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Limited Run 'Major's Thermoptic Pistol' (2017) Ghost in the Shell
- Thread starter RebelCityProps
- Start date
The last stretch is in sight at long last for the Thermoptic Pistols! The final bits of casting i have left to do are the smallest pieces of the build that make up the front bullet chamber details, circle details for the grip and what i can only assume are the safety catch pieces.
To streamline this process a bit a measured out the resin I would need for each set of castings into these little cups. ( side note: if you ever get pizza delivered, wash and save the dip pots, they are amazingly handy for little jobs like this.)
I prepared these little molds with the tried and tested method of a light dusting of Talcum Powder to help pull the resin into all of the small cracks. This technique is great for larger projects like slush casting helmets, but it works very well for tiny piece's such as these. The molds are also sitting on a silicone mat i made to help catch any resin runoff.
With the 2 parts of the resin mixed together I then poured these onto the molds. At this stage i would suggest quickly running a tooth pick around the inside edges of the cavities to help dislodge any small air bubbles the may be sitting on the surface.
Now since these are very tiny pieces, sanding the back of these smooth would be fairly difficult, and would most likely result in losing a couple to the workshop floor, never to be seen again. To combat this, i run a small piece of cut plastic carefully over the top of each mold to remove any excess resin and leave a clean and level back to each part. This really helps limit any cleanup that would be required later on.
With the pieces cast, I would clear off any of the flashing around the edges and use a diamond file where necessary and then set each one aside. In the end I repeated this stage a lot... in total there are 157 separately cast parts that make up these details, when assembled an including all the other parts of the guns, there will have been 209 separate pieces made that make up these 11 pistols...
Once all of these are done, It was time for paint. To make sure these things don't fly off when I'm trying to do this, I placed down strips of double sided tape to some off cuts of MDF and he added the parts to the. the tack of the tap will keep everything in place while painting but will allow me to easily remove these parts once they are dry.
As always, I start with a few thin lays of primer fed through an airbrush. I've gotten into the habit of washing parts after the primer has set just to remove any oils that may be festering on the surface.
For the safety catches I add a simple black coat of paint that will dry matte ( it looks glossy in the photo )
For the chamber and grip details I used what seems to be the darling of the "chrome at home" movement right now ' Molotow Liquid Chrome'. Now I do admit for larger pieces, this stuff is probably not the way to go, but for small detailed parts such as these that are accents to a piece, this is where this stuff really shines. (Pardon the Pun)
If you want to know more about this stuff, check out this thread: https://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=272691&highlight=molotow
It's a great place to get all your questions answered and to see how people have experimented with it to get the most out of it.
As for this build, next up comes the most critical stage for me, the clear coat. I've spent more time than anything on this build researching into the best one to use, for this type of resin and the best techniques for applying, for when this stage is complete, all that will be left is the final painting and application of the small bits I've made here. So so close to the end now!
To streamline this process a bit a measured out the resin I would need for each set of castings into these little cups. ( side note: if you ever get pizza delivered, wash and save the dip pots, they are amazingly handy for little jobs like this.)
I prepared these little molds with the tried and tested method of a light dusting of Talcum Powder to help pull the resin into all of the small cracks. This technique is great for larger projects like slush casting helmets, but it works very well for tiny piece's such as these. The molds are also sitting on a silicone mat i made to help catch any resin runoff.
With the 2 parts of the resin mixed together I then poured these onto the molds. At this stage i would suggest quickly running a tooth pick around the inside edges of the cavities to help dislodge any small air bubbles the may be sitting on the surface.
Now since these are very tiny pieces, sanding the back of these smooth would be fairly difficult, and would most likely result in losing a couple to the workshop floor, never to be seen again. To combat this, i run a small piece of cut plastic carefully over the top of each mold to remove any excess resin and leave a clean and level back to each part. This really helps limit any cleanup that would be required later on.
With the pieces cast, I would clear off any of the flashing around the edges and use a diamond file where necessary and then set each one aside. In the end I repeated this stage a lot... in total there are 157 separately cast parts that make up these details, when assembled an including all the other parts of the guns, there will have been 209 separate pieces made that make up these 11 pistols...
Once all of these are done, It was time for paint. To make sure these things don't fly off when I'm trying to do this, I placed down strips of double sided tape to some off cuts of MDF and he added the parts to the. the tack of the tap will keep everything in place while painting but will allow me to easily remove these parts once they are dry.
As always, I start with a few thin lays of primer fed through an airbrush. I've gotten into the habit of washing parts after the primer has set just to remove any oils that may be festering on the surface.
For the safety catches I add a simple black coat of paint that will dry matte ( it looks glossy in the photo )
For the chamber and grip details I used what seems to be the darling of the "chrome at home" movement right now ' Molotow Liquid Chrome'. Now I do admit for larger pieces, this stuff is probably not the way to go, but for small detailed parts such as these that are accents to a piece, this is where this stuff really shines. (Pardon the Pun)
If you want to know more about this stuff, check out this thread: https://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=272691&highlight=molotow
It's a great place to get all your questions answered and to see how people have experimented with it to get the most out of it.
As for this build, next up comes the most critical stage for me, the clear coat. I've spent more time than anything on this build researching into the best one to use, for this type of resin and the best techniques for applying, for when this stage is complete, all that will be left is the final painting and application of the small bits I've made here. So so close to the end now!
Last edited:
foxbatkllr
Sr Member
Awesome update! Last weekend I prepped a GITS display area with a spot for it!
apocalyptickids
New Member
Payment sent for me 
let me know if you get it. Thanks. Oh and the address is for the USA lol.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
let me know if you get it. Thanks. Oh and the address is for the USA lol.Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
Hello there everyone, before I start with the main update I just want to address a few things. Firstly, i'm aware that I stated that i was hoping to finish these pistols by the end of January and as you may have gathered, that date has been and gone, for that I deeply apologize. Making these guns has been an abject lesson in how time consuming a build can be when you are basically having to learn new techniques/materials/equipment on the job. I'm very used to working with resins, but clear resin (as I have found out the hard way) has a well earned reputation for being very difficult to work with.
Please don't think I've taken these delays lightly, on the contrary, its been on my mind this whole process, and especially recently. In the last few weeks I've had at least 3 anxiety attacks because of the stress of maybe messing up and ruining all the hard work, for being late and for damaging a reputation i'm only starting to build here with those who have trusted me with their hard earned money to make these beautiful things for you. This is not how i like to conduct myself, i totally understand the need to be held accountable for these delays too, but please believe when i say, that while the stress has been a heavy weight on my mind (and health), I hope you will understand that the time that has been taken was well spent when you receive your finished items.
If you are angry at me, that's fine, you have every right to be, but I want you all to understand that things like these delays are not something i'm brushing off or that i don't care, I do and to that end, when this build is all said and done i'm going to be taking progressive steps to no only make sure this doesn't happen on this scale again but come up with a creative way to be able to keep people up to date via posts/video build streams on a more regular basis.
Thank you.
Okay, now for an update.
The fronts of the guns had to have the chamber wholes drilled in, not too far, only an inch or so to simulate the exit hole for the bullet. (pardon my lack of knowledge of the correct names for these parts of a gun) To drill out the areas, they had to be precise so i made a center hole template (Image 1) so i could quickly and accurately mark out where the center of the chamber is. Secondly I marked the center point (Image 2) followed by then drilling a pilot hole (Image 3) to help guide the larger drill bit that completes the chamber hole (Image 4).
With this complete across all 11 guns it is now time for finally beginning the painting process. Now the easiest way to do this would have been to clear coat over the top of these and then start painting the grips. This has a few drawbacks, at least as of right now. I've not used the particular type of 2K clear before, and such I'm worried that if i mask over the top of the glossy clear and then paint the grips, when it comes time to peel it off, is the tape going to damage the surface underneath like it would with say a lacquer. Since this is not a mistake i wanted to risk making (especially across all 11 guns) i inverted the process and masked off all of the guns to paint the grips first, and then would invert the process and to the clear. This was the more time consuming option but left the fewest options for risk of the clear finish, which I ended up experimenting with some dead casts after this.
With everything masked it was time to paint, i used a very strong black primer as the base for these, namely because on all of the reference images that could be found the general look of these sections show that the interiors are black, i'm guessing the studio did this to help create an interior contrast of the gun during close shots, and as I've found, it seems to help create distinct contrast tones in the clear resin for smaller details on the sides and trigger sections.
For the Grips i mixed together a custom paint that i measured out so it can be replicated, using white automotive primer as a base to create a hard wearing finish, I then added some 24 carrot gold pigment dye drop by drop, this creates the perfect tone that these guns have, not to bright, not too rich in colour, but futuristic synthetic looking. I can see why they used this over something like just a plain white.
Next up came actually applying this paint to guns themselves. I originally started off by spraying this through my Iwata Revolution CR, but it's stream was just too small and it would just be even more time consuming doing all these guns layer by layer, so ultimately i had to acquire a larger spray gun the fitted to my main shop compressor, much faster.
Finally, its time to peel off that masking tape and get my first proper look and the almost completed guns... even without the clear coat or the final detail pieces in place, this thing looks so so good in person, i hope it comes across in the picture. The grip colour and finish is spot on, i couldn't be happier. I've now got to invert the making tape and get the areas ready for the clear coat and then final detail work,but we are finally nearly there!
Once again,i just want to say sorry this has taken as long as it has, but I thank you all for your continued patience and support, i hope you can see that the time has been ultimately put towards something worth the effort that been put into it.
I'll be back very soon with the next update, just need too mask up the 11 guns get ready for clear coat and most likely have another anxiety attack in the process because honestly the clear coat is scaring me to death. Fingers crossed...
Please don't think I've taken these delays lightly, on the contrary, its been on my mind this whole process, and especially recently. In the last few weeks I've had at least 3 anxiety attacks because of the stress of maybe messing up and ruining all the hard work, for being late and for damaging a reputation i'm only starting to build here with those who have trusted me with their hard earned money to make these beautiful things for you. This is not how i like to conduct myself, i totally understand the need to be held accountable for these delays too, but please believe when i say, that while the stress has been a heavy weight on my mind (and health), I hope you will understand that the time that has been taken was well spent when you receive your finished items.
If you are angry at me, that's fine, you have every right to be, but I want you all to understand that things like these delays are not something i'm brushing off or that i don't care, I do and to that end, when this build is all said and done i'm going to be taking progressive steps to no only make sure this doesn't happen on this scale again but come up with a creative way to be able to keep people up to date via posts/video build streams on a more regular basis.
Thank you.
Okay, now for an update.
The fronts of the guns had to have the chamber wholes drilled in, not too far, only an inch or so to simulate the exit hole for the bullet. (pardon my lack of knowledge of the correct names for these parts of a gun) To drill out the areas, they had to be precise so i made a center hole template (Image 1) so i could quickly and accurately mark out where the center of the chamber is. Secondly I marked the center point (Image 2) followed by then drilling a pilot hole (Image 3) to help guide the larger drill bit that completes the chamber hole (Image 4).
With this complete across all 11 guns it is now time for finally beginning the painting process. Now the easiest way to do this would have been to clear coat over the top of these and then start painting the grips. This has a few drawbacks, at least as of right now. I've not used the particular type of 2K clear before, and such I'm worried that if i mask over the top of the glossy clear and then paint the grips, when it comes time to peel it off, is the tape going to damage the surface underneath like it would with say a lacquer. Since this is not a mistake i wanted to risk making (especially across all 11 guns) i inverted the process and masked off all of the guns to paint the grips first, and then would invert the process and to the clear. This was the more time consuming option but left the fewest options for risk of the clear finish, which I ended up experimenting with some dead casts after this.
With everything masked it was time to paint, i used a very strong black primer as the base for these, namely because on all of the reference images that could be found the general look of these sections show that the interiors are black, i'm guessing the studio did this to help create an interior contrast of the gun during close shots, and as I've found, it seems to help create distinct contrast tones in the clear resin for smaller details on the sides and trigger sections.
For the Grips i mixed together a custom paint that i measured out so it can be replicated, using white automotive primer as a base to create a hard wearing finish, I then added some 24 carrot gold pigment dye drop by drop, this creates the perfect tone that these guns have, not to bright, not too rich in colour, but futuristic synthetic looking. I can see why they used this over something like just a plain white.
Next up came actually applying this paint to guns themselves. I originally started off by spraying this through my Iwata Revolution CR, but it's stream was just too small and it would just be even more time consuming doing all these guns layer by layer, so ultimately i had to acquire a larger spray gun the fitted to my main shop compressor, much faster.
Finally, its time to peel off that masking tape and get my first proper look and the almost completed guns... even without the clear coat or the final detail pieces in place, this thing looks so so good in person, i hope it comes across in the picture. The grip colour and finish is spot on, i couldn't be happier. I've now got to invert the making tape and get the areas ready for the clear coat and then final detail work,but we are finally nearly there!
Once again,i just want to say sorry this has taken as long as it has, but I thank you all for your continued patience and support, i hope you can see that the time has been ultimately put towards something worth the effort that been put into it.
I'll be back very soon with the next update, just need too mask up the 11 guns get ready for clear coat and most likely have another anxiety attack in the process because honestly the clear coat is scaring me to death. Fingers crossed...
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Hey Jay, again I'm not part of the run but have been following you since your first post on that gun. I'm very sorry you are having health issues because of that. I'm sorry that people are always pressuring the guys doing runs like that especially when they clearly are doing updates from time to time and are showing that they are working extremely hard to deliver a nice job.
I hope you'll be able to feel confident in doing a second run and would like to be part of this one.
keep up the great work :thumbsup
I hope you'll be able to feel confident in doing a second run and would like to be part of this one.
keep up the great work :thumbsup
Sam Lowry
Well-Known Member
Jay, I know what its like to suffer panic attacks and they are no joke. Like others have said your health comes first. You've done amazing work on these guns so far and I have every confidence we'll be floored when they are finished. Hell, I'm already floored. I too hope you continue with your second run as I'm on that list. Take care.
pcenginefx
New Member
Again, thank you for the wonderful updates - and as others have commented, please take care of yourself during the process! Also hope to see a 2nd run as I'm still 100% down for it.
apocalyptickids
New Member
Hey Jay, just wanted to make sure I am marked off as payed... Sent you my payment on Feb 7 and left the details in the PayPal transaction, email was: kharl***v at gmail dot com, obfuscated.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
obfuscated.Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
el toro
Sr Member
This first run closed sometime last year, and Jay's been compiling a list for the second run, which is to occur later this year after the first run is completed. There's a list for the second run on the first post of this thread. According to the list, you're confirmed for the second run.
apocalyptickids
New Member
yeah I just want to make sure I am marked off as payed
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
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