The stock is not black, the stock center greeblie has red weathering. Also you should invert the scope and move the rings closer to the scope ends (you can see it where in the reference image). And you should add a bit of weathering here and there.
Did some work attaching the plates to the flak vest. I'm using the method described in this post. http://www.thedentedhelmet.com/showthread.php?t=55827&p=698618#post698618. The back plate is a little short for me, I had to take the heat gun to it to better mold it to my back. I had my wife sew some large slits in the the flak vest for the harness bar and straps to fit through. I did a quick test fit, and everything looks pretty good. I'll post some pics tomorrow.
Collar plate moved closer to "choking" you, which will also open up the gap between the collar plate and the chest plates just a bit and should help the balance, along with the tailoring.