Customs General

Here's some tips from the previous threads:

Beginners: practice on cheap figures first.

For sculpting on figures: use 2-part epoxy putty like Aves apoxie or fixit.

For tools: try a basic carving/sculpting set like the kind arts & crafts stores have, and calipers for symmetry.
Dental tools have also been said to work well.
Also, using a Dremel is recommended. Minimites (the small $20-25 ones) are fine for starting out, but the battery life is poor. Upgrade to a corded one only if you want to get deeper into customizing. They are useful for stuff outside of the hobby though, so it's a good investment regardless.

For paints: use acrylics. Paint in multiple, thin coats. Brands like Vallejo/P3/Citadel are recommended, because of pigment quality.

Use a sealer when finished to protect your work. There are matte varieties and sealers that give a glossy look. As with painting, use multiple thin coats.

A flex shaft attachment on a Dremel is a godsend and relatively inexpensive. The grinding shield is also pretty useful, but you can improvise one using a cut open soda bottle.

>>5837298
>that would actually be really helpful actually.
Alright, I'll make it saturday or sunday.

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About to do my first custom. It'll be a bulkier black panther. I'm not sure about including reaper's cape but I'll be using the tiger shark body. I'll put on my BP head once it arrives in the parcel.
Any tips for a first time customized?

>>5838293
That's gonna be an outrageously bulky BP. You sure you don't want to use the Reaper body, plus Tiger Shark's hands?

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One awful boob job that should look passable under a dress and a tail later it's time to start painting. Eventually.

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I traded a phone case for this guy. Tonight I just applied this moss.
I used to spray everything in a rock texture first but I just wanted this one to be mossy

>>5838533
I can post more angles if you guys dont completely hate it

>>5838533
looks pretty nice to me, i like it. Also, must have been a pretty good phone case to trade for a Square...

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>>5838540
It was the JDF Square iPhone case they did with Goodsmile. I bought it on ebay for a steal and never used it

>>5838541
Ohhh nice nice. I wanted that case really badly, but I had an iPhone 4 at the time and they only made em for 5s.

Nice custom man. The moss looks pretty good.

Kinda related to customizing and kinda not. Does anybody know if I can use a piece of Sculpey clay (like Premo, Souffle, etc) in my mold-casting with silicon? Like this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag5CzNb_JxI but replacing that water-based clay with unbaked polymer clay.

Plasticine clay isn't water-based, and it's not advised that you use polymer clay. Plasticine clay is much cheaper per pound and has a smooth texture with firmness that polymer clay lacks. Plasticine clay actually gets softer the warmer it gets and vise versa, and putting it in a cold environment makes it decently stuff but will not crumble like polymer clay.

>>5838654
Ah I see. I guess I can use Permoplast clay instead since that's what I can find in my local hobby store. Thanks.

>>5838566
Thanks!

>>5838005
what is that thing in the upper left? I'm curious

Also to the anon who hollowed out a head from a schleich animal to put on a human body - how did you do it? I'm curious now since my local walmart is clearancing out their shleich stuff.

>>5838414
Good idea, thanks for the tip!

Does anyone have a guide on making moulds and casting?

>>5839351
Specifically I'm casting weapons for an armory for my figs.

>>5839352
there are literally fuckload of videos on youtube and written guides when you search 'mold making with ___" on google.

what the fuck are you using anyways? silicon? oyumaru? resin? epoxy putty?

>>5839376

>that 'direct from the source website' filename

JUST STOP JIN.

>>5839376
By a guy who forgot his friends when he became internet famous, anon.

>>5838654
I have some Van Aken plastalina. It's really not possible to make toys with this, you'd have to freeze it and cast the piece in resin. Even when fairly cool it's still soft enough that you can't work it like a plastic, it's just a firm clay. The only reasonable material for customization is epoxy putty.

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Anybody got any recommendations on a body for the fantabulous Wesker? I was thinking NECA Dante but I dunno if there's any better options

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Hey it's Inkling Cu-Poche anon, back with the first step completed towards making my first ever diorama! It's not perfect but it'll be not so hard to fix. Waiting for stuff to arrive to make the next step.

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>>5838735
>what is that thing in the upper left?
Greeza(first form) from Ultraman X, made by @akaharaaam

>Also to the anon who hollowed out a head from a schleich animal....
Not him, but here's the archive...
https://archive.nyafuu.org/toy/thread/5749881/#5752205

>>5839766
>my first ever diorama
>it's an alleyway
Damn the ACBA. I chuckled.

>>5839887
No, it's not an alleyway. It's supposed to be like a street in a rural town, it's not finished. It'll have trees overhanging the wall and a gate between the two parts of the wall behind which you can see trees and a gravel path, grass and weeds growing in the road.

How does drybrush look and react to light?
I posted a Triple H figure a while ago to try and show off the finish on the pants but I had no idea that it could be drybrushing.

>>5839418
Oh, I know. I was talking about using it in the mold-making process based on the video that anon linked to. He was asking about using polymer clay in place for the mold-making part.

I know this barely counts as customizing but I was thinking about taking out the ball part of the older figma's hand joints. It's the hardest part to slip into the arm and is super easy to break. Would it be advisable to use an exacto knife and shave down the ball part until it's still a stick?

>>5836977
Thanks for the heads up Papi-Anon.
Since this is an issue for some figures I've seen here, but it's also on the Jacob Frye and Red Skull I bought, it might be worth bringing up: Some figures have 360 head mobility because it's a sculpted head placed on a ball-socket(?) joint. Say you were scrapping the entire head and wanted to make a replacement, would you need to mold the clay/molding material around the joint to have it function properly?

>>5839717
Neca Dante with Booker Dewitt arms would do you the trick. Heck, Booker has a shoulder harness you can cut off and repaint even.

>>5839717
Yes, NECA Dante would be a great base, but I'd be uncomfortable with expending a limited figure.

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Been lurkin theses threads on and off for a while, tinkerin with stuff here and there. Finally got some sculpt and have decided to try and idea I've had for a while of making modern Hawkeye in the style of the Matt Fraction comic, t-shirt and pants and all that. The sculpt is a lot easier to work with that imagined.

Has anyone thought of using polymer clay (like Sculpey Premo) to create soft, bendable parts of a figure? Like a coat or something. Its supposed to be based on PVC and i saw videos on Youtube that it hardens when baked, but can bend and is flexible when its a thin sheet. Sorry if this has been brought up before.

>>5840440
sculpy that thin would eventually dry out and crack, sorry anon

>>5840440
Like the other anon said: it won't work.

Something that CAN work is Sugru. Croix has used it with bendy-wire for some figures that had long braided ponytails (forgot their names or their source material, just remembered that their asses were glorious). The stuff air-dries after about 24hr and can be casted in silicone molds.

There's also silicone itself. You'll need to make molds out of a hard substance for silicone though. I think polymer clay might work for the molds themselves though they'll be brittle.

>>5840440
I think air dry resin clay would work, it made my Inklings tentacles very flexible.

>>5840532
>>5840575
I see. I actually did look into Sugru but I feel like the price:amount ratio is ridiculous and the working time of 30 minutes is too little for my project. I'm considering it as my last resort.

I also read about mixing silicone sealant and lacquer thinner in ~1:1 ratio and then using that as the flexible portion by painting it on a mold in several Japanese blogs, so I was considering it also but having to first make a base with something like clay -> make mold -> then the product, I felt it took too long. It's my second option. now,

>>5840750
since this anon talked about "air dry resin clay". Is it something like
> Activa Hearty Super Lightweight Air Dry Clay
and
> Activa Lumina Polymer Air Dry Clay
? How's their working time and how flexible are they? Can you post some pics of your Inklings?
Thanks.

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>>5840905
I said air dry resin! Which would be the Lumina clay.
They're both useful for different things, I personally use the paper clay (hearty) for bigger projects, cakes and things. It doesn't sand well at all though, so it's not good for making figures.
The Lumina clay is good for figures I feel, it sands OK but not amazingly, and it's really nice to work with for big or less precise projects. I do not know if it'd be as good for sculpting over existing limbs etc, but I can't say for sure, I sculpted over a faceplate I wiped.
When I'm making something that needs to be really precise/linear I use oven bake polymer clay (Fimo), I used this for making miniatures consoles and it works better for them since it's not as soft and won't be squished out of shape by tiny movements.

I only have one inkling (well, one cu-poche custom and some tiny ones I made for my vintage play sets with missing pieces)

I just rustled up this, sorry about the poor photo quality.

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>>5840905
>>5840939
As for how flexible, see pic related.
They have a wire in the centre to help support them. I'm sure a thin cape would be far more flexible.

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>>5840946
Thanks so much for thise pics and explanation, I really appreciate them. That kind of flexibility should be more than enough. I was thinking of making the outfit for her, but she would be a figma, 1/12 scale or 13-14cm tall.
I'm assuming I would need to use Lumina for her suit jacket and skirt?

>>5840963
It's no problem! I'm happy to be of any help I can.
Yes, that's right! And you should buy it in white.
This is a really useful video I just found for you! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8bhR7KZUB4#

>>5838440
Miss Fortune?

What would be a good adhesive for gluing rubber bits to regular plastic figures? Any sort of adhesive that works well with plastics works well too.

>>5841327
I guess it really depends on usage and placement; if you're talking about a rubber piece that has a lot of overhang and has an arm or leg constantly butting against it and causing it to move a great deal against its bonding point every time it's posed, you might be better off "melting" the rubber to the plastic via MEK/Plastruct.

If your goal is to just glue like a pouch to a chest, regular CA glues like Zap A Gap work.

>>5841327
Super glue. Lightly sand and clean both surfaces (with something that removes oil or grease, like dishwasher soap).

>>5841327
Superglue brand superglue gel.

>>5841340
Zap A Gap a shite

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Anyone has a microman figure that can easily be taken apart?
I need to look at the way the shoulders are assembled internally so I can try to replicate them.

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Just competed this mutha fucka.
T800 battle damaged to Shit.
Lots of cutting, drilling and disassembling of a wwe Mattel figure and an endo skeleton figure from the shitty terminator salvation toy line.
I think it turned out better than I expected.

Had to take the picture in my kitchen for Better lighting. Peanut butter was not used in this project.

>>5841448
The shoulder is pretty simple, the joint itself is just two balls, one snaps into the torso the other snaps into the arm.

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couple customs i got in and a custom head.

>>5841611
I know.
I just want to know how it looks on the inside.

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>>5841538
I did something like that recently myself too. Is that real cloth you used on yours?

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>>5841640
That's pretty sick dude!
What scale is that?

Yes I did use actual cloth. From a million dollar man wwe Mattel figure.
Although I cut it and repainted in and also used a lighter to give it a burn/explosion effect.
I also used clay for parts of the limbs and face.

Pic related was earlier stages.

>>5841634
They both pop into place, the hard plastic body has what is like a gundam polycap inside for the shoulder ball to go into.

I'm new to this general, pardon but I didn't see a guide. Anybody have a particular video rundown or that can give me an explanation on epoxy putty? I just got some Aves Apoxie in (the one pound mix) and would like to use it for Gundam models. Things like how long it is best left curing before cutting into it, when it's best to form detail on it, info like that.

>>5842204
Brand and environmental factors will change how long it takes, also depends on volume, most brands say like 24 hours but uh I've had something the size of a face cure to the point that I could sand it in like 3 or 4 hours in the Florida heat.

I literally can't find a top coat to finish a model.

Since it's painted with acrylic, Tamiya TS-80 won't do since it's lacquer based and will kill my model. I can't find Mr. Hobby Top Coat or Mr. Super Clear in Canada for whatever the hell reason for a reasonable price, and they're supposed to be acrylic & water based, which won't end up ruining my model.

Apparently the only available matte finish near me is either Krylon Matte Sealer "Chalky Finish" OR Krylon UV-Resistant Clear Matte, with me not even knowing if I can get my hands on them for sure. I'm having doubts that they won't yellow or do other unwanted shit because North American products generally suck on large cocks when compared to Japanese products in hobbies like this.

Will they actually work without yellowing/ruining the paint job/etc on acrylic painted model, or does anybody know a website where they sell hobby items like those and can purchase from Japan directly, like amiami for hobby painting?

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Oh, I forgot that the eyes are enamel so acrylic won't work either. I should just move to Japan or something for fucks sake

>>5842446
>>5842454
When in doubt do a test strip, senpai.
Paint a shitty version of w/e on a piece of garbage plastic or cardboard or w/e and try the cheap can of krylon on it. If you don't like the results you didn't fuck up your good paint.

>>5842512
Oh fuck off F A M autocorrects to senpai?

>>5842446
Yellowing is typically caused by UV light, so the Krylon UV-resistant clear matte might work. It's like 8 bucks for a can, just try it it on some test spoons

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I was wondering what the best way to go about painting a resin model would be. I cast these guys using Smooth Cast resin. I know I need a decent primer and paints so that it doesn't chip and look bad. Any suggestions?

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Hey guys I want to repaint this figure, but I'm really lost on which paints I should use, for one I know that acrylic is too thick and could fall off, so I need advice on what to use to get as close as the original paint used?
It's the usual vinyl figure, not resin or anything special.

>>5843374
>for one I know that acrylic is too thick and could fall off
So you don't know shit, got it.

>>5843400
I actually don't know a lot, that's why I'm asking, but from my experience acrylic paint usually ends up with non uniform coats, I know that this is up to the application a lot, but acrylics are also really thick, enough to erase some detail in small figures like the one I'm trying to paint.

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>>5841668
Mine is about 7" tall, and that's not bad at all. Is that your first try at a battle damaged Terminator?

Because if so its way better than my first attempt.

>>5843431
you need to buy decent acrylics

>>5843431
This >>5843442 and thin your paints. If you buy garbage paints with low pigment density you'll either have to layer on globs of paint or do a trillion thinned layers. Get good paints, thin them.

>>5843460
So I have Politec brand paint, I guess is not the best brand in the world, but what would you say it's a good brand, or how would I tell if it is.

Also I'm not in the US and that why I don't have the biggest selection on paint brands.

>>5843470
Vallejo or Tamiya. Both have distribution to most corners of the world.

>>5841625
Those wolverines are perfection

>>5843498
Vallejo is the shit, it's all I use for models/minis of any kind

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Ok so this is a repair question more than a custom figure so feel free to berate me if this isnt the right place to ask, but I figured you guys would be my best shot...
So I picked this Ultra-act Ultraman Zero renewal ver. figure up recently and his elbow joint seems to be defective and fell apart almost right away. the metal pin doesn't seem to want to anchor in correctly and I'm wondering if it may be too short?
Any help or advice on fixing this would be appreciated.

>>5843498
How are Humbrol and Testors? Apparently my local hobby stores don't carry Vallejo and Tamiya enamel paints.

Also, I've heard people telling me to paint the eyes with enamel, but is it really necessary to do so? What's the downside of painting eyes with acrylic paint?

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>>5844246
Here's the joint in question

>>5844246
If it's too short, you can extend with something like epoxy putty. If it's too loose, you can fix it up by applying some superglue to the inserting joint and thickening it. Sand it away if it's too tight to fit to the hole.

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>>5844246
>>5844251
And a comparison to his other arm. When I try to push it back together it just doesn't look like its sitting as deeply as the other one.
Also, those scuffs are from me using a bad pair of pliers to try and fit the pieces together more snugly

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Working on a cartoonish skull demi-lich style.
The gemstones will be casted in translucent resin.

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>>5844258
You can change the metal rod with an other one from pic related for example. It's aluminium it should work be soft enough to stamp it easily.

>>5844258
It's not a metal rod, it's a rivet. You probably got a bad one there that didn't form correctly or broke off at the shoulder.

There's no standard type you can easily replace it with, but you can try fashioning your own rivet using soft brass or aluminum craft-wire and some hand tools.

When handing plastic parts with pliers, wrap it a few times with tape to prevent that damage.

>>5844935
have you ever done work in translucent resin before?

>>5844258
>>5844969
Measure it with calipers and buy some dowel pins and spring pins of the closest size. Try the dowels first, spring pins will probably almost definitely fit within a a certain tolerance but they could end up damaging plastic.

>>5844935
Do you use a pressure pot for that translucent resin?

>>5845065
>>5845077
I tried a few thing with translucent resin. These little pieces shouldn't be too hard to make as they are flat on the other side. If by pressure pot you mean something to avoid bubbles, no i will not use that.

Is there a wiki for the topic of customs like how there is one for gunpla? Been lurking and would like to get into it, seems really fun, even if whatever I may will look like shit

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>>5838005
Saw this dudes Kamen Rider Girls and i was thinking of making one for myself since i have two Kabuto's. What would be a good female body to work with?

>>5843441
First attempt at a terminator figure yes.
But I used to customize and sell wrestling figures on eBay 7ish years ago.
So I gradually improved my craft that way.
Now just starting to give this a shot.
When I was a kid I had the T2 terminator factory set were you would put a rubberish mold over an endo skeleton and cut pieces of the skin off and whatnot. This was kinda my source of inspiration for this project.

The good old kenner days..

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>>5840361
>modern Hawkeye in the style of the Matt Fraction comic
If you're having fun and that's what you want to do, then best wishes. But if you think that's your only option for that style of Hawkeye, I've got news for you.

>>5845271
My cousin had that set too. Damaging the flesh was the absolute best part of the whole thing. What I would pay for someone to make a modern set for Neca T-800 endos that could flex and move with the articulation....

On that note, anyone have any mods for making a Neca endo have better hip-articulation? The crotch-swivel joints connecting to the inner thigh pistons are a pain in the ass.

Is there a such thing as a paint-on matte top coat? I have some custom stuff that I want to seal, but I don't need to top coat the entire figure.

>>5846319
Yes, Model Masters makes one that I've seen in stores. And you could decant a spray can of matte acrylic and use that. But brushing it on defeats one of the key aspects of a matte coat, namely a consistent and level surface coating.

Just mask off the areas you don't want coated and spray like normal. If you can hand paint the area, then there's no reason why you couldn't mask it.

>>5845202
Someone named mellow was working on a guide:
http://pastebin.com/yiZV3s0R

Other than that, I don't think there's a wiki or anything else.

>>5848744
Is...Is that a Funko Pop head on a regular transformer body? It's cute either way.

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>>5848752
Royal subjects

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Sadly I couldn't do anything about her shoulder joints, the black joints on the rest of her are a lot less distracting than the flesh color ones. Also her hip area is going to be paint rub hell, but that'll be mostly covered up. Her face is also not exactly like I wanted it.
Just a dress and maybe some slight touch ups on some scratched paint to go.

>>5849589
You should reduce the tip of her breasts. Her boobs look like they're mounted too high.

>>5849598
top*

>>5848441
that's helpful, thank you!

I'm just sad that as soon aso it gets to sculpting materials it cuts off.

that's literally the main thing I need to know about, and don't know where to start

>>5849589
Surprised someone would make a Pussycat figure.

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>>5845202
>>5848441
>>5849642
Sorry, I'm an asshole for not putting in the time on this one. I will make it a goal to put at least a few things in to help people in the coming weeks. If you have any specific sculpting questions I can try and help you.

>>5849589
You should look at the figma bootleg joints on ebay. I got a pack of them for like $7 and they came with white shoulder joints that would work for your figure. Pic related.

>>5843400
douche

>>5849957
He might be a douche but he wasn't wrong.

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>>5849943
Oooh thanks, I'll have to check that out and hope for the best.

>>5849598
I can give it a try at some point since they won't really be out like this when she's finished and the paint doesn't really matter then, but I'm waiting to see how she looks clothed which might take a while to happen.

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Hey guys, can someone help me out? I'm trying to find a good base for a Margaret moonlight figure but the only ones I can find are Ranko Kanzaki Figma or dead master figma and those are too expensive to use for a custom (at least to me it is) So if anyone knows where I could get a decent priced bootleg or something similar I would appreciate it.

>>5845077
I add a dye in the crystal resin and it's magic because it remove all the little bubbles.

It's alcohol ink for stained glass effect and it mixes well.

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How do I scale up measurements?
I want to try sculpting a 1/10 skull using this guy's head as reference since I can't find any.

Recently got a Mattle Elite Undertaker with a fabric coat. More in general though, how do you make it a better fit? I was going to use it for a custom but it's too ill fitted for my liking.

>>5850738
Take measurements
Figure is 1/12 so multiply by 12 to get 1/1 measurements
Scale measurements from there to suit your needs

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>>5844935
Just a little update if you guys care.

>inb4 not your blog

>>5850579
How exactly does it remove the bubbles? What about bubbles that form when your pour it into the mold?

>>5850766
>a two part mold with no pour spout
Um... You uh, you going to pour the liquid in and slush cast it or something?

>>5850857
I rotocast by hand. I cast with PU resin and it cures fast. Made my first copy but the resin isn't well distributed

>>5850878
Rotocast by hand is called slush casting.

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First time doing this, added paint apps to CW Bombshell.

>>5850175
Shinku from Rozen Maiden has a lot of different figs, maybe one of them would work for you.

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>>5849642
What kind of sculpting are you looking to do? Polymer clay, quick epoxy on a figure?

The basic tools for either are a pick/needle shape, a knife, a small spoon, a wire loop, and a ball shape tool. You don't really need to buy any special tools, you just need something to move, shape, add, remove, flatten, smooth or texturize the clay/epoxy. And there's probably something you already own that will do the job.

Here's an edited page from "Creating Lifelike Figures In Polymer Clay," you can usually find a pdf online.

And one of my favorite start to finish figure sculptors
https://www.youtube.com/user/juliankhor

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>>5851402
Oops, wanted to add smellybug's maquette tutorial in there too, and say calipers are a great tool to have as well.

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php/18287-Smellybugs-Maquette-Tutorial-completed!/page30

>>5851412
Before you go around buying tools you should get a basic pack that comes with a basic loop tool and some wooden shapers and practice just general shaping.

You might go in thinking you'll definitely do it but sculpting is just as hard as learning to draw or paint if not more so and good tools get expensive quickly. A basic set will run you like $15 and will be good enough for you to get a feel of things.

When doing shading or panel lining, which do you guys use, Gundam markers and the like, or paint via a wash? I'm wondering which would be best for both kits and figures.

>>5851883
I've never done anything but a wash for panel lines.

Any tips for just cutting through plastic? Soak the figure in warm water before cutting?

>>5855348
Hairdryer, fresh x-acto blade.

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Here is something I did the other night. I made the figure from a 6in iron man and the base came from an old Niobi (The Matrix)

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>>5856018
And here is what I'm working on right now.

Anybody happen to have a link for to an anime hair sculpting tutorial? All my google searches have turned up 3d computer modeling tutorials.

>>5857190
Nope, sorry, what exactly is giving you trouble?

>>5857252
I've never really done any sculpting before (well, high-school art class clay sculpture notwithstanding, but that's been years and years ago). I've been planning out a custom Frame Arms Girl figure, but she won't be perfect without a pair of long, drill-hair pigtails, ideally with hobby joints in a couple of places for articulation. I mean, yeah, I'm sure it's probably way above my head, but I've gone over the basic stuff for working with Aves, and been practcing with other clay(my aves is in the mail along with paint supplies). However, all the hair tutorials I've found with google are either showcasing short hair on superhero type figures, or are for doing 3d modeling.

I was hoping there might be something out there that would give me a leg up on shaping the hair, particularly the drill-hair curls, in three dimensions.

>>5857300
Get a cone that is about the right size, it can even be a rolled up piece of cardboard just something that is the size and shape of the "drill". Cover it in cling-wrap so the clay doesn't stick to it after it hardens. Get your epoxy putty and make a few long strips, wrap them around the cone. Fiddle until it's the desired shape. Pop out the cone, you've got your hair curls. If you wanted solid curls I guess just do this over a cone made of the epoxy clay itself.

>>5857300
I would say (without seeing a specific example of the drillhair type that you're going after, seeing as there's tons of them) make a central mass that creates the general shape without any further details, then put styrene strips over it in a spiral fashion, then use an epoxy to add details and depth on top of the styrene. Then get a scriber and add fine details without going crazy and sculpting every strand. Sand, rework, sand, rework, until you get the results you want.

>>5855348
You want to cut through a figure? Get a fine tooth saw.

>>5855348
hot-wire cutter.

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made a casey for my neca turtles

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>>5856018
Cool, I'd like to see it under better lighting conditions. Also, you can buy colored hot glue sticks, and there's also transparent paint that you can use, a cheap option is the craft paint for small stained glass projects.

>>5857300
>articulated drill-hair pigtails
I don't know if Ymir's hair counts as drill curls, but here's how they are articulated and attached to the head.

>>5857786
Excellent. A Jose Canseco bat? Tell me, you didn't pay money for this.

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Just finished this Thaja figure. What do you guys think?

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>>5859234
>Our face when...

>>5858522
Unfortunately, I don't have any decent lighting situation for it at the moment, as my work area is a disaster right now, but I will probably be posting a set of photos of recent customs soon that will show them in better detail.

>>5857786
Was that Terry Bogard?

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I made my own SG Prowl, how is it?

>>5859513
Looks like it. Nice use of Terry if so, Casey Jones-anon!

Shapeways news!

For anyone interested in getting stuff from Shapeways, all orders $25 and up (not counting shipping) have free First-Class shipping this week!

I'm also going to be reprinting a newer version of Loli/Papi as well as try out Strangefate's blank female Marvel Legends-style figure. I'll let you guys know how it all turns out when I get them all.

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>>5860245
>>5859513
yep,update on him.

>>5859234
Tamiya sells two types of masking tapes. One for straight lines on relatively flat surfaces and one for curved surfaces. You should definitely use it, your painting, even if you haven't thinned your paints, will be a lot better if you take the time to mask before painting.

>>5859402
There's no sun where you live? Damn.

But seriously, indirect sunlight is a great option.

>>5859234
Very sloppy paint work. Don't rush, take as much time as you need to get things right.Use some tape to mask off areas you don't want paint to get a crisp line and an even surface.

Good luck.

>>5860243
The paint looks a little uneven, but it could be weathering. I'm not too familiar with Transformers but I'm starting to get into the look of Acid Rain type stuff, so overall I dig it.

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>>5860245
Any news on the THICC front?

>>5860440
Nothing at the moment. Barely had much time to work on even the Loli protomorph due to work. Luckily the techniques used for Loli's design will be easy to transfer to a Curvy/Ceri sculpt.

>>5860394
It's a mix of uneven painting and the wash I'd say.

>>5859234
I always assume whenever shit like this gets posted its ironic.

Then I reverse image search...

>>5860561
Everybody starts somewhere, anon.

>>5860564
Yeah but I mean, fuck, there are some things that should come as common sense.

>>5860455
Roger roger.

>>5860564
It will be an expensive lesson.

>>5860585
Common sense isn't common, trust me.

>>5860632
>It will be an expensive lesson.
Not really, all that paint will probably strip off pretty effortlessly.

Is there any foolproof way to sculpt balls to use as part of balljoints?

>>5860747
Be a little more specific on what you want to do before I can be specific enough to make it "fool proof".

>>5860747
Nope. Try metal ball beads or have them 3D printed at shapeways.

>>5860747
Fool-proof?
Best possible way (aside from having your own injection molding) is to get a rod of the plastic needed and run it on a lathe to machine it perfectly.

I think it's safe to assume you have neither, so the less-than-perfect ways are the following:

-Use a drill press instead of a lathe and machine the ball peg as close as possible.
Least labor-intensive and gets closer to exact results.

-Get an ideal dimensioned ball peg and make a silicone mold of it to make castings.
Slightly more labor-intensive and will have the possibilities of deformities such as air bubbles or warped castings.

-Drill appropriate-sized blind holes into an Airsoft (6mm) BB to super-glue a peg into it.
Highly labor-intensive and needs precise work to look perfect.

>>5860815
There was a guy who made 3D ball joints using POM plates and a dremel.

>>5850766
I'm interested

>>5860747
Maybe you can use those plastic beads girls use for diy braclets.

>>5860747
Maybe I'm just way off the mark on the scale that these balljoints need to be, like huge or something, but... why not just buy some Hobby Base balljoints?

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>>5859234

Tube artists acrylic and craft store paints aren't your friends, you get uneven pigments and they don't thin properly.

Whatever hobby store you got your Mr. Super Clear at ought to stock acrylics. You'll want something like Vallejo, or P3.

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>>5858522

>>5861897
Lotta character here but the fire is kinda meh. A rare miss for you, but painting fire to look right is kinda tricky.

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>>5861906
Yeah, I think it's alright for my first time though. I'll probably repaint it at some point. Maybe add to the fire when I get better at hot glue effects.

Here is a finished (?) Image of the other figure I was making.

Any one have pictures of that kanikuman/wolverine custom?

>>5861926
thin your paints, man

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Joint-attachment for Shinji is done. Hips are a bit too wide (then again, Shinji is a scrawny-ass kid to begin with) but I also did that wrist-joint mod that one anon posted. Pays having an old drill press.

Need to repaint his pants and perhaps dye his knee joints. I might mod a bootleg Figma She archetype into a plugsuit version (cheaper than modding another Portraits figure).

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Customs have taken me to a dark place

>>5850766
I am interested, I like the style you're doing. Keep updating

interesting to see some of these projects. I can't wait for accurate 3d printing to become affordable, the custom toy world will probably explode

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Postin wip

>>5862523
Bretty neat

>>5863160
. >:(

after trying to use an epoxy putty that's +6 years old, I decided to give up and buy a new one. my customization will have to wait until September.

>>5862450
Maybe make the sockets deeper? So the joints aren't sticking out.

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I want to make a 1/12 scale coat like in pic related.
How should I go about this? Doesn't have to be cloth, I'd rather have something hard and sturdy instead.

>>5864495
Sculpt it for the figure, then cast it in silicone.

>>5864495
There's like 20 Dramatic Showcase, DX, and sCultures statues that have them and they're sub-$20 prize figures. Just search mandarake, buy one, and use that. You'd save time and get better results.

>>5863332
well I meant printing parts for custom mods, not printing entire toys. although...

Has anyone managed to strip the paint off of a SW Black Series figure? I tried alcohol and thinner and I've got nothing

>>5843101

Wow that holds a lot of detail, just need to work out how to use clay and I can make my own lil' hipster vinyl toys

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>>5865301
The jewels are not ajusted in the picture but i'm redoing them at the moment since i left too much matter to scrap for them to fit well. And i tried green and blue but the colors i have aren't bright enough.

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I found some M.U.S.C.L.E figs from my childhood, i will make a custom set. There is a great market for them you can make money.

>>5865330
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

>>5865390
You aren't born in the 80's.

>>5865310
>>5865301
Dude i want one.

>>5865428
No I meant what you said made very little sense. You found some muscle figures and now you're going to customize them and sell them for a lot of money?

>>5865471
No i will make new ones based the general design of the muscle figs. Like the OMFG or M.O.T.U.S.C.L.E.
I'm currently molding one to make a blank figurine as a basis.

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>>5865432
If i'm happy with the result i will probably sell a few with a custom box with a dungeon picture adventure time style.

>>5865480
>Other people already do them so now I'm going to try to tap that already tapped market.

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Sure why not. Taking my first try at repainting a Transformer. It's a Combiner Wars Prowl that I slapped a Transformers Prime Vehicon head on.

So far it has primer on it, waiting for it to dry and I'll be painting it black with purple. My intention is to make a CW Vehicon combiner.

I lurked on the neckbeard TFW for tips /advice

>>5864391
I'll have to 3D print some hip sockets to do that for his legs (that or recast his lower torso to be wider). The sleeves I might just recast to be broader to hide the joints better (the shoulders connect to the torso in a V-shoulder layout like Revoltechs and Polynians).

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Anyone have a good suggestion for material to use as chainmail on a 1/12 scale knight? It's only going to poke out under his surcoat, and around his collar. Like a few other anons, im attempted to turn a mythic legions knight into the Elite Knight armor from dark souls

Some kind of mesh I guess?

>>5865213
DOT3 brake fluid

>>5865480
That should be cool. I see them on mandarake all the time and am always tempted to add one to my cart. Good luck getting detail on something that small, though. I can't imagine the original sculptors not doing it all on two-ups, then again I'm not a small details person.

>>5865505
>well guys, Ford made the Model T, better pack it up and focus on other things

>>5865756
Salvage some from one of those cheap Toy biz Lord of the Rings figures. They often times had pliable rubber overlays.

>>5865756
Unless you want to make out of tiny ass necklace rings, which from personal experience I do not recommend, then any kind of extremely think knitwear could be sprayed with silver paint.

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>>5865756
I used a LoTR "chainmail" for mine. Turned out pretty decent I guess.

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>>5865856
>4chan flipped my pic again

Just fucking kill me. Every time.

I want to make a figure of Mortal Kombat's Sektor with a chest missile gimmick. I already kinda know how such a gimmick could be done, but I'm not sure what figure(s) I should be using as a base. I was thinking of using the jizzwares toy and adding joints where needed?

I also want to make Sektor's chest crusher.

>>5865859
run it through an editing app, don't actually edit and just export it and use that file and it shouldn't do that.

>>5865806
>well guys, Ford made the Model T, better pack it up and focus on other things

False equivalency, almost everyone uses a motorized vehicle even if they don't themselves own a car, only a few people are into MUSCLE. Do something because you love it, not because "There is a great market for them you can make money." There's a great market for Funko Pop, let's start making our own! Wait, somebody already tapped that market. Their name is Funko.

>>5865756
Look for tiny handbags made of chain link or even scale mail at TJMaxx, Walmart, or Ross.

>get the custom toy itch again
>moved away from the best store for custom fodder ever
>might never get to go back

FUCK

>>5866136
RIP dude.

So, I was curious since I figure you guys would know this best, but what's the whole variation and discernment between 1/6, 1/8, 1/12, etc etc?
People all over the place that do customs or D&D stuff or other things always spout out these ratios and I never really understand it. Is it the proportion from top to bottom measured in inches? Is it a measurement on the object being made out of its whole? How do these ratios work?

>>5866184
They're scales based on typical human sizes.

1/6 is 1/6 the size of a human, 1/12 is 1/12 the size, etc.

It's like how models have 1/144, 1/72, etc.

>>5866194
Oh, thanks a lot. But then another question: How do you measure the scale?
Is it like, a foot on an actual human then divided by x amount? Or is it just brought down proportionally? So like, if I was trying to make a figure that's 6ft, but in 1/6 scale, does that mean it would only be about a foot tall?

>>5866184
They're scales of what something would based on what their full-size versus the figure.

1/12 (for example) means the figure or object, etc. is 1/12 the overall dimensions. 1/12 is easy to calculate if you're used to imperial measurements (inches, feet) because the foot-dimensions simply become inches.

Ex.- A character who is 6'6" (6.5ft) tall would be 6.5in tall as a 1/12 scale figure, since 1ft = 12in.

Depending on the size of the actual person, creature, or object, some scales work better or are less costly to make due to size constraints. Mecha done in figure or gunpla/plamo form is usually a smaller scale since most mechs are much bigger than a person. For example, a 1/12 Gundam would be about the size (if not bigger from the gear) as a full-grown human. Because of this, to make figures the size of a 1/12 scale human figure, many mecha figures are shrunk to 1/144 scale, 1/100 for taller scaled figures/kits around 7-9 inches tall, and 1/60 for kits the same size as a 1/6 human figure (think Barbie or Ken doll height).

Some companies also don't assign a precise scale to their figures like Good Smile Company for their Figma line of figures. Most of the Figmas out their are more or less 1/12 scale, but it can vary between the series the figures are from (ex.- anime figures with more cartoonish body proportions would not be a truly 1/12 scale since their proportions aren't realistic).

Hope that explains it all, anon.

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Hey guys, quick question: Would tippex be a good way to paint my Guts' hair white? I want something that'll wipe off easily if I fuck up.

>>5866304
No clue what that is but use acrylic if you want to clean up if you ever make a mess. Figma paint wont be affected by acrylic thinners unless they swim in it for hours

>>5865973
>False equivalency
Who let tumblr in?

>>5866184
>>5866209
It's just simple math. 1/X means that for every 1 scaled unit of a small object, it represents X amount of units for its real life counterpart. So with 1/12 scale, it's saying that for every 1 measurement unit (inch) of a figure, it represents 12 measurement units (inches) of a human being. It can also apply to centimeters just as well, or yards, or red M&M's placed on their sides and stacked up. It's all interchangeable when applying the numbers.

To give a better math example:

If you know that your figure is 1/12 scale, and the real life thing that the figure represents is 72 inches tall, and you want to know how big the toy needs to be to match scale perfectly, the formula to input the data is

1/12 = X/72

1(72) = 12(X)

72 = 12X

X = 6, meaning the toy should be 6" tall to be accurate.

Alternatively, let's say you have a 1/18 scale figure, the figure itself is 8" tall, and you want to see how big that would make the character in real life, in total inches:

1/18 = 8/X

1(X) = 18(8)

X = 144, meaning the real life character would be exactly 12' tall.

And if you want to find out what the scale is of an object, and you know that your toy is 9" tall and the character it represents is 6'5:

1/X = 9/77

9(X) = 1(77)

9X = 77

X = 8.6 (rounded up), which means a really fucking weird scale of 1/8.6

Maybe this just added to the confusion, I don't know.

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>>5866304

I was interested in doing this too. I made a custom cloth cape, just never painted his hair. Pic related is a mockup I did to see what it would look like. I may try to make a new casting of his hair and go from there.

>>5838440
Is that Ms. Fortune? I love it. You gonna make some blood effect parts for it too?

>>5843101
Pizza Head?

This is kind of a broad question, but are wrestling figures my best choice to make 1/12 Mortal Kombat customs from?

>>5866740
They're definitely a really good choice.

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>>5866440
No, that actually made a lot of cohesive sense. Many thanks for also working out your math to make it easier to follow as well (I know I'm guilty of skipping simple steps sometimes, like how you showed the cross-multiplication).

>>5866224
>>5866440
Thanks for helping clear it up - makes a lot more sense to me now. Might take a bit of learning to readily remember how it factors in, but hey, life is always a learning process.
One last question to bug you all with then: I'm guessing 1/6 or 1/12 is generally the scale everyone goes for when making figures, and like, 1/16 or 1/20 is the scale for miniatures?

>>5866740
Yes and no. You'll get a lot of good parts to choose from (Mattel's Elite figures have at least 15 different shirtless upper chest molds alone) but the caveats will be that the figures will be huge compared to actual 1/12 toys and you'll have to scavenge elsewhere to find double jointed elbows and true ankle rockers. Marvel Legends Nuke can be a good source for bare arms with double joints that would work with Elites, because of how big he is.

Guys, do people buy customs? Do people only buy customs if they're of popular characters/IPs, or will people buy original/unique customs?

>>5866933
More or less. Again, it depends on the full size of the source material and the companies that make the toys/figures. Most gunpla/plamo as I said is scaled to either 1/144, 1/100, and 1/60. A lot of times with toy lines it's more of a "let's shrink this series' characters/things down to be X inches/centimeters tall" where the exact scale isn't as precise as 1/12, etc. Neca, for instance, does things based on the 7-inch scale where an average-height human would be 7-ish inches and then use that to scale everything else. For example the Neca Caesar and Koba are both 5-inches tall when in real life at full scale they'd be around 4ft tall as real chimps.

But yes, those are common scales.

>>5866987
>Guys, do people buy customs
Yeah.

>Do people only buy customs if they're of popular characters/IPs
Mostly.

>or will people buy original/unique customs
The OC market is driven by commissions. Not many people are out there scouring ebay or forums looking for somebody's random unknown character. Instead, they'll have their own original character and will seek out a customizer to bring it to life.

>>5866977
Cool, thanks for the info!

How should I go about making the non-human characters like the Cyber Ninjas?

>>5867011
That's good info. I really appreciate the reply, anon.

>>5867014
Get a blank body and use epoxy putty and styrene for the armor. The Gunpla General help guide might have a section on using styrene, though I haven't looked in ages.

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Started this Ninja Turtles project. Upper arm is going to be plastic while the lower arm is going to be rubber silicone over an articulated under arm. Most ambitious thing I'm going to try thus far. Lighting sucks, I know.

>>5867814
Off to a good start, anon. Do you have any pics of previous works?

>>5867814
How do turtle penises work? I don't even know, but you should definitely add one of those.

>>5867847
Here's the part where we talk about turtle dicks
Half the length of a turtle and astoundingly big!
If you see a turtle's toothless grin,
It's 'cause his penis can probably touch his chin!

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Istarted this proyect of mine to make a custom figure of sandman of the endless, im using a daredevil's body from the spiderman classic serie 2 adn the head of a bootleg Loki from the movie avengers (i liked the slim face for a sandman) Work in progress but im not to fond of using real fabric in this scale so im gonna use some cape (im thinking on getting a stephen strange on second hand or someone with a fancy cape) so this is the work so far, what do u guys think?

hair looks like a used mop but I guess it would start to look better once primed and painted.

on the other hand please get rid of that fucking horrid looking body because it's out of proportion in comparison to the head sculpt. get a properly scaled figure body for that.

So uh, what anime shota-style figure bases exist out there?

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>>5868355
conan?

>>5868590
He looks a little too "super deformed" styled for what I'm looking for. How about like characters with a body type like Figma Pit?

How would I go about repainting this hair to black? I'm wondering what kind of paint to use and how I would get that nice matte finish. I'm really new to this.

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>>5869319
Forgot the pic. Sorry

>>5869330
acrylic paint, thin it with acrylic thinner, not water. use multiple layers to get an even finish. use paint that's matte to begin with, or you can just paint it with black acrylic paint and spray with clear matte finish.

also why the fuck would you want to ruin inori you fuckwit

>>5869418
Hey, thanks!

She means nothing to me

Also, how would go about removing or covering up the hair clip?

>>5869758
you can sand them with sanding stick to remove them (sanding them down so they would match the thickness of hair and painting over them) or if you simply want a repaint then cover them up with masking tape, paint over her hair & tape, remove the tape and paint whatever you want on the clips

>>5869319
>>5869330
Sharpee bro, works perfectly.

>>5870436
No it doesn't, get the fuck out of here. It streaks and has zero bonding hold. It's ink, not a polymer.

>>5868355
There's a figma Haruhi middle school version that could work, the body is pretty asexual.

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I'm currently wanting to make resin recasts of each of these Devilman Micromen, what would be the best way to re-cast it while also keeping the original articulation? Double-sided casting?

>>5871185
you don't keep the articulation unless you take them apart and make a re-cast of the pieces of the limbs and the joints.

>>5871185
>resin
>articulation
Choose one

>>5871475
There's an entire cottage industry of resin heads and limbs that can work on ball joints, anon. Just look at the MOTUC custom community. If you don't know something, you don't need to chime in and make it more apparent.

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>>5871185

You can save yourself a million years of effort by getting some blank bodies, like the Boss Fight HACKs and just casting unique parts like Silene's feet.

Otherwise, you're going to be dealing with resin cast pins and swivel joints which don't hold up like injection molded pieces, or finding a replacement. I have seen Japanese hobbyists repurpose model kit sprues, so it's not impossible.

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>>5867862
it looks more like you're doing Daniel instead of morpheus (even if it is morpheus)

You get it.

>>5868318
LRN2RPY

>>5871901
These blank bodies look pretty good! Thanks anon, I didn't know these existed until now. On another note though, do Figma archetype bootlegs hold up, or is there just issues with the joints?

>>5871922
The old Archetypes (and currently only the old ones are bootlegged, don't trust the sellers on Ebay) in bootleg form are decent fodder for blanks. Balls and sockets might have a hiccup or two, but mostly they're fine in the hinged part of the joints. Still be gentler than a normal figma. Get a hairdryer to the joints before bending them the first time too to be safe. Bikini Super Sonico is a recently bootlegged figure, I got two and both have squeaky tight joints, to the point that I've only fiddled with them a tiny bit (don't know what to do with them JUST yet). Only other bootlegs I've dealt with are Snake and Bride Saber. Both had shitty joints and Snake had a horribly-done body. Apparently the new style of articulating Figmas has thrown the Chinese off and they can't replicate it properly. Seriously, Snake fell apart at the torso because the new torso-to-chest articulation system isn't there and is barely held together by a crappy ball-socket joint.

>>5867814
How do you sculpt everything so that the articulation works?

>>5871901
>those breasts
Definitely sculpted by someone who doesn't know how breasts work.

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I have a Reuniclus figure that I think would be cute in a jar with some type of goo but I'm not sure what I should use. I saw a guide a while back where somebody put a nenpuchi or something similar in a little jar with some sort of gooey substance that made it look like water, and I want to try that myself. Sorry if this isn't the right thread for this question, I'm not sure where else to look and since it was a Japanese guide I'm not entirely sure what to search.

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>>5872278

>>5872293
Oh neat, thank you anon. So when they say water-absorbent polymer do they mean something like this?
https://www.amazon.com/Decoration-Wedding-Centerpiece-Education-Super/dp/B01EZC34H4/ref=sr_1_22?ie=UTF8&qid=1472002121&sr=8-22&keywords=water+absorbent+polymer+bead
Or is there a better alternative?

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Should I use acetone to remove the blue paint or just paint over it?

>>5872570
No. Use acetone-free nail polish remover. Acetone will melt the plastic.

>>5872264
They were sculpted by a woman.

>>5873094
Doesn't change what I said. Those tits still look like bolted-on tennis balls, no matter what sex the sculptor is.

>>5873362
it's a possibility that the sculptor had fist sized tennis balls implanted on her breasts. don't judge lmao

>>5872264
That was my first thought when I saw them. But then I realized something: they are supposed to wear a diversity of armors/clothes, a good reason why they don't follow gravity law while naked.

>>5873362
Kira, go back to the transfag general.

>>5869418
>thin it with acrylic thinner, not water
Humor me.

>>5869319
>>5869418
>>5875265
Man just thin it with distilled water to thin it, I have about a dozen tutorials on painting from some of the best miniatures painters in the world and they all use fucking water.

What can I use to remove oil based paint from a paint pen?

>>5875396
Miniatures lend themselves to adherence because they have a ton of details the paint can cling to and be protected by (though you can still scratch stuff off on the raised parts).

It's well known that you want a thinner that contains binder for the particular paint medium because the lower the binder concentration the weaker the cured film.

>>5877758
I hit everything I paint with adhesion promoter, sooooooooo it doesn't matter.

What's the best glue to use with gunpla? What's the name of those plastic sheets made to be cut up and used to make custom stuff? Thanks.

>>5878195
I just use whatever off brand of model glue is cheapest at my local hobby store, lol, and you're thinking of plasticard.

>>5878198
Okay, I've been struggling with super glue. What about those things where you have two separate substances, and it only binds when they make contact, is anything like that useful for customs?

That's the stuff, I've seen it plenty of times, couldn't think of the name.

>>5878201
>What about those things where you have two separate substances, and it only binds when they make contact, is anything like that useful for customs?

Never use it myself, for w/e reason. I mostly use super glue and model glue, by which I mean like a plastic cement from testors, or like I said whatever is cheapest lol. Sometimes I bust out the 5 or 15 minute epoxy. Depends on what I'm doing.

>>5878201
>two separate substances, and it only binds when they make contact
2-part epoxy glue. It's stronger than superglue but the mixing makes it hard to use in small quantities.

Plastic Cement works differently. Instead of introducing a sticky binder, it melts the plastic surfaces allowing them reform as a single part.

Plastic sheets are literally called plastic sheets. Some circles have fancier names for them like plaplate, plasticard.

>>5878213
>>5878227
Thank you! Plasticard and plastic cement it is.

>>5878227
>>5878229
ahaha oh god re-reading what he said I realize my >>5878213 reply is stupid, I said "no I don't use it" and then fucking talked about using it, I thought he meant like gorilla glue or some type of glue I used to use at work where we put the catalyst on one thing and the glue on the other and when we put the two parts together they stuck, hurf

>>5878238
Either way, I can't get any plaplate for at least two weeks so I'm stuck drafting everything in paper.

Currently working on converting a man rodi into a stylised mashup of lagann, gurren, and some other bits and pieces. Any suggestions for a good drill for a 1/144 gundam? It's kind of compulsory for this thing to be able to pierce heavens.

>use brake fluid to remove paint
>plastic shatters into a million pieces

FUCK

>>5878562
>break fluid
That's quite, uh, excessive

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(Part 1)

Well, pulled the trigger on Strangefate's blank female figure from his Shapeways store. I got the 6in version and I'd like to give the guy credit on the engineering of this considering it's a 3D-printed figure. Sockets are part of the sculpt, and while some cleaning is needed for sockets and holes it all snaps together with mostly little effort.

That being said, articulation is still below a Marvel Legends figure by a few POA. The ankles are strictly hinges, the wrists are a simple swivel, and the knees and elbows are single jointed hinges. Now, the diaphragm does have a double-barbell joint connecting the chest to the lower torso, as does the neck joint, so props to Strangefate there. There's still bicep swivel and ball-socket hips with thigh swivel. The detail (SLS nylon, WSF) is rather nice aside from the stepping, but nothing fine-grit sandpaper can't fix easily. The physique of the female is a little less exaggerated than with the usual ML women though the breasts are big and perky and possess basic nipple-shapes in the sculpt. Hip-thigh articulation has a limited range of motion, sadly, but still much better than any T-hip or V-hip swivel cuts by a long shot. It only comes with one set of hands (grasping right and left fist).

I ham-handed the right wrist peg, but I'll mod it and the other hand to use my custom 5mm ball-joints (same for the ankles) later.

Strangefate has a 7in version, sells parts for mix-matching, and has a few other sculpt variations (including a totally-not-a-Twi'lek and some human skellies).

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>>5878573

(Part 2)

Cost for this 6in naked female is $42 USD + shipping (cheapest is around $5 USD). That might seem a little pricey for what you're getting, but take into account that it's manufactured on-demand and (provided Strangefate doesn't take the models down) it's always available whenever you're ready to buy it. That aspect alone is (to me) the best selling point of all about this and 3D printing in general. No scalping, no price-fluctuation from supply levels, and no need for re-releases (unless the model is ever taken down).

If you need a blank female base for a realistic human custom it's readily available and at a consistent price. With all that in consideration I'll give this an 8/10.

And now for some more pics.

>>5878573
That's polished nylon?

>>5878579
>$42USD plus shipping
>for that

Or you could go to Goodwill/a few yard sales and spend like five bucks.

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>>5878579

>>5878573
that looks like it has pisspoor range of motion

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>>5878583
Yeah, sadly. I'll post sanded pics tonight sometime. For now here's more of the product as-is.

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>>5878592

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>>5878593

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>>5878593
That's all for now.

>>5878603
Body's kinda weird. The female ribcage and abs should jut out a little more than the hips. It's why almost all girls have that arched back look (besides the fact that they have more arched backs than men, especially white girls). Here it almost looks like the hips jut out the most and it gives the figure a gut look.

>>5878603
>>5878595
>>5878593
>>5878592
>>5878587
>>5878579
>>5878573
Thanks for the review and pics, anon. I'd pay 15 for something like that, maybe, but the pricetag of 45+shipping just doesn't look like it's worth it. And sure, I get it, 3D printing on demand is (apparently) difficult and expensive, and the final piece looks kinda good, but it definitely doesn't look 45 American dollars good.

>>5878612
To each their own, I'm satisfied with it overall. Could it be better? Absolutely. But it's custom fodder and I know I'll have fun modding it.

>>5878609
Yeah, she does have an odd posture. I might have to sever her at the hips to give her more articulation (still have some spare WSF sockets from the last order I got from Shapeways. Could even give her figma hips from the spare set I made last time.

Lotsa possibilities.

>>5878612
Oh, and one last thing on the cost: it
Should go without saying, but that price is obviously not the at-cost price tag. Strangefate's got a markup on it that gets it to that price. I could possibly ask him what the at-cost price is if anyone really wanted to know (we've corresponded a little bit).

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>>5866463
How did you make the cape, anon? More specifically, how did you attatch it to the mantle? I don't want to settle for this POS forever.

I know my boots aren't accurate, but I thought they looked cool like this. Reminds me of Guts' Conviction armor.

>>5878786
It's probably in the 30s at least. I've looked at having some stuff printed and Shapeways and it's not cheap. Having your own FDM printer is 20x cheaper per print than the strong white plastic (nylon powder) and similar for shapeway's FDM.

>>5866463
Another question, did you manage to get Berserker Guts' neck out? I want to replace it with the flesh colored one but I'm afraid if it's not supposed to come out.

>>5878795
Not him, but here's a clip about distressing fabric. Skip ahead to 3:35.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ErLOmGZQMA

Not sure if it will look good at that scale though.

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>>5878795

For the Berserker armor, I fed the copper wire through the armor and at length on the sides (for the cape) until I was happy with it. I Then sewed the fabric onto the wire and put the extra wire back through the armor.

For the Black Swordsman Guts, I just hotglued the wire onto the plastic cowl bit after removing the original cape.

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>>5879609

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>>5879609
>>5879131
This is a big help, thank both of you!

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>>5878603

One last pic, the figure's got a pretty nice ass.

>>5880138
>sculpt butt cheeks on torso piece
>AND on leg pieces

why

What do you use to sculpt things? I want to give it a shot.

>>5880350
Because the butt pieces doesn't cover the entire ass and female asses sag when standing, even the tight ones.

>>5878562
>he didn't do a junker test piece first
Guess whose fault this is.

Does anybody know if applying heat to Kneadatite/plastic resin (specifically smooth-cast 300) will soften them up like PVC?

>>5880358
Milliput to add onto existing figures. It responds to water and wood tools really well.

Super Sculpey for complete scratch building due to its smooth detailing and form holding, followed by baking, followed by adding on fine details/texturing with milliput, followed by resin casting and general clean up.

A while ago I was attempting to make a custom figma, but after I primed it the plastic turned out very tacky, even to this day. I'm guessing I didn't clean off the mold release enough.

Where should I go from here, buy a new base? I've never attempted paint stripping before and I'm not sure if it would help at this point. Any suggestions for painting over the softer plastic on figmas as well?

>>5880992
Or you used the wrong type of primer.

>>5880825
Thank you.

>>5880992
which primer did you use?

>>5880998
That was another possibility I thought of, that the plastic just didn't react well to the primer.
>>5881030
Krylon, since a lot of people suggested it as a less expensive alternative to hobby primers.

>>5881041
you could try washing the figma in diluted dish washing soap / soap, then re-spraying something like Tamiya primer this time. or, i'm not really sure if this method is even valid but you could try soaking the figma in lacquer thinner and then try to rub off the primer as lacquer thinner is able to remove the strong PVC paint they use to paint on the figmas

>>5881041
A lot of times I'll put down a matte clear coat on the figure a few hours before I lay on primer. It seems to help adhesion and it never hurts to have a barrier.

>>5881053
I'll try washing it but I think the plastic is kind of fucked. It kind of comes off in bits when rubbed against? Or maybe that's just the primer...
It's also pretty thin (like a dress shirt flap), so I'm afraid what's left of it will be eaten away if I try using a thinner or paint stripper.
>>5881055
I'll give this a try on my next attempt.

Thanks anons!

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Little update on my Elite Knight, nothing too fancy

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>>5884410
Back view

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Also made my own vampire guy, like him a lot

>>5884410
>>5884413
>>5884417
These look great! Self sculpted or are you cannibalizing parts?

>>5884673
They're cannibalized. I would love to sculpt but it always seems to turn out, well, looking like its sculpted.

>>5884410
>>5884413
Like >>5884673 , I think the knight looks great. I think it'll look even better (in my opinion) if you plan to weather it to give it that "not factory new" look. As it stands right now, it looks too... pristine? clean? to fit in properly.

Unconventional request. Trawling Etsy and Deviantart haven't come up with much... Does anyone here know where I may find decent commission artists for custom PVC action figure parts (hairpiece, face plate etc.)? Not entire figs.

By 'decent' I mean has an established portfolio and feedback/reviews I can reference.

>>5881132
I made this chestplate for a cosplay using craft foam once and the guy I was working with said that if I wanted to spray paint it, I should put a thin layer of wood glue on top so the paint would eat away that instead of the actual foam.

NEW THREAD!
>>5885426
>>5885426
>>5885426
>>5885426
>>5885426
NEW THREAD!

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>>5885175
I know some Japanese do this, I don't know how you would contact them though. I think they might sell them at local conventions like WonFes.

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>>5885175
Otherwise you might be able to do it yourself.

>>5885078
What kind of stuff did you buy for the Elite Knight? It makes me want to make a whole line of custom Dark Souls toys.