Zsleagth's first TK build (stunt)

[Zsleagth]

Okay so this being my first build, I was planning on using the workspace in my garage to lay everything out, plan, and get everything sorted. As luck would have it, big brown box day arrived, then I immediately got COVID, so I've been sleeping in my guest room which has been doubling as a storage room, and is now for the most part my build room. I'm having a terrible time being able to link any pictures, so I'll try to work that out going forward.

 

So my AP armor came already trimmed (I actually forgot that it was ordered that way) and this has brought me to a few questions.

So I figured I'd start with the biceps and forearms. When I went to see how they fit together and on me, I noticed they were very snug on my arm. This isn't much of a problem of itself, but as I understand it the cover strips are supposed to be 15mm on the arms, and at 15mm the cover strip doesn't really cover the raised area where the pieces butt join (1st picture). I would like to have the cover strip the same length as the raised area, but if I trim anymore away I probably won't fit my arms in it (darn these muscles!).

 

Second issue I've seen is the curve of the inside piece of the forearm ends like a good inch or more away from the end of the outer forearm with the divets. I'm not sure if this is not a big issue and I just cover it with the cover strip, or trim a bit of the outer forearm to match the curve of the inner section.

 

Once I figure out how to get these pictures to properly insert, I'll fix it here so it's not just links!

 

Unfortunately I'm limited to my bed, and when I'm able to, sitting at my computer desk for all of this at the moment, so bare with me if my picture game is terrible for the time being.

 

Edited July 5, 2022 by Zsleagth
adding pictures in post to replace links to pictures

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Ideally coverstrips should be @15 on arms BUT you can go a little bigger if needed, if it's not too much add slightly larger coverstrips on the back as you are mainly seen from the front, if it's a little more space needed use slightly bigger coverstrips on the front and back. 

Arms/biceps 15mm

Thighs/shins 20mm

Rear shins 25mm

 

Align the bottoms of the biceps then you can angle cut the tops to match, some screen references show that step there but it can catch on your shoulder bell so most angle trim

 

 

Also if you use the "direct link" option in Imgur when you copy your image link into a post it should show up, that's the link with .jpg on the end  This thread may help 

 

I noticed your coverstip looked a little wobbly, not sure if they came that way or you cut. Use a very sharp blade and metal rule, score 3 or 4 times then fold and snap, you can then sand the snap edge as it leaves a little ride. Also when gluing coverstrips make sure you rough the glue side and armor with a little coarse sandpaper, gives the E6000 something to grip too  

 

 

[Zsleagth]

9 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

I noticed your coverstip looked a little wobbly, not sure if they came that way or you cut. Use a very sharp blade and metal rule, score 3 or 4 times then fold and snap, you can then sand the snap edge as it leaves a little ride. Also when gluing coverstrips make sure you rough the glue side and armor with a little coarse sandpaper, gives the E6000 something to grip too  

 

9 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

Dang, i just realized the piece i used for this picture was one of the end pieces that had a curved edge (wasn't planning on using it), I appreciate your attention to detail!

 

[Zsleagth]

Okay, so it's a bit of a photo dump here..

Covid hasn't been kind to me and most of the work i've done on the forearms and biceps has literally been in bed at like 2 in the morning when I couldn't sleep, so unfortunately i've been pretty sloppy with documenting things (and the room i'm in is a bit of a mess).

I've gotta take a picture with most everything laid out that i've finished so far.

I've been trying to work out the strapping, going to try to do double snap as much as I can.

 

Putting the forearms and biceps together has actually been pretty fun, i've found clamping a right angle metal ruler has been very helpful for the cover strips.

 

My only real problem area right now has been the thighs. they actually dont match up on top or bottom and i'm kind of stumped as to how to proceed. 

The problem is that it's actually too long on one side on both the top and bottom. Is this something that just gets solved with a cover strip? 

Next up is the left shin with the sniper knee, as well as the helmet. I've put it together just to see if I could make sense of things, and so far im pretty happy with it. Will start getting more picture happy with things going forward now that I can actually stand up in the rest of my house!

[justjoseph63[Staff]]

Glad to see you back at this, Mark, and even more glad that you are feeling better!

As for the top/bottom alignment of the thighs, that is not a biggie.  Trust me.  What I would do is to trim the top(s), eliminating some (or all) of the return edges.  Those sharp angles can get mighty uncomfortable when walking, and you take the risk of snagging your under suit.  The same is true for the tops of the biceps.  

 

          

 

You are doing the perfect thing by posting up lots of detailed pics, but when in (even the slightest) doubt, always take a few moments to post up more with any issues before gluing.

Side note:  You are going to be VERY happy you took the time and effort to go with the "double snap" system.  Keep up the great work!

[Zsleagth]

Glad to see you back at this, Mark, and even more glad that you are feeling better!
As for the top/bottom alignment of the thighs, that is not a biggie.  Trust me.  What I would do is to trim the top(s), eliminating some (or all) of the return edges.  Those sharp angles can get mighty uncomfortable when walking, and you take the risk of snagging your under suit.  The same is true for the tops of the biceps.  
 
          
 
You are doing the perfect thing by posting up lots of detailed pics, but when in (even the slightest) doubt, always take a few moments to post up more with any issues before gluing.
Side note:  You are going to be VERY happy you took the time and effort to go with the "double snap" system.  Keep up the great work!

Thanks! Sounds like I'll be trimming down the thighs. Also, what are you using to draw out the dotted lines on the pictures?

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[TKSpartan[Staff]]

1 hour ago, Zsleagth said:

what are you using to draw out the dotted lines on the pictures?

 

Hi Mark, we use  the Free version of  PhotoScape X    http://x.photoscape.org/   easy to use.  

 

[Zsleagth]

Okay, so I'm going to put some more progress photos up, but i've hit a snag that i'm confused about how to proceed.

With the canvas belt, Mark from AP had put 2 holes in the belt to attach the ammo belt. While that may not seem too bad, those holes in the belt also line up with the holes he made on the ab plate. 

Now I know that normally the belt is attached at 3 points, with the 2 snaps inside of the outermost box as shown below (thanks @revlimiter I'm using yours as my example since I'm aiming for Centurion)

So at this point I guess I have to set the holes for the snaps on the belt and drill new holes in the ab plate?

I didn't see anything in the centurion requirements that actually specified it had to have this setup, so before I do anything, just curious what input you all had on this

[revlimiter[Staff]]

Since the canvas holes match up with the ab plate holes, those are certainly for the snaps. You'll need to poke new holes to pair the ABS belt and canvas belt. And since they're already in your ABS, it should be quite simple to create the new holes in your canvas one.

 

Try to pre-bend the ABS belt to a nice curve before you pair them up. You don't need to heat it or anything. Just give it a bit of curve to help it conform to the armor. A flat-built belt won't sit as nicely as a pre-curved one.

 

DO NOT DRILL HOLES IN THE CANVAS!  It will snag the material and rip. You want to poke the holes mechanically. I use a soldering iron. It makes a brown mark around the hole, but you'll never see it. Not sure what Mark used to make those beautiful, non-burned holes.

 

It's possible (and not too hard) to fix holes drilled in ABS. It's much much harder to fix holes in that canvas belt.

 

And also, I'm super flattered you're referring to my pix for Centurion.

[Zsleagth]

Another issue i've been running into is the sniper knee.

The problem I'm experiencing is that I can get it to be flush against the cover strip in front, and get it to barely line up with the knee of the shin piece, but only at the edges of the sniper knee. If I really try to get it to be flush with the shape of the shin piece, the whole thing leans to one side, and the other side is basically coming way off of the armor.. not sure how to go about that one.

As you can see in the 3rd picture when I try to get the sniper knee to sit flush with the shin, it comes way off on the other side. I know i could clamp it down, but it's also way off center

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

These are a little bit of a pain to fit, I use clamps, magnets and tape to pull and twist the sniper plate so it sits better. You don't need to be flush with the cover strip, you can add some other pieces of scrap plastic to take up the gap and have something the glue to grip too. 

 

Here's a couple of centurion approved AP sniper plates for reference 

 

 

 

 

[revlimiter[Staff]]

2 hours ago, gmrhodes13 said:

 You don't need to be flush with the cover strip, you can add some other pieces of scrap plastic to take up the gap and have something the glue to grip too. 

 

 

 

That one bit of info is absolutely key for getting the AP sniper knee to align well. Boiling it helps reshape it correctly and get rid of the leaning issue, but that bottom edge needs to float above the cover strip. I filled mine in with 4 layers of cover strip plastic to give the knee bottom a base, just as Glen said.

[Zsleagth]

47 minutes ago, revlimiter said:

 

That one bit of info is absolutely key for getting the AP sniper knee to align well. Boiling it helps reshape it correctly and get rid of the leaning issue, but that bottom edge needs to float above the cover strip. I filled mine in with 4 layers of cover strip plastic to give the knee bottom a base, just as Glen said.

So this is how it sits on the shin piece. I'm confident i can get the top edge of the sniper knee to be a little more on the ridge of the shin piece If i were clamping that down too (was just trying to see what I could get with just these clamps). Think that's enough? 

I'm fine with stacking cover strip pieces underneath the bottom to give it something to hold on to.

 

Also, yesterday I was working on putting the silicone hand plate on, and it was an absolute disaster! The E6000 (on the left side) had never adhered to the silicone at all. Then I saw a post where someone said Mark from AP had said to put a little bit of CA glue and use the activator to get it to stay, unfortunately the little bit i put spread EVERYWHERE and then I tried adding more to see if maybe the heat from the activator would do the trick, and no luck! 

Had to order a new set of gloves. Lesson learned!

 

I think this time I'm going to try to find an old shirt, and glue that to the silicone so I have an established base to be able to stick it to the gloves.

[Zsleagth]

I've also finally got around to putting the thigh ammo pack in. I was actually going through one of @ukswrath's Anovos builds as a guide as he has an amazing attention to detail and really explains everything with not only pictures/descriptions of what he's doing, but all the reference materials he uses as well (maybe next time I can be half as organized!).

Now I'm assuming that there's a difference in the distance we used from the back of the thigh to the back of the ammo pack because of size and different makers and all that. He went with 1/4", and I tried to get that, but it wasn't happening, so I did 5/8" as the distance on both sides.

And voila! thigh ammo pack. I will most likely get it to go up just above the cover strip and get a little glue in there to hold it in place around the time I go to paint all the rivets on the outside that need painting.

Edited July 18, 2022 by Zsleagth
adding proper praise

[ukswrath[Staff]]

Looking awesome, keep up the great work 

[revlimiter[Staff]]

Your sniper knee looks good! That's just about how mine is. I boiled and reshaped that outside side a lot to get the top to sit flat, but yours looks quite close already.

 

For your glove, get a thing of Plastic Bonder System.

https://www.loctiteproducts.com/en/products/fix/super-glue/loctite_plasticsbondingsystem.html

 

It worked perfectly on mine. A bit of sanding is required on both the glove and silicone but that's about the only trick.

[Doggydoc[Staff]]

1 hour ago, revlimiter said:

For your glove, get a thing of Plastic Bonder System.

 

This is exactly what you need to do for the AP armour. I tried a few times with CA glue, E6000 and then emailed Mark and he said this is what you need.  It is the accelerant that does the trick. 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Hot water bath can help if you don't have a heat gun, even with a heat gun you have to be very very careful.

 

Using tape to pull the plate in position while glue is drying is also a good idea, even when using clamps and magnets, helps it from stop slipping. 

[Zsleagth]

Inspiration hit me to start painting

I feel like I'm going to have to make 2 and 6 go up a little higher

For the record, I'm aware that the ear needs to be lined up better with the trap above the brow, but for now I have it in the holes that Mark (AP) had pre drilled. Going to figure out fixing this at another point.

Obviously I have to do the lines still.

On the left side I used tape, and was not very happy with how it came out, right side was free hand, and outside of a bit of paint that pooled in the top right corner, I feel came out much better. I actually started with these two, and after this, I'm painting the rest freehand (maybe with the exception of the tube stripes).

Not 100% if I really need to go further up with the paint on the teeth. Obviously the goal was to stay away from the gums.

 

Will likely continue painting later today. I actually have the trooper Bay tube stripes masking set. Any tricks to applying them? I know they have to be pencil width away from cheek, and I'm stuck at my work clinic at the moment so I'm too lazy to find/link the picture that shows which side to use on which side of the helmet. Just trying to see if there's a trick to actually applying it so there's no leaking like I had with the painters tape.

[MaskedVengeance[Staff]]

Great work on your painting, Mark! I think for now you could likely leave your vocoder 2 and 6 ridges at their current height, as those two have some variation. As for your tube stripes application, here are some links that you may find helpful

 

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/44755-tube-stripes-anh-stunt-dave-m/

 

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/49240-painting-using-templates-101/

 

The big takeaway for preventing bleed through the edges of templates is to first paint (and let dry) a thin layer matching the surface color. So for your tube stripes, first paint white onto your template to seal the edges with the helmet surface. Then afterwards, go back in with the French blue.

 

And here is a thread with some general helmet painting tips.

 

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/48942-anh-stunt-helmet-painting-tips/

 

[Zsleagth]

On 7/21/2022 at 1:00 PM, MaskedVengeance said:

Great work on your painting, Mark! I think for now you could likely leave your vocoder 2 and 6 ridges at their current height, as those two have some variation. As for your tube stripes application, here are some links that you may find helpful

 

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/44755-tube-stripes-anh-stunt-dave-m/

 

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/49240-painting-using-templates-101/

 

The big takeaway for preventing bleed through the edges of templates is to first paint (and let dry) a thin layer matching the surface color. So for your tube stripes, first paint white onto your template to seal the edges with the helmet surface. Then afterwards, go back in with the French blue.

 

And here is a thread with some general helmet painting tips.

 

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/48942-anh-stunt-helmet-painting-tips/

 

Thanks @MaskedVengeance, I painted the mask with a little bit of white, concentrating on the edges of the cutout, and they came out pretty well

while I was waiting for the paint to dry, I had to remake the holes for the ears so they're lined up better for when I submit for centurion. A quarter of an inch makes a big difference!I haven't had much time today, so likely tomorrow I'll have to do the same for the left ear.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looks like your stripes in the traps could be lengthened at the front, also the inner bottom corner could do with a little more paint

Reference

 

[Zsleagth]

Looks like your stripes in the traps could be lengthened at the front, also the inner bottom corner could do with a little more paint

Reference

 

You're right. I thought it looked a little weird myself, just couldn't place it. Thanks for pointing it out!
I think it's because the trap is set pretty deep and I was trying not to paint up the curved portion of it towards the front.

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