armor adjustment questions from a shorter trooper

[captDunn]

Hi guys I've been lurking here for the better half if six years and i just purchased my first set of TK armor (shadow trooper) from a local 501st member who was stepping back from trooping. The armor itself is an WTF ANH that was sold to me for $400 including soft parts, boots, blaster, helmet and assembled armor. The armor itself needs work for basic approval on its own. The plastic is in pretty good condition with no cracks or chips but it has a number of stains, scratches and discoloration from trooping. I also want to completely redo padding, straps and harness. The top coat is also a matte instead of a gloss but I'll leave those questions for the spec ops forum. 

 

The question i wanted to ask here was about sizing and adjustment. I'm 5'4 171lbs with a stocky build. The 501st member I bought the armor from was 5'7 - 5'8 with a different build. The top half of the armor fits fine with some minor adjustments but the bottom half does not. The thighs even with padding are massive on me. The prior owner has the thighs attached to the abdomen plate with elastic snaps. I've seen some troopers use elastic loops attached to a belt which could be a better method. Currently the thigh plates sit far too low even without shin plates on I can't bend my knees. That's the first and most glaring issue. The shin armor is also too tall for my shins. I don't want to start trimming away at the plastic if its not necessary. I wanted to mention this issue here and see if anyone has advice?

 

I don't have any photos of the armor but I can upload some this weekend. 

[revlimiter[Staff]]

For the answer to every possible short-trooper question possible, I present @Cricket's excellent build thread. 

 

 

For the thighs, certainly trim them for your body. It is definitely needed. Trim at the top and try to follow the shape that already exists. Trim a few times instead of one huge trim. It's much easier to remove material than it is to add it back on. 

 

I'm a huge advocate of a belt to hold up the thighs and I'm 95% sure Cricket uses the same method in the link above. A "tactical" belt made of nylon that fastens with velcro is the best option in my humble opinion. The velcro lets you snug it up super tight on your hips regardless of how fat or thin you are that day. Being in between a belt size is not fun and everyone's weight fluctuates. Hang some nylon straps off the belt and attach them with double snap straps to your thighs. Not having the thigh weight hang from your shoulders is fantastic. 

 

Hope this helps! 

 

[captDunn]

16 minutes ago, revlimiter said:

For the answer to every possible short-trooper question possible, I present @Cricket's excellent build thread. 

 

 

For the thighs, certainly trim them for your body. It is definitely needed. Trim at the top and try to follow the shape that already exists. Trim a few times instead of one huge trim. It's much easier to remove material than it is to add it back on. 

 

I'm a huge advocate of a belt to hold up the thighs and I'm 95% sure Cricket uses the same method in the link above. A "tactical" belt made of nylon that fastens with velcro is the best option in my humble opinion. The velcro lets you snug it up super tight on your hips regardless of how fat or thin you are that day. Being in between a belt size is not fun and everyone's weight fluctuates. Hang some nylon straps off the belt and attach them with double snap straps to your thighs. Not having the thigh weight hang from your shoulders is fantastic. 

 

Hope this helps! 

 

 

This is great! thanks!

Cricket's thread should help a lot. 

[gmrhodes13[Staff]]

Here's a couple other threads on shorter trooper builds you may find useful

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/38842-fragarocks-rs-stunt-build-not-to-scale/

https://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/42868-sha-shas-wtf-anh-stunt-build-complete/