C3PO

[The Toyroom]

Pez heads are normally too big for Mego-scale bodies, especially with a thinner character like Threepio....You'd have been better making a cast of the Pez head and shrinking it down a tad so it's more in scale with the body.

[Cosmicman]

Pez heads are normally too big for Mego-scale bodies, especially with a thinner character like Threepio....You'd have been better making a cast of the Pez head and shrinking it down a tad so it's more in scale with the body.

Right. I used a Mattel Black Manta body. I am adding the plating with sculpty hoping to offset the big head with the sculpty armor. If it works it works, if I fail when then I'll give it to some Star Wars buff and try again.
Just got a wild hair for doing this. Keep you posted.

[Cosmicman]

Another milestone tonight. Adding to the shoulders and arms and doing a little sanding. Not much of an accomplishment but it is one step closer.
Right now to some of you this looks like a pile of dog **** but I promise it won't. My armored Lex Luthor went through these steps also.

[Megospidey]

REALLY enjoyng the work in progess pics. Keep them coming.

By the way, I'm sure the arms don't raise now without the sculpy crumbling off...but you really shouldn't care about that anyway. He's C3PO! His arms don't raise anyway....they barely do anything but rock from side to side.

[Cosmicman]

REALLY enjoyng the work in progess pics. Keep them coming.

By the way, I'm sure the arms don't raise now without the sculpy crumbling off...but you really shouldn't care about that anyway. He's C3PO! His arms don't raise anyway....they barely do anything but rock from side to side.

Right. There ya go. You got the picture.
Plus the wonders of modge podge placed over hardened sculpty keeps it from crumbling.
Wait until you see what I did next.

[Meule]

What are you gonna do with the legs? They're too far apart right now, with C3PO they were very close together

[piecemaker]

He's looking Good!

[Cosmicman]

What are you gonna do with the legs? They're too far apart right now, with C3PO they were very close together

I am dying to answer this question but I will wait until I do it.
It's a little trick called the illusion of the eye.

Basically, you have a head that appears to be big and looks as though I made it directly from a Pez head, that is partially true. I reconstructed the back of his head and I was able to bring the head to a close with a fair sized cork I used from the Mattel head.
Second, by adding larger pieces of the sculpty to create the plating, the head that appears to be big is no longer big.
Then the legs that appear to be "far apart" will slowly stop looking that way as the hips and the plating around the thighs are slapped on.
I know it sounds like a mess of **** but if you can some how imagine what I am saying then you might get where I am going.
I finished the top half about five minutes ago. I decided not to take a picture until I can at least complete a portion of the thighs I was talking about.

The type of gold paint I am using is interesting. Thankfully I am using white sculpty and using Modge Podge to hold everything in place after the Sculpty has been hardened. The Modge Podge almost acts as a primer of some sort. Believe me, I thought the woman at Hobby Lobby that was telling me about this stuff was crazy but after trial an errors I have not had an issue with sculptures cracking or not drying.

Plus there was somebody on this board that gave me a cool tip. Not as cool as the last tip I got from somebody who taught me how to make boots with fabric and Frey Chec....
(that's another custom coming....God, I love this place! )


Stay tuned......

[Cosmicman]

Another one of those updates.

As you can see, C3PO still has a long, long way to go. I completed the frame (the top part) and sprinkled a layer of light watered down gold paint on it just to see how it would look. It's just for looking purposes.

I still have a million things to add to the arms (small nobs) and various small wires that will go it the stomach area. I am getting there but still have a lot to do.

The hips are being worked on right now with the funky thigh panels, along with many hours of filing them down to a smooth layer.

I have all of these ideas worked out on a piece of graph paper but actually assembling them will be the next step. I have no idea why I took on a non DC/Marvel character as a dare. Not sure what I will do with him when I am done. I love Star Wars but don't think I'll make a line of them.

[Cosmicman]

This is the last shot I am taking of him in the custom works in progress area.
This is basically the end of the frame adjusting. The next shot you will see after this will be in the finished custom area.

(remember I only put the watered down gold paint on the top torso piece to give you an idea what the color will look like on the sculpt).



Now, I have lots of baking, sanding, filing and painting left.

[Cosmicman]

C-3PO is a protocol droid designed to serve humans, and boasts that he is fluent "in over six million forms of communication." C-3PO is generally seen with his long-time counterpart, R2-D2, a small, quirky droid. Threepio's main function as a protocol droid is to assist with etiquette, customs, and translation so that meetings of different cultures run smoothly. Alongside the astromech droid R2-D2, Threepio played a vital and pivotal role in the Galaxy's history.

However, C-3PO becomes a witness to his maker's turn to the dark side of the Force when he accompanies Padmé to Mustafar, and Anakin, now the Sith Lord Darth Vader, uses the Force to choke her into unconsciousness. When Obi-Wan's duel with Vader moves to the interior of the facility on Mustafar, C-3PO and R2-D2 take it upon themselves to get the injured Senator aboard her cruiser. When Obi-Wan returns to the ship, C-3PO pilots it to the asteroid facility of Polis Massa and witnesses Padmé give birth to the Skywalker twins, Luke and Leia, and die shortly afterward. C-3PO and R2-D2 fall into the custody of Bail Organa, who orders that C-3PO's memories be wiped on the Tantive IV in order to protect the twins from Palpatine and Vader, and the Empire that has taken over the galaxy.

I never knew why Star Wars was never made in an 8 inch Mego style line. Mego did do them but they were way too big and my mother and father did not have money falling from their pockets.
As a child I woke up one Christmas morning and found a metal tin container filled with Star Wars figures my Parents had bought me. They were the tiny ones but I was in love. I had just seen Star Wars and this was a big deal for me. Why couldn't we have Star Wars and Super heroes all on Mego form? WHY? WHY? WHY???????

I have a new project I want to do. My brother asked me to make him a set of Mego Star Wars customs (since he owns all the Star Trek) EMCE once plus the old one. After thinking about it, I decided I would at least give it a try before I gave up.

So, may the force be with you!!! (unless you are a robot.)
I have probably spent about four hundred dollars on Mattel DC figures. Why? Not sure. Some I have mailed out to people on here who never got them at there local TRU and the other half have made excellent parts and cannon fodder for my wild and crazy figures.
So once again, I may not be the best customizer on here. Never claimed to be but I have been picking and prodding at this 8 inch custom since I modified the junk Pez head to fit a Mattel body.
Somebody brought it to my attention that this body was bull legged. So, I literally cracked open the body and added some cotton balls, clay and stronger elastic cable to pull C3PO's legs in the opposite way we were expecting.
Still not happy but it looks better then before.

I have been hesitant to make any more pictures of my C3P0 custom because for awhile he was starting to look funny but as the filing and sculpting have taken place and a first layer of paint have been added (with many more to go after I touch up the collar and mid piece)

Here he is so far. With many more things to go. I hope he looks halfway decent enough for you.

[Cosmicman]

OK. This is the last update for awhile.
As you can tell I have included several crucial robotic parts to his arms and collar. Just waiting for all to dry a bit.
The elastic I replaced inside the Mattel body has brought the figure together real tight. Placing glue ball joints inside the top part of the legs should keep C3P0 from "bull legging" up.

Here he is. The next post it will be in the Finished Customs area. Providing I think he is worth a ****. Anybody got one of those cool R2D2 bank thingies that will for with this C3PO? Otherwise looks like I'll make one of him. Ugh...