ANH build: this is where the fun begins

[LoudDragon]

ok, so I didn't get to start gluing yet, I decided to fit everything one last time to make sure it looks good, here is the results.

 

(please let me know if you can see the pictures, I put them under hidden on imgur. didn't want to hear people comments there.)

 

I had added a hard hat harness for the helmet so it sits on my head better. I didn't use foam so it doesn't get hot, though I don't know if foam would make you hot.

 

 

I also have the kidney pieces.

 

 

 

Edited April 29, 2025 by LoudDragon

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

A little hard to see too much with all the tape, nothing drastic is standing out, I'm sure once you get your strapping attached it will give us a better look.

 

Some threads on adding side shims

ABS paste to fill the gap/join

 

[JBar[TK]]

I'd hold off on the shims between your kidney and ab armor until you've gotten everything all fitted and glued together. I feel that your stature won't require them but I could be wrong. And for basic approval some gap is generally acceptable. Even level 2 allows for a 1/2 gap on either side. Looking forward to your progress gluing it all together. Just give a bit of sanding between contact points on the cover strips but don't sand beyond the contact areas so everything stays shiny. I always give a solid 2 days of drying for every cover strip. Hope you have lots of magnets and clamps! Good luck!

[LoudDragon]

So gluing process is coming along a lot slower than I wanted but I have made some good progress.

 

I had started out gluing like I have seen many other people here do, start with one side and cover strip, then glue the adjoining side. unfortunately, most times the clamps would end up slipping in some way, or wouldn't be able to hold the pieces right for them to properly bond.

 

I had started redoing some of the pieces, just trying to reposition on one end or the other, then just taking them off and starting all over again.

 

I had bought the wrong magnets so they didn't do anything for me. I tried to compensate for that by using scotch tape where the clamps couldn't reach but it only did so much. though I finally put together a solution thats affordable for me...

 

This here is a custom wood jig I had cut and sanded to fit the left thigh.

 

 

this here is in the midsection, an area where I had the worst problem with a gap between the main piece and strip, thus not ensuring the best bond.

 

 

since the wood I had was wider that the strips width, I used some scrap strips I had made earlier to properly fit the pieces, and had tapped the two thigh pieces together so they would be set properly when applying the jig.

 

 

I know this may not be practical for some people (I'm still sneezing from all the sawdust) but if you have the means this may be a better option than using magnets, and only requires about four clamps to properly set.

 

If I did this for the rest of the pieces though, I would have to make about 11 custom jigs, while using just straight wood pieces for the back of the thighs, and the biceps. 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I found over the years that you can never have enough clamps, magnets or tape. I've doubled the amount of magnets since the following photo was take, what ever works. I've even seen some use velcro and even jocky straps (no that's not some weird sex thing) 

 

[TK27022[TK]]

Looks really good on you to be honest! What a big job of first trying with tape. Once finished, will be like a tailored suit.! 

[LoudDragon]

"I've got no strings tape
To hold me down
To make me fret
Or make me frown
I had strings tape
But now I'm free
There are no strings tape on me"

 

 

SO, these are the Issues I've noticed...

 

1: the shoulder bell snaps keep coming off, (I accidently matched two snaps that aren't the same for each other) and they need to be pulled in a little bit.

 

2: I think I need to tighten the strap length between the cod and butt plate.

 

3: I KNOW I have trimmed the abdomen and kidney plates to short, also because of how it was cut, and sits, it begins to widen, down toward the lower half at the seam. I also drilled 3 holes on EACH side of the kidney and abdomen plate. so yay, another mistake.

 

4: the shins keep rotating around my legs, I still have work to do on the shins with strapping, but I'm going to be doing that a little later.

 

5: the chest plate does feel like it needs to sit  closer to my upper chest, as when I try to look down with my helmet... I can't. I do expect limited mobility and vision. 

 

so lastly, I have started some work on my thermal detonator, will be hand painting all my decals, (also removing the stickers I had used) and using 100% white silicone to finish up the shims.

 

   --for the Helmet--

I couldn't find Mediterranean or French blue, (maybe I could be Mr. no stripes?)  and the black paint I got was semi gloss black.

 

I had replaced the head suspension from the hard hat with foam, and fitted a strap for the inside, which I'm surprised how well it holds to my head when I look up and down.

 

OOOOOOh it's O so close now. I'm not insanely worried about the smaller details such as the thermal detonator, shoulder covers, sniper knee, ammo packs and blaster, as if it doesn't look good without those parts, it sure won't look good with them. (this is my own critique to myself) 

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Looks like your backplate is sitting too high, you can see on the side image.

 

Hopefully they are not the shoes you want to use, no white soles for ANH 

 

 

1: the shoulder bell snaps keep coming off, (I accidently matched two snaps that aren't the same for each other) and they need to be pulled in a little bit. 

 

2: I think I need to tighten the strap length between the cod and butt plate.

 

3: I KNOW I have trimmed the abdomen and kidney plates to short, also because of how it was cut, and sits, it begins to widen, down toward the lower half at the seam. I also drilled 3 holes on EACH side of the kidney and abdomen plate. so yay, another mistake. Way too short, I would have left more material and add foam to hold the abdomen outwards.

 

4: the shins keep rotating around my legs, I still have work to do on the shins with strapping, but I'm going to be doing that a little later. Shin tabs can help stop rotation and keep them from coming up off your boots, velcro, snaps, front or rear of the boots

 

5: the chest plate does feel like it needs to sit  closer to my upper chest, as when I try to look down with my helmet... I can't. I do expect limited mobility and vision. I think your backplate is the issue and it's pulling up the chest. You may need to trim the backplate, as it's sitting over your kidney, have a read of the threads I posted previously with smaller frame builds.

 

so lastly, I have started some work on my thermal detonator, will be hand painting all my decals, (also removing the stickers I had used) and using 100% white silicone to finish up the shims. Make sure you have the correct sizing 

 

   --for the Helmet--

I couldn't find Mediterranean or French blue, (maybe I could be Mr. no stripes?)  and the black paint I got was semi gloss black. No longer use Mediterranean blue, just French blue or similar. No you can't be Mr No Stripes, not approvable. 

 

I had replaced the head suspension from the hard hat with foam, and fitted a strap for the inside, which I'm surprised how well it holds to my head when I look up and down. I have a block of 1" 1/2 foam on both sides of my head, stops the helmet from moving around, a bit like this image.

 

 

Helmets also had straps, albeit I removed mine after 2 minutes as with using the ear screws the position was cutting into my neck, very uncomfortable

 

OOOOOOh it's O so close now. I'm not insanely worried about the smaller details such as the thermal detonator, shoulder covers, sniper knee, ammo packs and blaster, as if it doesn't look good without those parts, it sure won't look good with them. (this is my own critique to myself) 

 

You will need to trim those cover strips, note one thigh strip is under your cod. You could also bring up your biceps and bring down your forearms, will give you a bit more room at the elbows to move. Can't see if you have them but there needs to be an elastic strap around the shoulder bells. 

 

 

 

You can also add bicep hooks if you like

 

 

 

Your mobility cut outs look a bit too rectangle, entirely up to your GML if he/she/them will approve, they should curve 

 

[LoudDragon]

No those aren't the boots I plan on using in the long run, they are just the closet I could get. (albeit originally painted brown)

 

 what would you recommend to fix the abdomen and kidney plates for their short length? just a side note, I had trouble with these pieces since they felt  like they flared out too far so I used a hot air gun to bend them closer in, along with the butt plate. 

 

I hadn't thought much about the shins tabs you mentions, I'll be implementing those.

 

I'll be taking a look through those threads for the back plate fitting.

 

The thermal detonator is correct size, I have measured it and trimmed it appropriately.

 

I am going to trim the cover strips, I just wanted to make sure it looked right before I did anymore trimming. though it would be easier to trim certain pieces without them being strapped for instance the biceps. though I may take these apart to refit them like you suggested.

 

(yes I do have straps under the shoulder bells) 

 

Thank you again for your input here, yours and the many other peoples comments have really helped me..

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

ABS paste 

 

[LoudDragon]

I forgot to ask about the mobility cuts, all of them are cut to about half inch from their corner, I still intend to trim these since they Really dig into my legs at the moment, but aside from that are they cut too far? Or something else to fix?

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

7 hours ago, LoudDragon said:

I forgot to ask about the mobility cuts, all of them are cut to about half inch from their corner, I still intend to trim these since they Really dig into my legs at the moment, but aside from that are they cut too far? Or something else to fix?

Mobility cuts should not go through the lower ridge, they are generally curved but yours look rectangle references here 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

From the DO's:

 

CRL L3:  Any mobility cuts on back of piece do not go past raised ridges.

 

It would be like bellow, note the curve

 

 

Some are just angled from corner to center of the ridge

[LoudDragon]

so I have started work on my abdomen and kidney plates, and to try and remove the gap entirely, i'm just gluing them to each other with shims, while leaving the right side to slide open. I've noticed though its shape is narrower at the top than the bottom

 

and heres the side slip I'm making, you can see better here the shim is narrowed. this is influenced due to how the gap on my TK appeared.

 

(I'm finished..) I think now's the time to start considering replacement parts.

 

on the plus side, I have started work on my paint.

 

I didnt bother with the left ear since that needs to be replaced.

 

 

and heres my thermal detonator all finished.

 

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

You will need to add some black paint to the TD screws 

 

 

 

Note you have a big angle on the back and it may not sit on your correctly with the triangle shims.

 

This is a L3 approved set of armor, notice the width of the top ab-kidney is pretty much the same on the bottom of the ab-kidney

[LoudDragon]

Ok that settles it, I will be seeing about getting replacement kidney and some other parts that I need.  I am considering trimming the abdomen plate a little further around the cod snap due to how much it digs into my thighs, I don't know if you can tell very well though in the included photos.

 

for my back plate, I don't want to trim it because I didnt trim the chest plate and it would look disproportionate. I will be trimming the abdomen plate instead right along the pelvic line.

 

while it does look proportionate in the earlier pictures, remember, the backplate was lifting my chest plate higher. so there should be about a 1 inch clearing between the chest plate and ab buttons.

 

so I'll need to cut at LEAST an inch from the abdomen to keep proportions. I say at least since I am wearing jeans in this photo so I can't get the abdomen as high I want. this should solve my backplate overlapping.

 

I am wondering, would I be able to just, cut off the entire pelvic portion, then reattach it on each end to the abdomen with rivets to allow it to pivot? thus allowing more range of motion? otherwise I'll just glue it back on like normal.

 

also just some pictures of my strapping.

 

 

shoulder bells have been readjusted, and I've made a simple snap for the shins to not rotate.

the chest plate is a lot tighter to my body, and the backplate is just hanging off the chest plate right now.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I am wondering, would I be able to just, cut off the entire pelvic portion, then reattach it on each end to the abdomen with rivets to allow it to pivot? thus allowing more range of motion? otherwise I'll just glue it back on like normal. Cutting the cod used to happen quite a lot in the early days with FX kits as their cod area was large and hung lower, we don't see it much these days as most kits are a little smaller there. Before cutting I would read through a few of the smaller trooper build threads I posted previously. Any cut you make will need to be behind the belt and not seen from the outside as would any attachment method you use

 

 

[LoudDragon]

ok, just to make sure, so I wont have to fix anything else that I cut too far.

 

I plan on cutting the Pelvic portion of the abdomen, so as to lower the abdomen plate on my torso. I have seen 2 different methods...

 

cut right right under the ridge between the two sections, and either reattached to the main plate, or strapped to allow better mobility

 

OR cut about an inch lower than the abdomen ridge, and using either of the previously stated attachment methods.

 

 I did notice here that the kidney plate at its edge should span the length of the abdomen at its edge, and I don't know if you can see it in my previous pictures, but because I had trimmed my abdomen past the original cut line, it's actually longer than my kidney plate now. cutting it at the ridge would correct the length but would lose the trim seen on the lower end.

 

I id try looking through the CRL and of course it does have that trim across the ridge, but I didn't see anything about this here myself (correct my if I'm wrong)

 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Just take note if you cut anything off the cod/abdomen you may need to remove some material from the kidney or posterior as they will sit lower than the cod.

 

It's important as I've posted early any cut and fixture will need to be covered with the belt and nothing seen from the outside.

 

Currently your ab/kidney is a little too narrow as you can see from the side, if you add the shims then you can match the end of the posterior to the kidney.

 

Some references

 

 

 

You also do not need to add a "notch" it is optional all the way to L3

• Cut-out notches at the bottom of right and left sides of the Kidney Armor are optional.
  • If present, each notch is approximately 22 mm tall and the back of the notch ideally is aligned with the front edges of the Posterior Armor plate..

 

[LoudDragon]

I will be going on a hiatus for my armor since I have to wait for my parts to come in, but until then, I did go on my own "troop" at a friends graduation.

 

when I had started this project I thought it might take about three or five months just to get where I am now, but because of the progress I was making, I aimed to get it somewhat finished before the party.

 

I'm surprised that my armor held together so well.

 

Although...

 

my shins Velcro had started to peel off from the plastic.

 

my ammo belt had started to fall apart. (I didn't actually expect it to hold together for long anyway, I just used some iron on hem glue to piece two cloth strips)

 

and I got really hot.

 

I danced through about three or five songs with the the entire suit on, though I took the helmet off after the first song since I couldn't really breathe.

 

I lasted about three hours before I started to feel sick. so I had to take off the armor, then ultimately leave.

 

When I get the kidney plate I'll attach pictures of my armors current state since I have made changes since the last time.

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

A couple of fans in the helmet can make all the difference, feel air across your face as well as help prevent fogging is a godsend.

 

Looking forward to seeing your progress photos soon.

[Brooklindad[TK]]

Hello 501st Team,

 

I ordered a Fan System from Henry’s Helmets earlier in June and I haven’t heard anything from them despite two communication attempts via Email.  I was wondering if anyone has encountered similar issues. The feedback about the fan systems and communication with customers is excellent, so that’s why I’m wondering what may be happening.

 

Take Care,

 

Mark

TK-34770

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

6 hours ago, Brooklindad said:

Hello 501st Team,

 

I ordered a Fan System from Henry’s Helmets earlier in June and I haven’t heard anything from them despite two communication attempts via Email.  I was wondering if anyone has encountered similar issues. The feedback about the fan systems and communication with customers is excellent, so that’s why I’m wondering what may be happening.

 

Take Care,

 

Mark

TK-34770

Not very often I hear about this maker.

 

Unfortunately we see this from time to time, makers take money then go silent, in most cases they have your order and will fulfil when it's ready..

 

We have another maker who is 12months behind on their orders but are still finalizing orders and shipping, so there may be hope for you.

 

You may also want to start your own thread instead of adding your question to someone else's build thread

[LoudDragon]

I am very sorry for the quality, I didn't bother getting on the proper under suit either and you can see the consequences.

 

harness for thighs, though I may reuse them to hold the chest and back plate at their lower points

 

abdomen plate. I need to remove the shims when I get the new kidney piece and rework the connection between the two. 

 

Butt plate needs to sit a little lower, and possibly be trimmed, though I think it might be fine.

 

abdomen/kidney connection kept coming undone so I'm using the belt to hold it in place. cod might need to be trimmed thinner to help the thighs be center

 

the overlap here is only about a quarter of an inch between kidney and butt.

 

for "some inexplicable reason" the back plate is not sitting correctly, I did try this without the shirt on afterward and it did not overlap my kidney plate anymore, most likely due to the pants keeping them going any higher.

 

yes, I still need to fix my square mobility cuts

 

I used Velcro to attach my shoulder straps although they don't sit very well to work so I most likely will be gluing them on.

 

this is the overlap of the straps, and how close my chest plate and back plate are connected.

 

the sniper knee is connected to the- left shin. ok I have been looking at some other peoples sniper knees, and none of theirs has a tilt to the left as mine does

 

I have detachable hand guards, I may replace these with the flexible guards later

 

I think I need to trim my shins, right now this lowest edge sits around 3 1/2 inches from the bottom, which I have seen most others be at least an inch higher.

again, these are not the boots I'm keeping.

 

 

I think by adding padding to the backplate that will help it from overlapping with the kidney like it did earlier, adding more space to the NEXT kidney should help so don't feel sick, the strapping needs to be redone on the midsection parts, and possibly the arms, and then just finishing the rough spots in the armor, filling in joint seams and such.

again sorry about the quality, if you spot anything I missed please let me know

Edited August 17, 2025 by LoudDragon

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

I would lower the harness so it sits closer to your belt, can dig into your sides having it too high. You also don't need harness connectors to the armor as all the weight is held by the shoulder straps and side closures.

 

Your forearm/bicep elastic should be higher, makes a difference to how they sit at rest

 

Some use a hot water bath to twist the sniper plate, using lots of clamps and tape can also help twist the plate. Important is to get the sides to follow the ridge behind

 

 

 

 

Looks like your strapping may have been loose I can see snaps, tighter strapping may be needed

 

Boots need dark soles with no ridges

• Flat sole with a short heel.

OPTIONAL Level two certification (if applicable):

• Boots have a black sole

 

You will need to glue the front shoulder straps to the chest if applying for higher levels

 

Shoulder Straps These shall be securely mounted in front and may free float in back. They may be affixed with rivets, Velcro, or adhesive. The rear tab of the shoulder strap is optional and may or may not be present.

OPTIONAL Level three certification (if applicable): These shall free float in back. These shall be glued in front.