leiter22
Well-Known Member
Okay!! Now that I have your attention (hopefully :lol).
As many BOTB brothers and The Cave dwellers know, I produced a handful of belts from KBillan's original V3 molds a while back. For those who don’t know, he has been THE Nolan belt guy for longer than I’ve been in the hobby (5 plus years). When the molds crapped out, I set off to remaster the parts. *Unsatisfied with the results, a bit frustrated and certainly deflated, I put the project aside.
Well, my passion and love for the "Nolan trilogy belt" has come out of hibernation! In my opinion it is the second most important part of the suit, next to the cowl, and is the best belt to be seen in a Batman film yet! Technical enough to be believable, yet strangely elegant. Not over simplified like the 89 and returns belt, nor ornamental like the Schumacher belt.
I am now finished remastering the parts, and they are being molded in the next week. A list if the changes I've made are as follows:
• Removed most if not all of the "primer" texture and milling marks finishing all parts, except the gears and bezel which are semi-gloss, in a smooth flat.
• Replaced Keith's old center dial with a new accurate version.
• Separated the top and bottom gears from the bezel creating a more polished look (It”s my feeling that in a hero belt, all parts should be individually cast then assembled).
• Separated the rails from the back links and enhanced the "brushed metal" texture on all rails.
• Cold casting of the rails in aluminum rather than simply pigmenting or painting them.
• I have done countless hours in research comparing dozens of high-res images, testing countless pigments, and consulting with folks who helped in the production of and have handled the real hero belts to achieve the most accurate colors for both versions as I possibly can. *I am a photographer by profession and am very confident in my abilities to judge and match colors under different lighting conditions. *I also know the little (and big ...LOL) tricks light can play.
• Finally, my Begins and TDK/R versions will be different. *I'm not disclosing all of the differences, but although subtle, they are crucial in achieving the look and fit for the desired hero suit.
And I haven't forgotten about the accessories either. Before any belts will be offered for trade, I will have full sets of accessories ready to go. *In fact, in the next month or so I will be 3d printing all the main accessories as well as rail cars for Begins, carriers and back plate/cover for TDK/R, bolt arrow (only seen in production stills of the TDK cage), shuriken batarangs, folding “thrower” rangs and the little recognized “concussion” batarang. *They are being printed directly from "Capetown" renderings of the belt, so they will be as close to accurate as possible.
I will be updating this thread with progress and images, and a trade thread will follow when everything is all set.
Thanks for looking....Cheers!!
Johann
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