|
Community Links |
Social Groups |
Pictures & Albums |
Members List |
Search Forums |
Advanced Search |
Go to Page... |
|
Thread Tools |
07-13-2020, 09:11 PM | #1 |
Iron Grenadier
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 701
|
Day 1
It's been awhile since I've posted. I've had multiple other events going on that kept me from dedicating the time to either finishing customs as well as setting the time aside to then take photos, clean them up, and then post to social media. A positive to this Covid Lockdown is the opportunity to work on hobbies; therefore I'm releases a barrage of customs of the next 10 days. Most of these I've had sitting on my WIP desk for close to 4 years in some cases and others are much newer inspirations. A new figure each day with a sneak peak for you in the thread thumbnail. Starting things off for Day 1 today is: Scoop Scoop Occasionally as a customizer I look at a character and realize I’m going to take on a big challenge. As a kid I liked Scoop, I was a pretty accepting fan of Gi Joe and went along hook line and sinker for most of the designs (albeit although I love Space, Hasbro lost me when they delved into Space Monsters and Ninjas). I thought that Scoop’s design was pretty kick ass and loved the green tactical vest (although in looking at it recently I realized it’s more of a sweater vest). I decided that in coming up with the design ideas for Scoop I would try to blend a tactical vest but trim away sections of it so it wasn’t as bulky. After that I had to come up with a color for his infamous “yellow”. I felt that a tan/beige tone with a little bit of yellow would get me close to the look I wanted but not be a too drastic departure from the original figure. I wanted to also find a head sculpt that captured the personality I felt Scoop had (although I thought he was a massive doofus in the DIC cartoon-although most of the characters were). Finally after I came up with my parts I had to decide if I wanted to just modify a vintage backpack or make my own. I have so many parts that I decided to make my own and came up with this 3 piece in 1 set. Magnets attach the three components together, with the laptop being the joining piece for the backpack and camera. All in all a figure that I’ve wanted to make since the Joe Vs Cobra era figures from the mid 2000’s. Parts: Head-cast from Avacs Lab (I think a Star Wars figure) Torso, Arms-Retaliation Ultimate Duke Legs-25th Beachhead Tactical Vest-POC Beachhead Backpack-25th Firefly Antenna-suction cup from a Retaliation figure Laptop-Rise of Cobra (pick your figure, came with a few) Camera-Avacs Lab Various bits and pieces were glued or sculpted to the vest.
__________________
Join True Gritt Customs on Facebook You can also follow True Gritt Customs on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/truegrittcustoms/?hl=en Last edited by DavAnthony; 07-13-2020 at 09:17 PM.. |
07-13-2020, 09:11 PM | #2 |
Iron Grenadier
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 701
|
Day 2
General Voltar General Voltar I know I know. Everyone hates Voltar. I don’t. I remember playing Contra on the NES when this figure came out and for some reason I felt he fit in perfectly with that game, that along with the copious amounts of Star Trek The Next Generation I was watching at that time during it’s second season I saw Voltar as a Contra/Star Trek hybrid character. As I went about coming up with build ideas for this figure I realized that certain elements of the character were not working for me. The overly complex helmet and fins didn’t work for me. I felt that instead of looking like a General he came across to me as a circus character. Thankfully my casted helmet (that I got years ago shrunk in size and broke), therefore I went about thinking of how I would re-design his helmet to something more fitting of a General. I kept the overall shape and the bit of tech which always screamed “Voltar” to me, and that was the eye magnifier. That began to give me ideas about his overall uniform and I wanted him “plated up’ with various armor but his confidence and arrogance would not allow him to “hide” in camo, so I went about coming up with a color red/purple/violet that worked for me. There have been some really awesome customs of Voltar and I definitely borrowed bits and pieces from those that inspired me here. I did like the idea of him keeping his gold armor but also wanted to mix it in with black and just put the gold on various bits to showcase that Voltar egalitarian attitude. Finally unlike my custom Scoop I considered designing a new backpack for him but took another look at the vintage and picked one up for cheap on ebay. Just adjusted the peg hole to fit modern figures and moved it up to fit the new figure. I decided to drop his “bird” and instead felt that his backpack is truly for communication to be able to control his army of Iron Grenadiers remotely regardless of the challenges on the field. Parts: Head-cast of club exclusive don’t remember which caster I got it from Torso, Upper Arms, Upper Legs-POC Beachhead Lower Arms-Rise of Cobra Cobra Trooper Lower Legs-Resolute Snake Eyes Helmet-Night Viper cast, monocle from broken Voltar club cast Gun Holsters-Retaliation GiJoe Trooper Gun-Vintage Dial Tone modded Backpack-Vintage Voltar Chest Holster-Cut from a 25th GiJoe figure Various pouches and Star Wars comlink accessory placed on belt.
__________________
Join True Gritt Customs on Facebook You can also follow True Gritt Customs on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/truegrittcustoms/?hl=en Last edited by DavAnthony; 07-14-2020 at 09:17 AM.. |
07-13-2020, 09:12 PM | #3 |
Iron Grenadier
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 701
|
Day 3
Airborne Time is kind to some figures and not so much to others. The 25th Anniversary Airborne was great when it first came out but as time marched on I became more and more unsatisfied with the proportions, the parts, the vest and how so many elements of what I loved about the Vintage figure were missing here. I had made a Joe vs Cobra version back in the mid 2000s and it bugged me that I felt that O-ring style figure was better than a modern one. The biggest challenge was in figuring out what I wanted to do with the vest. Sculpt it with the articulation point showing or could I find a tight enough fit to function as a pull over for a smoother look. I thought back to how much I liked the look of the vest from Rise of Cobra Breaker and quickly scoured ebay for an affordable version. After that I looked I broke down what parts of the 25th Airborne I liked and those that I didn’t. I realized that I mostly needed to just change out the torso piece and once that was done many of the proportion issues I had ended up working out. I grabbed a 25th Anniversary Beachhead torso and tried out the parts. Perfect. I did need to sculpt his collar as I wanted a high ribbed collar like the vintage figure. I also then cut down the front of the web harness from the 25th Airborne figure and after thinning down it’s thickness glued it to the new Breaker vest. Lastly I sculpted out his blue collar neck piece and finished it off by sculpting the rest of the harness pieces, marrying them up to the pre-existing 25th harness piece. I then realized how much I disliked the harness that the 25th anniversary Airborne came with. In looking at the vintage figure it made sense to me to just sculpt it and not worry about it be removable or not. I had this figure with the 25th anniversary helmet as well all the way up to a few days ago when I found an old extra weapon pack Airborne helmet. I test fitted it, sanded down the seem and painted it up. Finally I decided that I wanted boots closer to those of the vintage figure as well and found a pair of 25th anniversary Dusty boots. Threw in a set of Marauder gloved hands and a backpack that resembled the vintage, American Flag, and Stripes and there we go. Very happy with this guy now. Parts: Head, Arms, Upper Legs, Chest Harness front, Gun-25th Anniversary Airborne Torso-25th Beachead with sculpted ribbed collar. Lower Legs-25th Anniversary Dusty Gloves-Marauder Gun Runners gloved hands. Vest-Rise of Cobra Breaker with sculpted on neck protector, sculpted on top and back harness. Helmet-Vintage Weapon Pack Airborne helmet Backpack-One of the many 25th Anniversary Duke backpacks American Flag-Marauder Gun Runners sticker
__________________
Join True Gritt Customs on Facebook You can also follow True Gritt Customs on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/truegrittcustoms/?hl=en Last edited by DavAnthony; 07-15-2020 at 09:26 AM.. |
07-13-2020, 09:12 PM | #4 |
Iron Grenadier
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 701
|
Day 4
Big Bear I see characters like Big Bear and pretty much any figure post 1987 and always wonder what Sunbow would have done with the characters. Big Bear is one of those characters/figures. It was an interesting time back then when Russians/Soviets, after years of being seen as the enemy of the United States, were now being seen as allies. This shifted drastically the story points for the Oktober Guard. I always saw Big Bear as a kind of exchange soldier for the Joes and used him in that way. I wanted a figure that looked bulky and intense. I hadn’t picked up any of Marauder Gun Runner’s figures yet (only weapons) and after seeing their World War II British soldier decided to take the plunge as I felt it was a perfect fit for the comrade here. I sculpted on a few Big Bear elements such as pouches on his arms and the square piece by his collar. After that it was a very simple and satisfying figure. I decided that I have an excess of the Duke backpack and tons of pouches I’ve cut off of figures over the last 15 years. I felt that I could get a reasonable approximation of the original figures backpack this way. Finally I wanted an “intense” head sculpt and decided on the Jurassic Park General figure that has been floating around for decades at this point. I used it previously on my Chuckles custom but felt with a sculpted on beard and different paint job he looked different and fit the character for me. Finally I had to figure out how to make the slinging pouch on his left leg. A few left over straps from other figures and a pouch crazy glued to a vinyl backing brought the figure together. Parts: Head-Jurassic Park General head from Ragin Spoon Hat, Body, Harness-Russian hat from Marauder Gun Runners Gun-Vintage Big Bear gun that came with a Joe Vs Cobra era figure Backpack-25th Duke style backpack with added various pouches
__________________
Join True Gritt Customs on Facebook You can also follow True Gritt Customs on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/truegrittcustoms/?hl=en Last edited by DavAnthony; 07-16-2020 at 10:47 AM.. |
07-13-2020, 09:13 PM | #5 |
Iron Grenadier
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 701
|
Day 5
Wildcard A character who I think was in two to three issues of the comic. He made his first appearance in what was a stand out issue for me when the Strato Viper breaks into the pit and we get the sense that something is going on with the Joes in the pit. I loved the artwork in that issue and Wildcard was portrayed as a character who broke everything he touched. I found some concept artwork of Wildcard a few years ago and he was portrayed as an almost Dreadnok/Mad Max hooligan and I liked that idea. I tacked another first here and dropped some money on the Boss Fight Buck. Wow. That is an impressive figure. I needed to sculpt up his waist area with the new Procreate putty I’ve been using exclusively now. I also realized that I did not want to give you his violet pants and with my vintage figure I had switched that out and given him an extra pair of Buzzer legs. I didn’t want to go with blue jeans here so went with a darker brown with some red hues in it. The original figure struck me as a guy who was wearing tight jeans so I tried to replicate that here. I also had been holding onto a pair of Wolverine Origin legs for about 10 years for this very figure and finally could put them to use. The last thing was to figure out what to do with the helmet design. I did not like the original figure’s helmet and usually when I redo a figure I find a way to streamline design elements I didn’t like. That was the case here. I wanted the basic shape with some extra items on the front and I wanted a broken strap on his left side (if you notice Wildcard broke the strap on his right side for the left to join with). Finally I took the machete from the POC Stalker figure web gear and glued it to our friend’s back here. Yeah…give the clumsy guy a large knife to wield. Parts: Head-Steve Rogers First Avenger (modded with moustache). Torso, Arms-Boss Fight Studios Upper Legs-25th Storm Shadow Lower Legs- Wolverine Origins Helmet-BBI World War II soldier Machete-POC Stalker Gun-Iconic GI Joe Snow Job gun.
__________________
Join True Gritt Customs on Facebook You can also follow True Gritt Customs on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/truegrittcustoms/?hl=en Last edited by DavAnthony; 07-17-2020 at 09:44 AM.. |
07-14-2020, 12:37 AM | #6 |
Retired Toy Hunter
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Burbank, Ca.
Posts: 12,048
|
Great to see you back. I love your customs back in the day, I’m talking about during The New Sculpt Era. Can’t wait to see what you come up with the Modern Era figures.
__________________
Jinx723's Feedback | Jinx723's BST He who dies with the most toys... is still dead |
07-14-2020, 01:41 AM | #7 |
Crimson Guard
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Three Stars and a Sun
Posts: 2,146
|
Yeah glad to see you and your custom(s) back sir! Been a long time fan of your work.
__________________
Have(s): SDCC WWII Capt America SDCC Thor SDCC Spiderman Feedback: http://www.hisstank.com/forum/buy-se...-feedback.html Trade List: http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-jo...ghter-usa.html https://www.instagram.com/0m3customs/ |
07-14-2020, 08:05 AM | #8 |
Snake Smasher!
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Columbus, OH
Posts: 4,963
|
DavAnthony... Now that's a name I haven't seen in a long time! Good to see you back at it, and your Scoop figure shows you haven't lost your touch. Great looking figure, and the photos are nice and clear.
-Todd Shakka85
__________________
Trader Feedback: http://www.hisstank.com/forum/buy-se...tml#post554163 Customs for Sale/Sales List: http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-jo...ml#post4873161 Joe Customs: http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-jo...es-thread.html MTF Customs: http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-jo...f-figures.html |
07-14-2020, 09:17 AM | #9 |
ORZO
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: PA
Posts: 2,135
|
Scoop looks great! Like how you toned down his colors and accessorized him. Gives him a different look than most Scoop customs. Can’t wait to see what else you post!
__________________
Orzo’s Custom Thread (GUIDE in 1st Post): http://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-jo...kitbashes.html Orzo’s Toy Photography & Appreciation Thread (GUIDE in 1st Post): https://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-j...ml#post5391654 Orzo’s Dio-Stories & Comics (TOC in 1st Post): https://www.hisstank.com/forum/g-i-j...ml#post5347693 |
07-14-2020, 09:27 AM | #10 |
Iron Grenadier
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: United States
Posts: 701
|
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
Updated with General Voltar for Day 2!
__________________
Join True Gritt Customs on Facebook You can also follow True Gritt Customs on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/truegrittcustoms/?hl=en |
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Non G.I. Joe TrueGritt Customs-Indiana Jones Sideshow 1:6 scale | DavAnthony | G.I. Joe Customs Finished Projects | 1 | 04-02-2013 02:33 AM |
Joecon Voltar + Iron Bear + misc. Joes | gingaio | G.I. Joe on Ebay | 1 | 07-11-2012 09:06 PM |
Figures TrueGritt Customs-9 customs ranging from Serpentor to Doc | DavAnthony | G.I. Joe Customs Finished Projects | 69 | 01-21-2011 08:55 PM |
TrueGritt Customs-Muskrat, Snow Job, Roadblock and Psyche-Out | DavAnthony | G.I. Joe Customs Finished Projects | 11 | 10-25-2007 11:46 PM |
TrueGritt Customs - Copperhead and Monkeywrench | DavAnthony | G.I. Joe Customs Finished Projects | 6 | 10-03-2007 01:03 AM |
|
|