Post Your Custom Micro Machines Here

[darth_sidious]

Since we have custom threads based on AF and Titaniums, I thought we should include MM and WOTC customs. There were several threads about custom micros, but all the image links were dead - so this is the new official thread.

I'll start it off with my custom Gladiator Class Star Destroyer. It was used by Admiral Screed in the Droids cartoon series, I tried to match the animated colors they used in the series:

Reference shot:

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/File:Screed's_starship.jpg

 

[Unreality]

That's pretty cool. I actually like your version better than the cartoon one, which looks a little fat to me.

 

[darth_sidious]

Thanks - I'd really like to see everyones work here, so please feel free to post your micro machines and WOTC customs!

 

[Unreality]

Here are a few of mine. These are really old, but they are what got me into customizing in the first place.



From L-R: Corellian Gunship, AT-AR (comics), Droid Bomber (Clone Wars PS2 game), Jodo Kast's Shuttle, Kamino Enforcer, I-7 Howlrunner, TIE Phantom, TIE Experimental x1, TIE Crawler, E-wing, Concept Cloud Car, and basic Falcon for scale.

Here are two Revell mini-kits repainted (MTT and Landing Craft), as well as the Hallmark Droid Control Ship next to an MM Falcon.

 

[darth_sidious]

Very cool selection of EU ships - as well as some really interesting use of parts. The great thing about customs is that we can really expand into the EU or our own creations, and cover ground Micro Machines never touched.

 

[cwquest]

most of these have been posted before but anyway...

212th attack battalion

BX commando droids

ARC Troopers

Super Battle Droids

Quinlan Vos, Anakin, Yoda, obiwan, ki adi mundi, mace

jango, corran horn, kota, jerec, luke

Pre Vizsla, Magna guards, cad bane

 

[Antilles01]

Awesome! Those are great custom micro machines! How did you make them?

 

[Imrahil2001]

Technically this is both a Titanium custom and a DA custom, but since DA isn't going to make the Landing Craft, and the Titanium one is pretty nice (and comparably sized) I thought I'd used my Jedi Starfighter case/stand to make this:



And the background I used, knocked together in Photoshop:


I also switched out the X-Wing's background to make it a bit less boring:

 

[Unreality]

Nice job. I love the new backgrounds...they add a lot.

 

[Strikefoil]

Cool customs.

 

[SICQNUS]

Custom Micro-Machines X-Ray Fleet made in 2003.

 

[Darth_Duranium]

Wow... cool stuff! Those are hand-painted X-ray Fleet ships in there? Nice job! Do you know who made it?

 

[SICQNUS]

I made this set as an April' Fools in 2003. The card was made using Illustrator and Photoshop.

 

[darth_sidious]

I just finished up a custom Tie Crawler micro - its even smaller than a normal micro (which you can see next to it for scale) - its maybe more in scale to the WOTC line, since those Tie Fighters were a bit smaller. It was a pain to paint those tiny windows - but here she is:

 

[Darth_Duranium]

Holy crap, dude! Are you using a scanning electron microscope to make those things? That sucka is teeny!

Looks great... especially the tank treads. Nice job!

 

[darth_sidious]

Haha - yes, I used tiny tiny tools to build it!

In an effort to expand my Rebel fleet, I decided to put together a couple of Rebel Assault Frigates - for one of them, I used a similar design to something I saw in a comic, and the other I just pulled from my imagination - both use the Nebulon MM as the base:

 

[darth_sidious]

[Time to wake this thread up!]

I wanted to try building an oddball ship that others havent done, so I went with the Clone Wars Stealth Ship as an expansion to the WOTC: SSB game. I built it based on what I remembered from the episode, so I used my imagination as well. Its designed for a crew of less than a dozen, and like you can see in the pictures below, its about the size of a Republic Frigate, and it can dock inside a Venator Class Republic Cruiser as well.

 

[Darth_Enigma]

nice work DS! I really like the Clone Wars stealth ship. and here's some MM custums I found on Ebay over the years.

 

[Unreality]

Nice job with the stealth ship. Makes me wish Galoob was still around every time I see new customs.

 

[darth_sidious]

Thanks guys, I wish Galoob was still around as well. The SSB game minis were probably as close as we'll get to seeing micros again, but I hope that changes. I'd love to see more customs - if Galoob isnt around to make them, we can do it ourselves!

 

[Darth_Duranium]

Very nice, DS! Looks perfectly suited for a stealthy Republic raid. Good lines and a sweet precision paintjob, too.

Is that the TS Republic Cruiser with it? If so, it could be considered a Titanium custom, too.

Reminds me of the Phoenix warp ship from Star Trek: First Contact, minus its nacelles.
Maybe a little Discovery from 2001:ASO in there, too. A nice pedigree, IMO.

Agreed guys, customs rock! I'm always stoked to see imagination realised in 3 dimensions.

 

[darth_sidious]

Thanks DD, thats the WOTC / SSB miniature, not the Titanium version. I love making additions to the SSB game as well...

 

[Darth_Duranium]

Hehe DS... without scale, it's hard to tell the Galoob, Titanium, SSB, and AF Republic Cruiser apart! They're all pretty frickin' similar, eh?
Well even so, your stealth ship is long enough to count as a Titanium.

So what's next on your custom list? I probably won't get going again 'til the Fall. Thinkin' about an E-Wing now that DA dropped the ball...

 

[darth_sidious]

Here is my latest project, an expansion to the SSB line - I slapped together a Republic Frigate. I added a forward gun right above the bridge, larger ones with gunner bubbles on port and starboard, and finally removed the communications cluster and added a tail gun. I also did some repainting, but I didnt follow the pattern widely used, instead I opted for my own design:

 

[Tyranusspotting]

Excellent custom, darth_sidious!

 

[darth_sidious]

Excellent custom, darth_sidious!

Thanks a lot Tyranusspotting! Is anyone else working on SSB customs or MM to go with the game?

 

[Darth_Duranium]

Nice custom once again, DS! Very Clone Wars frigat-y but unique in its own way.

I've never played SSB even once but I've got a lot of ships from that set. Is the game fun?
The gaming guys at the store asked me about the rules and were surprised that (1) I couldn't respond and (2) I bought the ships for other evil purposes.
BTW, I've got an SSB poster, gameboard etc. if you want them, DS. Cover postage and they're yours.

As for me, I've only got a few things on the bench right now and they're Titanium-scale.

 

[darth_sidious]

Thanks DD, its a fun game - I actually have 2 starters, so I have multiples of those materials already, but thanks for the offer. I consider the SSB ships sort of an expansion to the MM we already have, so I know what you mean - they are collectibles before game pieces for me too.

 

[Unreality]

I like that DS. In fact, I kinda like the markings and the guns better than the Clone Wars version. I especially like the black dots that look like gunner cockpits on the side guns.

Nothing new for MM on my bench, but I've got plenty of AF-sized customs planned. I might actually get to them someday.

 

[darth_sidious]

Thanks Unreality, I was trying to make the side guns look similar to the tail gun on the CW Y-Wing that has a gunner bubble, I always thought it was a cool design.

 

[Darkmatt]

Quick question : what type of material (paint, brushes, cleaner, green paste) do you use in order to customize the MMs ?

I would like to do some repaints on some models (green & blue A-Wing, blue Cloud Car, red & blue Y-Wing, 181st TIEs and so on) but I have close to no info on this.

And since I'm here : is it hard to cast a mold in silicone from a MM model ? I mean, if I wanted to do resin models for myself, would it be hard and expensive, or could I do that with a minimum effort and for a cheap price ? Did anyone try that ? What would be the procedure ?

 

[Darth_Duranium]

Welcome to the forum, Matt. Our buddy Sicqnus is based in Paris, so you're in good company.
For painting info, check out Unreality's AF site. C'est formidable, monsieur.
Techniques

 

[Unreality]

Thanks Duranium for the props.

Welcome Matt. I think my website should have just about everything on painting, etc. for you. If you have any questions, please ask. We usually don't bite.

As for resin casting, it shouldn't be too hard to do. Basic resin starting sets are around $50. Now, I haven't had much experience with resin casting, but here's a website that has a quick rundown of resin casting

Obviously, MM's are a little complex and you can't really take them apart to mold upper and lower hulls. My bet would be to do a 2 part/2 sided/clamshell mold. This is where you encase half of the model in simple clay putty (say the lower half of an A-wing lengthwise horizontally). Then you pour in your mold rubber (making sure to add 2 holes on one end for pouring resin and air escaping). Then you peel the putty off (but leave the model in the rubber). Then pour another batch of rubber onto the model. This will give you a 2 sided mold that can recreate the original with just a slight seam line along the edges. Search google for 2 part molds for a better explanation/pics. And check out this website I quickly searched.

 

[Antilles01]

I made some 2 part molds of a MM figure as a test for my custom figures, and although it does take some effort and know-how, you can do it fairly easily, with good results. I began fresh with a starter kit from Alumilite. It's $30, so not too expensive. The only bad thing about this kit is you need to buy a bottle of rubber-to-rubber mold release so the two rubber halves dont fuse when you pour them (dont be like me and use the wrong mold release, it has to be the one alumilite sells for rubber-to-rubber release) and you also need to have a digital scale to measure weight ratios when mixing rubber. Like Unreality said, read a lot of tutorials to get the principles and process down.

 

[Darkmatt]

Thanks a lot for the replies !

Darth_Duranium : Thanks for Unreality's website link, and I didn't know about Sicqnus living in Paris. I know him a bit thanks to his messages here and on other websites.

Unreality : your website is really interesting, I've been looking at your models but had not yet seen the techniques pages, and I have to say I should have paid more attention. I will take a closer look at this, and may come back with a few questions. Thanks also for the links.

Antilles01 : Thanks for the info, I will have a look at that.

I only need to figure out where I can find all these tools and products around my place, but it shouldn't be too difficult.

Thanks again !

 

[darth_sidious]

Here is my MM / WOTC combo custom - Admiral Screeds shuttle from the Droids cartoon:

 

[Darth_Duranium]

Nice, DS. Looks like a seriously armoured dropship.

 

[darth_sidious]

Thanks DD, its a cool little transport - I wish they used it in the CW cartoon or something. I'd love a Titanium of it and a few others from the Droids series.

 

[Unreality]

I never watched the Droids show, but that design is pretty neat....definitely fits the SW universe. Nice job.

 

[Darkmatt]

I finally was able to work on some custom MM. I realize it's been more than 2 years since I first started gathering info about the "how-to" (paints, techniques,...) but better late than never !

My first customs are :
- A-Wing with the McQuarrie color scheme
- Y-Wing inspired by the "Blue Leader" Action Fleet model
- Landspeeder inspired by Starsky & Hutch's Gran Torino
- Rebel Pilot with a repainted suit & helmet
- 2 Stromtroopers repainted to follow the 501st color scheme
- 2 Stromtroopers repainted to follow the Shocktroopers color scheme

I first cleaned the minis with warm soapy water, then used Citadel paints (from Games Workshop) in mutiple layers. The Y-Wing and Landspeeder also got a final wash of black paint to show that they are used. It's not completely clear on the picture, but the body of the Y-Wing received a metallic-grey paint, while the head and tubes got a flat-grey paint. It seems that I'll have some work to do to learn how to take proper pictures of such small objects.

I hope you like these !

I'm working on a few more (Jango's Slave I, X-Wing, Snowspeeder,...) so I should be able to update this topic a few times !