Studio Series Devastation Optimus Prime

OG is totally uninspiring

I wasn't impressed with when first I saw the pictures. The figure is lanky, no fuel tanks on the legs, the truck mode is too long, no mandatory blaster, the axe... is that even an axe? The trailer hitch is too long. Only the windows are nicely painted. That's the only good thing about this figure. 

I passed on it serveral times when I saw it on display. It looks pretty bad in person. 

Then one day I thought, why don't I get this figure to try cell shading the figure? There are lots of pics on the web on beautiful cell shaded Macross figures and Gundams. These looks so professionally done using airbrush. Then there are some who used paint markers.... wait! Cheap paint markers can do cell shading too? Hey! I could very well try that too! 

So I started watching some YouTube vids, downloading some pics of cell shaded optimus primes. Some were great, some seemed over the top (to me). Now the vids convince me cell shading is doable and I went off to get paint markers.... silver, grey, pink, light blue, white....

The shading of Prime's mask took a leapt of faith on the whites and blacks

White paint always hates me

Lots of trial and error, cleaning up with CIF (did I mention it removes ANYthing?). Then try again, then cleaning it off and redoing. 

Adding streaks of pink to Optimus

Finally touching up the cab and the borrowed gun

Robot mode

Truck mode

Waste of plastic of an axe

Lots of mistakes were made in this project. Paint markers can never be compared with an airbrush, the painted surface will be uneven and unrefined. The main thing is I have had fun!

Legacy United Thundertron

Time flies! I have not been posting since 2017?!

Ah Thundertron. I have no idea who he is, A quick search reveals he is a merciless peg-legged space pirate. Cool! 

Merciless Space Pirate Mode - Arrrrrrr... complete with a gold-rimmed Hat.

His alternate mode looks like a shield liger and I wanted to see if I can mod the lion head to be able to move left and right like the kotobukiya wild liger. 

Source: https://www.gundam.co.nz/product/1-35-zoids-wild-liger-by-kotobukiya/

The pins of the Thundertron is fixed such that the head can only look ahead, without lateral articulation . To have neck articulation, I would have to remove the pins at the head and neck joints and the thin white plastic would definitely break. Oh well, as it is, he looks great with lots of detailing. He is just lacking in paint, which is easily fixed by paint markers and some minor panel lining. 

Wild Liger Mode

Robot Mode

His gigantic 80's shoulder pads do limit his arm movements unless you move them away. He has no waist articulation and wrist articulation is hampered by his fixed wrist claws. All in all, he can pull off decent poses. I got him for his liger mode, his robot mode is ok. And he looks great for a space pirate --ARRR.... complete with a gold-rimmed Hat.