Mando Scout Trooper Belt Repair Help

[bobafett4ever]

Heya folks.  I've only worn this costume twice, but somehow, my belt seems to be pulling apart at the rivet.  I have no idea how to fix this, if you even can.  Any ideas or thoughts?  TIA!

 

 

[Chopper]

That is a common weak point on the scout belt. I see that you used a backing plate, which is good, but the webbing itself has teared around the rivet puncture hole. What you need to do is find a way to take the stress off of the single rivet point.

The fabric looks pretty compromised in the photos, so you may need to replace the webbing. Before you do all that, do you have enough slack in the webbing to punch a new hole further to the right and still have the belt fit ok?

I'd try punching a new hole, then wicking the hole a bit with a lighter so the material can melt slightly. This would prevent the webbing from fraying, which I'm guessing is what caused the tearing before.

If you don't have enough room, you could machine stitch another piece of webbing onto the inside portion and then punch the hole again + some flame wicking. As long as the patch is concealed on the inside, then it should be ok.

For the future, you might also want to put some E6000 underneath which, again, should alleviate some of the stress on the rivet and fabric.

 

[bobafett4ever]

Great, thanks.  I don't have enough slack, but can definitely try to stitch another piece and re-punch the whole. 

One question, what's the easiest / safest way to remove the old rivet?  I tried once to remove a rivet (when originally putting everything together) on the backplate / backpack and it melted through and caused a nightmare to fix... so I'm really worried to ever try to remove a rivet again, lol.

[Chopper]

Do you know if you used steel rivets (you can test it with a magnet) vs aluminum rivets?

If you used aluminum rivets, it's not too bad if you can get a 1/8" cobalt steel bit from the hardware store. Just try and make sure the rivet doesn't start spinning while you drill it -- that's primarily when it starts to melt the plastic. Go slow and the bits should come out ok.

If you used steel rivets, you can still drill them out with a cobalt bit, but you'll need to go a lot slower and it'll take somewhat longer to get it out.

[bobafett4ever]

39 minutes ago, Chopper said:

Do you know if you used steel rivets (you can test it with a magnet) vs aluminum rivets?

If you used aluminum rivets, it's not too bad if you can get a 1/8" cobalt steel bit from the hardware store. Just try and make sure the rivet doesn't start spinning while you drill it -- that's primarily when it starts to melt the plastic. Go slow and the bits should come out ok.

If you used steel rivets, you can still drill them out with a cobalt bit, but you'll need to go a lot slower and it'll take somewhat longer to get it out.

Again, thanks so much. I confirmed they are aluminum, so I'll get that cobalt steel bit and try that. 

Last question (I hope, lol)... but how do you drill it out without the drill tip wanting to spin everywhere but on the little section of the backside of the rivet?  I'm sure I'm missing something here... but I'm not that tool savvy.

I appreciate the info!

[Chopper]

You should have enough of a divot to drill into where the little bar piece popped off the rivet when you installed it. Aim for that part and don't drill at high speed until the bit has a chance to bite.

[bobafett4ever]

23 minutes ago, Chopper said:

You should have enough of a divot to drill into where the little bar piece popped off the rivet when you installed it. Aim for that part and don't drill at high speed until the bit has a chance to bite.

Oh... ok... mine has a little dimple / bead on top so I guess I'll have to sand that down then try to drill.  Thanks SO SO much!   Have a great day.

[Retrofire]

As @Chopper as mentioned go in short controlled bursts so you don’t build up heat due to friction. If it seems as if it’s getting too warm stop and wait for it to cool before tackling it again. 

[Redhackle]

Like Chopper said...add E6000 to it as well..it'll take the pressure off that one rivet.