Do7 Posted July 6, 2012 Report Share Posted July 6, 2012 I'm building a hero ANH trooper. I'm 6' 215 pounds ( and falling, dropped 15 pound so far, shooting for 200 pounds by celebration) Just started my build and my 20 year old dremel broke when I started sanding the backs of the teeth (ordered a new flex coupling so should have it fixed by next week) . So I drilled and filed the rest of the teeth. Still need a little more clean up, but am I in the ballpark? Started work on the biceps, trimmed the overlap to 15mm. Clamped a straight edge over the line, scored it 3x with a utility knife, and snapped it. I need opinions on trimming the inside bicep piece. I marked with black tape what I want to trim on the elbow and armpit edges, the material up to the tape is what I want to cut. This is the right bicep. From the pics that I have looked at it seems the armpit edge is cut 1/3 of the over length, which is 2" on my 6" bicep. Is there a list of real measurements anywhere? I have been using an app for measuring objects in photos, but I need one known object measurement to set the scale. Waiting for my lexan scissors, and snap tools to arrive. Hope to make my neck seal tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 8, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2012 Got my 1st piece glued tonight. Started with the left shin, took a lot more time than I expected. One of the strips on the shins came trimmed less than 20mm so I opted for butt joint and cover plate. That should help me cheat the right shin, test fitting it I'm concerned about getting it to close. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 9, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2012 Glued the front of the left thigh tonight, and ordered more magnets. Experimenting with layering strips of abs with abs cement on the top of the back part of the helmet to get a rounded look. I think I may have something, just trying to get the polished look back after sanding it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 12, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2012 Got the biceps done, used the heat gun to reshape them on the inside. Glued the front of right thigh tonight. The lexan scissors work great for cutting the ABS. I've got most of the supplies to finish the armor. The humbrol paint that I ordered off amazon and shipped from England didn't take as long as they were estimating. Now if I can get a 1 1/2" tube for the e-11. Ordered a 1 1/2" OD tube through amazon and they sent 1 3/4" tube :0, but they refunded the money and I didn't even need to send back the wrong tube. I'm sourcing a 2 1/2" OD tube to upgrade the TD so I'll hope to get a 1 1/2" tube at the same time. Also, I'm still looking for a supplier for Abs smooth on both sides ( no haircell), I need 2 to 4 two foot sheets to make better parts. Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnrlGrievous Posted July 14, 2012 Report Share Posted July 14, 2012 I was also looking for extra ABS and a local garrison member sent me this link: http://trooperbay.com/abs-plastic-extension-strips/ They are not 2 to 4 feet long, but should be long enough for any part of your armor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griffin-X[TK] Posted July 14, 2012 Report Share Posted July 14, 2012 Doing a great job! I found a squared file works really well for the teeth. Plus you control how much abrasion is applied. It really helped me to shape the squared teeth better and make them look more accurate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 15, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2012 Thanks guys. I had seen the shims on trooperbay but the vac-u-form machine I have access to is a 2' x2' sheet frame [i think]. I want to vac-u-form better 2.5" DT parts, knee ammo belt , and hero 3bump ear detail. If I can't find the right ABS I could do a thick styrene. Had a productive night, trimmed the strips on the forearms to 15mm and glued one side on each. Also, trimmed and glued the front of the right shin. The repair part for my old dremel can in, last weekend I bought a dremel 4000 on sale for $45, so now I have 2 working Going to start working on the snap system, got some plastic door signs from an office. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2012 Glued the forearms closed tonight, I'll trim the front and back edges tomorrow, then size and close the thighs. Also, going to try calling some of the plastic suppliers to find abs smooth on both sides. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 17, 2012 Got both thighs glued in the back. Started working on the snaps and realized the setter tool I got through Amazon, was not the one I ordered. That's the 2nd incorrect item I've gotten from resellers on amazon on this build. I had ordered a 1.5" OD tube for making an E-11 and got a 1 3/4" OD tube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2012 (edited) Finally got rolling on the snaps. I got the right snap tool sent to me, Tandy Hammer style tool which is hard to use, so I broke down and picked up a heavy snap plier at a faberic store twice the price of Amazon. These pliers and line 24 snaps. http://www.amazon.co...Heavy snap tool I got the chest, back and arms snapped and strapped. Found a place with smooth smooth sheets of ABS but there are out of stock sounds like an armor builder in or near Atlanta bought them out. http://calsakplastics.com/ you have to call, they don't have online ordering and you have to buy a full sheet. However, the price was the best I have found if I was given good info. Call the Atlanta office and talk to Bob, if you are interested doing regular runs call them and let them know. A builder who use to buy from them said he was stopping. They need to know there is an interest so they will restock it. I didn't find out how big a sheet was but I asked for 24"x24" sheets and I think he said it would be $73 for 34 sheets cut to that size. There is a $20 cut charge, so it's $53 for a uncut sheet. They also have tubes, if they can get more ABS sheets I'll get 1.5" tube for my E-11 and a 2.5" tube for a correct TD. In the mean time still trying to get 2 to 4 24"x24" sheets. Edited August 1, 2012 by Do7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted July 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2012 (edited) I took some ABS scraps and used a hobby iron to bend them into hooks and glued them in to the inside tops of the biceps. There is reference pic from the Lucas archives were you can see a metal hook to keep the shoulder bell elastic from stripping off. ------------ Also, painted the buttons for the ab piece. Edited May 2, 2022 by gmrhodes13 link removed no longer working Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted August 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 22, 2012 (edited) Doing my final push before cvi. Last week pulled 2 sheets of Abs for ear bumps, knee packs, TD and drop box inserts. And half of it didn't come out. The vacuform at the shop has weak suction. I was luck to get the parts I got. Assembled the helmet tonight and trimmed the ears. Edited August 29, 2012 by Do7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Do7 Posted August 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted August 29, 2012 Got everything together Friday night about 2 am in the morning, and understood what everyone says about the fx helmet being too big. It sits on my shoulders in armor so I can't turn my head, and I'm 6 foot. I have been putting on sections as I was working but once I put everything on is when heat became an issues. I decided not to wear it to cvi, there was no way I could walk from parking into the hall in it. I have trimming to do on the legs and something different with the straps on the thighs. Right now I have them attached to the abs with elastic which makes the abs sag down. Everything is become clear why everyone rigs the armor the way they do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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