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Soft Armor complete - Feedback please


Dmorja

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Happy Holidays everyone! I have completed my soft armor and would like some feedback, tips, thoughts, concerns, etc. I don't believe it is up to Lancer standard but hopefully it will pass for basic, so any help would be appreciated. Looking at the pics I am thinking the cod may be too narrow and long. I also have not attached the pouches yet. The armor has been shipped so I want to see how it fits before attaching them.

 

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DSC00006_zps0hezao9i.jpg

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Hey brother... Happy holidays! Check your cummerbund pouches. looks like flaps are incorrect, no big deal, it can be fixed. I do see the ribs on the cummerbund, try to add more batting to give them more definition. Keep at it man, we will knock this out of the park.

 

 

Scouts out!!!!

 

KDuB

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Okay, here a couple of things that stand out for me:

 

- The pouches seem to be a bit too large overall and the flap at the bottom should only be around half the witdh of the pouch.

- add more padding to the CB to make the ribs more visible. Make sure there are only 5 chambers (I can't really tell on the picture)

- I'd increase the witdh of the cod piece at the top. The bottom section should have a width of a bit more than 2 inches.

 

Generally it all has to fit together with your individual armor and size so I would always suggest to test fit it with the armor on.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Cheers

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I'm also a nitpicky bastard, but here's my 2 cents:

 

Like the others said, I would prefer more "poof" in the cummerbund and cod piece. I used 1/2 inch open cell foam in mine.

 

The pouches are fine shape-wise, but the flaps need to be "triangular". The bottom of the flap approximately half the width and the "point" parts on the inside-side.

 

The riding patches are probably okay. I like them better when they curve into the cod piece curve. It brings the look together that way. In other words, they should come up higher on the thighs. However, you can't just move the ones you have, because they are just about perfect at the bottom (about 2 fingers above where the knee armor would sit).

 

The boots *may* be too tall. It's easier to size them after you have the knee armor in place.

 

The mud flap is either too small, off center, or a combination of both. It could just be the angle of the pic.

 

Keep working, you'll get it!

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Thanks everyone, this helps a lot. I will start on a new CB and Cod. I will wait for the Armor to make sure everything is sized correctly. My sewing machine doesn't work with the heavier cloth so I hand sewed the CB and Cod. I am looking to get a new one soon. I will double check the mudflap as well.

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What kind of cloth are you using? You may just need to clean yiur machine & change the needle to a 16g. 16g needles are made for denim will punch through anything used for a scout. I use these to sew the suede on the jumpsuits. As for cleaning your machine, open it up & use a air compressor & blow out all the dust & "thread bunnies" then add 3 in 1 oil to all the moving parts. I clean my machine about every 6 suits made. Runs better than new each time.

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What kind of cloth are you using? You may just need to clean yiur machine & change the needle to a 16g. 16g needles are made for denim will punch through anything used for a scout. I use these to sew the suede on the jumpsuits. As for cleaning your machine, open it up & use a air compressor & blow out all the dust & "thread bunnies" then add 3 in 1 oil to all the moving parts. I clean my machine about every 6 suits made. Runs better than new each time.

 

Thanks Joe, It is not the needle it is the machine. My wife doesn't really sew and we received a Hobby 303 as a wedding gift eons ago. This is very low end machine so it doesn't pull the cloth through and freezes up a lot even with cleaning it. I might also add how odd it is for me to be talking about sewing machines, but now that I have the costume bug I want to start on other projects.

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You don't need a high end machine to sew costumes. Mine cost under $100 & i've made over 100 scout suits. You'd be surprised at what s good cleaning would do. My mom had her machine for over 30yrs with never cleaning it. I opened it up, used the air compressor, & oiled everything. Worked like brand new up until the day she knocked it off the counter. I bought her a new one for Christmas. Hopfully she can get another 30 out of this one.

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Andrew I just used the "How to make your own vest" tutorial at the top of this forum. I found a Big and tall shirt at Hobby Lobby here in the states. Most craft stores will carry the t-shirts. The tutorial was very helpful.

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