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Daennika's build[*AP]


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Hello everyone! I promised in my first introduction thread that I would start a TK ANH build, and I went for the AP kit. I just got it today, and here is my build thread. I'll try to make it as informative as I can.

 

Day 1

 

I received my brown box this morning, actually I missed the delivery man but was lucky enough that he knew me and just dropped the package over my fence after giving me a call.

 

Here come the pictures!

 

DSC_0113-Copy.jpg

 

A little bit of transport damage but nothing to whine about.

 

DSC_0116-Copy.jpg

 

Unpacking... Christmas came early this year, or what!

 

DSC_0117-Copy.jpg

 

Checking for damage, a few fine scratches here and there but, in the end, I'll be sporting a lightly "battle damaged" TK. Much like in the first scenes of ANH.

 

Moving on.

 

DSC_0118-Copy.jpg

 

Not everything was unpacking here since I lack room. I'm currently sitting in the middle of boxes.

 

So, armed with the following tools I started trimming the parts. I was pleased with how easy the process turned out to be after pulling my hair off with my E-11 Hasbro mod.

 

DSC_0122.jpg

 

I applied the score & snap method for trimming, and used the Tamiya curved scissors whenever I needed to cut out tougher parts and corners. The ABS is actually quite soft and thinner on certain areas and I didn't need to score in too deep before bending the sections I wanted off.

 

After roughly 5 hours of this work, here are the pieces I've trimmed, but not fitted yet.

 

DSC_0121.jpg

 

Soon the question of thigh plate fitting has come up and I could use some advice from other short troopers. How much can I trim off the top front of the thighs, and do they need a return edge? I don't have a bending iron for plastic, so trimming those parts may make them look a bit gross... I might be confusing myself about this.

 

I felt like starting on the helmet but sleeping feels more reasonable right now, since it's getting late! Better off posting pictures.

 

Here are the things I already have:

 

- Gloves (Mappa, MilTec Nylon search gloves)

- Holster (AP)

- Canvas Belt

- Blasters (SE-14r, E-11 Hasbro mod soon)

- Undersuit (from stormtrooperundersuit.com)

- Neckseal (by sweetiepop73 on ebay)

- TK Boots

- Aker amp

- Helmet pads

- Humbrol paint

- Frown screen

 

What I still need to get: :(

 

- Press-fasteners

- Straps

- Transport flight case or bin (I'm going to CVI)

 

Can't wait for day 2! :D

Edited by tkrestonva
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Hi Diana,

Congrats on your armor! I cut my cod, too. http://www.whitearmor.net/fisd/Tutorial-abkidneybutt

[it helps if you stuff it with a pair of rolled up socks or something when you are figuring out your strapping.

Also, I can walk around with more comfort when I have mine stuffed. I know it sounds weird, but that's what works for me.]

 

I also got AP and went for the ANH - Stunt build. I'm happy with it. Stock up on lots of plastic clamps and rare earth

magnets... the higher the N rating, the better, but N52's were too strong for me to get apart. :) I think I ended up

with N42's. Can't wait to see your progress. Have fun with your build! Jenny

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Why did you cut the cod from the ab? I know the butt and kidney is separate but not the cod/ab?

 

Apart from that, good going for 5 hours :)

I plan to trim an inch off the top of the cod piece, that's why!

 

Hi Diana,

Congrats on your armor! I cut my cod, too. http://www.whitearmo...al-abkidneybutt

[it helps if you stuff it with a pair of rolled up socks or something when you are figuring out your strapping.

Also, I can walk around with more comfort when I have mine stuffed. I know it sounds weird, but that's what works for me.]

 

I also got AP and went for the ANH - Stunt build. I'm happy with it. Stock up on lots of plastic clamps and rare earth

magnets... the higher the N rating, the better, but N52's were too strong for me to get apart. :) I think I ended up

with N42's. Can't wait to see your progress. Have fun with your build! Jenny

I love your build threads! And I'm definitely gonna take inspiration from your pictures when I do the fitting on mine since we're the same height. Your suit seems to fit you like a glove :)

 

I have some Rare Earth magnets but they're too strong as well, I'll look up the N42's right now, thanks so much!

 

Here are more pictures.

 

Day 2

 

It's early in the morning and I thought I'd just stay in bed for this one :P

 

DSC_0127.jpg

 

The shoulder bells and a little show of how I go about the "Score&Snap" method.

 

DSC_0128.jpg

 

DSC_0130.jpg

 

You probably can't see it but my hand were getting really sore at that point.

 

DSC_0131.jpg

 

The biceps. Ow.

 

DSC_0132.jpg

 

Some geometry to work on more complex shapes to cut out.

 

DSC_0133.jpg

 

Arms are all trimmed.

 

DSC_0136.jpg

 

Now attacking my butt plate with the X-acto! :laugh1:

 

More coming up!

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Looking good there! I know what you mean about sore hands... and it seems to just get worse.

But, it's a labor of love, so you won't mind the sore thumbs! You might have cuts and magnet

related blisters in your near future, too. :) Looking forward to more pics.

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For the second part of Day 2 here's the advancement:

 

DSC_0138.jpg

 

My work station securely guarded by my cat, Timmy.

 

Having finished separating the butt plate, I felt like something more challenging...

 

DSC_0139.jpg

 

The plastic was actually quite flimsy here, didn't even need to poke too hard. I call this the Poke&Twist method for drilling holes :)

 

DSC_0140.jpg

 

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Carving from the inside out to control what I'm doing and not damage the "face"...

 

DSC_0142.jpg

 

Will finish this later with a triangular filer.

 

DSC_0143.jpg

 

Eyes ready to be carved out!

 

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Not afraid to snap some parts off, I was feeling good about myself.

 

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Hm, it will need to be sanded down thoroughly...

 

DSC_0149.jpg

 

The left eye looks okay I guess.

 

DSC_0150.jpg

 

Trimming the "cap" of the helmet. I don't have a hole-puncher to prevent it from tearing at the high corner (where the brow time stops) so I will need to be extra careful with this piece.

 

DSC_0151.jpg

 

Brow trim fitted.

 

DSC_0154.jpg

 

Preview of what it should look like before I rivet both pieces together :D

 

I was so excited when I got the helmet to take this shape. I'm super happy with how easy the trimming is and how it's turned out.

Edited by daennika
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Hey again everyone!

 

Yesterday was a work day so I didn't have much time to advance on the Stormie. I cut out the ab plate buttons and in the process however, noticed that the ribbed shoulder straps were missing from my kit. I instantly e-mailed my armor guy about it since they were nowhere to be found... Hopefully they were just misplaced during packaging. No idea when I'll ever get them eventually.

 

Anyway, here's some face plate work.

 

Day 3, sort of.

 

th_DSC_0159.jpg

 

Here are my new tools: triangular, round and flat filers. I ended up only using the round one with some sand paper.

 

th_DSC_0163.jpg th_DSC_0165.jpg th_DSC_0164.jpg

 

Some light trimming around the edges but it still didn't look satisfying enough. Also the right eye bump was a little too pronounced.

 

th_DSC_0166.jpg th_DSC_0167.jpg th_DSC_0168.jpg

 

I used the X-acto after all, with some reference pictures from starwarshelmets.com. Also for the frown holes, not sure if I should make them wider or leave them as they are.

 

I'd reeeally like some feedback on this since I kind of have "trimming goggles" right now!

Edited by daennika
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Day 4 & 5

 

Trying to squeeze costume work with a job is not easy :P Yesterday I prepared the legs and arms pieces before gluing. The finishing strips yet need cutting so I will take my time with them, I'll also try fitting the armor on myself before I commit to anything.

 

This morning, using this tutorial I managed to finish assembling the faceplate to the helmet.

 

th_DSC_0185.jpg th_DSC_0187.jpg th_DSC_0189.jpg

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I used a smaller rivet at the bottom. Washers were used accordingly.

 

For the ear pieces, I need to trim them a bit more, and perhaps heat-shape them a little bit?

 

th_DSC_0190.jpg th_DSC_0191.jpg th_DSC_0192.jpg

Edited by daennika
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NEGATIVE!!!! NEGATIVE!!! Don't heat shape the ears!! The ears should be trimmed/shaped with care and time. They CAN be trimmed to the point of fitting onto the helmet without pushing them down. A rotary tool with a sanding drum attachment works wonders for this process!

It usually takes time to do this right. 1/2-1 mm at a time in different areas. If the ear is touching the helmet in one area but not another, mark with a pencil the area it's touching and slightly trim that away. You will see the gaps in the other areas get smaller. Trimming the front will have an effect on how the back fits as well so constantly looking at both sides is necessary.

Here is an example. I made the lines a bit thin so if it's hard to see I am sorry but it shows where I trimmed at the top of the tube and at the bottom. The bottom trimmed away actuall brings the ear closer to the temple area closing that gap.tk4510helmetbuild23-Copy.jpg

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Yes, do NOT heat the ears. Here are two threads I found very helpful:

 

http://forum.whitearmor.net/index.php?showtopic=10140&st=0&p=127994&fromsearch=1entry127994

 

http://forum.whitearmor.net/index.php?showtopic=16679

 

I too put together an AP helmet. It's a bear to get the ears right, but it pays off with time and patience. You'll also be surprised how much tension snugs everything in once you tighten the screws. The gaps will for the most part disappear. But you have to sand it right. Start by sanding the round ear flat, and then work the contoured parts to get them the same shape as the tube contours.

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Thanks so much, guys, for the advice. I thought the ears were going to be a disaster but I kept using the trim-fit-sand-fit-trim-etc technique and it paid off!

 

This is Day 6 and the helmet will soon be finished. The decals are on, the frown and ears are being painted as well as the mouth section.

 

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I don't know how long Humbrol paint takes to dry before I add a second coat of gray and finish the ear squares.

 

Next thing on my plate is the interior of the helmet itself that I wish to render in black, either with spray paint or more Humbrol... not sure yet. I don't want the smell of the spray paint to become a discomfort down the road. Or, I have dark gray primer and might just use that.

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I hope you guys aren't bored yet, because here comes the update for Day 7!

 

th_DSC_0219.jpg th_DSC_0215.jpg

 

The shins were a tough part, I managed to get them to fit together with two strips (outside and inside), lots of glue and magnets.

 

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Here are almost all of the male snaps being glued in place.

 

th_DSC_0211.jpg th_DSC_0208.jpg th_DSC_0206.jpg

 

Ear piece paint, second coat on the frown.

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I hope you guys aren't bored yet, because here comes the update for Day 7!

 

Hardly! Keep the updates coming. You're cruising along nicely.

 

Aloha,

 

-Eric

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Diana...just to let you know. If you are going for accuracy, there should not be any gray paint between the teeth on the helmet.

Nice job otherwise!!! keep the pics coming!!

You know I did want to go for accuracy but I didn't feel courageous enough to widen the teeth holes, so in order to make the lines look even I had to paint a little a around the holes... If that makes sense. It looks just better this way in my opinion.

 

Here are more pictures of the glue work.

 

th_DSC_0220.jpg th_DSC_0221.jpg th_DSC_0222.jpg th_DSC_0229.jpg

 

The shins didn't really fit all that well together, as I had read on several build threads that this occurs on most AP kits and that twisting the plates was in order... However I managed to assemble them without doing that. We'll see how that works out on the long run. This morning I glued the thighs which were reduced from the top, as you can probably see.

 

Also it was nice outside so I did some spray painting :D

 

th_DSC_0234.jpg th_DSC_0232.jpg th_DSC_0233.jpg

 

The detonator tube is primed and will be painted gray later on. The modified Hasbro E-11 is also getting some love!

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Day 9 (skipped a couple of real time days) with some more work on the legs and forearms!

 

DSC_0252.jpg

 

I had to trim a LOT from these guys, and there will still be a lot of wiggle room once fully assembled.

 

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These lines were cut off to allow walking.

 

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Velcro being glued on. I want to have the strongest holding velcro in the universe so I used E6000 for this job.

 

DSC_0254.jpg

 

Full enclosure for the thighs! Now that I look at this picture I realize I have to make those back-cuts even and more symmetrical...

 

DSC_0256.jpg

 

Creepy looking interior. First coat of acrylic paint for the inside of the helmet.

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So I made toxic silly putty with ABS and acetone, it worked pretty well for securing the poor glue job on one of my bracers. Then I had the idea to cover up the inside trims to make sure nothing would get caught on any edge, rendering the shims more solid in the process.

 

DSC_0266.jpg

 

Somehow and despite all of my efforts, I couldn't get anything cleaner than this. I had to reduce the diameter of the bracer so much that I couldn't get wide enough trim edges to glue together. Even with Rare Earth magnets, and pressing the two pieces together, the trim strip wouldn't align properly.

 

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DSC_0270.jpg

 

Shoulder bells. I'm thinking about using velcro on the ends of those straps...

 

DSC_0271.jpg

 

Biceps curing!

Edited by daennika
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