wook1138

Yep, I think the amount of glue and the amount of pressure was the issue. I do remember getting a lot of glue on this piece, and because I was concerned with the magnets I used clamps that may have been too strong. This one is, by far, the worse one and it stands out in memory as having all the suspect conditions as mentioned.

Ha ha. Yep, that is about it. I'm in Canada - so, Canadian E6000. Yes, I do try to wrap the magnets with painters tape - but, stuff happens. QuartZ did try to use electrical tape on the actual snaps to stop the reaction. I didn't do this. So, to follow... you make the snap plate (snap set to small piece of ABS or nylon) then attach another piece of ABS to the back of that, then attach the whole thing to the armor? I haven't seen that but that would protect the armor from the metal.

Oh yeah, I also read somewhere that E6000 reacts to pressure - it heats with applied pressure. Not sure if this is true or not, but something else to consider. So, don't apply too much pressure. Yeesh.

Short answer is, "I don't know". Turns out that E6000 may react with the metal of the snaps - creating heat - and then resulting in, well... you saw the picture. Some of the recommendations have included: avoid getting E6000 on the actual snap (metal). I don't know how this could be reasonably achieved while still getting enough E6000 on the snap base. use high quality snaps (I used Tandy brand snaps - they were supposed to be good). Ukswrath (Tony) mentions what snaps he uses in QuartZ's thread. I used nickle plated snaps - maybe stainless steel is better? be mindful of how you position and clamp the snap while the glue dries. Maybe I need to add some kind of support to the back side (the side in the image) so the snap does not get pushed through the ABS. QuartZ also discussed some methods he tried to avoid the issue as well. That said, this does not appear to be a common issue with other builders. I did notice that the E6000 will react with the magnets - I have some yellow discoloration where the magnets (especially if the outer protective coat has been compromised or chipped off) came in contact with the ABS and E6000 during drying. I'm using magnets bought at Lee Valley and the E6000 was bought in Canada - which may be slightly different from what is sold in the US.

Dana (QuartZ’s ANH Anovos stunt build) noted some dimples in the armour due to possible chemical reaction between E6000 and the snaps. I added some pics there showing my issues with this. It is worth heading over there and checking out the discussion. I had no idea this was even a thing. There are a few posts about it on this site - but I guess I missed those during my initial research. He is an example (which looks worse in the pic than in person): Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Oh yeah, the bumps are all centred on the snap itself. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ok, I doubled checked for those dimples. I have a few very discreet ones associated with a few of my nylon bases. Most of them blend in and I didn’t bother trying to photograph them. The ABS snap bases were more obvious. Here is one: Here is a closer shot. There is some yellow discolouration. To be fair, I did get glue on the metal for this one. It also looks way worse in the pics. This is a location of an old nylon base that was moved. Yellow discolouration. Used nylon bases. No sign of corrosion of metal but the e6000 is mostly yellow. The only other place I used the ABS plates were on the shoulder straps. There is a slight bump on the back ones, I can’t see the front ones. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I thought I did but I couldn’t find it on my thread. So here is what i have. It is not a great photo and this is the one I’m pretty sure is due to me pressing too hard on the snap. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Interesting! I have the same issue, but to a much lesser extent. I am using the Tandy Line 24 snaps (nickle plated). However, I am using nylon snap bases - I have noticed yellow discoloration below the plates when removed. I thought this might be due to the nylon - the dimples I assumed were from me applying pressure to the snaps and nothing to do with heating of the ABS via chemical reaction. I couldn't see any direct corrosion on the snaps. I was starting to wonder the if the magnets where playing a part in all this, so I've been trying to just use clamps for the last few bases I've glued. Haven't really noticed if there were any dimples associated with those bases - I'll have to check tonight.

Ok, as I get closer to finishing this build, I now have to deal with all the things I've been avoiding. Number one - the sniper knee. If you have AP armour and you have done any research, then you probably know the deal. The left shin does not line up very well with the sniper knee. There are a bunch of threads that talk about this. So after reading those threads and watching TK1636's youtube video (Complete TK Armor Build Tutorial 36 of 45 Shins and Hooks), I came up with a game plan. The trick (consensus) seems to be to raise the left side of the the left shin. So as part of my preliminary flitting, I did that. Anyway, with this amount of offset (see picture), I only lose about 1/4" to 3/8" off the bottom of the shins. This was really the only information I was trying to get from this fitting - I know I have to trim the back seam a bit - but I'll do a final fitting and trim after the front strips are on. I taped the sniper plate on. You can see a bit of a tilt in the sniper plate. I don't have a picture, but the sides are taped to follow the return edge on either side. I must admit, in person this looks way worse. I'm finding it helpful to take pictures of everything and assessing the pictures before letting my OCD freak out. I've just taped on a scrap piece of coverstrip for the fitting of the sniper knee. I didn't take any pictures, but I did give the sniper knee a bit of a hot water bath to see if could get a head start on the shaping. I'm not sure it did very much. I also had to remove some material from lower edge of the sniper knee. There was a little return edge (coming back towards the shin) along the bottom of the sniper knee - removing this will make it easier to shape the piece later. I also had to remove any and all return edge from the bottom of the shins. So I removed whatever I could and sanded it down. I'll do a final sanding when things are glued and I've trimmed for the offset. Gluing inside cover strips to front of shins. Like everything in this kit, the shins were pre-trimmed. The trimming got a little tight in some spots, so the two halves will not perfectly butt up to one another in a few spots - this happened with the thighs too. The inner coverstrip makes this easy to deal with, plus this piece will receive a lot of stress during dressing/undressing so I'm really going to put the E6000 to it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Contribution sent. Transaction ID: 97394049L3375114H

As long as they are white, I don’t think it matters, but I’m not sure. I think I talk about what I did on page 3 or 4, I didn’t take a lot of pics. The trick is to make them long enough so the bottom can be glued to a flat part of the inner bicep and the hook part is high enough to hold your bicep at the right height. That will depend on the length of your arms. Check out ukswraths am 1.0 build - I think he had better details if memory serves. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks Sean. Yeah, just one weekend of dedicated time and I could probably finish things up (more or less). The wife is taking the kids to visit grandparents at the end of the month - so that should be my chance to finish. Here is hoping for good traveling weather. So close, indeed!

Haha. Yeah, the pants... that is what happens when I let my 5 year-old son dress me. The clips are pretty much a necessary thing - they help hold the biceps up and keep things in place. I used boiling water to shape the pieces, but if you have access to a heat gun, I would recommend that - makes it easier to bend. One of the hooks worked well with the water, but with the second one I just held it over the open flame of the gas range to get the final shape - the pieces were cracking along the seam otherwise. And yes, they are just glued on. I'm actually going to redo these with a heat gun and shape them with more of a bend (more of a tight "u" shape instead of the open "v" shape) - they stick out too much and tend to catch my chest armor from time to time.

I went to size up my sew-on snaps to my shoulders bells. The snaps looked too big. I used 3/4” elastic. It seems I should of used 1”. So I tore out the 3/4” stuff and will replace. It came off way too easy so it is a good thing I did it. I forgot to sand the plastic before gluing. 3/4” pulled off too easily So, I have a belt for the thigh support system. 3” elastic that will loop over the belt. 2” white elastic for shoulders with line 24 snap locations roughed in. And my new 1” elastic for the shoulder bell to shoulder strap connection. Just sizing up the 3” elastic. I haven’t decided how I will attach to thighs but I’m leaning towards snaps. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not much work tonight. Trimmed and glued the thighs and I got my sewing all lined up for tomorrow or whenever I can convince my wife to do it or at least show me how. I needed to add quite a lot of taper to the thighs. This is after trimming. I’ve skinny getaway sticks. I tried taping them up and hitting them with the heat gun on low. It helped a little. Back cover strip on and glue drying. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

If I don’t have time to build, then I’ll make up for it elsewhere. Pancakes for the kids... Ok, this one was for me. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So, I tested some of my tweaking. This is the new left ab to kidney connection - no overlap at all. All is good. The connection on the right side rotates when I lift my arm a bit - so I get this. I haven't added my tab and slot solution, so that should fix this up. I adjusted the shoulder straps and this looks a lot better. the back is much more snug to my body and raised a bit. I am just snapping in test pieces of strapping to fit - I am doing this alone so it is kind of hard to size. The wife as had it with the whole process so I guess I need to call a friend. Excuse the seemingly vulgar pose. I was just checking to make sure the thighs would fit and how much black is showing at the top. they need some trimming for size (from the back - I've cut away some already but I could stand to remove some more) but otherwise look alright. I was worried that I glued the inner part too low compared to the outer part, but I think it looks ok. The thighs - just need to do some more trimming at the back for size, and then clean up the upper edges (after final fitting of all armor). Button plates. Something that I seem to keep forgetting to do. So I did it tonight. random shot from the closet in my office. Using my toys from the 70's as reference just isn't cutting it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not mine. I found the pic on a Centurion status request. Perhaps I read it wrong, but I think it passed. Regardless, I won't do that.

Looking at status requests... We can do this? Just in case the belt looks crooked.

Yeah, the rivets are hard (i.e. impossible) to find locally. I ordered an extra set from Justjoseph way back before I even received the kit from AP. I think Pyrates (Aaron?) will be selling them in Canada if you need more. I checked out some of the other Centurion pics regarding the gaps and overlap - yeah, I'm not as concerned as I once was. I'm still going to add the tab/slot connection on the right-hand side - I now have the material I need to do it - I just have to find the time

Thanks Brad. Yeah, I'm not touching those upper edges on the thighs until I know I have everything fitting nice looking right. I've checked out the Centurion pics - until I get my ammo belt on, it is kind of hard to tell. I guess if my ammo belt looks totally crooked... well, what is the saying, "fourth time is the charm"? I'll try to temporarily attach the belt and take a pic sometime this weekend to see what it looks like.

It seems to have worked - or at least it is helping (no picture). I left a little gap because I'm trying to prevent the ab from subducting under the kidney, but I think it would work well to keep the parts closer together too. I find that I need to "rough up" the nylon a bit to pre-loosen the fabric. I've the same issue with the riveted nylon - it stretched more than I thought it would after installation. I can see me re-doing those split rivets one day.

I'm not tying to be a narcissist by quoting myself... just sayin'.

Impressive! Your painting is amazing!