Sabyre's NE ESB build

[Haribon72[TK]]

The apoxie sculpt must be part 50% grey and 50% white and mix it until it turns white. Using daps of water and sculpt it to the seams. You must allow it to dry for at least a day before sanding.

[Haribon72[TK]]

I can see the mixture was grey. That's not good. I suggest trying again and mix the apoxie sculpt for at least 15 minutes add a little water and then sculpt it to your seams.

[Sabyre]

Unfortunately I can't help as I am just behind you. (Ready to fill the seams). I had made some test pieces and got the Apoxie sculpt to break at large forces but my seams where larger. I wonder if there has to be a certain amount to stay strong and enough bond area to stay adhered? I had pretty lousy luck with abs paste perhaps I should give it another attempt. Thanks for sharing this. I'll let you know if I come up with any thing.

I had the same thoughts about needing to be thicker or having more adhesion surface as well. Sounds like maybe I didn't mix it long enough. I'm gonna try it again this evening after work. Good luck on your build as well. Thanks for the reply.

[Trogdor[TK]]

I can see the mixture was grey. That's not good. I suggest trying again and mix the apoxie sculpt for at least 15 minutes add a little water and then sculpt it to your seams.

I agree with this unless it's just the white version. In which case it's the color of white clay (light grey). I bought super white which should appear white after mixing white and black components. Some of the videos I found on it suggest weighing the two different parts to be sure they are equal.

[Sabyre]

I can see the mixture was grey. That's not good. I suggest trying again and mix the apoxie sculpt for at least 15 minutes add a little water and then sculpt it to your seams.

I did get a 50% mix of each part and it did have 2 days to set before sanding. I did not mix it for 15 min. I just mixed it till the mixture was all the same color. I will definitely give it another shot tonight after work and mix it for the full 15 minutes. Thanks for the advise brother.

[Haribon72[TK]]

You're welcome JC.    I found some time to sit down on a computer to post these pictures to help.  This was I did:

 

 

 

One part white (50%) and one part grey (50%).

 

 

 

When you get this color..add sprinkles of water to soften it up.

 

After 15 minutes, got ahead and apply to your seams.  Here is a picture of my damaged AT-AT Driver canister.

Work it in and let it dry for 24 hours.

 

Sand it down.   I use plumbers tape from Lowes ( you can also get at Home Depot ).   Take your time sanding ... just like your sanding drywall joints.

Then use finer sand paper to shape it out.

 

[Haribon72[TK]]

Also, make sure you use a strong backing inside the thighs.    I think you're using thin garage sale sign material.

Inside my TK thighs, I used strong ABS plastic that came with my NE kit.   If you don't have any available, you can use a generic dust pan from the dollar store.

Look for a white dust pan and cut it up.

 

Adhesive.

If you're using E6000, it will not hold the thigh parts well.   I'm using the ABS cement that came with the NE kit.   Once the cement is applied, dry overnight, it should be rock solid.

 

Here are my TK thighs:

 

BEFORE PAINTING.

 

CENTURION PICS

 

Edited October 15, 2015 by Haribon72

[Sabyre]

     I had some time this week and did some rework on the thighs. After reading over the posts Walter made, I realized that my biggest problem was probably the inner shim thickness as he pointed out. As well as not mixing the Apoxie good enough.  I started out by rmoving the shims from the back of the thighs and cleaning out the old E6000. I had some pretty jagged and uneven cut lines on the thigh halves, so I went ahead and straightened the cut lines. This will aid in making better outer shims. HOPEFULLY.  I put some thought in to what to use for the inner shims. I didn't really want to go into town to try and track down a dust pan or some thing equivalent, but I did happen to find an old 5 gallon bucket at work that would work.

 

 

 

 

 

    Here I have the shims removed and cut lines straightened.

 

 

 

 

     Time to cut new inner shims out of the bucket. As long as the shims are not too wide, the curve of the bucket lines up just about right with the inside of the thighs. I used a utility knife to cut out the shim.

 

 

 

    Here is shim number 1.

 

 

 

    Repeated the process for the other side and I now have 2 shims and a useless holy bucket.

 

 

 

    Before re-sizing the thighs I decided to remove some of the return edge at the top.

 

 

 

    Here is the comparison of cut and uncut. Left thigh is cut ( on the let side)

 

 

 

    Both cut.

 

 

 

    I had the wife help with the re-sizing. She marked the outline of the thighs on to the inner shims. I will use this to make the outer shims.

 

 

 

    To make the outer shims, I decided to go ahead and use the last two pieces of ABS I had left. I will have to order more later for the other set of armor. I started out by marking out a 3/8 inch edge to make a return edge.

 

 

 

     I used the same paint stirrers I used to bend the belt and the heat gun to make the return edge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     To get the shape of the outer shims, I removed the inner shims and placed a piece of paper over the outline.

 

 

 

 

    I then traced out the shim.

 

 

 

    Repeated the same process for the right side.

 

 

 

    Here they are after cutting them out. I placed them on the inner shims to make sure they fit correctly.  Once satisfied with the fit, I placed the paper cut outs on the ABS pieces and cut out the outer shim. Sorry I guess I got carried away and didn't take any pics.

 

 

 

    After I was sure the outer shims would fit correctly, I glued the inner shims in to one side of the thighs. Back to waiting.

 

 

 

   

    After leaving them to dry for 24hrs, I glued in the outer shim and the other half of the thigh.  Once that had time to set, it was time to clean up for applying the Apoxie.

 

 

 

    I started by using the heating iron to fold down the return edge I had created on the left thigh to line up. Then I trimmed down the edge to match the rest of the thigh.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

    Once the return edges were cut down and lined up, I removed any excess glue from the seams and exterior of the thighs and shims. I also sanded down the outside of the new outer shims. I then gave everything a good cleaning and wipe down. Time to mix up the Apoxie. I started out with equal parts of A and B.

 

 

 

 

 

 

   The first time I mixed this I followed the label instructions. I mixed for 2 minutes until I had a uniformed color. This time I am going to adhere  to Walter's advise and mix it for a full 15 minutes. It still looks grey. At this point I'm a little confused.

 

 

 

 

   I applied it to the ab and kidney seams first.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     Then on to the thighs.

 

 

 

     Here is the Apoxie I have. It appears to be the same stuff Walter is showing with one exception. What he was showing and what I ordered was Super White. What I have is White, not Super White.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Now in my mind, this might affect the color of the final mixture but it should have no bearing of the end result. Correct me if I am wrong, but it should all be the same just different colors. Tomorrow night it will have set up for 2 days and I will begin sanding. Time permitting.  I think the thicker inner shims on the thighs will make a difference. Here is hoping all turns out ok. 

[Haribon72[TK]]

Awesome shim work. Waiting to see if this works for you!

[Sabyre]

Awesome shim work. Waiting to see if this works for you!

 

    Thank you for the kind words. I personally don't think the shim work I did matches up to what others have done, yourself included, but I appreciate it.

 

 

  As soon as I got home from work, I had to get outside and start sanding. It's nowhere near as good as I wanted but I think it will work just fine. Let's get to the pics.

 

 

 

 

   The following 4 pics are after I sanded down the excess Apoxie with 60 grit sandpaper.

 

      Right Thigh

 

 

 

      Left Thigh

 

 

 

      Left Kidney

 

 

 

           Right Kidney

 

 

 

     The next 4 pics are after sanding with 400 grit.

 

       Right Thigh

 

 

 

     Left Thigh

 

 

 

      Right Kidney

 

 

 

      Left Kidney

 

 

 

      The next 4 pics are after using 1500 grit.

 

       Left Thigh

 

 

 

        Right Thigh

 

 

 

               Right Kidney

 

 

 

       Left Kidney

 

 

 

      All in all I would have to say, much better results this time. I believe the thighs are going to work out great. I didn't get the shims to set as flat as I wanted, so I had to leave more Apoxie on the seam than I initially wanted. However, though you can feel the addition if you run your hand across it, I do not think it will be very noticeable visually once painted. The kidneys are another story. I am still getting separation from the Apoxie and the side at the original kidney notch I am covering. I marked the pics below in red were the separation is happening.

 

 

 

    I am getting the separation due to the lack of thick inner shims. I have the outer shims glued on to the untrimmed extra material that came on the kidney plate.  To change this would mean pulling apart the whole thing and redoing it with better inner shims. I think and hope once painted the separation will not be noticeable. If it is I may have to revisit this issue. For the time being I am going to go with it. I left a little extra thickness to the Apoxie to help prevent it from cracking. I will be making a trip to the store after work tomorrow to pick up the paint. Hopefully by this weekend I will have some good progress to report.

 

  As always, any and all feedback is welcomed.

 

   Thanks for reading.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Awesome!    Don't worry so much about cracking.  I was worried mine would crack and start breaking, but its been good so far.  

I really like the use of the paint bucket and I must try that someday on other costume characters i'm working on (i.e. Mandolorian armor).  Great find and use.

 

Let me know what spray paint you used.

 

Last February, I used this paint.

Edited October 20, 2015 by Haribon72

[Sabyre]

Awesome!    Don't worry so much about cracking.  I was worried mine would crack and start breaking, but its been good so far.  

I really like the use of the paint bucket and I must try that someday on other costume characters i'm working on (i.e. Mandolorian armor).  Great find and use.

 

Let me know what spray paint you used.

 

Last February, I used this paint.

 

 

     That was the paint I was going to use after reading your thread and seeing the results. However, I had another one of my moments today and used another paint. More on that in a moment. The paint bucket idea was another one of my moments that worked out in my favor.    I was feeling real cheap, cause parting with a dollar or two for a dust pan or small trash can was asking too much, and I didn't feel like wondering through the store and dealing with people. Luckily it worked out well and I will reserve that idea for future builds as well.

 

 

    On with the update. Time to paint. You have probably figured out already where this is headed, but I'll continue. If some one else learns from my mistakes then it will be worth it, and I won't be learning alone.

 

 

   I started out by removing any excess glue from the cover strips I applied last night. Then after wiping everything down I took the parts to be painted out to the garage.

 

     Thighs placed in my high dollar paint booth. Garage floor.

 

 

    The elastic strap from the cod came in handy. I used it to hang the ab from the garage door.

 

 

 

     This is the paint I used.

 

   

 

    Now to continue and elaborate on the paint issue. After work I ran to the Lowe's close to work. I originally went there looking for the Rust-Oleum paint and primer or at the very least some Krylon paint and primer. I even took a piece of cover strip with me to ensure a color match. This particular Lowe's carried the paint just not in white or anything resembling white. I found this paint, it's made for plastic, needs no primer, you can re-coat with in 10 minutes. What's not to like? How could this not work? This looked like the answer I was looking for. It also means I don't have to drive all the way across town to the Wall-Mart that I know has what I'm looking for. I can go straight home and get to painting.

 

    Once I got home and grabbed the arts to clean up it hit me. Dumb _ _ _ , you don't need the primer for the plastic you need it to cover up the Apoxie. I figured I'd try it any how. After four coats of paint, I realized I was right. I needed primer. The paint went on fine and looked good on the ABS, However, it didn't cover the Apoxie well or the split rivets on the left of the ab. Soo.... I spent the last half hour wrist deep in mineral spirits removing paint from the parts. Time I could have spent annoying the wife and kids.   There is a silver linning though. After painting, I noticed the Apoxie on the kidney plate was a little too thick. I didn't take enough out of the center of the seam. Instead of lying flat and blending the kidney into the shim, it had a slight hump in it. After removing the paint, I sanded it down a little more.

 

     In summary, if you have some plastic lawn furniture or tables that need a new coat of paint, this paint would work great. If on the other hand you need to cover up shim seams on your Storm trooper armor, get some paint and PRIMER. I have to get groceries after work tomorrow, that will take me to the other side of town, were I know I can get the correct paint, and I will try again tomorrow.

 

 

     Thanks for reading.

[Sabyre]

     Paint the shims, Take 2.

 

 

    After I got home today, I toke my thighs and torso out for paint. Paced the thighs on the garage floor and hung the torso.  Last night I cleaned all of the BAD paint job off and sanded down some high areas on the kidney seams.  Here they are ready for try 2.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     I went by the store after work and picked up the correct paint. Now this paint has no primer in it, but it covered GREAT.

 

 

 

     Here is the aftermath. I put four coats on each part.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      The pictures are a little blurry and the lighting in my basement does not show the detail properly. I did, as you can see, get a large run in the right thigh. I will wet sand the run out after it sets up. There is at least 1 spot on the kidney seams that I did not get feathered in to the shim good enough for my liking. I am not 100% completely satisfied with the over all outcome of this venture, but that could partly be my over criticism of myself. I still need to add the thigh ammo belt, find the correct snap for the right side of the ab ( Han snap), repaint one of the ab buttons that was scratched up, after dropping the ab on the garage floor last night, and a few minor adjustments. I think I may actually be closing in on submission within a week or two.

 

       With any luck my next post will be some time Saturday, with some final (for the time being) adjustments, attachments, fitting and pics of the final project.

       Until then,

 

    Thanks for reading.

[Haribon72[TK]]

Looks so brand new and shiny.   

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Looking Chiney 

[Sabyre]

Looks so brand new and shiny.   

 

Looking Chiney 

 

   Thank Y'all.

[Sabyre]

   I finally have my pics uploaded, so I can go ahead with another update. Time has been a bit scarce for working on my armor lately, however I think I have finally reached the point I have been working toward.  My application has been filled and pics were sent yesterday. Now I wait for approval.

 

   I should start off with a bit of explanation. I was hoping to have this done in time to take the kids out for Halloween. That didn't happen. I got everything done and decided to take pics for submitting. After taking the pics, I noticed the blasted thigh shims split open AGAIN.   The thighs have been, by far, the biggest pain in my butt plate. I did not take any pics of the process, but I have now got them repaired. I eventually had to resort to using the ABS paste to repair the thighs. The crack this time was just on one side of the shim and only about 3 inches down from the top. I sanded all of the Apoxy Sculpt out of the cracked side 4 inches down. I then used the ABS paste to refill the shim seam. Once that dried, I sanded it down smooth and reapplied the paint. I have put a good bit of pressure on the shim area and the paste seems to hold up real well. I have tried to avoid using the paste, because I could not get a satisfying result with it when I used it on the bicep. However, at this point I think I could have saved myself a lot of trouble by using it to begin with. The paste I used for the bicep was real runny  ( too much acetone). When I used it on the thighs I made it a bit thicker and had much better results. I think on future builds I will use this as a primary fix. 

 

    Ok, enough with the blathering and on to what I do have pics for.

 

 

 

   It's time to add the belt to the thigh. I will start out by bending it the same way I did the waist belt. What I should have done is start by trimming down the width( above and below the boxes) and I realized that after I bent the belt.

 

 

 

 

   The paint sticks will not fit between the boxes, so I must trim one of them down a bit.

 

 

 

   I marked out the amount I needed to cut off and clamped a straight edge on top of the stick.

 

 

 

   I used the utility knife to cut it.

 

 

 

 

    Now it will fit and still has the straight edge.

 

 

 

 

    I placed a rubber band on one end of the sticks.

 

 

 

    Got my trusty heat gun.

 

 

 

   

    And now I have a formed belt. As I was double checking things on the build threads I use for guidance, I noticed I forgot to trim the width down.

 

 

 

   After doing some measurements, I decide 5mm from the edge would get me to right at the bottom of the box edge.

 

 

 

    Now that the belt is formed to the thigh, it will not lie flat on the table, so I marked the 5mm line on the inside on both ends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

     I could then clamp a straight edge down over the pack, holding it flat.

 

 

 

   

    After running the blade over it a few times, I used some pliers to snap the scrap off.

 

 

 

 

    One side done.

 

 

 

  

    After repeating the process on the other side, this is what I had.

 

 

 

 

     Here it is after sanding down the edges.

 

 

 

   I lined up the middle box with the front cover strip and clamped it in place. One end of the belt will line up perfectly with the bottom return ridge of the thigh. The other end will be too long. I started with the one that lines up. I will deal with the long one later.

 

 

 

 

 

    After making sure I was satisfied with the alignment between the corner of the belt and the thigh ridge, I centered the pop rivet in the top corner of the belt. I made a mark and drilled a hole just big enough for the rivet to fit through.

 

 

 

 

   I then used a spray paint can to draw a cut line on the bottom edge of the belt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    I used the lexan scissors to cut off the scrap and sanded down the now rounded edge.

 

 

 

 

   I then clamped the belt back on the thigh.

 

 

 

   I lined up the corner of the belt with the thigh ridge.

 

 

 

    I marked the center of the hole.

 

 

 

   Then drilled it. After I had the mark on the thigh, I used the drill bit (by hand only, no drill) to start the hole. This will make just enough of an impression that while using the drill, the bit will not walk on the plastic, placing the hole off of the intended location.

 

 

 

  

    I then clamped the pack back on to the thigh. Making sure the front is lined up properly and the holes are lined up on the side.

 

 

 

 

    I could then pull the other side over and mark ,on the pack, were the thigh and the pack edges meet.

 

 

 

 

   Here is the mark.

 

 

 

 

 

  I put a straight edge square just inside of the mark I made and drew a straight line across the pack.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   I then clamped a straight edge on the line and scored the line.

 

 

 

 

    I then snapped off the scrap.

 

 

 

 

 

    Now that this end of the pack is short, I was not able to get the paint can to set on the pack to draw a rounded corner. Instead, I drew the corner on the scrap piece I just cut off.

 

 

 

 

    After cutting and sanding, I now have a template piece I can use on the pack.

 

 

 

 

    I placed it on the pack lining up the edges and traced around the rounded corner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    I then cut and sanded the pack corner.

 

 

 

 

    Laid out the hole for the rivet.

 

 

 

 

    After drilling the hole in the pack. I clamped the pack back on to the thigh and lined up the top corner of the pack with the ridge on the thigh.

 

 

 

 

    After marking the hole location, I followed the same procedure as the other side to drill the hole.

 

 

 

 

    Both holes are now drilled and ready to install the pack.

 

 

 

 

    Here it is after the rivets were placed.

 

 

 

 

     Next I installed the Han snap on the side of the ab.

 

 

 

 

    Then I decided to steal an idea I saw on one of Walter's ( Haribon72) team builds. I put this tab on the kidney to help hold the kindey and ab seam flush. It worked ok, but not like I wanted. While reading one of Walter's team builds, I saw him use what he calls a keeper. It was such a great idea I had to steal it.   Sorry brother.

                                                                                                        Holder

 

 

                                                                                                                                      "Holder"

   I used a scrap piece of abs the same size as the tab in the kidney to heat bend the "keeper" around.

 

 

 

 

    I then glued it in place. I have to say, this thing work brilliantly. With this you don't even need snaps to hold the side together just the outer belt. However, I am squeezing a bit of belly in so I'll need a snap to hold the ab and kidney together till I can get the belt on.

 

 

 

 

 

    Next, I had to fixe the ab button that was scratched up, after I dropped it on the garage floor.

 

 

 

 

   A little touch up paint and we are good as new.

 

 

 

 

   Speaking of paint, when I painted the kidney shims, I painted the elastic holding the kidney and ab together. I had thought of a couple ways of fixing this. However, Trogdor sent me a Pm and had a brilliant simple solution. Use a sharpie to blacken it.

 

 

 

 

    I taped off one edge at a time and did just that, used a sharpie and blackened the painted elastic. It worked out just right. I didn't take any pics of the final result. You will see the end result when I post pics for EIB and Centurion. Hopefully.

 

 

 

 

    Lastly, I place the elastic on the back plate to hold down the shoulder bridge.

 

 

 

   

     This brings me to the point I have been waiting for.  SUBMISSION PICTURES.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

  That last pic is probably the worst one. It has my ugly mug in it.    I sent these in yesterday, so now I wait to hear the news. I would say this will be the hardest part of the whole build, but that would be a lie. Those blasted thighs still give me nightmares, so waiting on a verdict will be a cake walk.

 

   If you spot anything that needs attention, by all means please let me know. It will be greatly appreciated.

 

  As always, Thanks for reading.

Edited November 11, 2015 by Sabyre

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Very nice! Question, what is the black line on the back of your right thigh?

[Sabyre]

I didn't notice that before you asked. After looking at it a bit, the only thing I could figure was one of a few loose threads hanging from the under suit. After showing the pic to the Mrs, she confirmed seeing the thread hanging there. I will need a new under suit. I have torn that one up pretty good during all the sizing. Thanks for the keen eye.

[Trogdor[TK]]

I am doing the same thing on the thighs. Wish I just went with abs paste to begin with. The one seam cracked while I was sanding. Also while feathering the edges it seems to crack off when it gets too thin. Misery loves company... Congrats on the photo submition! I'll be another couple weeks behind you.

[Haribon72[TK]]

hahahahah!    JC, I call it the " Holder " !!!

 

 

I'm so happy you implemented the "holder" to your armor.    Its going to keep the ABS and kidney together.

Anytime I discover something new to upgrade our armor, I love to share my ideas here on the FISD.

 

Troopers Helping Troopers!

 

Great progress so far!

[Sabyre]

hahahahah!    JC, I call it the " Holder " !!!

 

 

I'm so happy you implemented the "holder" to your armor.    Its going to keep the ABS and kidney together.

Anytime I discover something new to upgrade our armor, I love to share my ideas here on the FISD.

 

Troopers Helping Troopers!

 

Great progress so far!

 

 

    Oops!    Sorry about that brother, I have edited my post with the correct name.   I find that the Holder works great. Thanks for sharing it. 

[Sabyre]

I am doing the same thing on the thighs. Wish I just went with abs paste to begin with. The one seam cracked while I was sanding. Also while feathering the edges it seems to crack off when it gets too thin. Misery loves company... Congrats on the photo submition! I'll be another couple weeks behind you.

 

 

   Lol. Misery and Murphy, I wish they'd both leave me the heck alone. Looking forward to seeing your progress as well.

[Sabyre]

  woo hoo!!!!!!!

 

 

   It's now official.

 

 

     TK-29210    Is now reporting for duty.

[Darth Havoc[TK]]

Congrats Jc. Good looking armor !

Edited November 14, 2015 by Darth Havoc