Knight's armor

[jwyblejr]

Just got a couple knights the other day minus the armor. Was wondering what the way to go to put the armor back on when I get them.

[alex]

As far as I know, its all glued on rather than snapped on.

[Tothiro]

Wow, it's been a while since I've repaired any so I frankly don't remember if the armor waists allow enough clearance space for the torso to re-insert. If they do, you have to put them together like a Woz tinman.

I made my own T2 assembly tool from a snipped stiff coat-hanger. It's 8 1/2 cm long with a little j-hook at the bottom, and the top bent back 90 degrees another 1 1/2 cm in the opposite direction of the hook to make a finger pull/stopper. Basically it's long enough to poke out of the hip socket and hook the elastic hardware on, while the top pull catches on the shoulder opening to keep the piece from falling in. Then you just drag the tool out, wedging the flat side of the elastic hardware which hooks the arm onto the bottom of the shoulder socket. From there you can put it down and eat lunch, watch a movie, or hook the shoulder in and drop it back into place (your choice). It's difficult to use with armor, but sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.

Anyway - the important bit... start with stringing one leg up through the pelvis and torso and putting it all into the suit (you might want to do this with a length of cord or elastic because you'll be feeding the other end of the cord up the armor and out the shoulder opening). It might actually help to thread it out the sleeve first and pull that with everything else up out of the the armor's shoulder hole.
In any event, when in place you need to remove the sleeve from the guide cord and leave it out the shoulder hole separate from the hardware, because next you'll take your arm and insert it back to front down the sleeve, so the arm is in the sleeve but not yet connected to the hardware. Then of course you hook everything up and get ready with the other leg.
The second leg is easier to place -after- all this, because you need to get the elastic hardware sorted. String everything up like before, leg in the suit (you'll have to tug it down out of the armor to get the leg in there), cord up the pelvis and out the opposite shoulder. Here the variation is you need to get baby steps with needle nose pliers, and try and inch that other sleeve up and out the armors shoulder hole. You can use the open neck to inch the front of it around, helping in this quest. Once the sleeve is in place, arm in and then connect just as before.

Finally and possibly the most fiddly, you have to snap the suit closed in the back using similar baby step maneuvers, using the neck hole to help pull the top of the suit together and around. If it's a snap-less suit (some are) then you're easy - just put a few small stitches in the top like they did originally. Finally - the head. It would need to have been out to wrangle the suit, but it can be a challenge to get into the neck opening with all that armor as a buffer. I use a small knitting needle or other fine but blunted prod to help stab the neckplug in like stamping down a house paint can.

If the armor you get is cracked open, well lame that it's cracked (because it is almost never a clean separation) but good in that it's essentially the same plastic as a model kit, so a little styrene model cement and you're pretty close to good as new.

[hedrap]

Depends on the armor.

The shoulders can snap back together if they're not broke. The waist can be held together by the belts. If the armor is still one connected piece, then follow you can follow Tothiro's method.

[PNGwynne]

^Thank goodness I've never had to do this--it sounds both tortuous and torturous.

I will say, though, that if you have a Knight's knee-pin break, you can effect an easy repair by carefully opening the seam of the suit at the foot-tip of the tights. Then, slide the tights up past the knee & repair the knee with a replacement pin. Slide the tights back down and mend with a few stitches of gray thread.

[theressa]

^^^Oh no no no. You can't cheat and take the easy route
You have to put that Knight thru his paces.
Yep, I did it the hard way, but my T2 need his forearm replaced.
And wait until you have to restring a T1!
Neither torso would go thru unbroken armor.
In my cases what I had to do was take off the head, undo the snaps, or cut the thread holding the top. Yes, there are some of those out there!
Pull the suit to one shoulder, pulling out the arm. Do the same for the other side.
In some cases the suit got glued to the inside of the armor!
Pull the suit down towards the feet, removing it.
Installation is the reverse. Be out of earshot when you do this, Cuz you might just cuss!

[jwyblejr]

hmm....It sounds like I should have waited and bought ones with the armor still intact.

[Tothiro]

Ach, T's right, I couldn't recall if it were just some or all, but I looked at my knights and none of the torso pieces are extractable.
That's not so bad though - because whatever armor pieces you find will work. Either a seal will be popped, or it will have a T2 torso rattling inside of it. =D

...And yes, cussing is an ever present danger.

[galaxyexplorer42]

Jwyblejr- nah man- you did it right- you got them WITHOUT the armer, so you GET to put them all-together! I've done it with Ivanhoe, and the Tinman. Both were T2. The body needs to be unstrung, just like Tothiro is saying. The only thing I did different than he is describing, is that I also removed the forearm from the bicept piece, to make it easier to get the body suit over the arm. You'll be trying to run the sleeves up the bottom of the armer & out the arm holes; you'll have twisted paper clips holding hooks every which way... It's a great time... The Tinman is easier to do than the Knight, cause the bottom armer hole is larger. Maybe practice with one of those first...

[jwyblejr]

What about the armor CTVT has? How hard is it to get that on?