TD1043 Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 Alright troopers, I'm in a bit of a pickle here, and I need your assistance. Since I acquired my armor in October 2005 I've always been using elastic straps with velcro to hold up my thigh pieces to my ab plate area, and until recently it was working very well. However, with the weather getting warmer it seems that the velcro glue doesn't like to stick well to the armor, and that means the velcro was starting to detach from the armor. I've read here, the 501st forums, and other websites that a lot of people use snaps for this so I thought I'd give it a try. I had done part of what people suggested here, which was to attach the snap to a small piece of ABS by using goop. I tried drilling a hole through the plastic to then sandwich the two snap pieces around it, but I couldn't get the **** things to snap completely down so I just used glue. I let it sit "as is" with vice clamps for a couple of days, and then I got partically suited up last night to give it a quick dry run. That's when the problem started, as the one snap that was glued to my ab plate came right off. I said to myself, "WTF!?" I couldn't believe this just happened to me. I'm kind of freaking out right now, because I'm going to an event tomorrow where I'll be suited up for more then four hours so I'm short on time. Plus, today we're celebrating my son's first birthday so I won't have any time to work on it today. Can anyone here give some VERY DETAILED instructions/suggestions on how you have your thigh pieces rigged to your ab plate? Pictures would be GREAT if you can share them. Thanks everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SethB6025 Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 Since you're in a pinch, use industrial velcro. It'll hold for a day no problem. Take the strap that would connect to the thigh, and staple (yeah, with an office stapler) the one side of the velcro to the strap. Then, stick the velcro to the inside of the thigh (or inside of the ab, or both) where your snap would have been. You can remove all of that later, and give the snaps another shot. You have to use pretty thin plastic to do the snap thing. Like, .06 or thinner. If it's any thicker the snap won't "rivet" correctly and it'll fall off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TK9661 Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 I don't have any pics, but the way I did it was to take a small piece of ABS and put the snap to it the used ABS glue to hold it. that went over the little valley that's in the front of the thigh. then it runs to a belt. mine don't hook to the AB plate. it's worked great for me but I'm sure there are others who can offer advise on hooking it to the AB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teabo Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 I USED A BELT SYSTEM IT GOES AROUND THE WAIST AND THE THIGH PIECES SNAP TO THE BELT IT WORKS GOOD AND TAKES SOME OF THE LOAD OF YOUR SHOULDERS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tk-4224 Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 I USED A BELT SYSTEM IT GOES AROUND THE WAIST AND THE THIGH PIECES SNAP TO THE BELT IT WORKS GOOD AND TAKES SOME OF THE LOAD OF YOUR SHOULDERS. yeah i´m using elasto connected to a belt works fine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD1043 Posted April 8, 2006 Author Share Posted April 8, 2006 You have to use pretty thin plastic to do the snap thing. Like, .06 or thinner. If it's any thicker the snap won't "rivet" correctly and it'll fall off. That might be part of my problem, as I have been using the extra two sheets of ABS plastic that came with my FX kit. That might be too thick, huh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weiBes trooper Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 I used Snaps on my FX kit,the extra plastic that comes with the kit i used to make tabs for the snaps.drill a hole threw the plastic and peen the snap onto it.then put the female snap on your elastic strap.you can glue the tab with the snap any where you need it to be.i used industrial velcro on my ab plate to attacth my thigh pieces,left the velcro long so i could adjust the height of my thighs.i used large snaps,the small ones wont work with 0.090 gauge plastic.never had a problem with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanL Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 Another idea is to try to glue the "snap" piece to the thigh armor with a different adhesive. Something like JB Weld or one of the 2-part "welder" epoxies should give a pretty tight grip on the snap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD1043 Posted April 8, 2006 Author Share Posted April 8, 2006 I added just a little bit of Crazy Glue to the edges of this, as I read elsewhere that it's been one preventive step that's worked for others. I'm hoping that will work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troopermaster Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 I use a belt and elastic straps for my thighs.The black elastic is 2" wide and has velcro sewn on to one end and a loop sewn at the top for the belt to pass through.The velcro is long enough to allow for some adjustment.The soft/loop part of the velcro is glued inside the thighs using contact adhesive,and so far has worked OK for me I was told from an ESB stormtrooper actor that the suit's used velcro and not snaps FYI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theGreatSot Posted April 8, 2006 Share Posted April 8, 2006 Chris - I would also suggest using velcro and just working out a temp fix that you know will hold for the day, and then going back and trying to figure out a better and more permenant fix. I would suggest taking industrial velcro and placing a long strip of the fuzzy side on the inside of both thighs and the ab plate. I would then suggest using nylon webbing or elastic, whichever you have on hand or can obtain easiest, and stapling, as Seth suggested, or sewing, if you have the means and the time, the hook part to the nylon or elastic. You should be able to adjust the hight of the thighs fairly easily with this method and industrial velcro is a @#%!& to remove once the adhesive has set up... I actually have to pull it off with a pair of pliers so that I can get a better grip on it.... Hope this helps and your troop goes successfully tomorrw and happy birthday to your son! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD1043 Posted April 9, 2006 Author Share Posted April 9, 2006 Thanks everyone for the terrific suggestions! So, I'm going with the snaps tomorrow and am hoping those will hold up for me. But, I have setup two elastic straps with hook velcro that my mother sewed on for me (gotta lover her for that!), and I put the fuzzy velcro on the inside of my thigh pieces and my ab plate as a backup plan (in case the snaps fail on me). So, if the snaps fail I'll have the option of going with the velcro straps. I'll let everyone here know how things work out for me tomorrow. Again, thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD1043 Posted April 9, 2006 Author Share Posted April 9, 2006 Alright fellas, the snaps held up quite well and there were no problems with them. So, I think I'm going to be good for at least a few more events. But, I do have the velcro straps that I can fall back on, in the event that the snaps fail on me. Thanks again for everyone's suggestions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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