So, having done with Scrapper (and just finished defending my Doctorate thesis!) I thought I'd get going on Mixmaster! Again, this is my version of "perfect" for the combiner limb bots: about the same size as the original, but upgraded in terms of the overall looks of the toy... I've decided to use Legends Swerve as the base, and started sanding him down; I plan to use his arms and upper legs, hopefully. For the arms, I'm also thinking of using the legs from a DOTM legends sized megs to beef up the arms and have the truck wheels on them... we'll see. Finally, the tough part; I've been trying to find a mixer truck toy or model to cannibalize that's the right size for the past month, but to no avail... Comments, suggestions, all are welcome, and thanks for looking!
Thanks Warhawk! So, a bit of an update. After searching high and low for a cement mixer that would scale with the original G1 toy, I've decided that the only way to do this properly is to actually take the toy itself, and cut it into bits! Found a cheap(ish) one on evilbay, and off I go! I've disassembled it; I think the trickiest part will probably be the legs. The cab will have to be cut in half, and I"m not sure how the folding legs will fit...will see as I go. Also, continued to sand down legends Swerve's torso. The arm transformation will basically be the same, with the main body of the truck on his back, folding downwards just like Swerve's hood.
So had to do some heavy modding on the cab; it wasn't wide enough to fit the legs in alt mode. I split the cab in half, than added plastic on the roof to widen it, and am using the cab front from legends OP, which fits just about right... Next, some work on the torso...
And the work continues, now on the torso. With a bit of sanding, the G1 toy's back section fits well on Swerve. Also, I decided to divide up the back wheels; two on each arm, and the remaining two are attached to the back. For now, I'm using the upper legs from DOTM legends Megatron (which is where I got the back wheels as well). Not sure how much I like them though; a bit skinny...
Back working on the legs. Switched upper legs I was using from DOTM legends Megs with those from some other demolished bot I had in my bits box. Also filled in the empty side windows of the cab. Never quite understood that decision on the part of the g1 designers! Originally, the lower legs were "simply" going to transform like the G1 toy (something that proved a bit more difficult than I'd planned since the cab had to be widened in order to accommodate the thighs). But then I found that the legs were a bit on the short side, kind of stubby compared to the torso. So I added feet that fold partially into the cab in alt mode. Added several hours to the project, but I'm pretty happy. Here are pics showing the new transformation for the legs. Comments and crits always welcome!
Decided that the arms could look a bit blockier, so I've added panels on the front of the shoulders and on the forearms to close things up in alt mode... And here's a pick of what the completed legs look like!
Update! Mixmaster's torso is done; it's a bit thin when seen from the side, but I think it'll work nonetheless. I was able to keep the original toy's boxy backend sitting over the bot mode noggin', and couldn't resist using the empty space in there to give him some electronics. It makes up for the relatively simple transformation of his torso! As usual, comments, crits and questions welcome!
