Velcro VS. Snaps

thanks dynamic(y) I'll try that. I think I was making this more difficult than I had to for myself. Hopefully, I can get some time this weekend. What kind of glue did you use?
 
thanks dynamic(y) I'll try that. I think I was making this more difficult than I had to for myself. Hopefully, I can get some time this weekend. What kind of glue did you use?

Hey Verbal- No prob man..Yes, its a bit stressfull at first but then it becomes routine. You know, I have this hot glue that seems to be super strong as I havent had any prob w/ it. Also, I dont plan on trooping in 100 degree weather for hours on end so I think I can get away w/ it:D. Anyways, I have had epoxy break on me so I believe the flexibility of the hot glue seems to do the job. I did rough the armor up a bit where I glue the snaps which allows it to adhese nice and firm.
B
 
Here's a method I've been using for years with great success. You'll need a good amount of leather boot lacing so buy it in a spool. Next purchase a 24" x 24" section of scrap leather rawhide. Cut the rawhide into 1 1/4" squares then punch 2 holes into each rawhide square side-by-side using a small hole punch and hammer. Do this over a scrap piece of wood so not to dull your hole punch tool. Once you've got all your rawhide squares cut and punched put them aside and get your spool of leather boot lace. Cut the boot lace into 10" lengths. You'll need about 2-3 dozen lengths for the job. Now we have to center and mark your body armor on your vest! Trace all your body armor onto construction paper and cut each one out to make a stencil. Mark your connection spots on each paper stencil with a pencil then punch a hole over your marks with a paper hole punch. After you've marked and punched all the holes in your paper armor stencils simply tape them to your flak vest. Do this while the flak vest is on the mannequin and not on a flat surface. Once the paper stencils have been centered take a pencil and mark the punched holes of your stencils onto your flak vest. Remove your paper stencils and remove your flak vest from the mannequin. Now here's where your personal preference comes into play... You can either simply punch holes into your flak vest over your pencil marks with a sharp pencil or xacto knife whatever or you can do the more laborious task of movie accuracy and place brass grommets over every marked hole using a grommet tool? I prefer the grommets myself. Now go to your real body armor...Take the same paper stencil and mark the backside of your body armor with a pencil then texture the area with some sandpaper. Using fiberglass resin with a thickening agent, Bondo or resin paste etc. bond each and every leather boot lace folded at it's center to each pencil mark on your body armor. Once this is completed and allowed to cure insert each leather lace one at a time through it's proper grommet hole located on the flak vest. Take your pre-cut leather squares with the 2 holes punched and fish the laces into each hole of the leather square pulling the armor firmly against the flak vest and tie the leather laces into a knot right up against the leather square like you would a button & thread. Repeat this with all other laces and squares and you'll have a secure setting that is both comfortable and practical. In my opinion this what they did with the movie version. Hope this helps.

Christian
 
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Hey Redkraytdragon! What brand of earth magnet would you recomend (I really like you method. It looks sturdy from the pics and doesn't require modification to the vest.)? Also, would the earth magnets affect the LED display (if one were to have that in their costume) in the breast plate?

PS. How durable would you say the magnet attachment method is? good for just walking around, or can you also get away with running or doing more physically taxing activities while trooping?
 
I am currently in the middle of attaching my armor, and I've gotta say... the snaps are turning out great. They're very sturdy, strong, and they are capable of pulling the armor in pretty tight. I'm using Dritz 5/8" heavy duty snaps on 3mm Sintra. To pull the armor in close, I sanded out a recessed area (about halfway thru the Sintra) for each snap, then filled it with JB Weld. Pressed the snap into the weld and sanded out any areas around it.

The collar was a pain to line up, but the shoulders and chest pieces have been fairly easy. Highly recommend the recessed snaps (or bolts, they're pretty much the same IMHO after some testing on scrap)
 
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