Customs by Darth Delicious- Update 10.25.08!!!

[Darth Delicious]

Thanks for all the great feedback, guys. Trandoshans remain some of my favorite customs to do.

I have a few customs to finish up this weekend, so I'll be posting them as they're finished. But I wanted to get an update started, so here's a couple of simple ones.

I was impressed with the ROTS Yoda, especially his poseability, but hated how his cloak was just sort of draped over his shoulders. So, using the arms from a Yoda from the Battlepack and some epoxy, I went to work:



I might give Yoda a touch of drybrushing, but not too much. I want him to work on Dagobah as well as in a Clone Wars display.

For those of you wondering, that is indeed a vintage Dagobah set in the background that I picked up recently. The foam had long since rotted away, so I went to work on it. It's still not quite finished, but was finished enough to work as a backdrop in this pic. I'm thinking of using some glue and epoxy to sculpt the OTC stands from Luke and Yoda into the hole where the foam was, so I can actually display them in that "handstand" pose. Anyway, here's another shot of a different section.



Next up, Random Background Character Theatre. Here's an Elomin barfly.



Since I remain creeped out by Tanus Spijek's man-teats to this day, I decided to eliminate them here and sculpted a new chest area for this guy. I was going to make him a merc, but then decided I don't have nearly enough "regular joes." So, now he's an alchoholic. 

I need to fix that smudge on his toe, but otherwise I think this guys done.

And finally, a return to cloning. I have all these Jetpack clones, so I decided to start assigning them to the various legions. Here's a 501st.



That's all for now, but  I might have more later this weekend.

-DD

[MetalJedi]

Nice work there DD. That last clone looks like he drank the water in Mexico though.  Sorry I had to say it.

[darth_ripley]

Yoda & Dagobah look very nice, can't wait to see the whole diorama when complete. the cape looks so much better on yours, that is a great improvement.

i know what you mean about Tanus & those "appendages" ... reminds me of Bob from Fight Club.  your barfly looks much better without them 

i like the jetpack Clone a lot. the blue color is dead on & the weathering is great, just enough but not overboard. metaljedi your comment cracked me up about the clone drinking the water in mexico   thanks for the laugh - i really needed it! 

[Ruprecht]

I really like that clone, DD, and the Tanus modification is exactly what's needed.  Leave the smudge on his toe, so it looks like he expelled a little bile and was too drunk to clean it up.  Good move on the Yoda as well, I hate fixing stuff because it takes a lot of time, usually.  My compliments.

Clone questions:

What did you use for the streak of Montezuma's Revenge flame?  I like it.

Do you have a set mixture that you use to get that 501st blue color?  I've tried mixing my own a couple times, but it's either too dark or too powder-blue, and I'm tired of wasting my paint.

B

[Phrubruh]

That's the part I like about the 501st jetpack clone. The fire trail. It just makes the jetpack clone so much cooler. Can you get a better picture of Yoda's house? I see you painted it to look much more realistic.

Good call on removing the breasts from the Tanus. Thats the way the toy should have looked.

[Darth Delicious]

   MetalJedi: I'm thinking the Clone army needs to lay off the Late Night Taco Bell.   

   Darth Ripley: His name...was Robert Paulson.  Yeah, I thought the teats were a bit much, they really disturbed me. I had a couple of extra Spijek's, so I figured if Aqualish can suddenly have four eyes and Grans can have entirely different hands... I could pull a Lucas and eliminate the man-boobs. 

   bjardkerr: The jetpack clone is perched on a display stand that came with the MArvel Legends series 5 Nick Fury figure. (Who also came with a jetpack.) I have a few extras since I bought extra Fury's for SHIELD customs, as well as a Red Skull. So, I now display my Jetpack clones on those extra bases.

Oh, and no mixing at all on my 501st colors. It's just Games Workshop Enchanted Blue. The pic lightens it ever so slightly, but it's a dead-on match for Hasbro's color.

   Phruby: I'll post pics of Yoda's digs as soon as I finish it. It's not quite where I want it yet.

   -DD

[MetalJedi]

Oh, and no mixing at all on my 501st colors. It's just Games Workshop Enchanted Blue.
   -DD

How much is that paint DD? And how much do you get?

[Darth Delicious]

Hey MJ,

It costs anywhere between $2-3 depending on where you get it. It comes in a resealable containter with a pop top (so now messy paint around the lid, getting in the grooves and making it difficult to open.) You get probably a little more than you do in a Testor's bottle. They look like this:



A little goes a long way though. I've done maybe 25 501st and the jar is still more than half full. Not to mention they're the best paint I've ever used. The consistency is perfect. They never seem to get goopy or dry out.

-DD

[MetalJedi]

Thanks! I have a few regular white SA clone I wanna make into 501st.

[Darth Delicious]

Here's another I've had half finished in my customs bin for about four months and finally decided to finish... a Duros Jedi.



George Lucas may hate these guys and wish they'd never been in the film, but I like 'em. (Much like the Shistavanen Wolfman...) This is one that looks better in person. The flash picked up a lot of highlights in the drybrushing that are actually more subtle in the actual figure. I only wish I could do the lightsaber effects as well as Chewie...

Anyway, here's another one. In Dark Horse's REPUBLIC series, Nar Shaddaa is lorded over by Durga the Hutt. Although it's just a simple repaint, here's my first shot at Durga.



I may keep doing coats of drybrushing across him, as I feel he could still use some more detail. Wish I had an airbrush for this...

-DD

[jedistyle]

nice duros jedi DD. i tried to use that anikin body for my duros jedi, but i had some trouble with fitting the slim neck into the head socket, too big, what did you use for a filler?

the custom looks really good, some very nice weathering, it really brought the detail in the boots out!looks like a jedi that see's alot of combat.

your lightsaber effects are great if you ask me. they look very comic bookish, unique. i hope mine come out that good when i start doing effects. what did you use for backround?

great job DD.

[Darth Delicious]

Thanks, jedistyle. I used a screw for the Duros neckpost, it worked out pretty well. The background on that one is an H.R. Giger painting. I figure doing stuff like that is more interesting than looking at my kitchen counter.   

-DD

[Glassman6]

The Jetpack 501st is very cool, but the duros jedi is my fav of the lot. The colors chosen are great!

[CHEWIE]

DD - awesome update my friend.  Sorry it's taken me so long to comment on these.  I had a busy out-of-town weekend.

Jet Clone - Very good, and creative too.  I like the paint job on him.  Not too much I could say to improve this.  The fire efffect is excellent.  A little big of a flame, but it's very cool.  How well did it attach to the jet pack?

Elomin - Wow, great job.  What did you do with the boobs?

Yoda - He looks a bit odd to me... it's just Hasbro's sculpt, but I think his head looks way too small for the body... I prefer the OTC Yoda and the VOTC one.  Can't wait to see the completed playset though!

Hutt - Holy cow, that's some great painting!  Maybe a little mix of dull yellow and brown might make it look a little more real.  Wonderful job, it does look like you used an airbrush!

Duros - I agree, I love these aliens.  Such a cool and simple design.  You did a great job on this, the Anakin body is a good fit.  Excellent paint scheme too.

I think mu favorite of the bunch is the Hutt, especially once you add in a few more paint details. 

 

[Darth Delicious]

Glassman: I think settling on the colors is what got me to finish the Duros. When I first assembled him I wasn't sure what color scheme to go with, so he got shelved for awhile. Glad you like the final result.

Chewie: Just goes to show you, different strokes for different folks. While I like the OTC Yoda, I hate the VOTS version, mostly because of his beady eyes and sour expression, like he just sucked on a lemon. The body is a good one though...I like his spindly legs.   

The Elomin's mommy bags went into the fodder box...perhaps someday I'll find a use for them.

As for the Jetpack clone, the Fury display base wedges rather well between the clone and the pack, making it fairly sturdy. Obviously it's way too much flame, but like I said, I like to vary up the pics, even if they're wildly inaccurate. 

The Hutt is one of those I can't decide on...is it finished or isn't it? I'm tempted to sculpt a bit on the face, but don't want to take the chance of mucking it up.

-DD