Basherthrasher
Member
Is there a member,or are there any members who would want a two foot Stormtrooper with vacuum formed armour,and a posable internal armature?
2' foot Stormtrooper doll interest
- Thread starter Basherthrasher
- Start date
firebladejedi
Well-Known Member
Yeah lets see some pics, or mock up pics..
Basherthrasher
Member
I don't have any pics of this,as I'm only trying to guage interest before offering this for sale. I need to see how much for material cost first. The armature will be the most expensive.
I have to figure out if I can make this out of wood,or metal with ball type joints for the hands,and the wrists,and other joints where a lot of manipulation would be desired for posing.
I intend to make a blaster with a metal folding stock,and accurate to the real thing,but I want to vaccum form the armour,which will be highly polished,and I'll make the body stocking from sheer black material cut by hand from a pattern. Finding a skein of the right fabric will be the hardest part other than the armature. I'll attach the armour to the fabric with velcro. The head will be permanently attached to the helmet,but it too will be fully posable.
I don't know about offering a base yet,as I need to see what's available. I hope to sell these dolls in the $200.00 - $225.00 price range for each at the most, if there's enough interest from the forum to justify the costs of such an undertaking. This is only if parts don't cost too much. It all depends on material costs,and if I feel this is a reasonable price for all the variables involved.
The more people I have interested,the more likely I'll do this on a production scale,otherwise I'll just make one. I'll post pics of this,and if interest picks up,then I'll make these for anyone wanting one. I'll post a list,and everyone interested can have their name put on it. When the first doll is done,then I'll let the first person in line buy it,and as each of these is finished the next person after will be notifed,and they can pay for it when they have the money. This should make it easier,and not confusing. I have paypal,so this is convenient for all.
Each of these will have to be exacting in detail,and being hand made will take a little more time,but I hope to give all those interested a taste of what I have to offer. I'm just one person,and I only have a limited access to power tools,so these will have to be made,and assembled one at a time with love,instead of dollar signs in my eyes like a lot of other vendors do.
I have to figure out if I can make this out of wood,or metal with ball type joints for the hands,and the wrists,and other joints where a lot of manipulation would be desired for posing.
I intend to make a blaster with a metal folding stock,and accurate to the real thing,but I want to vaccum form the armour,which will be highly polished,and I'll make the body stocking from sheer black material cut by hand from a pattern. Finding a skein of the right fabric will be the hardest part other than the armature. I'll attach the armour to the fabric with velcro. The head will be permanently attached to the helmet,but it too will be fully posable.
I don't know about offering a base yet,as I need to see what's available. I hope to sell these dolls in the $200.00 - $225.00 price range for each at the most, if there's enough interest from the forum to justify the costs of such an undertaking. This is only if parts don't cost too much. It all depends on material costs,and if I feel this is a reasonable price for all the variables involved.
The more people I have interested,the more likely I'll do this on a production scale,otherwise I'll just make one. I'll post pics of this,and if interest picks up,then I'll make these for anyone wanting one. I'll post a list,and everyone interested can have their name put on it. When the first doll is done,then I'll let the first person in line buy it,and as each of these is finished the next person after will be notifed,and they can pay for it when they have the money. This should make it easier,and not confusing. I have paypal,so this is convenient for all.
Each of these will have to be exacting in detail,and being hand made will take a little more time,but I hope to give all those interested a taste of what I have to offer. I'm just one person,and I only have a limited access to power tools,so these will have to be made,and assembled one at a time with love,instead of dollar signs in my eyes like a lot of other vendors do.
Basherthrasher
Member
Ok,I see I wasn't too explanatory. I'm thinking of making an armature out of styrene sheet formed to fit the natural shape of the body,but with a steel internal skeleton. I don't think that would be strong enough,so I might use urethane resin instead of vac-formed styrene,but still with the same body shape. This way it'll look like real suit of armour on an actual person,instead of a cheaply made doll. What this means is,this will have an armature in it with a cast resin body form with a removable black fabric bodysuit over it. The armour will be attached to the outside of the body suit with velcro. This will make for a more convincing look than just a skinny little figure inside a suit of armour.
I have the original stormtrooper doll from '77,the one made in 1997,and the one made 2004. This will be nothing like them! I want to make the armour from polished sheet styrene,so these won't need to be painted all over. These will have a blaster made from aluminum tubing,and correct lenses in the helmet. I have photos for comparison for those who worry about accuracy. I just have a few projects ahead of this that I need to finish for other people first,then I'll make a prototype.
I need feedback from all those interested:
I can make the hands articulated,but I can't make gloves small enough to cover these,and not have them interfere with movement. I'd make joints in the fingers,but these will be visible. I'm thinking about just making the hands so that they're already posed like the Screamin' brand stormtrooper. I'd like to have these ambidexterous for all those who want to change it up. The first stormtroopers were all holding their blasters in their left hand,so I thought about making them left handed,but I want to leave this up to the buyer to decide. I only thought about this because the holster is on the left side. This is because of the clip making it impossible to wear on the right hip.
Also,I need to find leather that is thin enough to make the holsters from. I've been thinking about a base,but I want to make the legs posable,so I'd have to make them strong,and tight enough that they don't work loose with repeated use. I want to put holes in the heels of each doll. The holes would be like the original stormtrooper action figure - this would be for a base attachment. I even considered making two sets of heels - one with holes in the bottom for standing at attention,and one for kneeling poses. This is so these can be changed out if you want to position the trooper kneeling without a notable hole in the sole of the boot.
I'll make the body suit underneath the armour from fabric similar to the wetsuits they originally used. And,I want to make the accessory belts out styrene with a fabric backing so that they snap together like the actual suits of the movie. All this armour will be removable,except the helmet,so that the internal armature can be repaired,or replaced if needed. I might make it so that the helmet can come off the head,but I don't know why anyone would want to,unless you had someone sculpt Han Solos' head, Luke's head,or even your own head on the doll. This is something that I'm considering right now,but I need input from all of you on this idea,as I haven't truly decided yet. I'll make the head removable,but I want to secure it to the helmet with velcro if no one wants the head permanently attached to it.
The armour pieces on the hands will be glued on separately,so that there will be no colour varience between the armour,and these. The rest of the hands will be resin cast in black. I'll only paint these with a satin,or rubberised coating if the resin comes out looking too shiny. All the helmets will have decals for the decorative parts,but the airators,and the black center piece between them,as well as the gray part of the frown will be painted. The black part of the frown will have a thin piece of fabric glued behind it instead of being painted. This will make it look a lot more realistic. I'll see if there is a chrome,or aluminum foil for the bomb looking part on the back of the belt. I want realism,and accuracy. I just need to find the correct materials for it.
All this will make it a little harder to complete these,but I feel it'll make for a more enjoyable figure,and one that I hope will become a family heirloom,or collectors' piece for generations to come. I've thought long,and hard about this,so once I have one made - the time involved,as well as materials along with the interest will decide the ultimate price. I might make twenty of these,and I might only make ten. It just depends how many people are interested,and lay their money down for one. The more people I have interested in this,the less these might cost. I can get materials in bulk cheaper than I can for just a few,so keep this in mind people - more members interested = smaller price tags. I wish I could make each of these for $150.00,but right now with just me doing this by myself,I don't see that happening,as there's a lot of hand work to be done. Just wait until I get the prototype made,and I'll decide a starting price then.
All feedback,questions,and suggestions are welcome!
I have the original stormtrooper doll from '77,the one made in 1997,and the one made 2004. This will be nothing like them! I want to make the armour from polished sheet styrene,so these won't need to be painted all over. These will have a blaster made from aluminum tubing,and correct lenses in the helmet. I have photos for comparison for those who worry about accuracy. I just have a few projects ahead of this that I need to finish for other people first,then I'll make a prototype.
I need feedback from all those interested:
I can make the hands articulated,but I can't make gloves small enough to cover these,and not have them interfere with movement. I'd make joints in the fingers,but these will be visible. I'm thinking about just making the hands so that they're already posed like the Screamin' brand stormtrooper. I'd like to have these ambidexterous for all those who want to change it up. The first stormtroopers were all holding their blasters in their left hand,so I thought about making them left handed,but I want to leave this up to the buyer to decide. I only thought about this because the holster is on the left side. This is because of the clip making it impossible to wear on the right hip.
Also,I need to find leather that is thin enough to make the holsters from. I've been thinking about a base,but I want to make the legs posable,so I'd have to make them strong,and tight enough that they don't work loose with repeated use. I want to put holes in the heels of each doll. The holes would be like the original stormtrooper action figure - this would be for a base attachment. I even considered making two sets of heels - one with holes in the bottom for standing at attention,and one for kneeling poses. This is so these can be changed out if you want to position the trooper kneeling without a notable hole in the sole of the boot.
I'll make the body suit underneath the armour from fabric similar to the wetsuits they originally used. And,I want to make the accessory belts out styrene with a fabric backing so that they snap together like the actual suits of the movie. All this armour will be removable,except the helmet,so that the internal armature can be repaired,or replaced if needed. I might make it so that the helmet can come off the head,but I don't know why anyone would want to,unless you had someone sculpt Han Solos' head, Luke's head,or even your own head on the doll. This is something that I'm considering right now,but I need input from all of you on this idea,as I haven't truly decided yet. I'll make the head removable,but I want to secure it to the helmet with velcro if no one wants the head permanently attached to it.
The armour pieces on the hands will be glued on separately,so that there will be no colour varience between the armour,and these. The rest of the hands will be resin cast in black. I'll only paint these with a satin,or rubberised coating if the resin comes out looking too shiny. All the helmets will have decals for the decorative parts,but the airators,and the black center piece between them,as well as the gray part of the frown will be painted. The black part of the frown will have a thin piece of fabric glued behind it instead of being painted. This will make it look a lot more realistic. I'll see if there is a chrome,or aluminum foil for the bomb looking part on the back of the belt. I want realism,and accuracy. I just need to find the correct materials for it.
All this will make it a little harder to complete these,but I feel it'll make for a more enjoyable figure,and one that I hope will become a family heirloom,or collectors' piece for generations to come. I've thought long,and hard about this,so once I have one made - the time involved,as well as materials along with the interest will decide the ultimate price. I might make twenty of these,and I might only make ten. It just depends how many people are interested,and lay their money down for one. The more people I have interested in this,the less these might cost. I can get materials in bulk cheaper than I can for just a few,so keep this in mind people - more members interested = smaller price tags. I wish I could make each of these for $150.00,but right now with just me doing this by myself,I don't see that happening,as there's a lot of hand work to be done. Just wait until I get the prototype made,and I'll decide a starting price then.
All feedback,questions,and suggestions are welcome!
