bells; definitely a record of some sort. So you have your snaps and I have my thermal detonators. :laugh1: (By the way, did you get your 68mm TD yet?)

     

    It's a piece of nylon strapping. I *know* I have some non-sticky velcro around here somewhere but couldn't find it. Still, basically anything that doesn't stretch is what's needed for this mod. It's just shoring up half the elastic to keep it from stretching, yet still allowing flex. 

     

    And I didn't get the TD. :6:None of the vendors I reached out to replied... alas.  But I'm happy with my magnet hinged one.

     

    1 hour ago, gmrhodes13 said:

    Not here is tighter/thicker elastic available which reduces the amount the elastic is pulled, some double over the standard elastic for a little more strength. Also if you have your center snaps further towards the front it does help the shoulder bells rotate in towards the front after moving your arms

     

    My elastic is indeed doubled over and the center snaps are already front-justified. They could probably be more toward the front, but I've never been unhappy with how my shoulder bells hung. This mod was only about keeping the elastic from peeking out under the shoulder bridge.

     

     

    12 minutes ago, Scimitar said:

    Adam's straps are made from lower stretch, non-knit elastic. They were also doubled over & have ABS panels sandwiched in between the straps where the snaps were installed for reinforcement. The snaps are inset toward the neck and slightly forward to keep the bells pulled "up" as far as possible and for natural frontward rotation (as much as is possible anyway with the small AP shoulder bells). This is a great solution for off the shelf, readily available elastic strapping that has some slight pull away from the shoulders.

    And they're comfortable, hold their position, and have performed flawlessly for almost 20 troops now. :D You built good straps.

     

    Now they're just ever so slightly improved.

    • Like 1
  9. This fix was prompted by an FISD facebook post.

     

    tk-shoulder0.jpg

    Note my shoulder. The elastic is pulling away a little. It's not bad, but not ideal. I don't mind the gap so much, but I do mind the white elastic peeking out.

     

    Trooper A.T. Nguyen posted a fix involving some velcro sewn into the elastic shoulder bridge on the inboard side. So I replicated it.

     

    tk-shoulder1.jpg

    Look at this result!! I could not even dream of this shoulder alignment previously.

     

    tk-shoulder2.jpg

    You can see the elastic, but it's not pulling out.

     

    tk-shoulder3.jpg

    Just epic alignment.

     

    tk-shoulder5.jpg

    This is what I did. Note the new strapping on the inboard edges of the shoulder elastic.

     

    tk-shoulder6.jpg

    It's completely hidden by the ABS bridges, so no black to be seen.

     

    tk-shoulder7.jpg

    Very noobishly sewn in by hand. I also E6000'd the void areas.  It's STRONG.

     

    The enforcement on this elastic gives enough strength for the shoulder to be up where it's supposed to be all by itself. No armor adjustment needed. It just stays magically in the ideal spot and always looks Centurion-quality. I'm super chuffed about this upgrade.

     

     

    tk-shoulder4.jpg

    I also upgraded my top shoulder bell straps. Now it's held onto the bells by FOUR snaps each. I made some L shaped straps and redid the snap plates glued to the bells. The new snaps live on the front edge to resist coming free when I reach across my body.

     

    Why would I do this? I was pulling the shoulder bell straps off while suiting up. Attaching the right side would make the left come unsnapped due to how I contort my shoulders. With the 4 snaps, nothing moves or unsnaps at all. I'm on 3 troops with this mega-snap setup and have had zero problems kitting up by myself. It's fantastic.

     

    Also... I may have more snaps than shoulder bell now. :laugh1:

     

     

    • Like 1
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