User avatar
By jch00lig4n
#4999552
Thanks to this forum and many YT vids. I pulled the trigger on the full size Spirit pack. As of now, it's sitting in it's box in my office. I did inspect for damage just to be sure. So far I've ordered several cosmetic upgrades from here in the shop as well as several parts from Etsy.

I have the ribbon cable, brass elbows, P clamp, crank knob, bumper, new hose, and 5 pin quick connect so far. Some parts are still in transit. I got lucky and ordered the cyclotron and bumper from Tacobelli last night! That's gonna take about a month. I'm hoping to have the Alice frame and new motherboard ordered within the next week. I'll have pic up very soon and I'll post vids to the YT.
#4999605
I got a couple of the SHFS packs to act as either filler for display or for fans to use in photo ops. I fabricated frames from PVC and ABS sheet (on hand supplies) so I could have the actual frames for the custom pack and slime blower builds that are for my personal use.
jch00lig4n liked this
#4999614
Oh nice! i saw some PVC build vids online and my try my hand at that as well, at some point. I got a bunch more stuff in and can't wait to finally have some time off to start working on this thing. I got my new motherboard coming from Frankengeek and the cyclotron mod from Tacobelli on the way as well!
#4999830
You could always try a matt varnish to dull the gloss down. Or hit from a few angles so it isn't 100% coverage.
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User avatar
By jch00lig4n
#4999833
alphabeta001 wrote: September 2nd, 2024, 2:42 am You could always try a matt varnish to dull the gloss down. Or hit from a few angles so it isn't 100% coverage.
And that's supposed to me a matte finish, but I was thinking it was pretty damn shiny as well. I like the idea of an uneven, "worn" coverage.
#4999865
I picked it up from Adam Savage when he weathered his hasbro pack and when speaking about miniatures and painting. A mix of matt and gloss and satin. Spotty, rough and uneven helps catch the light and draw your eyes.
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User avatar
By jch00lig4n
#5000097
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Updates on the Spirit pack: All cosmetic stuff, hard to see the red circles. but basically added the new ladder frame, the fake Clippard valve, the outlet for the hose, real brass fittings, and the crank knob. That one took some legit cutting on the pack which made me a bit nervous. You can kind of see on the left side, where I test fit the ribbon cable. I still need to cut off the molded HGA and add the new one, cut off the cyclotron piece and, rewire something that I messed up.
#5000104
That is coming along nicely. Makes me keen to buy one myself
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User avatar
By jch00lig4n
#5000178
GB2 ribbon cable and C clamp installed. I believe the ladder from is from Chris Bosh, I drilled a bigger hole for the M5 screw to fit. I also ended up fastening the vacuum hose piece. No matter what I did, the hose would eventually separate one side. Super glue, hot glue, even JB Plastic Weld would start lifting. I don't think it looks bad though.

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Now, onto more technical stuff. I got the GhostLab42 trigger box upgrade. Pulled the wand apart and got the power toggle switch installed. I used a 3 way switch, but as of yet, not smart enough to wire it so that down on the switch kills the power. I also am getting some helping hands from Home Depot this weekend as soldering that fine is a pain in the ass for a noob like me.

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Some UGLY factory wiring:

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alphabeta001 liked this
#5000977
Full on cycltoron upgrage. I got the cycltron from Tacobelli's Etsy shop. The bumper stock from A2threeD Etsy.

Taking the plunge and cutting into the cyclotron. Much more difficult that the HGA. Looking back, I wish I had a flush cut saw or a diamond cutter wheel for my rotary tool.

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Once I fought my way around, I had a pretty gnarly lip to sand down and smooth. I suggest leaving just a bit around the top or bottom to help wit gasket alignment.

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Once I was happy, I used JB Plastic Weld to mount the gasket in place. I'm getting better with this stuff and try to make it look like actual welds.

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Installing the lenses that i got from here.

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Test fitting.

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And the final product!

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The installation was no joke. It wasn't crazy hard, but it was def not super easy either. Again I think having those tools would've helped a ton. Also, for the M3 screws to mount it to the shell, make sure you don't use the capheads. I tried those and they were a HUGE pain. I switched out to some actual countersunk machine screws and they make a nice easy turn and tighten up well.
OnEdge liked this
By OnEdge
#5000982
Wow! The cyclotron was what always bugged me about a spirit pack, but the way you redid it looks amazing!
jch00lig4n liked this

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