darth_ripley's customs - UPDATE Roron Corobb Version 2 7/8/06!

[darth_ripley]

i've had so much going on here at the house, i haven't had hardly anytime to do anything, much less a custom of any kind. i just finished up transforming some stormie bust-ups into sandtrooper bust-ups to match the larger GG mini-bust i have. i just used Hasbro parts and my husband helped engineer the backpacks to fit onto their backs and to fit the o-ring into the "look sir, droids" sandie. i also did a Han Stormie & Luke Stormie to go with the larger GG mini-busts too. i've still got some 12" stuff in the works, and lots of clones to complete too. hopefully i can get some time to get these guys done...till then enjoy! 

[CHEWIE]

Wow, those are extremely cool looking... you're really gotten great at weathering.  I love how the one troop is holding the metal ring... really a great idea!  Great collection setup too.

 

[Glassman6]

Those stormie's are great!  Very nice work. So many folks workin with bust ups these days.
I'm fighting the temptation, but seeing these makes it that much harder.

Love the "Look sir, Droids!" effect. Genious!

[Phrubruh]

These things make the original GG busts look like something hasbro would make. Beautiful work and beautifully painted. This is how those busts should have looked.

[Jayson]

Great job Keri… I'd like a few of those for myself.

Nice Maul Saber Replica too! 

[darth_ripley]

Thanks for all the nice comments everyone! Bust-ups are fun and quick to do and the Hasbro parts interchange with them nicely.

full sized prop sabers are one of my "other" collections lol 

[Gregorbian]

Nice work Ripley!  I have the exact same customs lying around in various states of completion   

How did you attach the Sandtrooper backpack?  When I tried with mine I had to cut off the bottom of the base (so that the back of the backpack serves as the back of the base). 
You really nailed that "Look sir, Droids!" pose and the weathering on all of them look perfect. 

Are you going to try to match mini-Han in Stormtrooper disguise to his larger brother?

[darth_ripley]

Thanks for the nice words Greg! as far as how i attached the backpacks on...it kind of depends on which backpack you have. i used the pauldrons and backpacks off the army builder sandies. i dremeled out a place in the stormie bust-ups back so that the tab on the backpack could fit in there, then cut the backpack a little so it would fit flush to his body. its kind of hard to describe, but i got it to work ok with some help from the dremel.

i'm gonna leave little Han Stormie the way he is, i kicked around ideas about how to get him to match, but just couldn't get it to look right, so i just settled for that pose. i see from the Toy Fair photos that Gentle Giant is coming out with Luke & Han Stormie now finally but their poses don't match the larger busts so go figure.

i did just manage to finish up 2 more bust-ups over the past few nights. the first is a IG-88. this is a modified Hasbro figure cut in half and split his arms open to put in a piece of thin wire to achieve the proper bends to match his bigger brother. i wasn't able to get a pic of them together, my camera battery was dying so i had to snap these photos in a hurry.





I had a few extra Clone bust-ups that i got in the army builder sets (in hopes of finding a chase Gree which didn't happen) but i did decide to make them a little less boring  So I came up with a Commander Thire. I painted the lines on free hand and this was the first Shocktrooper i had attempted. the lines were a real pain to get right, but i think they turned out decent, not totally perfect, but i'm pretty pleased. i've got a couple more Clone bust-ups i'll probably paint up over the next few weeks, so look for those soon 

[CHEWIE]

Nice update Keri. 

I like the IG-88, but I do think maybe he needs just a bit more color on certain parts to make him look more lifelike.  I don't know, maybe on the shoulder pad things that look like leather, make them a bit brownish to break up the color a bit, and maybe his eyes could be a bit brighter shade of red.  Maybe a few little specs of brown on his armor to look like a bit of rust.  But still it looks great.

The Shocktrooper... is amazing.  It looks like a ROTS movie still!  That's one of the most realistic paint schemes/weathering I've ever seen.

 

[darth_ripley]

Thanks for the comments Chewie. There are some rusty spots on IG that don't show up in the photos, but i just couldn't get the paint right on him...it was getting too dark and then i just decided to set it aside for now. i'll compare him with his big brother bust and try to get a better paint scheme sometime soon. for some reason, i just had a heckuva time getting him to look "metallic" but dirty at the same time. oh well, its good practice though 

[Gregorbian]

Nice work again Ripley!  I love the way you repositioned IG-88's arms, it looks perfect.  I agree that a bit more color (specifically on the strap) would make this guy look even better, but as it stands now, he looks mighty impressive.

Shocktrooper - You really painted those lines freehand?  Holy crap, you might have the steadiest hand on these boards!  The weathering is perfect, great work!

[Glassman6]

Super stuff rip, Nice work on IG-88.

He looks very cool, and the shocktrooper is excellent.

Great work on all of these.

[Jayson]

nice work D.R. 

[darth_ripley]

I got a couple more Clone bust-ups done, the last 2 extras that i had from the multi-packs i had ordered. I decided to make a Commander Appo based on the conceptual artwork & then a Real World Commander Fordo from Clone Wars. i switched some arms and hands around to give these 2 different poses from the other clones. these little bust-ups have been fun to work on while doing other projects. my desk is even starting to clear off a little! other projects in the works currently: i just need to construct a new Lightsaber for the latest character in my 12" Jedi line. working on a galactic marine. working on a Clone Wars Roron Corobb (real world version). look for another update in the next few weeks until then i hope everyone enjoys the last of the Clone bust-ups!

[CHEWIE]

Nice update Keri!  I love seeing your work and some bust ups are always cool.  You are the Bust-Up Queen.   

Appo looks very good.  Maybe a little more weathering than I would have done but it really looks like a realistic war design.  In the book "Rise of Darth Vader" he's on a mission with Vader and I can see him having his armor scuffed up to hell.  His suspenders look perfect... I'd add just a touch of weathering to them to match the rest of his armor... and maybe even a very small dent somewhere like on his helmet.

Fordo looks amazing.  Just look at the sharp detail you did on his emblem on the helmet!  I have no suggestion here.  I'm glad to see a real world design over a cartoony one anyday!