I promised a few guys I'd put up a quick build-out thread for this beast. Better late than never!
Starting with the raw kit: There's nothing really difficult about this build at all. It's just a matter of how sturdy you want it to be. I chose to pin all of the parts except the ears. They're keyed so deeply it's just not necessary.
First thing I decided to do was make this thing bullet proof. I seated the ears with JB Quick. Seams to be filled in later.
I pinned the jaw and attached with JB Quick. Again, we'll take care of the seams later.
Moving on to the feet and arms:
NOTE: Regarding the arms. I consider this the most important part of the build since they have to support the weight of the candles. Although minimal, you don't want any sagging over the years so pin those buggers! I ran a rod straight through the body from one arm to the next and seated it with JB Quick. Now that all your parts are attached you need to go back in and fill in the seams.
Use whatever filler you like or you're most comfortable working with. I happened to have a couple tubes of Quick Steel on hand so I just used it. Like I said, I wanted this thing practically welded together so I went a little overboard...quick steel is malleable like putty until it sets up.
Now, you do a little body work/clean up and hit it with a coat of primer.
At this point you pick your final finish and have at it. The attraction pieces are finished with a heavy patina over bronze finish...they're very green!
After a quick junk coat of aged bronze:
Aging it down a little more, adding some darker highlights:
More later. I'm having to dig for the damned pics!
Starting with the raw kit: There's nothing really difficult about this build at all. It's just a matter of how sturdy you want it to be. I chose to pin all of the parts except the ears. They're keyed so deeply it's just not necessary.
First thing I decided to do was make this thing bullet proof. I seated the ears with JB Quick. Seams to be filled in later.
I pinned the jaw and attached with JB Quick. Again, we'll take care of the seams later.
Moving on to the feet and arms:
NOTE: Regarding the arms. I consider this the most important part of the build since they have to support the weight of the candles. Although minimal, you don't want any sagging over the years so pin those buggers! I ran a rod straight through the body from one arm to the next and seated it with JB Quick. Now that all your parts are attached you need to go back in and fill in the seams.
Use whatever filler you like or you're most comfortable working with. I happened to have a couple tubes of Quick Steel on hand so I just used it. Like I said, I wanted this thing practically welded together so I went a little overboard...quick steel is malleable like putty until it sets up.
Now, you do a little body work/clean up and hit it with a coat of primer.
At this point you pick your final finish and have at it. The attraction pieces are finished with a heavy patina over bronze finish...they're very green!
After a quick junk coat of aged bronze:
Aging it down a little more, adding some darker highlights:
More later. I'm having to dig for the damned pics!
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