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Custom Dick Grayson / Robin the Boy Wonder has a strong new body!

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  • darklord1967
    Persistent Member
    • Mar 27, 2008
    • 1550

    #46
    ^^ Thanks for the compliment pal. Greatly appreciated! ^^








    Getting closer. Almost complete now.

    I've finished all green garments of Robin's costume, (ensuring that they all perfectly match the same shade of green).

    The finish trim on the edge of the t-shirt sleeves has been installed.

    The gauntlets have been finished (with a rough velvety /suede texture that I had hoped for). In the 1966 Batman TV series, I always preferred the very first pair of gauntlets worn by Robin in the first two episodes (and NEVER worn again for the whole rest of the series). Those first gauntlets were a bright shade of kelly green (matching the rest of his uniform), and they had a suede-like texture. After that first (2-part) storyline, the gloves were switched to a much darker green leather pair (which i did not like as much). The original gauntlets DO appear in every episode, though, in the stock footage of our heroes taking off from the Batcave in the Batmobile.

    Anyhow, (although this custom figure represents Robin as the character of the classic Bronze Age comic books) I paid homage to my preferred Robin gauntlets of the '66 TV series, by creating these gauntlets with a suede texture as well.


    I've placed ALL of these finished garments on a freshly assembled 9ART "Athletic Boy" body with nice, tight, firm limbs (since I wore out the limbs on the body I was using when I built this figure by manhandling it so much).


    Next up: Final black leathery face mask... flowing golden yellow satin cape... yellow lace closures for the vest tunic... And then... final air brush and hand paint detail work, then it's off to MEGO MEET!!


    PS: Plans for sheer leggings for this custom figure have been scrapped. I was disappointed to learn that the 3 pairs of tight leggings that I had stitched together thus far compromised the sleek contour of the boy's athletic legs. Also, the fit of both the green shorts and the pixie boots were compromised by the added bulk of the sheer leggings. The sheer fabric was also far too fragile for use on an action figure that will be even occasionally hand held! With even the slightest skin nick, flaky dried skin, dried glue residue, or dried paint residue on the fingers or fingernails when holding the figure, the fabric on the tights instantly becomes hook/ snagged like velcro and permanently bruised! Very frustrating!! Moving on now. No more leggings! I'm done with that!

    For the sake of aesthetics of this figure, I am perfectly fine with The Boy Wonder having bare legs LOL!
    Last edited by darklord1967; May 25, '17, 11:29 AM.
    I... am an action figure customizer

    Comment

    • mego
      Veteran Member
      • Sep 16, 2012
      • 429

      #47
      you are doing such an amazing job. Nice finesse!

      Comment

      • darklord1967
        Persistent Member
        • Mar 27, 2008
        • 1550

        #48
        Thanks mego! Greatly appreciated.
        I... am an action figure customizer

        Comment

        • boss
          Talkative Member
          • Jun 18, 2003
          • 7204

          #49
          Winner, winner... Chicken dinner!
          Fresh, not from concentrate.

          Comment

          • darklord1967
            Persistent Member
            • Mar 27, 2008
            • 1550

            #50
            ^^ LOL LOL LOL!!!

            I've got to remember that one!!
            I... am an action figure customizer

            Comment

            • TrekStar
              Trek or Treat
              • Jan 20, 2011
              • 8354

              #51
              That's coming along nicely, can't wait to see it all finished up, nice work.

              Comment

              • mishu2nite
                Persistent Member
                • Nov 26, 2001
                • 2260

                #52
                Fantastic details

                Comment

                • darklord1967
                  Persistent Member
                  • Mar 27, 2008
                  • 1550

                  #53
                  ROBIN: The Boy Wonder 9Art Elite Edition Custom Action Figure (1:9 scale / 6.5" height)


                  Last edited by darklord1967; Aug 12, '17, 10:34 PM.
                  I... am an action figure customizer

                  Comment

                  • mikeoz
                    Mego Maker
                    • Mar 9, 2007
                    • 1435

                    #54
                    Awesome! You've been very busy!
                    Looking for:
                    Lincoln Phantom of the Opera

                    Comment

                    • TrekStar
                      Trek or Treat
                      • Jan 20, 2011
                      • 8354

                      #55
                      Amazing work on the outfit, the detail is outstanding, what a fantastic looking custom.

                      Comment

                      • darklord1967
                        Persistent Member
                        • Mar 27, 2008
                        • 1550

                        #56
                        Thanks a ton guys! Greatly appreciated!
                        I... am an action figure customizer

                        Comment

                        • boss
                          Talkative Member
                          • Jun 18, 2003
                          • 7204

                          #57
                          They are all great, but this is my favorite!!!
                          Fresh, not from concentrate.

                          Comment

                          • darklord1967
                            Persistent Member
                            • Mar 27, 2008
                            • 1550

                            #58
                            Originally posted by boss
                            They are all great, but this is my favorite!!!
                            Thanks so much buddy. I love this little guy a lot too! There's just something about a MEGO-esque Robin... particularly in his classic original costume. Maybe it's the way he inspires the earliest MEGO memories for all of us.

                            I can tell you without hesitation that I made this little fella with a genuine, conscious, sense of AFFECTION... both for the character, and for the classic MEGO World's Greatest Super Heroes traditions.

                            Nothing gratifies me more than to see people recognize my strong affection for Robin The Boy Wonder AND for action figures that depict him all within the embodiment of my humble creation.
                            I... am an action figure customizer

                            Comment

                            • JediJaida
                              Talkative Member
                              • Jun 14, 2008
                              • 5671

                              #59
                              How did you cut the brass rods down to the proper size?
                              JediJaida

                              Comment

                              • darklord1967
                                Persistent Member
                                • Mar 27, 2008
                                • 1550

                                #60
                                Originally posted by JediJaida
                                How did you cut the brass rods down to the proper size?
                                I really should have photographed that process but, I needed both hands for the procedure LOL!

                                Cutting anything metal is a DANGEROUS proposition. Always use eye protection because metal shards have a tendency to go flying everywhere! Also metal gets very very HOT when cutting it, so protect against that too!

                                For Robin's buckle, I wrapped the brass rod tightly in thick gaffer's tape. I then secured the rod in the teeth of a set of handheld clamp pliers. The gaffer's tape is used to prevent any bruising of the brass surface by the pliers. The pliers keep the rod secure so it won't go flying off during the cutting process. They also allow manipulation of the rod, without touching it while it's hot. I placed a cutting wheel on my rotary tool and very carefully made fast little "nicks" on the rod until it finally snapped. You'll have to make the cut as little nicks because the moment your spinning blade touches the brass there will be a big bright shower of sparks. These sparks are so bright that you will not be able to see your cutting area clearly if you try to make one continuous cut through.

                                NOTE: Always place the shortest end of your rod in the plier's vice teeth so that the final cut part is secure within the plier teeth. This will minimize the chance for injury since the smaller portion of the rod is more likely to be propelled away at the moment of the cut. Also, you'll avoid having to go searching for that teeny tiny length that went flying off and landed God-knows-where!

                                Once both rods were cut to equal length (and allowed to cool), I used an Xacto blade to cut away the gaffer tape and expose just the tips of each rod.

                                The rods are made perfectly equal in length to each other by placing TWO rods in the pliers' vice teeth and cutting them simultaneously. At this stage, the cut tips of the rods are perfectly even, but they are FLAT, as seen in this WIP image.






                                The tips require some smoothing and rounding off. With a flat grinding head mounted into my rotary tool, I gently ground the cut rod tips in a circular pattern until the jagged cuts became smooth... and then rounded.
                                Last edited by darklord1967; Jul 28, '17, 1:57 PM.
                                I... am an action figure customizer

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