Jetpack Harness: Soft vs. Metal

Wes7

Hunter
Hi guys,

I've come to a fork in the road in my Fett build. I've been asking around regarding which Jetpack harness to get and I have gotten very mixed opinions. Some say the soft ones will ride up your chest while trooping while others say the metal ones hurt your back after awhile.

What do you think?

I'm deciding between BBF's metal, screen accurate harness and MOW's vest like harness. The accuracy doesn't really matter to me, the only thing I'm concerned about the BBF metal harness is the price tag. I'm certain that it is a very quality item, but for once in this build I'm trying to cut corners financially. I already have an original US dive buckle, so the buckle is taken care of.

Should I go with MOW's and make adjustments according to how it fits me? Or should I just wait and save for the BBF one?

Note: I absolutely believe both products are great. I am in no way trying to say otherwise. I'm just looking at it from my bank account's perspective for once lol.
 
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Ive had a harness made of webbing..basically a traditional soft harness. Though it worked well it did in fact ride up. What i did was sew "belt loops" onto the chest of my jumpsuit to prevent that. Worked pretty well. ASfter about 1-1.5 hrs i had to suit down as my back would start to hurt.

MOW's looks nice but i have no experience with it so i cant give ya an honest opinion on it.

I eventually upgraded to BBF's metal harness, and i must say it is way more comfortable than the soft harness i had, and i have done 4hr troops wearing it with no problems. Occasionally the adjusters on the shoulder straps can jab ya a little, but i think thats just cuz i need to drop a few pounds lol

Hope this helps ya bro! My opinion is get the BBF..accurate and very comfy for long troops!
 
I agree. I like the idea of MOW vest (and price tag), but I'm also thinking that because it's a vest...it's yet ANOTHER layer to wear that will make things toasty. Where the BBF model leaves a little more ventilation :)

Quick question regarding BBF model: Does the JP attach to the aluminum in some way, or is it just by hooks?
 
Thing with the metal harness is it connects the JP at 4 points not just the hooks up top. It has the bottom rail of the harness rig where the bottom hooks hook onto. The soft ones your jetpack will hang from the hooks and thats it....unless you add something down the bottom the thing is going to ride on there and thats what makes the pulling happen...its like putting a brick in the bottom of a backpack...now if youve ever used a rucksack, you will understand better how the harness rig works....but with the bottom hooks riding on the rail at the bottom the top hooks have very little work to do theyre almost just there for looks and keeping the pack close to your back. All in all if your rocking a boba you should have the rig...with the jango you can use a soft one with the clips up top and down the bottom
 
Ive had a harness made of webbing..basically a traditional soft harness. Though it worked well it did in fact ride up. What i did was sew "belt loops" onto the chest of my jumpsuit to prevent that. Worked pretty well. ASfter about 1-1.5 hrs i had to suit down as my back would start to hurt.

MOW's looks nice but i have no experience with it so i cant give ya an honest opinion on it.

I eventually upgraded to BBF's metal harness, and i must say it is way more comfortable than the soft harness i had, and i have done 4hr troops wearing it with no problems. Occasionally the adjusters on the shoulder straps can jab ya a little, but i think thats just cuz i need to drop a few pounds lol

Hope this helps ya bro! My opinion is get the BBF..accurate and very comfy for long troops!

Thing with the metal harness is it connects the JP at 4 points not just the hooks up top. It has the bottom rail of the harness rig where the bottom hooks hook onto. The soft ones your jetpack will hang from the hooks and thats it....unless you add something down the bottom the thing is going to ride on there and thats what makes the pulling happen...its like putting a brick in the bottom of a backpack...now if youve ever used a rucksack, you will understand better how the harness rig works....but with the bottom hooks riding on the rail at the bottom the top hooks have very little work to do theyre almost just there for looks and keeping the pack close to your back. All in all if your rocking a boba you should have the rig...with the jango you can use a soft one with the clips up top and down the bottom

Thanks for some explanation, F4R and Voorhees.
Another question on the BBF setup:
How far does the aluminum rig push out the backplate? I'd like to keep the profile as thin as possible. Hope that question makes sense.
 
Hey Wes

Just took another look at tk409's site and he has a tutorial on a scratch build harness for like 8 bucks. Might be worth looking into.
 
It surprisingly doesnt push it out much at all really...i was concerned about that myself since im not exactly thin and didnt want to make myself look thicker lol.

The bottom of the harness had the dive belt on it holding that close to your body and the unit kind fits between the shoulder blades in width but is actually mostly on your lower back, so it kinda fits right to your body and doesnt really push out the armor once its all together :)
 
It surprisingly doesnt push it out much at all really...i was concerned about that myself since im not exactly thin and didnt want to make myself look thicker lol.

The bottom of the harness had the dive belt on it holding that close to your body and the unit kind fits between the shoulder blades in width but is actually mostly on your lower back, so it kinda fits right to your body and doesnt really push out the armor once its all together :)

The backplate should be made so that the harness rig fits between it and your body anyhow...

That's what I figured, just wanted the input of some guys who have it in hand.

Thanks, again, boyos.
 
Hey Wes

Just took another look at tk409's site and he has a tutorial on a scratch build harness for like 8 bucks. Might be worth looking into.

Sweet thanks man!

I'm glad this thread is getting some attention now. I'm debating between buying a metal rig or making one. Like Dom said, I rather not have the jetpack hanging from 2 hooks but rather sitting on the little metal bar.
 
So glad you posted this Wes, I am also at this junction myself. I was heavily considering the MOW since I got a lighter Jetpack this time around. I will have to check out the tk409 post for sure and keep an eye out here to see what you guys pick.
 
Defo go with the metal rig,by the time you spend money trying out different soft harnesses you could of bought one,I've got one of gavs worth every penny,had one of seekers soft rigs but pulls back after a while which in turn makes your JP tilt back,and There's no problem with the metal rig sticking out fits nicley and the weight of the JP holds back plate in place...
 
Double check the diagram on the MOW eBay site. It shows how to connect the JP to the MOW harness using both shoulders and a chest strap. Because the straps are not included you have to get all the hardware yourself. I like this idea. What do you think?
 
Double check the diagram on the MOW eBay site. It shows how to connect the JP to the MOW harness using both shoulders and a chest strap. Because the straps are not included you have to get all the hardware yourself. I like this idea. What do you think?

With the MOW you have TWO points of securing the pack with a rig your have 4...are you not getting how the metal one works? Please read this over http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/atta...ess-instl-guide_mar-2012.pdf-65865d1354731621
 
Yeah the metal really doesn't pull down like Dom said. It sits on the bottom metal part and then uses the hooks to just keep it close to your body.
 
The metal harness is also cooler than adding another vest layer and as F4R explained, a lot more secure for your expensive jetpack.
 
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With the MOW you have TWO points of securing the pack with a rig your have 4...are you not getting how the metal one works? Please read this over http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/atta...ess-instl-guide_mar-2012.pdf-65865d1354731621

Thanks for this F4R, I have only seen pictures of harnesses, with not much explanation on how it all works.

When using a soft harness, could you not, in theory, screw in straps to the back of the JP and bring them under the backplate, under the vest and buckled in front? That way you'd have 4 points of security when using the top two shoulder straps?

It's quite difficult trying to picture all this without seeing it in person or trying it on myself. One way might work but the other might not sit just right. I swear, I never buy clothes online for this very reason :)
 
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