Scratchbuilt Star Wars AT-AT Imperial Walker 1/48

[Moviekits]

Here you have an advance of the first paint layers on the head (using the salt technique) and the work with the 7 led circuits covered with a see-through posterboard. More detailed info in our site http://moviekits.net/star-wars-at-at-148-scratchbuilt-2/

 

[joberg]

Excellent update you guys!! Love the overall look for sure: way cool:cool

 

[LrdSatyr8]

Just found this thread... awesome work on this BTW... Did you know those pistons on the upper legs actually move up and down and aren't static? They are never in the same position on any one of the legs as it's moving and there's actually a couple of shots in the movie where you can see them move up and down independantly of each other. No one else seems to have caught that little detail. The screws in the rectangular shape are holding down the plate that covered the mechanism inside the upper leg for those pistons.

 

[Hunk a Junk]

Did you know those pistons on the upper legs actually move up and down and aren't static?

Another detail I see everyone miss -- and I do mean everyone because I've never seen a build that has ever caught it (except mine :rolleyes) -- is that the "foot" is actually two separate pieces that compress together. The top "drum" connected to the half-circle leg connector compresses into the bottom drum holding the 4 "toes". Watch the shot where the foot stomps on Luke's speeder. The foot is not one solid shape. I'll see if I can post a picture of the feet of my walker build to show you.

 

[MonsieurTox]

Just found this thread... awesome work on this BTW... Did you know those pistons on the upper legs actually move up and down and aren't static? They are never in the same position on any one of the legs as it's moving and there's actually a couple of shots in the movie where you can see them move up and down independantly of each other. No one else seems to have caught that little detail. The screws in the rectangular shape are holding down the plate that covered the mechanism inside the upper leg for those pistons.

This is well known and we've been able to recreate the mechanism built in the original stop mo models (search for vids into the studio scale section).

The pistons are not intented to move independantly, when it happens in the movie that's because the mechanism was broken and they did not want to reshot the whole sequence. They animated the pistons by hand in this case.

The original mechanism allows the pistons to move without having to animate them by hand. When you animate the leg one piston moves up and the other move down. Unfortunatly this is a very delicate and fragile mechanism.

 

[LrdSatyr8]

Another detail I see everyone miss -- and I do mean everyone because I've never seen a build that has ever caught it (except mine :rolleyes) -- is that the "foot" is actually two separate pieces that compress together. The top "drum" connected to the half-circle leg connector compresses into the bottom drum holding the 4 "toes". Watch the shot where the foot stomps on Luke's speeder. The foot is not one solid shape. I'll see if I can post a picture of the feet of my walker build to show you.

I just saw the on another studio scale build here and is what I was talking about... not the foot pistons... they are pistons in the upper leg segment! This is the first time I've ever seen it done outside the movie and am thoroughly impressed!

http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=185284&p=3537587&viewfull=1#post3537587

 

[LrdSatyr8]

This is well known and we've been able to recreate the mechanism built in the original stop mo models (search for vids into the studio scale section).

The pistons are not intented to move independantly, when it happens in the movie that's because the mechanism was broken and they did not want to reshot the whole sequence. They animated the pistons by hand in this case.

The original mechanism allows the pistons to move without having to animate them by hand. When you animate the leg one piston moves up and the other move down. Unfortunatly this is a very delicate and fragile mechanism.

I'd love to see the mechanisms that are involved in doing that... I've read a few interviews with Dykstra about the guy that actually built the hero AT-AT and how he had all those little extra bits that blew them away. But the background AT-ATs they had to build from his first one didn't have them. The video I saw in the post I mentioned above was the first time I've ever seen anyone attempt that same effect of those pistons moving when the leg moves. I know hen I built my MPC AT-AT I noticed it and opted to make each piston in a different position on each leg for added realism. Not many people actually spotted that.

 

[MonsieurTox]

I'd love to see the mechanisms that are involved in doing that... I've read a few interviews with Dykstra about the guy that actually built the hero AT-AT and how he had all those little extra bits that blew them away. But the background AT-ATs they had to build from his first one didn't have them. The video I saw in the post I mentioned above was the first time I've ever seen anyone attempt that same effect of those pistons moving when the leg moves. I know hen I built my MPC AT-AT I noticed it and opted to make each piston in a different position on each leg for added realism. Not many people actually spotted that.

Actually one leg with moving pistons has been made (by me) before the one you posted.

See post #181

http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=139707&page=8&p=3196441&viewfull=1#post3196441

The leg was milled in a rush but this was just a proof of concept.

 

[LrdSatyr8]

Actually one leg with moving pistons has been made (by me) before the one you posted.

See post #181

http://www.therpf.com/showthread.php?t=139707&page=8&p=3196441&viewfull=1#post3196441

The leg was milled in a rush but this was just a proof of concept.

I stand corrected... I bow to the master! That looks awesome... but why just one and not all four?