Judge Anderson (and Iria/Chani)

[Will Vale]

Thanks for the name, I will have a look.

If you're slavishly copying (you flatterer! :D) I should add that I used some washes (Agrax Earthshade, Sepia) in the recesses of the buckle and highlighted it with Vallejo Liquid Gold and Silver on the extreme points. I need to replicate this on the eagle pauldron now.

I've just touched up the bits I scratched around the waist - brushed thin black paint to start, then airbrushed layers of my suit mix and finally more Klear Kote Light Sheen. It doesn't look as nice as it did but it's mostly covered by the belt.

Once dry I'm going to heat the belt up so it opens nice and wide and wrap a single thickness of clingfilm around the waist while I manipulate it into place. Hopefully that'll be better

Cheers,

Will

[Will Vale]

So I did all the fixing and the clingfilm thing and it worked I was able to get the belt around easily and then just glued the pin I added into the hole on the other side to lock it in place. Then I could tear away the clingfilm carefully to end up with this.

The fit is a bit higher than I'd intended - earlier on I heat-formed it carefully to sit lower and tighter, but the vinyl seems to have reverted a bit. Maybe I didn't quench it quickly enough to set the new shape, or maybe the change was too small and it didn't take? Anyway, it's on now and not coming off again

You can see the difference between the just-airbrushed bits and the worked up belt quite well. I need to figure out a different route for the leather so it contrasts the pouches though.

You can also see the newly-edged zip - I ran thin black paint into all the lines and touched up with neat black where required. This gets rid of the metal apart from the teeth, which looks a lot better to me.

Cheers,

Will

[BobSolo]

Superb! Its awesome to watch you build/paint this!

[S5 modeller]

Will, this is a master class in figure painting. I love it! Can I send you my nick fury figure to paint? Don't think I could it justice after this.

That belt buckle looks spot on. Just the type of damage you would expect with it being repeatedly thrown on the bedroom floor, after long days of law giving.

Drok!

Matt

[Andy Moore]

Fantastic Will. The weathering on the buckle looks perfect

Andy

[Hunter Rose]

Stunning dude, belt looks amazing!

[Will Vale]

Thanks all! Anyone got any ideas on how to paint scratches onto the suit? Maybe a fake-3D darker/lighter line, with some cross hatching for torn threads?

I probably need to look at laddered stockings in detail to get this right...

Will

[Hunter Rose]

I would use the same technique you used for the material pattern but mask out some thin lines. You can go darker/lighter with them or to show an extreme tear a flesh tone.

Just a thought

[Will Vale]

I think I'll need to do something as I'm failing to keep the suit pristine, and weathering would help. I found some tacky varnish on the inner thighs has attracted fluff, so I'll need to gently sand, seal with Klear and then touch up the paint and varnish. Groan.

Today I detailed the boots - everything had a coat of Athonian Camoshade (green-brown) and some drybrushing and chipping on the toecaps and heel plates, which I assume are metal for more effective perp-kicking. I also lined around the caps and plates, and under the cuff at the top.

I added some more highlights to the boot leather, but nothing very dramatic, and then gave it a couple of yellow-green filters.

I made my mind up about the heels/soles and painted them grey, with pale scuffing. They look a bit messy close-up but they'll get weathered a bit when I make a base which should help.

The sheath is done the same way as the belt pouches, with some horizontal lines to hint at fibre.

It's all sealed with Klear, then Klear Kote Flat, and a bit of Klear Kote Light Sheen on the leather to liven it up. I can't help but think the boots still look a bit plain, but I think weathering and maybe a bit of grot or blood will add interest later.

Cheers,

Will

[Hunter Rose]

I like the subtle chipping on the metal toe cap. If you want to add more detail to the boots maybe some futuristic looking straps/buckles? Though i personally think they're looking good as is

[Will Vale]

It's more trying to get the materials to read right rather than physical detail - things like signs of wear, old creases, etc. etc.

Anyway I did a couple of really easy things which I think make the boots quite a bit better - I added some Boltgun Metal to the insides of the bigger toecap chips, and brushed on a thin coat of Klear on the leather uppers:

I shall now go on to a different bit

Will

[S5 modeller]

Ooohhh those boots look nice, very dominatrix.

[Will Vale]

Not much happened at the end of last week, I was doing Expo stuff, my Aunt arrived from the UK and I got distracted cleaning up the parts for a Tamiya Traction Avant. I did remember to track down some more sizes of K&S tube so today I was able to mock up a telescopic baton:

In the comics judges have slightly fatter daysticks, but this helps the baton handle fit into her hand, which is really a clenched fist. I based the dimensions on a Monadnock 21" baton I found via Wikipedia. I had to heat and drill the hand to fit the core through, which has put paid to the bubbly mess that was the ends of her little and ring finger joints, so I'll need to resculpt and repaint there. That will make it fit the hand better though.

So... I like the baton, as I'd hoped it makes her modified arm pose make more sense and creates some nice lines. I'm still not 100% sure about a riot shield:

but I think I'm leaning towards "yes" as it will make for much more interesting photographs and I think it balances the right arm nicely.

Opinions very welcome though! I'll clean up the tube parts and get the baton and hands finished off in the meantime.

Cheers,

Will

[S5 modeller]

Will, to me that shield looks "right".

It fits in perfectly with the pose of the figure. Baton looks good too, nearly like the glow sticks used in demolition man.

Matt

[Hunter Rose]

Looks great Will really like the baton, and think the shield is a cool idea fits very nice with the pose. Though I think it would look better as a more classic shaped shield, kind of like Captain Americas original shield, maybe with some heavy armor plating in the shape of the eagle from the name badges?

[rockpopandchips]

Looks great Will really like the baton, and think the shield is a cool idea fits very nice with the pose. Though I think it would look better as a more classic shaped shield, kind of like Captain Americas original shield, maybe with some heavy armor plating in the shape of the eagle from the name badges?

I like that idea for the shield. She is looking fantastic.

[whitestar12chris]

Will i think the shield looks good, coming along nicely.

Chris

[Will Vale]

Thanks all, unfortunately I'm kinda wedded to the idea of a round shield now. It may be memories of Sophitia from playing Soul Calibur as a twenty-something...

I was originally thinking of a longer rectangular shield but I reckon this size fits the pose better. I need to find a round blister pack or try heat-forming something from sheet plastic to get the right shape still.

Plus a sphere slice makes sense as a plastic riot shield, whereas a pointy one has all kinds of weak spots that cracks can form around, or indeed that can stab rather than subdue perps. I agree it needs some Justice Department iconography!

Cheers,

Will

[Will Vale]

Although this one is cool: http://www.arnold-ppe.com/riotshieldaqr1.asp

[S5 modeller]

Like the idea for a tribute to sophitia. Mind you she would need a really short skirt to pull it off.

[Will Vale]

Minor baton updates - I've glued the shaft into place in the hand and rebuilt the bubbly broken fingers with Miliput:

This hopefully means they're curled around the shaft properly rather than balled into a fist. I'm not a great sculptor but I think they'll paint up OK provided I smooth the cracks with some CA once the putty has gone off.

While I had the putty I cleaned up the outer baton tubes and glued them together, closed the end with Miliput then made a wee cap for the base in the same way.

I rounded the ends with a wet gloved finger, twiddling the tube to "lathe" the putty. I've tried to leave them slightly wide so I can sand it all level.

I'll use something else (probably Tamiya epoxy putty, maybe heavy foil) to make a little loop for the base, which might add a bit of life despite being impractical?

Cheers,

Will

[matiwashere]

I think the telescopic baton might be the wrong way around, afaik you hold them by the thicker bit and the thinner ones extend outwards. Nevertheless it looks good and is sci-fi, so it's cool as is. A loop or lanyard makes a lot of sense actually, like that she won't loose the baton when administering the law to citizens of megacity 1.

I like the look of the round shield but a squarish one would be cool too.

And Sophitias skirts technically were belts.

[Whofan]

I think the telescopic baton might be the wrong way around, afaik you hold them by the thicker bit and the thinner ones extend outwards. Nevertheless it looks good and is sci-fi, so it's cool as is. A loop or lanyard makes a lot of sense actually, like that she won't loose the baton when administering the law to citizens of megacity 1.

I like the look of the round shield but a squarish one would be cool too.

And Sophitias skirts technically were belts.

You're right, police ASP's (batons) are held by the thick end, and the extended shaft isfairly flexible so it can whip around to give someone a fair old crack. Mind you, if the fat end 9so to speak) were the extending piece I'm sure it would give you a fair old crack, too!

[Will Vale]

Whoops! Not much I can do about that apart from thicken the whole baton, i.e. not have it telescope. I was seeing the rubber grip as padding to stop breaking skulls

I will see what this looks like as well now that I have a bit more hand to work with.

Thanks for the pointers

Will

[Bigdave22014]

I was seeing the rubber grip as padding to stop breaking skulls

I don't think the Judges were too concerned about that..........