scout.trooper

I think there were some vendors making versions like that where the sleeves were of a different material that gave it that "shine". I don't think you have to do it that way. The way I've done it and seen it on other scouts, it's always been one type of fabric.

Thank you all for your updates. It's great to hear everyone's different methods! While I did use a heavyweight cotton shirt, I was a bit worried about possible ripping. I haven't tried the duck cloth method but I'm glad to hear it works!

As a fem scout, I was worried about bathroom breaks too but went with the 1-piece suit anyway. So far it hasn't been a problem. You get so caught up in the troop you don't have time to even think about bathroom breaks! My 1-piece RedKap is super comfortable, tho I had to go with the 'long' option even though I'm 5'10". If you have the time and patience, you can always mod the 1-piece RedKap to start and get approved with and build the 2-piece afterwards as a backup. Just a thought.

Thanks for the sticky, guys!

I'm 5'10" tall and ordered a regular sized RK for my measurements. When I tried it on, I literally had to stand hunched over after I zipped the thing up. Sent it back and ordered a "long" instead of a "regular". Never thought 5'10" qualified me for a "long". So yeah, I'd say it's a bit small, but I guess it depends on your frame size.

Congrats and welcome to the MWG! Introduce youself on the MWG boards and let me know if you have any questions about event activities over there.

Naw, unfortunately couldn't make it. Maybe nextyear

Looking forward to seeing you in the MWG! So far, all the troops I've been to I've been the only scout. Strength in numbers!

Hey Chris! So far so good. Just a few notes: -I think your vest sleeves are too long... the standards say they should end just below the shoulder bells. That should be an easy fix, tho (at least it's not too short!) -Is the fabric on your drop boxes one or two pieces? Looks like two. I thought the standards called for one peice straps threaded behind the the black plastic clips...? Don't know if Lancer is different (if you're going for Lancer) -In the last pic, I think the rear drop box strap is twisted (right where it goes up into your belt). Your left side. I think the right side is fine. -In pic #10 above, you shouldn't be able to see the bottom of your bund like that beneath the det pack. Just hike it up a bit. Which brings me to my last point: -I'm worried about pic #1... your bund is way below where your chest armor ends. I'll attribute some of that to the sag of it being a bit too big, but you're gonna have to really pull it up to close that gap (beware of super-wedgies!). Once you get it tailored, you might have to put some velcro on your undersuit as well as opposite velcro on the top inside lip of your bund. That should hold it up some... so long as you close that gap. If that doesn't work, you're gonna have to add some height to that bund somehow.

To be honest, I just slip it over my head like a t-shirt... I don't detatch the velcro at all (I too was worried about it ripping).

Looks great! After 2 troops already, I realized that my aker amp was too heavy to put in my pouch so I actually put it in my flightsuit pocket instead (the outside pocket, not the "inner" pocket because that was sewed off per specs). I then poked a small hole through the pocket on the inside and threaded the wire through and ran it under my flightsuit, up the collar, and in to my mic in my helmet. I'm thinking about getting a smaller bluetooth speaker and a bluetooth enabled headset, but my current rig works just fine for now ("if it ain't broke...") Had the same problem with the knee armor slippage. If it's really bad, think about adding some padding with the velcro. (Check out my thread "Knee armor slippage" in the Armory section... I got a lot of good advice from fellow members). Had the same prob with the helmet being too big, too. Got a cheap set of motorcycle helmet pads and stuffed them inside. Very comfy, a little tight around the ears sometimes, but it fits so well the helmet doesn't even wobble when I shake my head or look down. Other people have used foam or a hardhat liner inside.

Hey, Joe, looks great! I'm glad that the tutorial was helpful for you and (hopefully) easy to follow! I hope you didn't have too much trouble on re-attaching the sleeves... I think that was the hardest part to try and explain

I'm going to toss in my opinion here... NEITHER. The flight/racing suits tend to have more pockets and other additions, like blackDOG said. You'll have to modify these to some length. These also tend to be more on the expensive side. I went with a utility coverall used for automotive/painting work. You can get them pretty cheap ($20-$30).

Found both the rivets and washers at the same hardware store. They should be right next to each other on the shelf. I didn't even spend $2... more like $1 for a box of 20 washers. I think the aluminum ones are cheaper than the steel ones.

Maybe this will help: I got 2 types of rivets and have used them both throughout my kit build: -an 1/8" diameter head, 1/8" grip range (length of the rivets "sword handle"... cuz it looks like a mini sword) -an 1/8" diameter head, 1/4" grip range (much longer "sword handle") As seen in the pic below, the two rivets on the bottom are 1/8" head and 1/8" grip (with 1/8" diameter washers). The rivets on the top are 1/8" head with 1/4" grip (and 1/8" washers) because it had to go thru so much more stuff (ie. the fabric, the elastc, the plastic). Hope that helps.

Thanks, Jim! Finally got the PDF on there... had to lower the res on the document, especially some of the pics so I hope they're still clear. Just made it under the 500KB limit! If I have to post any other tutorials, I'll have to do it the ol' fashioned way

Some might find it too hard to read so here is the PDF version. Had to condense the size and remove some stuff so let me know if you have any questions.Vest Tutorial.pdf Almost maxed out my 500KB!

Joanne Fabrics for the elastic... I got some faux suede there as well. If you're looking for the real stuff, I heard that some people went to used clothing stores and bought a cheap jacket to cut apart.

I've got my bucket from SC and it is an MLC v.3. I'm 5'10", not sure what baseball hat size I am (average sized head?), but my MLC is actually a big large on me. Had to add extra padding on the inside, but on the inside there is just enough room between my nose and the snout. Fitting a fan in there might not work as my face would probably be hitting it. Padding is easy to fix, but if your face is squished, you've got a problem. With stock padding:

Thanks for the responses, everyone. I took all your advice to heart and decided to use padding coupled with velcro. Took some old foam knee pads that were laying around and used my new-found sewing superpowers to make a glove to fit over the foam. That way, I could sew the velco on to the glove instead of the foam (which would probably have ripped it). Marked the size with chalk Cut to fit Made an outline on the fabric for the glove Put the 2 glove pieces together to sew. This was really easy because all I did was a straight line stitch then flip it inside out Outline sewed together Flipped inside out I even made the glove removable from the foam in case it ever needed to be washed. I made a little pouch and put velco on it to close the glove. The three velcro circles will be attached to the knee armor. This side will be attached to the elastic straps on the knee armor (horizontal) and my under suit (vertical) Ta-da! Super comfortable, secure, and fuctional.

Hey, everyone! I've compiled a tutorial here to help you build your own flak vest. I was in the same position as you where I only needed 1 or 2 parts more to finish, one of those being the vest and not knowing where to get one (or didn't have a lot of $ to spend on one!). Anyway, thanks to help from Thing (thanks, Thing!), I was able to finish my vest and have listed my process step-by-step with pictures... trying to make the process as easy as possible. So have at it, let me know what you think, and feel free to ask me any questions about the tutorial.

I'm a 5'10" female and not what you'd call "petite" (I've got an "athletic" frame)... I have an MC kit and it fits me very well and is comfortable. The only thing I had to trim was the top of the shoulder arches to make it fit against my chest (they make the arches long on purpose so you can trim them to your size). Yes, wait times for the kit are long but it's quality stuff.

Haha... "fast" nothing! It's been 2 years since I started my scout!

I've heard that faux suede (fake suede) is easy to wash. Haven't tried it, just what I've heard. It's also easier to sew on than real suede (unless you're going for Lancer, then you'll need the real stuff).

I just got my official letter... I'M APPROVED!!!!!!!