superquad7: Andy’s birthday is in May, but so is mine! This means I get to choose May’s Featured Radicon of the Month! I think since Andy is the chosen one, he’ll hardly mind. If he does, I’m sure supersquads can take him!
I must say that it’s very difficult for me to put into words just how much Andy means to me. The most obvious point is his contribution to Radicons. Personally speaking, I think don’t think any one person has done more actual grunt work for the customs community as a whole. Sure, I can name a handful of persons who have dramatically impacted the customs community in a very profound way aside from simply their artwork. However, Andy really saw a void and took the reigns to help create the largest, most resourceful Transformers community on the whole internet. This impact will forever be felt by the customs community, and I’m very pleased to report that it’s been in one of the most positive, constructive ways any one person could venture to do.
I also sincerely believe that if there is any one textbook example of what it means to be a Radicon, REDLINE’s it. He’ll be the first to tell you of his humble beginnings as a kitbashing artist (as you’ll see in this interview), and how he just kept working at his craft to become a very innovative artist. Also, he’s
always willing to lend a hand to
anyone who he asks for his help. He made it a point early on to make sure
everyone’s threads were healthy discussions. This isn’t just moderating threads; this is checking every thread and making sure each artist, regardless of skill level, is treated fairly. He’s a guy who has a clear idea of things he wants and goes after them. Despite some setbacks, REDLINE continues seeking ways to have the Transformers kit-bashing community as one unified front. Andy was one who saw what a tremendous place Transtopia was, and the value of resourcing the void that was left there. You see guys, Andy isn’t just working on Radicons for himself, you or me; he’s working on something for
everyone who will decide to customize a
TF and access the internet. I truly feel that working with Andy (and the rest of the Radicons Staff) that we’re building something a whole lot bigger than ourselves.
Beyond simply “business” (dare I use the term), my thoughts and feelings towards Andy are much more than keeping Radicons on top. While I’ve never met Andy in person (though I will someday!), he is one of the best friends I’ve ever had. We talk nearly every night, and have for several years now. I was first introduced to Andy when I first got into customs. Razerwire introduced me to several guys from TFW2005.com, and Andy was one of them. Andy was in the process of improving his photography work for the toy galleries at the time, and had just recently been named the customs moderator. He and I hit it off from the get-go. I could see the fire burning in him even then for customs. I still remember when he showed me his first customs work. He always communicated that he wanted to keep pushing himself and his work.
After Transtopia’s fate, I quickly communicated to Andy that I wanted to help grow Radicons. He and I shared the same views for what we wanted Radicons to be. Andy really put his rep on the line for both myself and plowking for us to be on staff. Though several circumstances in our friendship already, I can clearly see that he’s got my back and that he cares for me as much as I do him.
It’s been a pleasure watching Andy polish his skills as a kitbasher. I’ve always enjoyed bouncing ideas off of him for my own work, and I value his opinion a lot when it comes to all things Transformers. We stay excited to see what the other will come up with, and what we do with those ideas. Andy and I also share a lot of the same worldview and other interests outside of Radicons and Transformers. Andy’s the type of friend that I feel I learn as much as I give. Those people are golden if you ever met such a person. I’m blessed and honored to call Andy “friend”.
Andy, congratulations for being my . . . I mean
our pick for 2009 May’s Featured Radicon!
Andy (aka REDLINE) about to pop a few veins . . . . plowking: I got my first "real introduction" to REDLINE over at ERB's Domain (I was a mod there). It was his custom Alpha Trion from the Cybertron Vector Prime mold that caught my eye. The colors on it were beautiful and they really popped and caught your attention. What really got us talking was this other poster (who will remain nameless) that kept trying to slam REDLINE's work on the A3 custom. Needless to say, I stepped in as a mod, and did my best to try and straighten things out.
From that point, on REDLINE and I became good friends. Not too long after, I made my way over to the TFW2005 boards where REDLINE was the only mod for this section (Radicons was a lot smaller then: only one forum, not like how it is now) and this quickly became my new "home" for customs and such.
I have since seen REDLINE do so many more things both with customs. I'd have to say that after the A3 custom, his Seekers would be next on my list of faves by REDLINE, followed closely by the Omega Supreme he made With Radicons as a whole, he has worked hard (along with others) to make it was it is today. He still has thoughts and ideas a-plenty, for the Radicon portion of TFW2005, and for his future customs. He's got some in the works that I know are gonna blow us away . . . .
REDLINE, it is with great pleasure, that I say congrats on being the Featured Radicon of the Month for May. It is truly well-deserved . . .
BOSS! 
Andy, his custom REDLINE by Lobo, and some strange toy robots in cabinets . . . . Nemesis Predaking: What can I say about REDLINE that will not be mirrored by my fellow Radicons? Andy was the third person I got to know on a personal level in the Radicons. [He] always has a kind word to say and not afraid to let you know if he did not like something about a bash, but always willing to offer advice or idea in a constructive way to address the issue he saw.
As the Leader of the Radicons, his vision of what the Radicons should be is nothing short of amazing. He embodies the spirit of the Radicons in every way and his love for the community is infectious. I can honestly say that without REDLINE and his vision, I would not be as proud to be part of the Radicons.
For that, I thank you my friend. Congrats Andy, it's well deserved.
autobox23: He always told me "I'm just a regular Radicon, man; no one special" However, almost 2 years ago, when I started bashing, I saw his work as a litmus test for everything that I wanted to accomplish as a 'basher. I was determined to get the attention of this monumental @$$hole!
He's now a good buddy, a mentor and what I consider my sensei. In many ways he is responsible for me being able to sell my customs [for] a profit, and helped keep me motivated when they wouldn't. He's hands down, the mod that is the heart and soul of the Radicons forum.
One of the best to ever do it, congrats [to you] on your spotlight my man. It's well deserved!
ALPHAMAGNUS: REDLINE as this month's FR seems almost a given; he helped bring this "section" into a full grown site. Andy is a straight-forward and honest fellow, and in the short time I have been a moderator here, he has supported me tremendously. His customs range from WSTs, to reshells, to full blown, original gestalts. I am personally floored when I [first] looked at his Classics Menasor, as I had taken quite a bit of time in planning nearly the same formula for mine. He had already built it!
His own moniker "REDLINE" custom [he designed, that Lobo made] is wonderful. Nothing shows how much an artist cares for his craft than when he does a "self-portrait". I recommend that everyone takes a few notes from Andy, and march to the beat of a different drummer this May.
BMGFX: Well, what words can I use to accurately describe this month's featured Radicon? Commitment is probably first and foremost. It isn't because of luck that he holds the position he is in. His dedication has resulted in not only bolstering Radicons becoming the premier resource on the web, but has also allowed him to play a part in decision making for the entire TFW2005 site.
I think the first time I got in touch with Andy was with some general texture graphics stuff, then we worked together on TFW2005 Fantasy Football graphics. Then came the Radicons logo and other design ideas. I even went back and forth with him while I was creating music and other projects.
I have worked with Andy on some behind the scenes projects (as I always seem to do), and whether it's going over future projects, Going back and forth on logo designs, or just chatting, it has been a lot of fun. Andy is really easy to work with an it's no surprise that his enthusiasm can rub off on people.
Andy with some furry friends, Joey and Kirby! 
Andy is contemplating the much-desired Transfarmers concept for his future work. The Interview R: Tell us a little about yourself.
REDLINE: Well, my name is Andrew, but I’m only called that either in a place of business, or when I’m in trouble. I normally go by Andy. I’ve been into Transformers since 1984, when I was 7. My older brother was into them too, which is great because we didn’t get many toys as kids, so him and I both being into them effectively doubled the number of them I got to play with! I fell out of Transformers not too long after the Animated Movie came out, as I didn’t like how they were moving towards futuristic and unrealistic alternate modes, plus the cartoon [was] going away. It’s odd that I am such a huge fan of the Dinobots with this feeling about alt modes, but I’ve also always been into dinosaurs.
I have a 2-year degree in agriculture, and I’m currently working two jobs. I grew up on a crop farm, and worked my butt off from age ten until I was working on my AA degree. I now live in a decent little sized town of 45,000 that has a town of 25,000 just five miles away. My full-time job is operating some of the equipment on a cereal manufacturing line which is about 95% fully automated (I spend half my time simply monitoring equipment). My part-time job is working on the sales floor at Target, which not only gets me a little more money each month, but quick access to Transformers and allows me to get ‘em at 10% below whatever they’re being sold for (even on sale). I typically work 55-60 hours a week between the two jobs. Between these, mowing my ½ acre backyard (which doubles as a super small golf course I made for myself and friends to use), I don’t get all that much free time to devote to Radicons or to making my customs, but I do what I can!
I got back into collecting Transformers right at the tail-end of RID, thanks to those Hasbro re-issues. I was looking for a part-time job at the time and stopped at a
TRU and freaked out at seeing Ultra Magnus on the shelf. Next to him was an Optimus, plus RID Optimus, Magnus, and Scourge. I got all but Prime that day (out of cash) since UM holds a special place for me (my great-grandma bought it for me and my older brother to share two days before she died) and the three RID bots were clearanced at $15! I started searching the ‘net after that and discovered forums that had news on upcoming releases, which I thought was an awesome new ability for a collector to have. I lurked at TFW2005 for nearly a year before I signed up to shout at some other Missourians I found here.
I fell in love with the place pretty quickly, and asked Super_Megatron if there was any way I could help contribute to the site to make it get better. I soon started taking photographs for the toy gallery, and after awhile, Hook retired from staff so they asked if I’d like to moderate the (then) customs forum. At the time I knew nothing about customs, but wanted to moderate so I thought, “It’ll get my foot in the door, so heck yeah, I’ll do it!” The rest is history.
REDLINE's works in progress representing the "King of the Road"! R: What got you into the art of kitbashing? Why do you like kitbashing? How long have you been into kitbashing?
REDLINE: My first real exposure to customizing was after I became the moderator of the (then) customs forum at TFW2005. I’d seen some before in passing, and had even ventured into that forum a few times (but only rarely), and it just wasn’t something I was into. After having to moderate these threads, my eyes were really opened up to this whole new world for me. The things these people can do with their Transformers! I was just really wowed. I soon started discovered Transtopia, and frequented there, as at the time it was more active a place than the forum at TFW2005. I got to witness Bill (TFmaster), Lobo, Rich (TheDevastator), Nap (Napjr), Viagra Prime, Jarrod, and many others quite quickly! (if I listed them all, I’d need a whole page, ha-ha!)
I’d made my own Transformers before- All the way back to 2nd grade, I’d make 3D transforming TFs out of paper using glue, tape, and those office pins that can be used as a swivel, in class. I still quite vividly remember my Soundwave that had 3 lil' cassette buddies!
I’ve always been into art. I always had good grades in those classes, and even won a blue ribbon at a show in High School for a sketch of Julia Roberts which got stolen from my classroom’s closet where it was sitting so the teacher could return it to me. My exposure to customs really re-lit my artistic flame, but at first I was quite worried about simply wasting my money and time and ruining a perfectly good
TF if I were to try my hand at it. I never was very good at painting in any of my Art classes, so why would it be any different today?
Thankfully, encouragement from my fellow Radicons got me to man-up and give it a shot. I decided to try it out on something cheap, so I went with some Legends of Cybertron figures. I also did a few touch-ups to some regular sized toys early on too, but the first thing I ever did was an LoC. It worked out great, as not only did I not ruin the figure, but working on such a small scale really helped my confidence and my skills at hand painting. The moral of the story is (regardless of what you think you might suck at) don’t be afraid to give it a try, as you likely will find out how wrong you are.
R: How did you get to your level of customizing? Did you have any formal training and/or previous experience in your background? What have been some useful resources for your artwork that you suspect others are unaware of?
REDLINE: I’m not really sure what my level of customizing is, ha-ha! I started of adding extra detail apps to toys, then repainting and dying whole little Legends figures, then full-size figures, and now I’m learning how to do heavy modifications and re-shells to toys. I still have a really long way to go, though. My sculpting skills suck right now, and my styrene manipulation is really rough-and-tumble, too. I still don’t really have much experience using some of the more advanced techniques like heating it up, wrapping it around an object, and letting it cool to re-shape sheets into curved parts, for example. But, having said this, I’ve asked a TON of questions over my time in this hobby. I’ll PM someone in a heartbeat if I want to try something but don’t know how to go about it.
For the most part, I limit these questions to friends, but not always. I go after someone who I know has experience doing whatever it is I am trying to learn. I also reference the Radicons tutorials section, the Resources (they are awesome for toy photos, screen caps of characters, etc),
TFU.info for Japanese and GoBots stuff (I know our own resources section will have the Japanese stuff soon enough), and I also use Google Images search as well. I also sometimes dig up old threads in Radicons to see how a particular modification was done by someone in the past, too. I love the search feature!
I’ve not had any formal training in really anything involved in customizing. In art, my areas were wood burning, pointillism, sketching, and paper or woodcraft. I guess my farmers roots helped me some, as I have experience using lots of tools, even if I never used them on plastic or toys, it gave me some sort of comfort level which helped my confidence to try something new.
The top of Andy's desk (I see some things that are cool, how's about you?) R: What are some of your short-term goals as a kitbasher? What is your ultimate goal as a kitbasher?
REDLINE: Right now, I want to make good head-way on my massive to-do list. I’m not kidding; it’s huge. My plan is to get myself a Classics/Universe collection that is nearly 200 bots strong. I intend to have not just “regular” TFs in my C/U collection, but combiners and city-formers too. The evidence is there already, if you’ve seen my Menasor or Omega Supreme [
see REDLINE's galleries for these, and more! ~Radicons Staff]. My goals with these are to make them all fit in with the official ones to the point you can’t tell which are which. I shoot for as much articulation as I can muster, paint apps that conform to the line’s aesthetic, as well as the toys’ detailing and proportions. I also intend to complete the MP Seekers, make a couple of custom characters, and I still have 5 Legends left to do!
My ultimate goal as a kitbasher would be to either fully scratch-build something, or nearly so. I will have to do some serious hard work to pull off my Punch/Counter-punch, for example. I don’t want one where you just turn him around and there’s his other ‘bot mode. I want one that is truly in disguise! My plans are fairly well already laid out. Two separate sets of arms, legs that can transform not only 2 different ways, but such different ways as there’s no way one would think they were the same. [I have] similar [designs] for the chest, but [they're] not quite so drastic. He’ll have to be re-shelled [as well] to pull it off. My only disappointment is that I can’t figure out how to do this at a deluxe scale, so he’ll be kind of big for a Classic car-former, as he’ll be a Voyager. My Alternators B-52 will also be really darned hard for me to build too, so obviously these two projects are way down the list currently.
R: Do you have a dream project, and if so, what is it?
REDLINE: Considering a dream can be unrealistic? Ha-ha! I’d say MP Dinobots that would be at home next to Grimlock as well as an Alternators B-52, SR-71 Blackbird, and an MP REDLINE, Shockwave, and Plowking would probably fit the bill.
R: What other hobbies do you have, if any?
REDLINE: I like to play video games, watch movies, play around in Photoshop making wallpapers and such, listening to music, and playing sports. I’m a huge baseball and football fanatic (Go Cards, Tigers, and Chiefs!). I play golf, darts, pool, and bowl. I took 4” PVC pipe, cut 6” sections, and buried them in nine places in my ½ acre back yard. I staked-off tee boxes in 9 places as well. Some of my “holes” are only 25 yards long, and some are 60-80 yards long. It’s extremely fun to start some charcoal, play these 9 holes, put the meat on, play my “alternate” 9 holes, and flip the meat, and only have to wait a short while for the BBQ to be ready to chow on. I don’t get to do these things very frequently though, between my 2 jobs and trying to grow the Radicons mini-site.
Andy can create art besides customs Transformers. Do you get the point? R: Do you have any advice for up-and-coming kitbashers?
REDLINE: Firstly: Go for it! I am constantly disappointed to see so many people afraid to try it out for the first time, or to try and expand their abilities. If you don’t even try, then you’ve failed before you even began.
My second bit of advice would be to study. Our Tutorials section, our Resources section, galleries, threads, and members will help you learn whatever it is you need to know.
My final bit of advice is patience. Believe me, I know how hard it can be to remain patient and keep myself from rushing through something, especially if it’s something that you’ve been working on for a really long time, but you don’t want to put all that work into something, and then ruin it by rushing through the last steps. You’ll ALWAYS be happier with your final results if you maintain a patient, steady pace through-out your project.
R: What is your inspiration for your projects? What influences your character choices?
REDLINE: Honestly, it depends. For the most part, it depends on the line I’m making a custom for. I used to be a Geewunner, but this isn’t the case anymore, though I still do heavily lean towards
G1 simply because that’s the stuff that started it all, and the stuff I grew up with. The concept of realistic vehicles turning into robots is and always will be my main love behind TFs.
I’m also a huge Decepticon sympathizer, and seeing as Hasbro releases more Autobots than ‘cons, I usually am making customs of the bad guys and not the good. Clearly, this isn’t always the case, as I’m working on a Jazz right now. I’m so into the Classics line that I’m mostly doing
G1 characters, though I have some custom characters on my list as well (7 to be exact, currently).
As far as my inspirations, I have a pretty good knack for visualizing new characters from almost any mold (just wait till I get to do my Shockwave!), and I usually go for a mix between cartoon and toy accurate customs. I’m also inspired by other Radicons, as I frequently see something I’d not thought of, or is simply too cool not to do myself.
I’ve also many a time borrowed a particular mod from one custom to use in a completely different custom of my own. This is one reason I so strongly advocate attached images to threads. I’d try to look up an old thread of some sort that had a particular mod I wanted to use for something I was working on, only to find the pictures all gone. So frustrating!
Custom Alternators goodness by REDLINE! R: Who are some of your favorite kitbashers and inspirations?
REDLINE: Oh man, the dreaded question. Ha-ha, I don’t want to forget anyone! *deep breath* Lobo, Viagra Prime, Dak, TFmaster, Mench0y, Napjr, Ramrider, plowking, Superquad7, Sculpt-bot, TheDevastator, big hank, MacrossFA19, warmachine, Ptitvite, Wikkid, Squall42080, ALPHAMAGNUS, autobotx23, Nemesis Predaking, JAF, Boggs6ft7, anemis, clay, ckhtiger, DavidLoPan, Jarrod, manyoufactsure, Paul Prime, revlimiter, Pun-3X, Rumble02, Razerwire, ShawnL7, Wreckgar, Timshinn73, TheLibrarian, sodawilly, TomServo, Wheel_Jack, and [the] Radicons. *whew*
R: What figure has been your favorite to work on so far? Why?
REDLINE: [That's] kind of tough. I’m torn between the Classics Prime mold, LoC Seeker mold, Classics Seeker mold, and the Cybertron Scrapmetal mold. All of these are easy to make have zero paint wear on, are easy to disassemble, and can really be taken places only limited by your imagination.
R: How long does it typically take you to complete a project from start to finish?
REDLINE: Depends on how much free time I have, and how complicated my project is. I spit out my Omega Supreme in just two weeks, but I only worked one job at that time, and my hours were cut to just 20 a week. I also got into such a zone that I was on it for hours at a time, too. I’d say a couple of months now-a-days, but it’s hard to say since I’ve not done anything crazy since I got the second job (yet).
R: Which TF is your favorite and why? Favorite TF character? Favorite series? Favorite toy (non-custom)?
REDLINE: Marvel Comics Shockwave, hands-down, is my favorite character! He tore Megatron up! I think for [favorite] series, I’d go with
G1 first, and Animated second, though I really did love Galaxy Force (note I did NOT say Cybertron). I don’t know if I can answer for toy. I love the
G1 Shockwave toy so much. it’s actually got decent articulation (heck, waist and thigh swivels are all it needs), AWESOME electronics, and great aesthetic . . . but I also love Primus, [the] MP seeker mold, MP Prime and Megatron, as well as Alternators Shockwave, Decepticharge, Classics Mirage, Prime, Inferno, RID Railracer, LoC Clear Starscream, WST Soundwave, THS02b . . . Okay, I can’t answer this question!
R: What was your first customs project that you worked on? Any memorable stories to share?
REDLINE: My first custom was LoC Sunstorm. I got a yellow dyed Starscream from Insane Galvatron, and I painted all the white parts, and all the detail apps. One of my earlier works was my LoC Blaster, which I actually chopped off the head of an Evac to put on a Soundwave body, and it resulted in my first customs injury, as I chopped nearly to the bone on my left thumb. I still have the scar, ha-ha! Another memorable moment for me was SoundwaveCA contacting me to make him a copy of my LoC Soundblaster, as that was my first commission. [It] sure was a good feeling seeing someone like my work enough to buy it. Also there’s my Alternators Motormaster and LOC Punch/Counter-punch both getting stolen after the art-show at BotCon 2007. That’s twice I’ve had my art stolen, what gives?
Can you spot the custom Alpha-Trion? R: What are your favorite movies//TV shows?
REDLINE: I religiously watch
24,
Heroes, baseball, football, college basketball, and
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. As for movies, the
LOTR trilogy, the
Star Wars saga,
the Terminator movies,
Talladega Nights,
Kingpin,
Dumb and Dumber (and
Dumb and Dumberer), and
Liar Liar are tops I’d say, though my movie library is pretty substantial.
R: What do you consider your strengths as a kitbasher are? Weaknesses?
REDLINE: I think it’s my vision, and my detail painting. I’ve been told that I’m pretty creative fairly often, and I’ve constantly been told that I’ve amazed someone at how small a paint app I can lay down cleanly.
As for weaknesses, [I'd say] sculpting abilities definitely need work, as does my styrene manipulation. I need to develop more precision in my cuts, and learn a lot of advanced techniques. I also have no experience in casting, though I’d certainly love to as I know it’d greatly expand what I could to for a project.
R: How would you describe your work environment? (For example, do you like to have certain music going while making customs or do you have certain things set up that immediately inspire you?)
REDLINE: Until recently, I had no real work area. Seriously! I’d lay out my parts in the corner of my room on the floor. I’d either work in the floor, or sometimes either at my computer or in the living room on the coffee table. I like to have either a show on, or music going when I work. I finally have a customs room, though it’s still not really finished. I just got stuff to build a light box yesterday, and I still have two posters with no frames ha-ha. I usually have tabs open with images for reference on my computer, and now that I have a customs room, I’m trying to start printing these out to pin to my cork board.
Andy's workspace (4 photos): 
]
Hmm.. I see a lot of seekers, multiple Infernos, and... What the Deuce? Is that an Overlord in there?! R: What are your favorite things about the process of making a custom? Pet peeves?
REDLINE: I love taking the toy apart, and also putting it back together. Now that I’ve moved into heavily modifying TFs and not always straight-repainting them, I have to say I have a ton of fun chopping and gluing and everything! I’ll always love doing my detail brushwork, though.
As far as pet peeves go, I absolutely hate sanding parts. If I’m sanding to re-shape a piece, it’s not really that bad, but sanding so that a part won’t rub after I paint it I just can’t stand. It feels tedious, and you don’t really see yourself progressing any, since you’re not changing anything. If I’m doing a complicated paint job that involves a ton of masking, I don’t like that either. Normal masking doesn’t bother me any, but for example, Alternators Motormaster is a two-toned paint job on top of masking off clear parts and other things. [There was a] TON of masking to do for that, [and it] drove me nuts.
R: How do you incorporate other elements outside of Transformers into your work?
REDLINE: For the most part, I really don’t. I mean, sometimes I’ll borrow a part off some totally unrelated toy to use as part of some modification, or a gun or something, but that’s really it. That is, unless you count trying to maintain real-world authenticity for an Alternators custom, or to a lesser-extent, a Classics custom.
R: What are things you look for as “cool” in a toy? Describe what you like/dislike in certain Transformer toys.
REDLINE: Ninety-nine percent I couldn’t care less about a gimmick. To me the whole fact that it transforms IS the gimmick! Usually gimmicks hurt a figure more than help it, as they takes up space and budget. I want a toy that’s got a fun, multiple-step transformation, but not one that requires an engineering degree to pull-off. I want great articulation and aesthetic, with a good amount of detail. Classics Mirage meets all of these criteria, for example, or Universe Hound.
I don’t mind kibble all that much, but I despise shell-formers, or kibble-fests. Smart engineering will always impress me, like how the kibble is hidden away on Cyclonus, or how Hounds seats make his thighs, or how Sunstreaker and Sideswipe are the same mold. I really hope to see more of these awesome things in the future! I don’t care for parts-forming either. I feel it’s an engineering cop-out. Back in the day? Sure. But not [with] today’s TFs.
R: What do your non-TransFan friends say about your work?
REDLINE: Most aren’t all that interested, but do express their amazement that I made them. They usually comment on how they look just like the factory made ones they’re displayed with.
Andy and Nicholle (she has to work with him), yet another cutie Andy needs to hook up with. R: How has the new movie affected your customs?
REDLINE: I’ve had to focus my collecting habits to keep them in check. So, I don’t collect any of the movie toys. I’m just not a big fan of the robot modes, namely the heads, and the fact that at least in the movie, none of them have an iconic appearance that is easily associated with the character. That being said, it gives me a welcome break from new TFs to track down that I can afford more customs fodder, model kits, or what have you.
The movie also really caused a boom in the customs market, as far as selling them off goes. Sadly, this has also brought about some instances of people making a lot of money off of other people’s ideas. I don’t mean “person x made character z so person y made character z and sold it”, but I mean particular modifications or interpretations. As a result, I can’t help but feel a little guarded when it comes to sharing my ideas before I am able to actually act upon them myself first.
R: What artwork do you do outside of Transformers customs?
REDLINE: I don’t get to do much anymore; I just don’t have the time, unfortunately. I do still enjoy wood burning and doing pointillism, I just don’t get to do them. I do get to have fun in Photoshop doing digital art, though. I love making wallpapers or cool scenic signature images, or digibashing customs ideas out.
R: What non-TF artwork heavily influences your customs work and why?
REDLINE: I don’t think any heavily influence my customs work, but I think I’m somewhat influenced by Battletech Mechs. I barely got to try the original RPG, but I got straight-up hooked by the PC simulation games. I loves me some Mechwarrior goodness.
Woodburned piece by Andy R: What has been the most influential movie for you and why?
REDLINE: This was kind of a toughie. For one thing, I’m a big movie buff, and for another, I wasn’t quite sure how to answer this. I love a movie with a good story, good acting, cinematography, and score. Movies like
LotR trilogy,
Good Morning, Vietnam!,
Batman Begins and
The Dark Knight,
U-571,
Vanilla Sky,
Tombstone,
Man on Fire, and
Courage Under Fire. I also love an outstanding comedy, like
Talladega Nights,
Kingpin,
Liar Liar, etc. I love a movie that makes me think (like
Vanilla Sky: I didn’t see the ending coming until about half-way through), and I think watching a lot of these has influenced me on the rare occasion that I’ve created a custom character. I’ve only got eight of them so far, seeing as I mostly am re-creating characters for my Classics/Universe collection.
R: If you like to read, what are some of your favorite books and why? How does this impact your artwork?
REDLINE: I love to read. I seem to go through spurts, though. I’ll read heavily for a good while, and then I won’t read anything for a long time. I’m a huge Tom Clancy fan. I have all his “real” books, plus a few of his non-fiction books. When I say real, I mean none of his collaborative fictions. I used to read a lot of Star Wars books a long time ago, but not really anymore. I also love Tolkien books, including non-
LotR books. I actually like reading historic pieces as well, especially concerning past wars, or up-coming military technology. I don’t think it impacts me too much, unless I’m working on a
TF that will have a military-based alt-mode. Superion, I’m lookin’ at you!
R: When you listen to music, what do you like to listen to and why? How does this impact your artwork?
REDLINE: I like a really wide range of music. I listen to old rock, new rock, in-between rock, some original pop, occasional rap, and orchestral music. Mostly movie scores, but old, original orchestral music as well.
R: What do you want people to most remember you for and why?
REDLINE: Honestly, I’m just a guy . . . a guy who enjoys customizing TFs, and is trying his best to create a place for the surprisingly large Transformers art community to be able to go and hang out, share their pieces of art, and find the resources they need to help them with said art. I’m not doing it to secure a place in any kind of
TF history or anything like that, nor do I have such amazing skills that my customs really stand out any from the plethora of amazing pieces we see all the time. I just hope that in the end, people think of me and remember that I was a nice guy who thought of others first, and himself last. If I get remembered for more good things beyond that, then I’ll have done well with my labors and my life.
Brothers Tim and Fred and Andy, dressed to impress! R: What toys besides TFs do you enjoy and why?
REDLINE: I have to focus my spending, so I don’t really get to enjoy a wide variety of toys. I do still have a soft-spot for GI Joes, though, and old Star Wars toys. I had a fair bit of them growing up, and several friends who also had a lot that we’d get together and have huge battles and such. Growing up my brothers and I also used to play with those large die-cast tractors and other farm machines. We had a tilled spot of yard to “farm” in "the good ole’ days"!
R: Boxers or briefs?
REDLINE: Ha-ha, I figured when I decided to include this question as a joke after TheDevastator suggested it back when we first were working on starting the whole Featured Radicon thing that some day this one would come back to me! I can actually be right on things, imagine that. To answer the question, though, it’s boxers for me! I love my freedom!
R: What trends do you see in your own work and what do others tend to say about your customs?
REDLINE: I honestly don’t know. Do I have a style? I seem to do a good enough job with my aim at making my customs fit in with “real” TFs that I don’t seem to see a style jumping out at me, but maybe that’s only because I’m looking at my own work. I’ve never heard anyone say anything about a style for my work, though. Having said that, I guess a trend in my work would be that generally speaking, my projects are more complex than the ones before them, as I’m always trying to push my boundaries and skills. I HAVE been told a person can’t believe I painted a custom after looking at them in person before, though. Ask Codimus Prime, he’s seen my customs, as has Runamuck.
R: How has making Transformers customs impacted your life uniquely?
REDLINE: [Do] you mean besides taking a large amount of my spendable cash over the years?
[snickers] I don’t know. It’s a great creative outlet, and stress-reliever. I usually try to avoid making a custom of something I know we’ll be getting from Hasbro or TakaraTOMY, so I can’t say it’s ever saved me any money or anything like that. Mostly, I have fun doing it, and I think I’ve made quite a few friends as a result of either them, or simply my participation in a great community.
autobotx23: I know that the Decepticons are your favorite faction, but do you have any favorite Autobot characters?
REDLINE: [*snickers*]You’re right, but yeah I have some filthy Autobots that for some strange reason like as well. Optimus Prime is certainly up there. I hear Cullen and I go fatuous. I always liked Jazz and Omega Supreme, too, but I think that the Aerialbots are my favorites. Lucky for me (as mentioned previously) my older brother was heavily into TFs when I was a kid, so I got to have a decent number of toys that I’d otherwise not have had. We each got one combiner, I got Superion, and he got Devastator. Both of these are my favorite combiner characters.
autobotx23: Your Classics Omega Supreme is a personal favorite of mine out of all your bashes. What was the motivation for him?
REDLINE: Well, for one thing, I’ve wanted to incorporate base-formers and combiners into my Classics/Universe collection some way, somehow. Having said that, I was actually working on my Fortress Maximus ideas for his alternate transformations when I was literally blind-sided by the OS idea. I hadn’t even “officially” added OS to my to-do list yet! I had put zero thought into how I would eventually make him happen when it all hit me at once while thinking about my future FM project. I first tested the alt transformations, and pretty much simultaneously realized I could use the “brute” mode of Metroplex to have a bulkier and shorter robot mode. Doing my mods for both projects would end up with two totally different looking robot modes so that sharing a mold wouldn’t even be an issue at all. The only part that I had to wait on was to find out if he could actually use original
G1 OS’s rocket/arms or if I’d have to make my own form model rocket kits! Thankfully, Rich (TheDevastator) had both, and taped the arms over Metro’s and snapped me a picture.
autobotx23: You have never painted any Masterpiece Seekers, even though you’re a big Seeker fan. Do you have any plans to do them?
REDLINE: Of course I do! If you look in the photo of my shelves of “base” robots, you’ll see there is already one MP SS box in there. I, of course, plan on more than one, though. I intend to make the 3 Coneheads, sans-cones, (like the toys dangit! They have heads that aren’t silly!) and also a Sunstorm which will utilize glow-in-the-dark paints (found by Sodawilly and shared by him in our tutorials section) to do a wash to fill in all those pretty panel lines!
Superquad7: If you could be a bag of potato chips, what would you be and why?
REDLINE: Ha-ha . . . I guess Pringles, as not only are they much cleaner and dry, and in a can that is less likely to get crushed, but I don’t think they sell as well, meaning I might have a longer life-span!
Lookout! It's more of REDLINE's artwork! Superquad7: Since it's conception, Radicons has taken many different forms and grown quite a bit (and continues to do so!). This being the case, what's in store for the foreseeable future? Is there anything that you can shed a light on regarding the future of this great place? Where do you see Radicons in 5 years? In 10?
REDLINE: Well, as you know, the Fan Art part of the Radicons gallery is in a state of overhaul. One can of course, clearly see that it’s going to be leaps-and-bounds better than it was previously already! We still haven’t launched our Custom of the Month feature yet, either. You’ll be seeing our galleries and tutorials sections growing at a pretty good clip, plus more video tutorials, likely a Fan Art of the Month feature, and hopefully another media-centric feature that I’d still like to keep a wrap on at this time (sorry!). I’ve also been tinkering with some Radicons wallpapers and shirt/hat ideas too!
Right now, I’m rooting for the success of the Toyark website and its creative section. If it does well enough . . . .
Some t-shirt concepts by REDLINE: 
Superquad7: What is your goal for Radicons? What objectives do you have to reach this goal, and how do you go about this? What separates Radicons from other sites that either have a section for customs or sites related to customs only?
REDLINE: When I first became a moderator, it was over the . . . customs forum. At first, I just wanted to see if I could do anything to make the place nicer than it was (it couldn’t have been any simpler than it was), simply because I wanted to do a good job and be a good staffer, and it was my area of responsibility. But that was before I’d even gotten into the customs scene at all. My goal changed a lot with the demise of Transtopia, especially since nobody out there was even showing any signs of any kind at trying to pick up the slack. Sure, I was a moderator over the customs forum of TFW2005, but I loved it at Transtopia, a whole site for customs and artwork. All the various forums, topics, and resources they had, and it all vanished. I decided, “Someone needs to pick up all this slack, and give all those guys a new place to hang out, but I don’t see anyone showing any interest at all, so I guess I’ll be that guy.”
A long time ago, I’d proposed some ideas to Tony Bacala about expanding the customs forum into 4 sub-forums, which was shot down. It was because the forum was such a low-traffic forum, that having that low traffic broken down even further would’ve made it all look dead from the main forum page, which would most likely kill it instead of grow it. However, we’d already gotten a pretty nice boon of new and active members after the 2007 movie. So after I’d made my decision, my second approach to Tony Bacala went completely different from the first. He had some new things he wanted to try as well, and he used them to allow me what I wanted to try. This resulted in our first big upgrade, back at the beginning of 2008.
My decision was originally pretty generic: I want to create a successor to Transtopia. I want to create a place that provides everything you could find there before it was gone. The only difference is that I want to have a more efficient forum layout (they had a ton of forums, and a lot of them were pretty much dead), and I want to make sure that everyone is welcome here. I don’t want assholes and jerks. I want a place that nurtures the growth of both new and experienced artists, not just the experienced ones.
I take pride in what I do, and that has morphed my original goal into a more refined set of goals. I’m always trying to improve on myself and my labors: I strive to be the best I can be and what I do. Radicons is one of my labors, and loves, and I feel these things have had a pretty strong influence on my goals. I want Radicons to be THE place to go to for customs and fan art. I want to have the largest and most useful set of resources an artist could desire, whether that be a plethora of tutorials and guides, or a massive gallery of photographs for referencing, or a community to ask questions and get constructive feedback from.
I am always willing to look into new ideas, or things I’d not have thought of before. Some people for some reason have perceived the Radicons area as a not-fully dedicated place for customs and fan art simply because we don’t have our very own server. Why is this? I certainly cannot comprehend such a thought. I mean, we have a whole set of forums, gallery system, tutorials and guides, front page, staff, heck, even our forum skin is our own and we have our own domain name (radicons.com).
There is still a ton of work to be done to get to where I want us to be. As mentioned before, the Art gallery’s overhaul isn’t finished yet, and we haven’t truly started our “Custom of the Month” feature, or a Fan Art one. I still want to dramatically grow our non-
TF customs section, too, as well as keep plugging at growing the tutorials and guides area (it’s a good bit behind, unfortunately). I also have another new feature I want to do, but it will be a time-consuming feature, and I don’t want to reveal it yet until we actually get things organized for it, as it’ll be a pretty unique feature for us to have. I also would like to get the TFW2005’s low-fi deal back up, and also see them finish their mobile version of the board, too. I think all of these things will really make this place a lot better, and for a lot more people, too.
Superquad7: Why haven't you hooked up with Vickie yet?
REDLINE: Ha-ha! I should’ve seen this one coming! I never thought I’d ever be in the middle of something that’d become apparently famous, or infamous. I had such a great time at BotCon 2007! For those of you who don’t know who Vickie is, she’s one of the designers on Hasbro’s team, and one of the things she created was the 2007 Transformers Movie Ratchet Blaster toy.
I would dearly love to be able to afford to go back again someday. I’ve honestly not had any contact with her since then. It wasn’t anything serious, all in a good night of fun with all of the TFW crew! I’d wager that the only reason she remembers me out of all the other crazy
TF fan-boys is because of all the hoopla from that picture, ha-ha!
Andy and Vickie (who works at Hasbro as Sr. Design Project Manager) at Botcon. We all know she seriously needs to hook up with him! Superquad7: Briefly describe your experience as a TFW2005.com staff member and how this has impacted your life as a Radicon, both as a Radicons Mod and a Radicon member.
REDLINE: Shortly after I joined TFW2005, I sent a PM to Joe Moore, the Administrator, volunteering to help the site in any way that I could. I’ve always been one to get involved in one thing or another. For most of my life, it was Boy Scouts. Free time and funds kind of cut that out of my life for the most part, though I admit I’d like to get back into that stuff somewhere down the road. I was already past that point when I joined up here, and I liked the place enough that I knew I’d love to be able to contribute in some way or another. I started writing out toy reviews for the site, as that wasn’t a staff job. Back then we had an “articles” section, where you could find toy reviews and comic reviews and summaries. Anyone could submit, just those didn’t appear until after they were checked by someone on staff to be ok. After I did that for awhile, I got asked if I could take photos for the toy gallery. I said yes, even though I had a crap camera and no setup, just so I could do a little more than just toy reviews (mostly WST toys). After doing this for about 6 months or so, I got asked if I’d be interested in moderating the customs forum since Hook was retiring. I practically never visited that forum, but I wanted to be a moderator so I said “heck yes!”
I actually had a goal to motivate me in my work for the site: I wanted to at the very least be a Super Moderator, and if I’m the luckiest guy on earth, maybe even an Administrator. It wasn’t so much for the position, as the achievement. This was how I pushed myself when I was in Scouting (yes, I did get Eagle), and so I was using it here simply as a method to always do my best job. I admit that I honestly spread myself too thin there for a long time, as I was moderating nearly all the forums (didn’t have powers but in the one, but I could flag things in the moderation forum for those who could as soon as they got online), still shooting toy galleries, started looking for news as well as FPing news, and on top of that, expanding Radicons tremendously. I almost got burnt out with it all, back late 2007. Part of it was also because I’d seen people come in on staff after I was already here, and they’d get upgraded, even all the way to the top, while I was still just a regular moderator, and I felt ignored and under-appreciated (at the time I was feeling the same way at work, as that place never ever told its employees, “good job” or, “thanks for that”).
I had a chat with Colin about how I felt, and he didn’t even realize how much crap I was doing, ha-ha. He suggested I try to reign myself in a bit, focus on fewer things; advice I’ve taken to heart, and it really helped my burn-out feelings! Yes, he also immediately made me a Super Moderator, to! Radicons has grown so much, and there’s still so much more to be done. I knew that I couldn’t do it myself, nor even with both Allen and Eric. Some of this was simply experience and common sense, but some of it was also thanks to that wonderful advice Colin gave me almost two years ago, too. I knew I needed more help, and thankfully, I met no resistance to my request at all. I must be doing something right, huh?
I admit that I could do a lot more fun things here at home if I wasn’t putting so much energy and time into Radicons. I could play a whole lot more video games, or go out and play golf, or whatever, but I dedicate a lot of my spare time to keep working to grow and improve Radicons. Someone has to do it, right?
Superquad7: Which customs tutorials have you benefited from the most directly?
REDLINE: You mean beyond the ones I’ve made myself? I’d say the “How To Dye A Figure”, “Pin Removal Guide”, “Alternators Prime Leg Extension Tutorial(s)”, and the “Masterpiece Starscream Tailfin/Waist/Leg Kibble Modification” tutorials are the ones I’ve benefited the most from. I’ve used others, like the Classics Thrust and Dirge tutorials, but these are the ones I’ve used the information learned from them the most. I think the “Pin Removal Guide” and the “How To Dye A Figure” tutorial are both invaluable to any newb customizer, and the others I’ve used on several different occasions. I’ve added my own spin, or at least tried to explain more clearly, what I learned from all of those except the “Pin Removal Guide” one in their tutorials, even. I hope I’ve helped people learn to expand their skills so that they can increase the number of “wishes” they can feasibly convert into reality for themselves.
Nemesis Predaking: Your Classics Menasor is one of the best "perfect" combiners we have seen in recent times. Is there any advice or tips you could give your fellow Radicons who may want to tackle something similar?
REDLINE: Plan, plan, plan, and then plan some more. [*snickers*] Seriously, though, I think this is the most important factor, because there is so much at play. First, you have to make sure the toys you plan to use for the limbs are balanced. They don’t have to be the exact same size or bulk, but they do need to be close, and at least the same length for balance and aesthetic issues. You also want a torso bot that is larger than the limbs, unless you’re going to use more than one bot to make up the torso area, anyway. You will be dealing with a lot of weight, so trying to get everything balanced, and having strong enough connector joints is key. Be creative! I know I technically “cheated” by having drone cars that form his feet, but I knew that without practically scratch-building things, I wouldn’t be able to take a non-combining existing mold and be able to have a combiner that had absolutely ZERO parts lying around. So, I tried to come up with creative ways to allow everything to either be hidden and stored, or used in alternate ways for when the group was not combined. I wanted to keep all three modes (combined, individual robot and individual alternate modes) in mind when dealing with this big issue.
The more planning you do, the fewer headaches and roadblocks you’ll encounter once you actually start your work.
Nemesis Predaking: After your collaboration with plowking on Alt Bludgeon and autobotX23 and Rumble02's collaboration, are there any other Radicons you would like to see collaborate with each other?
REDLINE: Hmm, that’s a cool question. I’d love to do a collaboration with Sculpt-bot, Lobo, Viagra Prime, Dak, Wheel_Jack, JAF, Ptitvite, Jarrod, TheDevastator, clay, or sodawilly. As for others, I think it’d be pretty darned cool to see Nemesis Predaking and his “arch rival” autobotx23 do a collaboration, or plowking and Superquad7, or Sculpt-bot and Jarrod, or how about Viagra Prime and Superquad7 or Crefigz? I tell you another collaboration I’d love to do: I’d love to do one with DON.
This is such a heavy question, because I think there are a ton of artists out there, each with different strengths and weaknesses, and it’d be stupendous to see guys and gals work together to compliment each other’s strengths!
plowking: Your Cybertron Vector Prime is one of my all time faves that you have done. I loved everything about it when you showed it to us. When you found out that he was going to be "officially" released as a convention exclusive, how did you feel? And once you saw the exclusive, how did you feel then?
REDLINE: Well, as you know, I try to steer clear of making a custom of something I can just go and buy. A3 is a cool character who never got a toy in any line, and I was still learning how to get really good with digi-bashing scenes, and I thought it’d be cool to do one of A3 from the Cybertron Vector Prime mold. The picture ended up looking so cool to me that I wanted to actually make one. At the time, I hadn’t done any “normal” sized Transformers yet, outside of touch-ups and such, as I was still just doing Legends-class repaints since I was still really new to the customs scene.
I had a lot of fun making him. I also made some mistakes. I didn’t sand everything properly to eliminate paint wear if you transform him, namely those squares on the shoulders for locking the nosecone into place for his jet mode. I am still proud of him though, all the detail apps I gave him are so clean and crisp, and his gold really does pop! It was also the first time I’d touched styrene at all, both his beard and his head crest are styrene. When we first saw pictures of the BotCon exclusive repaint, at first I thought, “Well, his head is a lot more accurate than mine, but at least mine is painted up completely differently. [I’m] glad I made mine a Cybertron/GF version and not a
G1 version!” I still feel that way. I wish I still had my BC A3, I thought that they looked really good standing next to each other. I do still like my sword a lot better, theirs is so plain! My only negative thought was that I wished I could’ve dyed my clear purple parts and they have ended up closer to the lightness of theirs.
plowking: Do you have any plans to do re-shells of older aircraft? I ask because I know, as well as a good majority of the board does, that you are a Seeker nut . . . and save for ROTF Ransack, we haven't had any old aircraft in the Transformer line. Is the Aircraft lover in you going to rectify this?
REDLINE: Well, I have plans for more NEW aircraft for my Superion project, and way down the line I do plan to make my “Alternators” B-52 Bomber. Man, he’s gonna be pretty big. I think last time I looked, the wing span for that sucker will have to be around 14 inches or so. He definitely won’t be easy. I’d like to take the movie Ransack figure and de-movie his appearance since I don’t have a movie line collection, so he’ll fit in better with the Transformers that I do have. I think it’d be pretty neat to at some point make a few older aircraft. For one thing, I still have the stuff necessary to make an F-14 seeker, but I’d also be interested in doing some old prop-driven fighter planes, too. Oh, I guess I could mention that I will be working on a SR-71 Blackbird project in the not-too-distant future, as well.
Yes folks, REDLINE's work in progress shows us he's in this for the "Long Haul"! plowking: What makes you choose what you do (character/type of vehicle, stuff like that) when you take on a project?
REDLINE: Well, sometimes it’s an obvious character homage inherent in a mold, sometimes it’s my desire for a character in a line where Hasbro and TakaraTOMY neither one are giving us, and sometimes it’s simply a matter of “man, I’ve always wanted a Transformer that turned into X vehicle, and it seems that they’re never going to give us one! Hey, this one here can be transformed like this, and that shape is nearly perfect to re-shell a model of X vehicle onto!” I’m a big military buff, whether it is aircraft, land vehicles, or naval vessels. Sure we get trucks and tanks all the time, but when you think about it, military vehicles are even more diverse than automobiles are, yet we seem to get a lot more of the latter compared to the former.
BMGFX: What are some customizing trends that you would like to see more of, or less of?
REDLINE: Well, combiners have absolutely taken over the customs scene over the last nine months or so, which is cool, who doesn’t want to own a modern combiner? My problem is that the majority of them show absolutely no creativity in them whatsoever, other than minor paint-app changes, we see nothing of the artist invested into the custom, they’ve become “cookie-cutter” which is a travesty to me. I’d like to see a little more originality input into these. I’ve no problem with them sharing a “template” if you will, but common, guys, expand upon it, put your personal spin on ‘em!
BMGFX: How does one manage to be a great customizer "on a budget"?
REDLINE: It certainly isn’t easy! One thing I try to do is to plan ahead, and be smart with my purchases. It’ll never get easier or cheaper to get a base figure than when they’re on store shelves! I do try to take advantage of sales, but at the same time, you’re also taking a risk in missing out and paying more for it if what you’re after is already gone by the time you get to check on the sale.
BMGFX: You have done many types of projects over the years. Are there any realms you have yet to explore and wish to do so?
REDLINE: Well, I still want to get into scratch-building and really involved kit-bashing at some point. I’ve done really heavy mods, and re-shells, but taking 4-5 bots and splicing it all together or building something from scratch is something on my list. Eventually I hope my skills will be up to the task.
BMGFX: If there is one thing to warn a new Radicon about customizing (aside from the ensuing addiction) what might they want to be wary of?
REDLINE: First, don’t let negative comments discourage you. When you put a piece up for everyone to see, chances are someone isn’t going to like it. Just because someone doesn’t like what you’ve done doesn’t mean you suck or are a failure! I would also caution new guys from jumping in over their head. Start simple, even cheap. I started out simply repainting or detailing Legends toys. I then started doing head-swaps and really minor modifications. I asked a lot of questions before I tackled something I’d not done before, and I highly recommend you do the same.
ALPHAMAGNUS: Do you plan on replicating anyone else's work, or do you prefer to stay with your original designs?
REDLINE: I usually try to stay within my own original designs. However, sometimes I’ll find someone thinking exactly the same as me, and they’ll post up something that I already had on my to-do list and just haven’t gotten to do yet. For example, wan_de_real’s articulated Sixshot. I have that on my list for my Classics/Universe collection, as he really already has enough detailing to fit in. The only difference is that I plan to paint details in and omit stickers. Sometimes someone will do a project that is at heart the same thing as something I want to do, but they do it differently. For example, I will eventually make a Grapple out of Inferno, and it’ll even use a Mudflap crane. But the difference is that I’ve already figured out how I can do it so that there’s true transformation, no parts-forming at all.
ALPHAMAGNUS: How many WIPs do you have "in progress"? I have about 20!
REDLINE: I think the photo of my desk shows this off pretty well. I’m nearly finished with my 2 commissioned Alternators (plus a near-copy that’s for myself, Motormaster), and I’m not too far away on Classics Jazz either. On my desk you can see some Jazz parts, plus Prowl, Smokescreen, Ironhide, Ratchet, Omega Supreme, and Incinerator. Omega is pretty much done too, I re-did his head, and I just need to add some detail to that BFG to look more like a proper tank barrel. IH and Ratchet are getting major overhauls, and Prowl and Smokescreen are in the middle of parts-swapping. Look closely and you can see what’s already been done on those two. Incinerator I still haven’t modded his second arm, which I will take pics of during the process for a tutorial (doubt anyone cares anymore, new movie figures are coming out already!). Oh yeah, Universe Roadbuster is awaiting his Sculpt-bot head. Thanks for that gift, buddy!
* * * * *
On a parting note, I just wanted to say a big thank-you to my six Radicons staffers. Not for giving this humble guy a pat on the back he still isn’t quite sure he deserves, but for all the hard work they put into the Radicons! There is absolutely no way that I could run this ship all by myself anymore. I couldn’t do it without you guys. Oh, but I am surprised and thankful that you DID pick me to be a Featured Radicon, and on my Birth-month, no less!
To the Radicons: It thrills me to no end to see you all sharing your works here, and your experience, and your various expertises! Without you, all our hard work would be for naught. Just remember: the door is always open, don’t be afraid to communicate concerns or suggestions for improvement. We’re always trying to improve this place, to make it the best place we can for artists to go for help, for fun, for sharing, and improving themselves. I do it for you!
Thanks to REDLINE for taking the time to complete this interview, despite the fact that no cheeseburgers and/or fries were purchased for Superquad7's consumption. Also, a special thanks extended to supersquads for the photo captions. 
Hookt on Radiconz customz workz fer me! (Classics Jazz is a work in progress, just like Andy's skillz and pk's beard.) REDLINE's Customs Threads Universe Gurafi and Blaster *Finished* Classics Menasor project, WIP *UPDATED* Classics Omega Supreme Finished! Classics Thrust w/ Slight Twist Classics Dirge Classics Microburst w/ Added Articulation Incinerator Has Hands and Guns! Classics Slipstream FA-18 Re-shell Finally, Years Later - Cybertron Dirge Galaxy Force Skywarp Classics Omega Supreme WIP part 6/Final: The Arms (3-25-08) Classics Omega Supreme WIP part 5: The Launch Gantry (3-24-08) Classics Omega Supreme WIP part 4: The Turret (3-23-08) Classics Omega Supreme WIP part 3: The Head (3-22-08) Classics Omega Supreme WIP part 2: The Treads (3-21-08) Classics Omega Supreme WIP part 1: The Beginning (3-20-08) My Project After Next: Classics F-14 My Next Project: Classics Slipstream FA-18 Alternators Motormaster *update* FINISHED! Some Simple Stuff Classics Black Starscream *Update: Finished* My Newest WIP: Punch/Counterpunch LOC *updated* Alternators Shockwave Finally Got Upgraded Classics Megatron Reborn Classics Optimus Prime touched-up Free Stickers for Armorhide (Hotwheels) Trailer Customs**ENDS 11-11!!** Twincast These Will Win You Over... LOC Galvatron upgrade *updated with robot mode finally!* Havoc My Ultra Magnus **FINISHED** Nemesis Prime Two WIPs *FINISHED!!* Alternators #SE: REDLINE! Cybertron Alpha Trion Finished (with gallery!) GF EZ Blaster! LOC Soundblaster LOC Soundwave Scrapmetal Turmoil updated! MY Cybertron Downshift LOC Dirge LOC Sunstorm and Thundercracker 
Don't tell SQ7 where his gun went . . . oh, wait, he reads Radicons' articles, too! REDLINE's Tutorials Turn Cybertron Laserbeak or Buzzsaw or Blockrock into Gurafi: a How-to Tutorial Stretch Rubber Parts Without Tearing All You Wanted To Know About Future Finish Glues For Projects How To Dye A Figure Cybertron Downshift Head Fix!! Alternators Prime Leg Extension Tutorial(s) Thread Masterpiece Starscream Tailfin/Waist Kibble Modification http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/radico...no-longer.html 
Andy can deal with it now [that he haz customz skillz!] . . . . REDLINE's Fan Art Threads *updated* Digibash: Cybertron Omega Supreme Wallpaper Masterpiece Face-off Wallpaper Recolored Movie Wallpaper For Your Viewing Pleasure Megatron In Space Classic Classics Megatron :p Classics Sunstorm TFW2005's Boombox vs REDLINE Wallpaper My Alpha Trion Digibash Air Battle The GRAND Unveiling!!! REDLINE's galleries: 
Classics Menasor 
Classics Omega Supreme 
Classics Motormaster 
Classics Wildrider 
Cybertron Alpha Trion 
Classics Breakdown 
Armorhide w/ Trailer and Base 
Megatron Reborn 
Slipstream 
Drone Cars (For Menasor) 
Black Starscream 
Classics Dead End 
Downshift Enhanced 
Cybertron Legends Punch/Counter-punch 
Alternators REDLINE (by Lobo) 
Classics Dragstrip 
Alt Bludgeon (by plowking + REDLINE) 
Cybertron Legends Blaster 
Classics Thrust 
Cybertron Legends Ultra Magnus 
Cybertron Dirge 
Classics Dirge 
Classics Microburst 
Cybertron Legends Galvatron Upgraded 
Cybertron Havoc 
Cybertron Skywarp 
Alt Shockwave 
Cybertron Legends Soundblaster 
Alt Motormaster 
Cybertron Turmoil 
Cybertron Legends Nemesis Prime 
Cybertron Legends Twincast 
Cybertron Legends Dirge 
Cybertron Legends Thrust 
Cybertron Legends Slipstream 
Cybertron Legends Sunstorm 
Cybertron Blaster and Gurafy 
Classics Battle - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM 
Classics Omega Supreme - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM 
REDLINE Vs Boombox - TFW2005 Wallpapers - TFW2005.COM 
The War Within - Transformers Other Wallpapers - TFW2005.COM 
Universe Autobot 1 - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM 
Universe Autobot 2 - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM 
Universe Autobot 3 - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM 
Universe Decepticon 1 - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM 
Universe Decepticon 2 - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM 
Universe Decepticon 3 - Transformers Classics And Universe - TFW2005.COM This is a mystery concept digibashed roughly: 
We hope you've enjoyed the show!
Oh well, it gives some some ispiration. 
