1/48 SOUTHERN CROSS BIOROID PART II

[Podtastic]

As usual not only is the quality of the work impressive, but also the speed of it. 🏎️💨

[CoryHolmes]

I'm curious as to why you're having to sculpt so much from scratch.  Is there that little in common with the first run kits?

[Big s]

The armor really is very different on this one. I think the height is the same but other than that it looks very different and probably would just be easier to start from scratch on most parts. 

[captain america]

Captain’s log: Friday, January 28th, 2022.

 

So this week has essentially been a polyester putty extravaganza: lots of parts need to be puttied and formed against other shapes to create a secure fit. I really like Tamiya’s polyester putty, but I do wish it would harden a bit faster.

Pic 24: the collar for the Hemorroid variant is shown here. Bug face will require a whole different collar, head, and neck pivot mechanism, but that’ll be for another time.

Pic 25: this is an earlier pic of the thighs. I have since widened them to make them fuller in the knee region. This is a result of following diagrams, then determining that the 3/4 view looks better with more volume, so I build them up with more putty. It’s not a very scientific approach, but it works.

Pic 26 shows the main foot module in-progress. The range of motion was good enough to allow me to hide some of the gaps in the ankle without creating any binding. It’s one of those things I figured out after all the ankle armor was sculpted and in place.

Pics 27-29 show the range of motion in the leg, which is as good (if not slightly better) as on the MK I. The knee design offered a really simple but effective double-joint system possibility that’s even more reliable than on its predecessor. The lower calf armor is still missing, but if it causes any binding, then it too will be hinged. The toes are actually separate and you’ll be able to pose them splayed with a little tweaking.

Pics 30 and 31 show the arm, which like the leg, demonstrates an impressive range of motion considering its clunky design. It’s really not that hard if you’re willing to make three joints do the work of one!

Pics 32 and 33 show most of what I’ve got so far. You’ll have to excuse the poor fit of the skirt: it’s actually the left and right skirt still bound together as one piece and I didn’t want to risk breaking it. Fully assembled, BIO LLOYD II will stand almost 18.8cm tall, which I think is just a hair taller than the MK 1…Can someone check that for me? Anyway, that’s it for this week. MOAR exciting updates coming soon, so stay tuned!

[tekering]

21 minutes ago, captain america said:

Fully assembled, BIO LLOYD II will stand almost 18.8cm tall, which I think is just a hair taller than the MK 1.

Awesome.  My Satan Claws stands 17.6cm, and the Biopsycher always struck me as slightly larger than the Early Types.

[Podtastic]

1 minute ago, tekering said:

Awesome.  My Satan Claws stands 17.6cm, and the Biopsycher always struck me as slightly larger than the Early Types.

Isnt that close to the Gosu's height?  He, he😁

[Bolt]

Articulation on this is amazing ! You constantly impress Cap'n !

[captain america]

36 minutes ago, tekering said:

Awesome.  My Satan Claws stands 17.6cm, and the Biopsycher always struck me as slightly larger than the Early Types.

Part of that extra height was out of necessity: the extra joints needed in the arm meant that the arms themselves needed to be longer, and I didn't want Dr. Hemorroid to end up looking like a gorilla, so... Longer legs. What's odd about this design is that once you get past the Hellraiser-type perspective nightmare that is the line-art, there actually are some sensible improvements. The chest, despite not being as thick, actually affords better cockpit protection, and the mecha's mass is more centralized than on its predecessor. Aesthetically, it looks meaner and more menacing as well. 

[captain america]

Hey guys. I'm going to skip next Friday's update so that I can focus on a lot of the teeny-tiny details. The next update on Feb 11th will be more substantial.

[sbantonelli]

I can't wait!

[captain america]

Captain’s log: Thursday, February 10th.

Almost done! Pic 34 shows the (almost) complete back details for both variants. A few small details still left to add, but the differences are quite considerable; certainly more so than the differences on the three MK I variants.

Pic 35 shows the flip-top head for Bug Face and Hemorroid. The « mechanism » (and I use that term loosely) shown in the line-art was a perspective exercise in frustrating madness that Franz Kafka would be envious of, so I made something more, umm… Functional. A lot of the detail saturation just looks like a mess of wires or cables, so I’ll leave it to the individual modeler to add those as they see fit.

Pics 36-40: glorious Bug Face is glorious!! Please note that most parts are just tacked together so as to avoid damaging them. Final fit will be better. Also, some parts (skirts, crotch, etc.) still need to be cast and modified to suit each variant, which is why some details are a bit off. I’m also going to make an optional fore-foot that allows for the splayed toes option.

Pics 41-45 show Hemorroid in all his splendor. Again, there are a few details that need to be streamlined. I will show the cockpit stuff next week, as I need to first cast some parts to finalize it. I’m positively giddy with the way the masters turned out, and while the MK I got more screen-time, I really do think that this mecha design is superior and tragically underserviced. Also, this will be the final call for pre-orders, so if you wanted in on this kit, it's now or never.

[tekering]

Honestly, Cap'n, I just don't think you're there yet.  You know what a huge fan of your work I am, and -- with all due respect -- these aren't up to your usual standards of accuracy.  You've clearly interpreted the line art quite differently from how the animators did, and it's led to some significant discrepancies from the animation.

Specifically, I want to offer some constructive feedback on the shape of the heads.  The "Hemmoroid," to start with, should have a more trapezoidal shape to the face, tapering out towards the top:

Yours is much more rectangular, giving the head a distinctly different profile.

Furthermore, I think your "chin" is much wider and rounder than it should be.  The line art certainly suggests as much.

And then there's the pearl necklace:

Much too large, and too close to center, making it jut out like a python around his neck.  Making the chest greeblies smaller and shallower would probably help a great deal there.

[tekering]

Bug-Eyes is a more difficult subject to tackle, given its dearth of screen time and poor-resolution line art, but there are some relatively straight lines separating the individual panels that make up the face:

Yours is vaguely similar, but not at all what I was expecting.  Those bulging cheeks just look wrong to me.

Keep at it, Cap!  We know you can do better. ❤️

 

[captain america]

2 hours ago, tekering said:

Honestly, Cap'n, I just don't think you're there yet.  You know what a huge fan of your work I am, and -- with all due respect -- these aren't up to your usual standards of accuracy.  You've clearly interpreted the line art quite differently from how the animators did, and it's led to some significant discrepancies from the animation.

Specifically, I want to offer some constructive feedback on the shape of the heads.  The "Hemmoroid," to start with, should have a more trapezoidal shape to the face, tapering out towards the top:

 

Yours is much more rectangular, giving the head a distinctly different profile.

 

Furthermore, I think your "chin" is much wider and rounder than it should be.  The line art certainly suggests as much.

 

And then there's the pearl necklace:

 

Much too large, and too close to center, making it jut out like a python around his neck.  Making the chest greeblies smaller and shallower would probably help a great deal there.

I agree with you on the Biopsycher head, and how it should taper more toward the front. The line-art shows that taper to be very slight, which I interpreted as wonky perspective, but I can remedy that. As per your own cues, I stick to that as a primary reference because,and as you've stated yourself, the animation is all over the place with regards to proportions, sizes and colors. When I said that this thing is/was a perspective nightmare, I meant it: things are drawn in ways that are simply absurd, nevermind the fact that different views don't lign-up with each other, they often depart from physical reality altogether. You'll also notice that the yellow-orange rectangular tube covers on the shoulders appear big and beefy in some views, and less prominent in others. That difference alters the way they interact with the head.

One of the nicer (if not one of the nicest) animation renderings of it shows the head to be very wide indeed, so choices have to be made.

 

Now on to the hoses on the chest. You have to bear in mind that the hoses are currently rigid resin masters, so they will not drape as nicely as flexible units, which will be in the kit. Also, given the shown thickness of the medallion's lateral tabs, the line-art and the animation don't seem to take that topography into account when drawing the hoses. In fact, look at the way the medallion housing denotes a convexity to the chest, then the line-art below acts like those tabs aren't even there to alter the course of those hoses, which would have to be deflected outward/forward, over the tabs. 

 

As for Bug Face, that head was its own mini perspective nightmare, as some lines shown in the 3/4 front and rear view can't converge the way they do in the line-art, which in turn alters the way the side-blobs contour the head. Truth-be-told, I actually prefer my rendition of it... And yet. I see room for improvement, but it's not as far off as you think.

I ws able to blow-up a VERY small partial frontal view of the face, and though it's quite grainy, you can see that there's a "jowliness" to it. Pretty decent, considering that all I had to work with was the 3/4 view.

 

Taking into account the wonky perspective, I'm pretty close. Some lines need to be re-scribed and the the lateral "eyes" trimmed, and I think that will be on-point.

Edited February 10, 2022 by captain america

[tekering]

Hey Cap'n, thanks for hearing me out.  I know it's difficult for artists to accept criticism (constructive or otherwise), and I appreciate the acknowledgement.  I also realize we're asking for the impossible, but... you've made miracles happen before!  😅

7 hours ago, captain america said:

things are drawn in ways that are simply absurd, nevermind the fact that different views don't lign-up with each other, they often depart from physical reality altogether.

Oh yeah, I totally see that.  The "blobs on medallion" discrepancy is particularly egregious. 

7 hours ago, captain america said:

Also, given the shown thickness of the medallion's lateral tabs, the line-art and the animation don't seem to take that topography into account when drawing the hoses. In fact, look at the way the medallion housing denotes a convexity to the chest, then the line-art below acts like those tabs aren't even there to alter the course of those hoses, which would have to be deflected outward/forward, over the tabs. 

I would suggest the lateral tabs should stop short of the hoses, so the hoses lie against the chest on either side of the tabs, rather than over them.  That would more closely match the artwork.

8 hours ago, captain america said:

I ws able to blow-up a VERY small partial frontal view of the face

That's poorly inadequate reference to work from.  Yes, I maintain the animation model sheets should always be the primary source of reference, but not when they're so demonstrably inferior to the detail we can see onscreen:

At the risk of contradicting myself (and despite the inherent inconsistencies present), I think we should be trying to emulate what's actually depicted in the anime.  I know it's a fool's errand, but there's gotta be a "happy medium" that amalgamates all the reference we have.  The animators were clearly working from the same line art we're examining -- and ran into many of the same frustrating problems, no doubt -- but the results are what we remember seeing in the show, and that's what we're really trying to reproduce, right?

[captain america]

57 minutes ago, tekering said:

Hey Cap'n, thanks for hearing me out.  I know it's difficult for artists to accept criticism (constructive or otherwise), and I appreciate the acknowledgement.  I also realize we're asking for the impossible, but... you've made miracles happen before!  😅

Oh yeah, I totally see that.  The "blobs on medallion" discrepancy is particularly egregious. 

I would suggest the lateral tabs should stop short of the hoses, so the hoses lie against the chest on either side of the tabs, rather than over them.  That would more closely match the artwork.

That's poorly inadequate reference to work from.  Yes, I maintain the animation model sheets should always be the primary source of reference, but not when they're so demonstrably inferior to the detail we can see onscreen:

At the risk of contradicting myself (and despite the inherent inconsistencies present), I think we should be trying to emulate what's actually depicted in the anime.  I know it's a fool's errand, but there's gotta be a "happy medium" that amalgamates all the reference we have.  The animators were clearly working from the same line art we're examining -- and ran into many of the same frustrating problems, no doubt -- but the results are what we remember seeing in the show, and that's what we're really trying to reproduce, right?

I already made some of the suggested changes to the Hemorroid head. I tapered it toward the front, narrowed the chin and flattened the end. I also relaxed the curve on the frontal lens, and it does look better--thank you for that suggestion.

Hoses: they  won't protrude nearly that much when bent properly and everything is glued. If you want a tip for making flexible hoses bend and hold a position, try this: put some grease on a sewing needle and carefully poke it through the length of the hose, then insert a straightened paper clip and adjust as needed.

Bug Face head: better still than the animation, look at the L&S prototype in 1/48. They doubtless had the missing view at their disposal (and likely a few more) needed to render that abomination in three dimensions. If you look at the head, it actually does have that distinct, three-mound shape when viewed from the front, which I was able to achieve with a little strategic sanding. I'll show you the results of my alterations next week.

[Boobytrap]

I like all this back and forth. I'm sure I'll like whatever the final product ends up as. 

For my .02, looking at the pictures Ted provided, I think the edges on the lenses on the bug face should should be recessed and only slightly bulge out in the middle. Additionally, each edge of the lenses appear to have fairly hard angles with little to no rounding.

For the chest piece I would agree with Ted that the side brackets shouldn't be so wide to allow the hoses to lay directly on the chest. It looks odd and doesn't seem to match the line art sitting on top of the medallion brackets.

As always, fantastic work and I really appreciate that you listen to our feedback.

[Podtastic]

On 2/10/2022 at 7:26 PM, tekering said:

Bug-Eyes is a more difficult subject to tackle, given its dearth of screen time and poor-resolution line art, but there are some relatively straight lines separating the individual panels that make up the face:

Yours is vaguely similar, but not at all what I was expecting.  Those bulging cheeks just look wrong to me.

Keep at it, Cap!  We know you can do better. ❤️

 

The head of the small pic in the top right corner above looks right to me.

This weirdly simplistic rounded observatory turret below does not.

14 hours ago, tekering said:

 

 

Edited February 11, 2022 by Podtastic

[Big s]

That’s some confusing info to go on. The animation goes from completely flat to bugged out on the sides. I have a feeling the animators probably knew the show was getting cancelled and just rushed their artwork after just a quick glance at the line art

[captain america]

11 hours ago, Boobytrap said:

I like all this back and forth. I'm sure I'll like whatever the final product ends up as. 

For my .02, looking at the pictures Ted provided, I think the edges on the lenses on the bug face should should be recessed and only slightly bulge out in the middle. Additionally, each edge of the lenses appear to have fairly hard angles with little to no rounding.

For the chest piece I would agree with Ted that the side brackets shouldn't be so wide to allow the hoses to lay directly on the chest. It looks odd and doesn't seem to match the line art sitting on top of the medallion brackets.

As always, fantastic work and I really appreciate that you listen to our feedback.

Constructive criticism is helpful on wonky projects like these. The drawback to not having an art director on some projects is that you stare at your own work for so long that you lose perspective, so it's nice to have an extra set of eyeballs. Other times, the source material just doesn't make sense and I have to take a decision to make it work in physical form. 

[sbantonelli]

13 hours ago, Boobytrap said:

I like all this back and forth. I'm sure I'll like whatever the final product ends up as. 

For my .02, looking at the pictures Ted provided, I think the edges on the lenses on the bug face should should be recessed and only slightly bulge out in the middle. Additionally, each edge of the lenses appear to have fairly hard angles with little to no rounding.

For the chest piece I would agree with Ted that the side brackets shouldn't be so wide to allow the hoses to lay directly on the chest. It looks odd and doesn't seem to match the line art sitting on top of the medallion brackets.

As always, fantastic work and I really appreciate that you listen to our feedback.

I agree.  I don't know if it's the most accurate, but the  top corner picture is the best design.

[captain america]

Captain's addendum: Monday, February 15th.

I went back and did some corrections to the heads, as well as finish-up the cockpit area. In pics 46-47B, you can now see that the head tapers toward the front, and then narrows down more at the chin. The latter has also been flattened and made taller vertically. The tabs on either side of the medallion were also tapered at the outer edges to allow the hoses to sit more snugly to the chest.

 

In pics 48-50, you have the details of the open cockpit. This was a significant challenge as well, because the artist is/was a perspective retard, but I think I was pretty successful at getting all the basic details. The one downside to this is that the chest plate innards will have to be Dremeled/shaved-down in order to close the cockpit. Please forgive the fact that the head sits so high and the incorrect tilt angle: the parts are very fragile and I don’t want to break the masters before they get molded. 

 

Pics 51 & 52 show the revised BUG FACE head which harmonizes not only the line-art, but also the L&S prototype images. In pic 52 particularly, you see how with very even lighting, the otherwise curvy surfaces look flat and better mimmic the 3/4 line-art view.

Now that I’ve made all these changes, I need to go wet-sand all the imperfections out before I go to mold-prep.

[tekering]

Terrific!  These improved heads are definitely closer to Moscato standards.

3 hours ago, captain america said:

In pics 48-50, you have the details of the open cockpit.

Oh, I love the interior detail on the chest plate. 👌

3 hours ago, captain america said:

The one downside to this is that the chest plate innards will have to be Dremeled/shaved-down in order to close the cockpit.

The obvious solution there is to provide two chest plates in the kit; one with interior contours designed to fit snugly around the cockpit for normal display, and an open chest plate revealing the cockpit.  That way, we won't need to dick around figuring out how to articulate the chest plate. 😅

In fact, since Bug Face was never seen with an open cockpit anyway, a single chest plate will suffice for him.

[Podtastic]

7 hours ago, tekering said:

In fact, since Bug Face was never seen with an open cockpit anyway, a single chest plate will suffice for him.

Now when I read this with my new glasses it says:

DO NOT DEVIATE FROM CANON

😱

[Ignacio Ocamica]

A work of art!!!!

[captain america]

Just be sure to get your orders in by Friday, guys. After that, the pre-order window will be closed.

[Podtastic]

1 hour ago, captain america said:

Just be sure to get your orders in by Friday, guys. After that, the pre-order window will be closed.

Sent you a message cap. 

[captain america]

Captain's log: Thursday, February 24th, 2022.

Molds are underway! The process is a tedious one, for several parts need to be duplicated (left and right), then others need to be molded for one configuration, then that same part cast and modified to suit the other configuration... And then those parts need to be duplicated, too! Pic 53 shows some of those mold boxes ready to receive the silicone matrix, which when hardened, will become molds and the masters extracted. Some of the very best mold boxes in my arsenal are made from recycled food containers beause they're tough, moderately flexible, and resist resin exceedingly well.

Pic 54 shows those same molds with the pink silicone goop having been freshly poured. 

Pics 55 and 56 are the resin fruits of those molds, looking excellent! There are still several molds to pour, but I'm very much past the mid-way. Stay tuned!

[CoryHolmes]

 Heck yeah!  Injection moulding for the win! 💪 

 

That being said, in pic 53 it looks like something is in your macaroni salad. 🤢

 

Pick 54, ohgod it's grown and changed colour.  Macaroni salad is disgusting at the best of times, but this doesn't look fit for human consumption. 🤮

 

[Big s]

Recycled food containers. Reminds me of that hallway robot in the first judge dredd movie . “Eat recycled food, it’s good for you.”

[Podtastic]

2 hours ago, Big s said:

“Eat recycled food, it’s good for you.”

Its actually "Eat recycled food, its good for the environment, and ok for you".

[Big s]

I knew it was something like that. I think after the newer Judge Dredd, I never watched the old one after that

[gundamOO]

Looks amazing and pictures of the side and back view Cap?

 

[sbantonelli]

I agree.  I can't wait to see the finished models.

[captain america]

17 hours ago, sbantonelli said:

I agree.  I can't wait to see the finished models.

Me too! 

I just finished the molds today, what a grueling task it is. All. That. Silicone! I actually have most of the parts for 1 kit cast already, so full mock-up pics are coming next wee. Hopefully tomorrow I can show you all the molds and an exploded view if the kit parts.