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Horizon Models ED-209 from Robocop (1987)


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Hi,

this is a project i already started a while ago: The Enforcement Droid 209 or ED-209 for short. This is from the Movie Robocop. Good old times when Special Effects were not just CGI but more craftsmenship like this Stop-Motion animated Giant.

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This Kit is made from PVC in 1/9 Scale. Out of Production since ages. I could find one of the original Kits on Ebay for a halfway acceptable price. But still a lot of wood due to the shipping costs from the US.

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...to be continued.

Edited by Reelyator
corrected picture links
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I will be watching this one with some interest. Love the first movie - such a shame about the sequels!

 

A bit of useless trivia.... According to Paul Vorhoeven, the ED-209 was named after the first movie's scriptwriter, Ed Naha. After the fact, ED became Enforcement Droid.

 

Chris.  

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Thank you Chris!

 

My general Plan for "ED" is to stay close to what we see in the Molvie. Only some light weathering as the ED in the Moive is almost Factory New. I do not really like the blue-ish colour. will therefor mix me something myself. I do not see a meaningfull application of lighting but i wil scratch build a base.

 

First Step was to fill the Feet of ED with Plaster to add some weight.

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The upper parts of the legs are oversimplified in the model kit. I will cut out the areas marked in yellow.

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In the Movie these areas are hollow and you can see somethinh like a spring-cushion insite wich i will try to replicate.

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I will use some threaded bar (....is that the correct term? sorry, english is not my native language. On the picture you can see what i mean;-) to mimic the spring. For my personal taste, this is close enough to the Movie

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...to be continued.

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Hi gamblo916! I hope you can find some usefull contend here.

 

There is not too much special about Vinyl/PVC. It is softer like PS (Poly-Styrene) the common Material for Model Kits. Vinyl becomes soft when you heat it up with a hair dryer or hot water, then in can be cut and shaped easily. A downside is that parts that carry much weight can bend over time. This can be avoided by filling these parts with Plaster, Resin or self expanding Foam to improve the structural integrity,

 

For glueing i mostly use dedicated PVC Glue from the DYI Store. And one more thing: Before painting, Vinyl parts should be washed very well to remove residues from the casting provess like oil or mold release agents.

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Unfortunately Horizon does not provide ANY Decals with this Kit. Luckily there are some talented and motivated enthusiast who have created Movie-Accurate images of the markings from the movie. I bought some clear Decal Paper from Amazon but up to now i have zero experince with printing custom decals. Any Tips, Tricks and Suggestions are highly welcome!

 

I do not post the picture with the markings here as i am not sure if anybody claims copyrights. In case anybody else here needs it, just PM me.

 

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Does anybody here have expertience, what printer setting (preferrably for the Epson Stylus Pro 3800) to use and how to best seal the custom decals after printing? I have read that a layer of varnish must be applied to protect the color from the water but no idea what makes most sense...

 

glossy vs matt? acrylic vs polyurethane?? Any suggestion is welcome!

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This is looking good so far, will be watching! 

 

As for decals I have printed some before, don't really think it matters what clear coat you use (as long as it's not water based!) I used a clear spray varnish from a can. Can't remember if it was matte or gloss but that wouldn't matter as I assume you'd put a sealer coat of matte over the whole thing anyway. 

 

Good luck with it! 

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That looks pretty good so far.

The screw thread makes an excellent spring.

 

As for decals, make sure you use the correct decal paper (Laserjet or Inkjet) I prefer Laserjet.

You probably can't print white or metallic colours.

Then a clear carrier film. Microscale does a nice product called "Decal Saver" that responds well to decal solvents.

Spray lacquers will work but tend to be a bit stiff. Fine for flat surfaces but a bit tricky for textured surfaces.

Print multiple copies of each image in case of mistakes and you may need to stack images one atop the other to make the image opaque.

Printer ink tends to be a bit transparent...

 

Good Luck!

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On 9/28/2020 at 7:27 PM, Reelyator said:

Does anybody here have expertience, what printer setting (preferrably for the Epson Stylus Pro 3800) to use and how to best seal the custom decals after printing? I have read that a layer of varnish must be applied to protect the color from the water but no idea what makes most sense...

 

glossy vs matt? acrylic vs polyurethane?? Any suggestion is welcome!

I have used various Epson Stylus printers (currently have an Epson ET-2500) and on all of them I choose the settings for the glossiest photo paper and print on appropriate decal paper (clear or white). I am not at home so I can't give exact settings. Decals are then sealed with Microscale Micro Liquid Decal Film which I find gives the best results. These were some decals I designed for my HMS Prince of Wales build last year.

 

Dave

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21 hours ago, Tzulscha said:

... I prefer Laserjet

.......you may need to stack images one atop the other to make the image opaque. Printer ink tends to be a bit transparent...

 

Thank you Tzulscha! As i already have a inkjet printer (with limited motivation to buy a second one just for decals) i will need to take the inkjet route. At least the paper that i bought from Amazon is the correct type for my printer;-)

 

The transparency might be a challenge but maybe it is an option to paint the area under the decal white in order to intensify the colors of the decal. ....i will try out...

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3 hours ago, Reelyator said:

Hi @davecov

thank you for your suggestions! Did you already apply your decals on the "Prince"? How did they react on varnishes or decal setting solutions??

I applied the decals without setting solution - they are so thin that they don't really need it unless you have too many lumps and bumps or if you apply too much Decal Film. The Decal Film protects the decals well and I have never had problems applying varnish. Here are some of the decals in position (Bridge windows and Ich Dien emblem):

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Here are the stripes:

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BTW, I have just got home and the Epson settings need to be Paper Type - Epson Premium Glossy, Quality - High

 

Dave

 

 

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On 27/09/2020 at 11:46, gamblor916 said:

I have this kit too but I've never worked with vinyl before. Interested to see how you tackle this.

Hi @gamblor916!

This is a good illustration of one of the challenges you might have with Vinyl: The Softness of the Material.

I had this part laying in the box for a while, obviously under tension or pressure from other parts. And now the one gun barrel is bend down a bit (compared to the second barrel.

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But easy to fix with a hairdryer, rebending into shape and then ccol down again with water.

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PS: The Metal color on the picture looks much darker than "in reality".

 

...to be continued

Edited by Reelyator
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Hi @Tzulscha and @davecov!

I could not find a product named "Decal Saver" as mentioned by Tzulscha on the Microscale Website. Could it be that you mean the "Liquid Decal Film" as mentioned by Dave? Or is the "Decal Saver" from another manufacturer??

 

Unfortunately most Microscale Products are a bit difficult to get here in europe....

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5 hours ago, Reelyator said:

Hi @Tzulscha and @davecov!

I could not find a product named "Decal Saver" as mentioned by Tzulscha on the Microscale Website. Could it be that you mean the "Liquid Decal Film" as mentioned by Dave? Or is the "Decal Saver" from another manufacturer??

 

Unfortunately most Microscale Products are a bit difficult to get here in europe....

Yes "LIquid decal film".

 

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Sorry, the bottle I have is so old that it says "Decal Saver".

Same stuff though.

I have no idea what it's made of.

 

I'm kind of surprised that Tamiya or Gunze don't do something similar.

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I remember building this when it first came out. I had a hard time with keeping the body from collapsing and the joint between the two body halves kept splitting. I wasn't brave enough to cut open the legs like you've done. 

 

Thanks for the trip down memory lane. 

 

There's a new IP ED-209 coming out next year. Not as big mind you. 

 

Carl

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  • 6 months later...

Moving Forward!

 

The Hacyon Models Vinyl Kit is lacking details in some areas. I have already adressed the legs. Next Steps willl be to add some Cables to the Arms and some Tubing to the Backside of the Model. I got some Inspiration from the Movie itself but also from the Slideshow Collectibles Figure.

 

The Left Side of the pictures below shows my Halcyon Figure, the right side displays how the same area was executed at the Slideshows Figure.

 

Cables and wiring at the arms.

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Tubing on the Backsside of Ed.

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The manufactúrer was so nice to have the Ports already Pre-molded, so i just had to drill the holes and insert the wires  The Steel Cables are made from the cheapest E-Guitar Stringset that i could find in the "Wired".

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I chose 2 differend Diameters to have some variation. You also unse simple Steel Cable from the DYI store instead of Strings but here i preferr the Strings for the better surface structure they provide.

 

The Black wires ist simple 0,5mm electrical cable. The left arm will receice a red cable instead of the black one

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For the Tubing on the Back of Ed i took some black enameld wire and bend it into shape. The more difficult part will be the 4 silver attachments that holt the tubing in place. I got some 0,3 mm Alu Sheet from the DYI Store that i will try to cut into small strips, bend them into a suitable "U" Shape and fix then to the back of ED,

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Edited by Reelyator
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Greatwork on this,I have one from years ago on my shelf,it tends to "sag" after a while,I stuffed the legs with lots of paper which helps,not Hi-Tech,but effective 👍

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22 hours ago, Carts said:

....,it tends to "sag" after a while,I stuffed the legs with lots of paper which helps,not Hi-Tech,but effective 👍

..I know what you mean:-)

 

I have filled the legs of my ED with Plaster. After my experience (see post from October 3rd above) i would even go so far to fill plaster up to the Hip Section once legs are connected to the Hip to make sure everything below the main body is stable.

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