Shogun Warriors/Jumbo Machinderville

[Tothiro]

I know... thread is useless without pics. But I was pouring through the DX/Skullbrain old posts about the Popy Grendizer Spazer epic ride-on toy, seeing as how I'm trying to score myself a European Goldrake since JM prices are insane. Also because I was spurred on by an "almost-but-not-quite" pick up at a local show of a Mazinga version 3 so I could pop the place holder Brain Condor plug from that release into my version 2 until I find an original ship.... (if you're still reading then we've weeded out the non-Shogun peeps) and besides the rocket-firing GG Boba project (which I still need to photo/video) I've had the Marvel Sentinel custom idea in the back of my head for a while.

And I was thinking - as far as brand extensions go, which would have been (according to the collective) cooler as a Mattel Rodan follow-up: Ghidorah or Mechagodzilla? I mean my own answer would be a sludge-sculpted ping pong ball firing Hedorah, but I'd imagine the first two are more popular. I can kinda see the design for all three.

...Sure wish they made a non-toxic polypropylene blow-molder rig for garage use :/


Also has anyone ID'ed the socket style for the Shogun knee screws? I'm guessing the flower pattern is a tamper-proof bit similar to how TP3s are used now, but maybe archaic and disused. There's no ref to it on the 'intertubenets that I can find, and there doesn't seem to be much in the way of refurb threads (or I suck at finding them). I guess it wouldn't be so hard to make my own tool bit for it, but I was curious if the screws themselves are still produced.

[rche]

Did you finish up the rocket firing GG? I must see this so that I can be inspired.

Mazinga3 can't remove the condor. You weren't going to ask nicely were you? This was to be a forced eviction.

I can't help you with the knee screw question, but I think a grand follow up would have been king G. Sure, they could probably have modified the Godzilla sculpt and saved a few bucks to make Mecha G. Sure Mecha was a more modern monster and probably more on the top layer of kids fifo memories. But a three headed Jumbo. Wow! Imagine the box. I am sure you have. Actually, since the Godzilla cartoon was in production at the time the US Shoguns were coming out, they probably would have shrunk the mold a bit, slapped a different head on it and made Minya, er.... Godzuki.

useless trivia moment - Ted Cassidy, the tender voice of Lurch and Bionic Bigfoot2 also voiced the animated version of Godzilla.

[Tothiro]

I did finish that bad boy - I went with a back-plug module launcher so I didn't have to recast/paint the whole torso... It requires a small keyhole shaped cut out where the original rocket pack secures, but is otherwise the same profile. I need to take pics, and find a stronger spring for a video action shoot.

M3 was coerced with some hot tap water. I find that M3 condor plugs into M2 with more of the same, though you have to hot bath it and let it find it's bearings later when you switch it back, since M2 has a more narrow cranium space. I also stole one wheel set and wheel housing so my M2 has legit roller feet again... everything else on the pickup will be refurbed and probably flipped. Unless it becomes a display mount if I pick up a few XX/ZZ's I been eyeballin'

Monster Zero is kinda my thought too. It wouldn't be too dissimilar from the JM Villian Vinyls like Rokuron or something I guess... I would imagine it'd have a neck attachment like Rodan (ratchet jointed ball) which acted as a seat for a plug-in triple vinyl head.
But then Mecha would be so awesome because it'd use two light gray triple shot missile fists ala shogun Mazinga.
The Hedorah that kept invading my brain would have had one ball-launching arm that'd fire sculpted sludge balls like the XX-5 Mysterious Evil Bullets...
v036\_00123802.jpg
and a pair of Gaiking style eyes (crazy colored inset stickers around missile firing irises)

Lurchzilla - quickly to become my favorite masked Lucha name!

[rche]

OK. I am envisioning what the parts looked like for the disassembled GG Fett. By keyhole, you are referring to the body behind the pack, I would think. And you inserted a sleeve for the spring and rocket to take purchase on.
I recall in our previous conversations about this mod, you were wanting to try to stay true to the original in concept and execution, so did you get a j or L slot to work? Or is this a push button activator?

Again, I gotta see some pics to spur me on with my own hack on that figure. I just about sold it the other day. It needs something special about it to justify that much space in my world.

[Tothiro]

I went with L slot, yeah.
A push button might have been more straightforward but I think unless I kept concept it just wasn't as cool.

And yes - if you do a hot-water separation to remove the rocket pack, there's a flat indentation on the figure's back that it nests in. I carefully cut slots into the torso halves after marking it out with a paper template so that the top half and bottom half are more or less held together as the original glued pack would have done.
The modified rocket pack is a new cast piece, and plugs into the new hole (in that same indentation), with catch tab arrow head shapes on the top and bottom of the inserts which help hold it in. I basically recast the rocket pack and modified it to house the firing assembly, then cast that new unit up to install, along with a hollow cast rocket.

[rche]

I was thinking the body for Rodan could be recycled for a Ghidrah custom with a three headed addition and a double tail extension. Maybe change the shape of the bat wings, but not really all that necessary.


btw - I just did a quick and dirty search to see if anyone had posted a similar custom/conversion for the 12" Fett and I am not seeing anything. Tho the prices on these are quite a bit higher than what I remember paying for it. I thought they were going to do more of them with a SW backer card. I guess not.

[Tothiro]

Hmm. If I had a spare Rodan shell I'd have already done that I suspect - I'm looking to get wings for mine still. I do sense another Shogun Godzilla joining Hacienda de Tothiro in the near future again to compare and base scales though... (because I doubt I'll luck into a JM version any time soon though that would be Ace)

I think Rodan's molds would have been modded to Godzilla like roller feet, and the back modified with a cut-out in the wing cover back-plate to allow a tail nub to be molded into the bottom similar to G's. With the exception of the feet and tail stub I think the rest of the torso would work (IE you could probably get away with not making a different dragon scale pattern for the chest). Land sakes that would look nice cast in bronze/gold plastic. Even without the foot mod. I think modded wings would be the way to go though I agree they'd still look toyetically "right" if done in the same shape/mold.

[thunderbolt]

modify the Godzilla body to take the wings, sculpt a Ghidorah tail to fit the body, and one head repeated 3 times to go in the head and two arm sockets and you have King Ghidorah.

[Tothiro]

Ok, so it looks like I'll be making my own driver tool for Shogun/JM mods. None of the specialty tool shops I talked to (some of them old school businesses) have seen a head type like my in hand sample. I know an aircraft machinist in town that built a life size tardis... maybe I can convince him to cnc a bit for me? ... I mean once he finishes the 1:1 Daredevil clubs so I can get them anodized red =D

My other issue was the rodan body - while I'm babysitting molds I took him down and gave him a once over again. All of the metal screws holding the inner and front body portions together are stuck in the plastic. The Rodan/Monster Zero mod would be really straightforward if I could get the pieces apart. I spent half an hour going through Ducati Motorcycle help forums to try and get tricks for the screws since google says it's a common problem there. They only had the same answers I came up with - namely heating the screw before turning via soldering iron, or extracting/drilling the screw. I'd prefer not to damage the original hardware, especially since I don't have one I could pull out for size matching to get new screws. I tried a 700 degree contact tip on the screw for 10 seconds and they still act like they'll cam out or strip before turning.

Man. If I could get this guy apart it'd be go time. The feet bracket in, so a simple new ambidextrous sculpt with wheel housing would pop right in during assembly, and I could push-mold everything else like the body sections - even replace the fragile back clips with a screw-down mount in the remodel.

If I can get this going I'll toss it over to a Custom WIP thread instead. Right now I don't know what else to try.