BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 (edited) Hey guys! The armor I bought from Stormy320 arrived very fast. As I'm 6' 3" it will need some modification to fit but nothing major. The chest plate is fitted to sit quite high and can easily be lowered by using a heat gun on the ribbed shoulder straps. The legs will need some narrowing, but this seems like it can be done by adding velcro on the insides as they are almost a perfect fit. The lower arms are glued together, but I received some extra that I can assemble myself, which helps as my left hand is too thick to fit through the glued opening. Other than that the biceps are a bit hard to get under the shoulders as seen in the picture, but I have faith that this can be corrected with a larger elastic band. *edit: managed to fit my hand through the lower arm pieces by opening up one side. Now I get why people use this as a solution, the piece stays pretty darn intact with just one side glued. Edited January 26, 2011 by BlueGrot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 (edited) Issue: The back plate is where my height is a problem. Would you guys recommend shimming the kidney section/back or getting an AM backpiece? Will get a pic out soon but roughly mounted I have a 2 inch black gap between kidney and back. Edited January 26, 2011 by BlueGrot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pandatrooper[TK] Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 I would just shim it. In regards to the forearms, just cut off the return in the wrist area (screen accurate) and keep the forearms glued shut. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 (edited) Stormy320 supplied me with some larger forearms that might do the trick. I'll try both. Can never have too many spares. (Edit: also need to narrow the arms) This HIPS seems quite sturdy too! Edited January 26, 2011 by BlueGrot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Oh, and one more thing. How would I best do the shimming? Adding to the kidney piece or the back piece through shaping and glueing, or just adding a piece mounted between with elastic straps like the rest of the armor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 And I think I need to raise the entire suite a bit. Maybe by a harness similars to yours, panda. The crotch piece was chewing at my inner thighs, and lift reduces the amount of shimming needed, might be the elastic between the crotch and butt being too short. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troopermaster Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Wouldn't it be easier to shim the lower edge of the kidney with one large piece to make up the distance? The shim joint would be hidden by the belt if done properly and not look out of place. Just a thought.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 (edited) Oh, I didn't think of that. That's excellent advice. The entire suit was pre-assembled, with the kidney piece rivetted to a piece of canvas rivetted to the ab. I would have to redo those rivets, and I notice I'm completely fresh at this. I was gonna ask how that would end over into the ab piece not joining up like it does at the moment, but the ab is covered by the chest. Doh Edited January 26, 2011 by BlueGrot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troopermaster Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Any extensions will knock the armour out of line no matter how you do it. You might be able to add a bit of a shim to the top of the ab plate to compensate? Remember to add the cut out at the bottom corners of the kidney to add a bit of accuracy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW1 Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 The chest plate is fitted to sit quite high and can easily be lowered by using a heat gun on the ribbed shoulder straps. Be carefull with the heat gun if your going to put it at the ribbed shoulder straps dont want to melt the ribbed sections , just a thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Hmm! I have an ATA-kit down the pipeline too, I could maybe shim the kidney with the kidney piece from the ATA. Paul: I'm having trouble finding a good reference photo of the corner cut on the kidney you mention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RogueTrooper[TK] Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 I like Paul/TM's idea about shimming the bottom of the kidney plate to give you a little bit more height. Here is another similar idea. Mark the top and bottom edges of where your belt goes around the kidney plate. Then find the center of the two marks and make a line all the way around the kidney plate. Then cut the line that is center of where you belt goes around the kidney plate. For making the shim to give you extra height to the kidney plate, you can either use one of two things. Purchase a sheet of sturdy HIPS, or go to you Home Improvement or hardware store and purchase the plastic "For Sale by Owner" sign. The plastic "For Sale By Owner" signs are made of HIPS as well. Then cut the shim to the width and length that you need to make the shim. Glue and clamp the shim to the inside of the kidney plate. Once the glue is dried, you can then take model putty and fill in and blend the outside of the kidney plate where the shim is. Then sand, prime and paint the whole thing. If you use the "For Sale Owner" sign, turn the printed side to the inside. For me, this way leaves the return edge on the kidney plate like it was originally formed and your belt will still hide any little imperfections that you may have with the shim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Yes, this also occurred to me as an option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troopermaster Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Paul: I'm having trouble finding a good reference photo of the corner cut on the kidney you mention. Using another kidney plate as a shim is a good idea if you have a spare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RogueTrooper[TK] Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 (edited) I'm having trouble finding a good reference photo of the corner cut on the kidney you mention. Paul beat me to it.... Edited January 26, 2011 by RogueTrooper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich330[TK] Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Looks like really nice armour anyway. Whenever I see TE/TE2 armour, I think to myself "AP is the same lineage right? So, what the flipping heck happened to the AP thigh tops?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troopermaster Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Don't even go there, Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Let's not open up that can of worms in my innocent little mod thread. I'm very happy with the armor and glad that modding it to my height is an obstacle that's reasonable to overcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 There's also something really awkward going on with the perspective in my photo. It looks like I have a HUGE head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich330[TK] Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Don't even go there, Rich Fair enough. Excuse the off-topic, but nice avatar! Is that the Sotheby's helmet with the patch on the back? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich330[TK] Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Let's not open up that can of worms in my innocent little mod thread. Sorry, it wasn't the time or the place. Your armour really looks great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 No problem, and thank you. It's quite glossy even unpainted. Unsure of whether to polish/paint it or keep it like this. I kinda like the semi-worn look. There are some rough patches on extruding areas, but nothing extreme. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueGrot Posted January 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Oh, this is also a nice opportunity to replace the 6 rivets on each side of the left side of the ab with 3 on each side like in the photo you guys posted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW1 Posted January 26, 2011 Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 There's also something really awkward going on with the perspective in my photo. It looks like I have a HUGE head. I think its the 3D effect no but please keep us posted with your progress mate and some photos nice set of armour by the way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sonnenschein Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 I can't tell from the pics, but are those flexible hand guards? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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