KevZone

I have the Aker amp but made my own PTT cable/switch from spare parts I had around and quickly ran into the shorting out issue due to sweat from my hands. The way I solved it was to take my hot glue gun and cover the entire switch (except for the part I actually push) in hot glue. Basically encasing the switch in a thick layer of hot glue. That pretty much water-proofed it. Of course once the hot glue had cooled off, I took an X-Acto knife and carved away as much of the excess glue as I could and still left the switch in a cacoon of hot glue. It helps to have a brand new blade in the knife and to make sure the glue is completely cool, even cold if possible. That'll help to make sure it fits inside the finger of your glove. So far I've trooped repeatedly with this set up and it hasn't shorted out at all, and my hands do sweat a lot. I've used it with my TK and my Vader and it has worked for me.

Try a test by fitting the cod and butt plate together under your crotch with a piece of tape where the eventual strap would be. That might pull the cod in a bit more and give the side of the ab plate a better angle. Also, don't forget that your ab and kidney/butt armor will be suspended by some type of harness or suspender system that will probably hang over your shoulders...that will also straighten the angles out a bit. Right now you're just squeezing the two together with your hands and that isn't really how they are going to fit or hang from your body once your harness/suspender system is in place.

I did try locating the PTT switch at the bottom of my chest armor on the inside just above where the ab buttons are but it was a total pain having to reach up and press the button every time to talk. I saw somewhere that a guy had mounted the switch behind one of his ab buttons. I thought that was pretty creative, but still having to reach up and press the button is a problem - especially when you're holding your blaster and someone wants to shake your hand or give you a fist bump. So far I've had the best results with mounting the switch to my left index finger and pressing it with my thumb. That way I can still shake hands with a fan while holding my blaster in my left hand AND inconspicuously press the button to talk.

Two things that I've done that seem to work...FIRST OFF let me say I'm using a home-made PTT, not one that I bought from anyone so this may not work exactly for you the way it does for me. #1 - to hold the PTT switch in place, I use a common band-aid. I use a hole puncher to punch a hole through the part with the cotton guaze and then just apply the band-aid over the switch and to my finger with the push button sticking through the hole I made. So far, the band aid has been the best solution for keeping the switch from moving. I've tried electrical tape, first aid tape and even sewed an elastic band to attach the switch to but I've gotten the best results with a normal common every day band aid. #2 - to seal the back of the switch where there are exposed metal leads, I simply coat the back of the switch with liberal amounts of hot glue from my glue gun. I coat the entire back surface of the switch where the leads are, where the wire connects. Then once the glue cools off completely, I use an X-Acto hobby knife (with a brand new blade) to shape and cut away the excess glue so that the switch will fit in my glove. If you don't do this last step, the big glob of glue will keep you from being able to get your finger inside the finger of the glove. I've had pretty good results with these and use the PTT on my TK and my Vader...and I sweat bucket loads in both of those costumes.

Other than what you mentioned it looks good so far (especially to be held together with tape!). Ditto on getting your local guys to help. That is a BIG plus. And I totally echo what Poisonfox said...I got my kit put together in June and have trooped in it about five times so far and EVERYTIME I come home with some adjustments I want to make. My first troop was in 100+ degree weather and my second troop was four hours long so I got quick feedback on what I wanted to change. You'll also find out that the vision out of the helmet isn't your only challenge. Going up and down stairs is really fun and just getting your personal "suit up routine" down can be a challenge. Practice at home is one thing, but going out live makes you really focus on getting it right the first time. Don't be discouraged, your first troop will be a real eye-opener and once you see the looks on kids faces and the comments people make about how cool you look, you'll be hooked!

Some things I would also highly encourage new purchasers of the AM kit to do... 1) Follow the instructions/advice about drilling stress reliefs in the top of the shins. I have the AM kit and incorporated the stress reliefs and have had absolutely no problems with my shins. The troopers I know that did not incorporate this feature have complained that their shins have cracked in the angled area on the top of the shins when they are pulled open to suit up. 2) Pre-bend the ammo belt into a curve to eliminate stress failure from constant bending. (There is a tutorial here somewhere for that using paint stir sticks.) I did this on mine and again have had no problems with my ammo belt. Mine snaps to a canvas belt but of the troopers I know that built the belt using the ABS panels and use the ammo pouch section as part of the belt, have had issues with the ammo section of the belt cracking. 3) I have large biceps and the "squareness" of the bicep armor was a major issue for me. I had to heat and reshape the biceps to a more rounded shape and also trim more from the area where the armor contacts the front of my delts (shoulders). This was also an area where trimming the return edges helped to ease the reshaping and eliminate the area where they had begun to crack (due to me having to squeeze/flex them open to put them on). 4) Use snaps where possible. I used snaps on my kidney-to-butt-plate connections and also doubled up by adding elastic with velco as secondary straps because sometimes my snaps would pop if I moved a lot. I love the gloss ABS and every time I return from a troop, I whip out the Novus and polish it right back up. (The Novus polish was included in my kit but might not come with all kits - probably depends on the seller.) I can't imagine having to sand and re-paint after trooping. That's all I can think of right now. I love my AM kit and have been very pleased with it. I do run the Radio Shack voice amplifier inside my chest plate and there is enough room to fit it in there.

Here is my first attempt at some Imperial Binders. They close with neodymium magnets so it is cool to hear them "slap" shut when you put them on someone. Females and kids can pull their hands out and I know they aren't "screen accurate", but hey, they're just a photo prop anyway...

Please enable 501st access... Kevin Avent Stormtrooper TK2651 Profile link: http://www.501st.com/members/displaymember.php?userID=12035&costumeID=1 (Please note my email address on my profile for this forum is different than the email address I used to register for the 501st.) Thanks!

One of the members of the Rancor Raiders (Mississippi Outpost) has a completed set of ATA. I've seen it, it is very nice. Here is a link to some photos... ------------