JediDefender.com Forums
Collecting => Customs => Star Wars Dioramas and Displays => Topic started by: David on July 21, 2007, 10:10 PM
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What do you do when it's Saturday and you're bored?
You make a MYGEETO BRIDGE DIO for your growing squad of Galactic Marines, of course!
I decided to do this this morning, and I got to work, and finished it in a day! It still has tiny little imperfections here and there to be fixed and small additions and expansions I'd like to make in the near future (rubble for starters), but it is definitely my finest creation, up there with Jedi Mas-turd. Check it out and tell me what you think. Enjoy!
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/mygeeto1.jpg)
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/mygeeto2.jpg)
I am 13 so I have to thank my dad for driving me around to various stores to gather the materials for this project and my mom for cooperating long enough for it to get done. :)
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nice job man!!
what did you use to make this though?
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Great job on this dio, Robo Quack!
I really like the detail on the broken parts of the bridge, and the paint makes this dio look like a model straight from the movie. Now you need to populate it with some more figures and post a step-by-step tutorial on how you made the bridge, as I want to make one myself. Once again, very good job and keep up the great work!
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Wow, man. That bridge is fantastic!
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JangoTat: Thanks for looking!
Greg: Thanks for your comments on the paint and the broken parts of the bridge, they are appreciated and it took a while to get all the battle damage just right.
Darth_Anton: Glad you liked the bridge, thanks for looking!
A lot of you have asked me how I made the bridge. The bridge itself is slab of 4x2 foot (2 inches high) insulating foam found at the Home Depot. And it was 4 dollars! In my area there was a hobby shop blocks away that was selling the same thing for twenty-five bucks, so defintely look for this at Home Depot rather than a hobby shop if you're considering making a bridge for yourself. For the battle damage, I used an X-acto blade and cut sloppily until the chunk of bridge was loose enough to tear off. Once the chunk was torn off, there were still some round foam beads sticking out which I felt were taking away from the detail and realism of the brdge, so I carefully used the blade to slice them in half. This took some patience and time. For the rebar sticking out of the battle damage, I cut up and bent a coat hanger. I then cut up the railing from a thinner piece of foam, and attached it with finishing nails. Then, I used an Irwin strait-line to draw the lines that I cut out with X-acto blade, and some lid thingy to make the circles in the bridge (my dad called them sewer grates). After the lines wre done I took the bridge outside and gave it two coats of grey spraypaint. I gave the railing a coat of a darker grey paint, but I then ran into a problem: the railing got so wet with paint that the paint started eating up the foam. Fortunately, this only happened in a couple place, and it happened near the torn out chunks of the bridge, so I was able to call it battle damage and paint these areas black. Then, I painted the areas of destroyed bridge black, and also gave it a couple random sprays of black for more damage. My bridge was complete. I just added rubble (good looking rocks from my backyard) so I'll post more pictures of the 100% complete bridge later today. This wasnt the best tutorial ever written but I hope I answered your questions. Please do ask if you have any more questions! :)
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Robo-Quack, nice job fella! If I had some more space I'd build myself one of these. Very good job dude. Whats next on your list of projects? Fellucia perhaps? Hoth? Detroit?
Cheers man.
Kevin
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Beautiful work! Really this is something you should be proud of.
One suggestion - maybe get some lighter gray spray paint, and lightly spray here and there from a distance of a few feet - it will give it just a bit more of a variety in coloration to it.
But either way, really this is great work. Hopefully when your PN is released we'll get to see this in it.
:P
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This is really cool!
I would really like to make a diarama like this, but my cat is resourceful and will find a way to destroy it... either as a scratching post or try jumping on it, knocking it down.... oh well.
Great work!
Now all you need is a Ki-Adi Mundi full of blaster holes in the middle of the diarama!
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You really did a great job on this Robo-Quack. I'm really impressed actually. I do have a few suggestions on how you could further improve on this.
I think that the rest of the bridge could use some more weathering. You did a good job on the battle damaged areas there, but the rest seems a little flat, as far as the depth of color is concerned. You could do something along the lines of Justin's suggestion and give it a light grey mist. You may also want to consider a few different colors of washes, perhaps in black and a brown or terra cotta. These don't have to be heavy at all, just enough to vary the color a little so it looks like the bridge was actually used at some point before the war.
I also really think the bridge could use significantly more rubble as well. I saw you mentioned you would like to do this, and I really think it is crucial. There really seemed to be a fair amount on the bridge in the movie. Rubble is also going to give you something else to look at and the bridge won't look so flat. It will also take up space, so you won't need as many figures to fill out the diorama. You did some good work with foam for the bridge itself, so you may want to try using foam for some of the larger rubble pieces as well. You can use the corrosive effects of the spray paint to your advantage on the rubble. Corrosion can either look very much like a blast mark, or somewhere where the big stone pieces shattered. Try to vary up the sizes and have some bigger pieces and some smaller pieces. Depending on the color you use, a little sand or some other fine material would give you a really nice effect as well.
Keep up the great work and keep us updated! :)
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Famine: Thanks for looking! Next on my list will definitely have something to do with the Chancellor's abduction scenes in the Clone Wars cartoon, for the new Roron Corrobb that'll be out in a few weeks. Thanks again!
CHEWIE: Thanks, Justin, for the kind comments and good suggestions!
Straxus: I've got two cats, I know what you mean! And I need to buy a ROTS Ki-Adi so I can make his corpse. I dont have any at the moment because I customized all my other ones.Thanks for looking at the bridge, glad you liked it!
Ryan: Thank you very much for the suggestions, and thanks for looking. I will definitely be improving the bridge and I'll keep you guys updated as I do it. :)
Some more pics, not much changed except the location and I added some rubble, I'm satisfied with the amount of rubble for now but I'll be adding some more soon. I also put in some crystal-ish rocks because Mygeeto is after all a crystal world!
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/mygeeto3.jpg)
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/mygeeto4.jpg)
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/mygeeto5.jpg)
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;D Awesome Robo-Quack.Maybe you can gets some more ideas for it fron Battlefront II! Looks great so far!
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Very nice work Robo Quack! I really like your paint work, and the debris on the bridge looks good.
That diorama is screaming out for a few things:
1) Ki-Adi Mundi
2) Commander Bacara
3) Maybe a Crab droid
4) MORE TROOPS!!!!
And what Hasbro should take into account?
-An Octuptarra Droid (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Octuptarra_droid)
-A UT-AT (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/UT-AT)
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Deanna Rash: Thanks for looking, you always have a nice thing to say about everyone's custom work and its appreciated. I dont own Battlefront 2 yet but sooner or later I will as I am a Battlefront 1 addict!
Nicklab: Thanks for your comments, glad you liked the bridge. As I mentioned a few posts above I dont have a ROTS Ki-Adi yet but Im looking for one to put on the bridge. As for Bacara, I'm working on an SA custom for him because I would never put such a horrible sculpt in such a great diorama. And Ive been picking up all the Marines I can find recently, so theyre on the way! And I will be trying to scrape together money in the next few weeks so I can see if I can commision someone more skilled than myself to make a couple Octuptarra Droids for the bridge, so hopefully I'll have some of those soon. Once again, thanks for your feedback!
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Battlefront II has the Mygeeto bridge on it.It's one of the levels you play.It might give you some more ideas,for your bridge.
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I have to say, I think that's pretty cool too Robo-Quack, really nice work... You did nice detailing by exposing reinforcing rebar in the blown off portions of the bridge, the debris looks good too... I think for display purposes I'd have shrunk it down some, as it is indeed quite large, but if you're filling it with more I think it'll look fantastic once completely set up.
You did a great job on that for any age though, it just really looks nice, so congrats to you on the bridge man.
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Excellent job Robo-Quack. A few more troops, Bacara and Ki-Adi as suggested will really help to flesh this out even more.
The foam you used is also known as blue foam. (So for those of you going to Home depot ask for it by either name).
It's a great material to use. I've got stores of it saved up for my large dioramas planned out. You can buy a 4X8 foot slab for around $25-35 depending on where you go. I get mine direct from a distributor, so I don't know what Home Depot's cost is for a slab that size.
Another thing to try with this foam is a wire brush. It makes some great scratch marks or if you want to add very uneven damage then use the brush in different directions and it tears teh foam apart. Of course take care not to go to fast so you don't remove to much.
Also certain types of glue actually EAT the foam and create yet another look (more organic) as it can smooth over some areas. I use superglue and on those areas it looks like it's melted. A great effect for blaster damage that has melted something.
Blue foam can also be sanded which allows for some great shapes and textures.
Another thing to thing about when using this foam is if you want something to look more organic (without using a ton of superglue) is to use wood glue (it does not eat the foam). Brush that on lightly, let it dry overnight and bam a softer appearance than the foam itself. It makes for great terrain in this aspect. Plus it has the added affect of reinforcing the foam as it is a glue afterall.
Again great job Robo-Quack. It's good to see someone else out there is using this great material for something other than it's "intended" purpose.
Oh and I agree that Hasbro needs to make Octuptarra droids!!! That would send the diorama over the top!
-Sal
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Looks great, Robo-Quack! Maybe a bit more rubble and more troops, and it'll be even better.
I'd certainly re-elect Joe Esteves if I could. He seems like a neat guy by the poster. ;)
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Very nice bridge! Where were you for the UGP. Something like this could have been cool for the city. We could span a second set of tables with this bridge. Nicely done!
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Sorry I could reply to your guys's replies quicker, I've been on vacation.
Sal: This really is an excellent material that I myself only recently discovered. And with it, not only do I have another incredible diorama in progress, but a four-foot extension to this project planned. And it looks like Hasbro has made my bridge some octuptarra droids! I cant wait to populate the Sep side of my bridge with them, its gonna look great. Glad you liked the bridge and thanks for looking!
Ruprecht: Thanks for looking, and I promise, more rubble and more troops are on the way! I'll keep everyone updated as these are added. As for Esteves, theres a long story about that poster for another time. In short, I thought it would add something weird and unique and colorful to my wall. I may take it down soon, though, to make room for my actual SW stuff. :)
Master Phruby: I couldnt help out with the UGP because I just had so many other projects that I was working on at the time. I do wish I couldve helped though! Maybe next time something like that is going on you guys can tell me and I'll be happy to find time to help! Glad you liked the bridge, and thanks!
8)
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I made a few changes to my bridge paintwise today, and moved it to its permanent location in my bedroom. There are also a couple more troops on both sides since my last pics were taken as well, and a lot more rubble. Bacara is on his way from eBay and I will soon have Ki-Adi from a pending trade. After this, a few more Marines, and the octuptarra droids slated for 2008, this is gonna be one incredible bridge.
Enjoy these pics and tell me what you think. 8)
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/M1.jpg)
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/M2.jpg)
-RQ
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Aw crap I just noticed those pics didn't work! Oh well. But since my last post I have acquired Ki-Adi and Bacara and a couple more troops. I've also added some more rubble and repainted the bridge a little. I consider the bridge complete, but you never know, there's always a little room for improvement!
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/bridge1.jpg)
(http://www.d2i.net/novel/bridge3.jpg)
I really enjoyed doing this project and I hope you guys have enjoyed watching its progress. Tomorrow I'm gonna post pics of my ICMG and ultimate Palpatine customs, so be sure to check those out. 8)
--RQ
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Just saw this for the first time, nice job RQ. I would suggest adding some splotches of white & grey paint to simulate the snow & ice, but otherwise, it looks great. You'll definitely want to stock up on the tri-droid from 2008 Wave 1. Very good job.
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It's definitely looking even better with the added troops and the Jedi... I'm hoping you are able to show this in your PN. :)
:P
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Reid- Thanks for checking out my bridge! I didn't put in the snow and ice just because I didn't want to overdo it and mess up. Thanks for the suggestion though. As for the tri-droid, I can't wait to put that guy on my bridge, it's gonna look awesome!
Justin (CHEWIE)- Thanks again for your kind feedback. I think Bacara and Ki-Adi have made this bridge look a lot better. I will probably add a couple more troops, though, on both sides. I'm also considering putting the new walker thingy (forgot the last two letters in its name) on it, just because there were a couple walkers of some sort getting blown up behind the marines in the movie. And this bridge will make it in my photonovel, if the new plot stays the same. Yes, I changed the plot for my photonovel again, but I'm pretty sure I have a great story this time and I'll stick to it! Thanks again for your continuing support of just about all my customs, dios, and pn's, the advice and support really is immensely appreciated!
I have a couple more dios that I'm trying to find time to work on...they're on their way, as hard as it may be for me to top this bridge, which I still consider my best work! Thanks again to everyone for the feedback and suggestions as this project developed. This site really has some great people!
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If you change you mind about snow, I use baking soda (that's what theyused for empire strikes back). you can always vacume if you don't like it.