hazamel[TK] Posted March 7, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2019 Didn't except this to happen in the beginning, but I'm reaching the end of the video tutorials. I've to admit that I got a little annoyed by the last one, so I hope they're returning to a more professional style in the future and keep the fun part to the vlog. Aaaaanyway... I started with the right thigh. Rough trimmed and duct taped it... ...and it's so unbelivable off If they hadn't said that this is normal I would have asked myself if I was reaaaaally drunk. (I don't mention here that I had to go to the basement twice because I brought both inside parts up to our apartment at first try... ) Hiding behind the coverstrip they say in the video. But, dear helpful experts, is cuting off the tip a common way? Fading of the returnedge towards the buttjoint so it doesn't look that bad? Guess I would do that anyway because of comfort reasons. I'm not a big fan of being poked constantly (I know... Wrong hobby ) I also added a few cm in the back to have room for fitting and because my thighs, like my size, is not movie accurate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.J. Hamler[TK] Posted March 8, 2019 Report Share Posted March 8, 2019 Not to worry. Some pieces have "critical" ends, and the thigh is one of them. The bottoms have that flared ring around them, and that's what you want to get even. The tops are 100% trimmable, especially if you've removed the return edges there (which you'll want to do for comfort and mobility). Your thigh looks pretty good, but I'd re-tape it so that the bottom is even, then cut off the points at the top for a smooth transition up there. Save the pointy things you cut off to give to someone you know who has that "other hobby." A.J. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwede[TK] Posted March 8, 2019 Report Share Posted March 8, 2019 With the right thigh you don’t keep the bottom even, you alligne the ridges so they go to a point. I’m on the phone atm so can’t show a reference pic. The bottom gets covered by the ammo knee. Bare with me and I’ll show you when I get home Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwede[TK] Posted March 8, 2019 Report Share Posted March 8, 2019 So - here´s how you line up the thighs And, If you like to see how it looks before the ammo pack is installed you can look here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted March 9, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) On 3/8/2019 at 5:13 PM, A.J. Hamler said: Not to worry. Some pieces have "critical" ends, and the thigh is one of them. The bottoms have that flared ring around them, and that's what you want to get even. The tops are 100% trimmable, especially if you've removed the return edges there (which you'll want to do for comfort and mobility). Your thigh looks pretty good, but I'd re-tape it so that the bottom is even, then cut off the points at the top for a smooth transition up there. Save the pointy things you cut off to give to someone you know who has that "other hobby." A.J. Weird corners and edges seem to be a RS trademark. I tried to align the upper end and ended up like this. In the tutorial video they said "Doesn't matter because no one sees it under the ammo pack". Fits to the pictures @TheSwede posted later Edited March 9, 2019 by hazamel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted March 9, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/8/2019 at 5:57 PM, TheSwede said: With the right thigh you don’t keep the bottom even, you alligne the ridges so they go to a point. I’m on the phone atm so can’t show a reference pic. The bottom gets covered by the ammo knee. Bare with me and I’ll show you when I get home Thank you very much for the pictures. Are the meassurments left and right the same? Noticed that the right parts came pre-trimmed pretty rough and I had to cut off a large trinangle at the back side? About 5cm on the bottom messured from the last corner. 28 on the top outside and 33 on the inside from the raised middel part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.J. Hamler[TK] Posted March 9, 2019 Report Share Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) 11 minutes ago, hazamel said: Weird corners and edges seem to be a RS trademark. I tried to align the upper end and ended up like this. In the tutorial video they said "Doesn't matter because no one sees it under the ammo pack". That is weird. In that case, I'd follow their advice. <g> A.J. Edited March 9, 2019 by A.J. Hamler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheSwede[TK] Posted March 9, 2019 Report Share Posted March 9, 2019 53 minutes ago, hazamel said: Weird corners and edges seem to be a RS trademark. RS is cast from an original suit so that´s just how they were made for the movie 49 minutes ago, hazamel said: Are the meassurments left and right the same? Noticed that the right parts came pre-trimmed pretty rough and I had to cut off a large trinangle at the back side? About 5cm on the bottom messured from the last corner. 28 on the top outside and 33 on the inside from the raised middel part. I feel stupid as I have no clue what you mean by this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 21, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 21, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 7:31 PM, TheSwede said: I feel stupid as I have no clue what you mean by this You don't have to. I was overthinking the whole thing. Will return to to the ususal way: make it fit in the front and adjust the back. Sorry for taking so long to reply. Life and trooping with my snowtrooper kept me from updating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 23, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 23, 2019 Of to uncharted terrain... Rough cutting of the left thigh. This is driving me crazy. Looked through other threads and it always looks like there's a straight edge for the coverstrip. But it isn't. Finally found an EI-Application with an RS armor with some details of the left thigh, and thank you, it's also of. If I give up this project it won't be because it's so complex but because these strange edges drive me insane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 24, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 24, 2019 It's warm, it's sunny! Time to convert our balcony into a winter wonderland! After very rough cutting my left thigh parts I started adjusting them for final fitting. Once done, I was surprised that the inner part might not be THAT far off. It's just straight and not bend like the outer part. I assembled the two parts and the cover strip to see how much space I've left and right... and magic happen: Almost not off and very close to the reference pictures @TheSwede posted. With coverstrip removed I had this: So cutting a curve seems the way to do it, isn't it? The left pencil line is the cutting line in my case This matches the line on the inside I'm pretty sure that's right, but it looks reaaaaaally weird. I hope the back will fit after these adujstments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 25, 2019 Okay, expert advice needed: I looked at other threads to see where the thighs are placed compared to the knee cap. Is it over the knee cap or is it sitting on top? While looking for these things I came across @Cricket's comment in one of the build threads where she recommends building torso first and then fitting of the leg parts. So... put aside the thighs and start over with the torso before I go for the legs? Personal impression because this thread is titled "vlog build-a-long": For someone who's doing this the first time those tutorials are not that helpful. Feels more like they're filming their daily building routine instead of doing a tutorial (espescially the thigh-part). There hasn't been an update since december so it's a little frustrating. Guess they are very busy but thigh part also feels like they lost interest in doing these tutorials. So sorry for asking so many questions others seem not to care about. I guess it's a little frustration and feeling left alone (not by you...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket[TK] Posted April 25, 2019 Report Share Posted April 25, 2019 55 minutes ago, hazamel said: I looked at other threads to see where the thighs are placed compared to the knee cap. Is it over the knee cap or is it sitting on top? While looking for these things I came across @Cricket's comment in one of the build threads where she recommends building torso first and then fitting of the leg parts. So... put aside the thighs and start over with the torso before I go for the legs? I like the thigh to end just above the knee cap. I would think that if the thigh rests on the knee cap itself, mobility would be even more difficult than usual. The bottom of the right knee is kind of hidden by the ammo pack. Now, about that thigh/torso relationship... (and this is what works for me, others might like to do it differently!). It really depends on your height. I didn't see you mention if you're a member of the Vertically Challenged Club or not. If you're on the taller trooper end of the spectrum, then you don't have to worry about shortening the thighs at all, and you can just build away. But if you're on the shorter end, you'll want to try to maintain the original shape of the thighs as best as you can while reducing the overall length of the thigh. Your goal is to have the armor fit well with as little black showing as possible. Try to look like one of these troopers. Pay attention to how the curve of the thigh follows the curve of the cod. I've seen many, many troopers just hack and slash away at their thighs (myself included with my first set of thighs!!!) before seeing how the thighs fit relative to the shape of the cod and butt plates. It's ridiculously easy to overtrim the thighs if you're not wearing your torso first! And your torso should fit you well before shortening the thighs. If your torso is too long, then your trims on the thighs will be all out of whack. Does that make things a little clearer for you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2019 17 hours ago, Cricket said: I like the thigh to end just above the knee cap. I would think that if the thigh rests on the knee cap itself, mobility would be even more difficult than usual. The bottom of the right knee is kind of hidden by the ammo pack. Now, about that thigh/torso relationship... (and this is what works for me, others might like to do it differently!). It really depends on your height. I didn't see you mention if you're a member of the Vertically Challenged Club or not. If you're on the taller trooper end of the spectrum, then you don't have to worry about shortening the thighs at all, and you can just build away. [...] And your torso should fit you well before shortening the thighs. If your torso is too long, then your trims on the thighs will be all out of whack. Does that make things a little clearer for you? Thank you! This helped a lot. I'm more horizontally challenged than vertically, but it seems like the thigh is in the right place at the moment. Can't get any higher than that, becaus me "real" thigh blocks it with the middle section. Tried to adjust the armor in the back but no chance. Plenty of space at the top and bottom then but doesn't change in the middle No more sports for me. Trying to find the right height before I trim down the back which is currently poking me when I walk. Untrimmed abplate looks good for me so far: Just for the record: Boy, do I already miss the comfort and freedom to move of my Snowtrooper! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket[TK] Posted April 26, 2019 Report Share Posted April 26, 2019 2 minutes ago, hazamel said: Untrimmed abplate looks good for me so far: Just for the record: Boy, do I already miss the comfort and freedom to move of my Snowtrooper! haha! Yes, it's always nice to have a soft Star Wars kit available. My Jawa is super comfy, but I also enjoy my XWing pilot as well (I'm always a spy for the Empire!). Your ab plate looks like you could trim some additional flashing from around the edges of the cod. Check out the screen-used suit for an example (poor trooper lost his cod...): And just to make sure I'm clear on the torso fitting well... What I mean by this is that your entire torso (back/kidney/butt/ab/chest) is fully adjusted and strapped together as if you were trooping in it. How things fit will change once all your extra returns/flashing is trimmed and strapping is introduced. It really makes a difference! Carry on, trooper! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 26, 2019 For comfy I've my AT-ST because it was horrible to have the first troop ever as a Snowtrooper at 30°C under a glassroof The ab plate is not trimmed yet. That's how I got it from RS. This was just for checking the gap between codpiece and thigh. I'm afraid our neighbours are already annoyed by the sound of the Dremel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 27, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2019 Sun is back out and I already had my abplate at hand so I started to draw the line where to trim it. a) because I have to do it anyway b) to have a good reference before I finally fit my thighs Codpiece: No question. I'll start at the moldline and work my way up until it feels comfortable. Abplate: More questions... I looked at different builds but didn't really get a good clue where to cut. The Anovos builds were a good reference for the right side... ...but left side leaves me confused. I'm afraid that's the famous seventies, asymetrical style that curve and corner are different. So: Blue line where the ab and codpiece seam flares out or Red line "slightly" below this point? Is there a rule of thumb how much space from the edge (grey line) of the abpiece? The typical 10mm? Another one: Reading through different builds to look for the strapping: I saw a few anovos builds using the bracket-strapping reinforcing their return edges. Is that an Anovos "issue" because of thinner plastic or is it recommended in general? The RS ABS looks pretty sturdy for me (at the moment) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket[TK] Posted April 27, 2019 Report Share Posted April 27, 2019 Returns aren't required in these areas. Trim for fit and comfort. For my kit (I'm just 5'4"), I trimmed all of it off and then some. You won't see this area anyhow because the belt hides it. See? (I'm on the left) About strapping, it's always a good idea to reinforce returns if using brackets. My RS kit developed cracks where there was no reinforcement at the returns, and that happened even before trooping. I consider reinforcement of returns as just a way to improve durability of the kit (and spend less time making repairs down the road). 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ukswrath[Staff] Posted April 27, 2019 Report Share Posted April 27, 2019 5 hours ago, hazamel said: Another one: Reading through different builds to look for the strapping: I saw a few anovos builds using the bracket-strapping reinforcing their return edges. Is that an Anovos "issue" because of thinner plastic or is it recommended in general? Yes. The Anovos material is thin and in some areas less than 1mm (not good). You shouldn't have these issues with RS 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted April 29, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2019 Thank you for the side view and the information about the thickness.. Speaking of "thickness"... If I don't reach EIB, I blame it on choclate and chips... I left about 10mm of return edge on the top and the bottom for the strapping. Return edge at the seam will be removed, also on the top of the abplate because the strapping is mounted to the plate not to the return edge. Kindey also needs some round corners at the side of the return egde or narrow it down. I hope to gain some extra mm for a better fitting. My wife was also very gentle with the belt. But somehow I also like breathing. Even more than EIB And finally I got some lexan siccors. My neighbours will be so reliefed! And trimming was so easy with these! Why didn't I get those earlier? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digz Graavz[TK] Posted May 1, 2019 Report Share Posted May 1, 2019 Are you using snaps or strapping for the inside? If you're going with strapping, you'll need more edge on the torso pieces to give you support for the bolts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted May 1, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 1, 2019 (edited) @Digz Graavz Strapping. The RS kit has 8mm washers and 6mm loops at the brackets so I left between 10 and 12 mm return edge to have some space in both directions. Screws themselve have a 6,5mm head and the thread is 3mm in diameter. Edited May 1, 2019 by hazamel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted May 1, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 1, 2019 17 hours ago, Digz Graavz said: Are you using snaps or strapping for the inside? If you're going with strapping, you'll need more edge on the torso pieces to give you support for the bolts. Ah now I know what you mean. No, I didn't trim the top edge of the abplate. Double checked the strapping guides before. It's a little confusing, because the screen used armor has the brackets not on the edge (guess becaus of wear and tear) but to the front. And with the edge facing upwards it was hard to see. But thanks for the heads up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digz Graavz[TK] Posted May 1, 2019 Report Share Posted May 1, 2019 I went strapping as well. It went together very quickly. Watch your symmetry and spacing. When you get there, PM me if you want and I'll send you details of mine. I had to zip-tie one side tighter because it kept popping up. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazamel[TK] Posted May 8, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2019 Yesterday my missing snaps arrived from RS including the right tools. Great customer service... Because I was a pretty tired from trooping on friday I decided to tackle something less complicated on the weekend and started building the detonator. Lucky me, I've already a template from my snowtrooper... I marked my endcaps at 18mm and started rough trimming them... Next up was the control panel, which was very easy because I just cut it along the curve. Dry fitting before final dremel-action... and the final result before glueing compared to my Snowie-DT 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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