My second Selects Transmutate arrived yesterday (11.05.2021) afternoon. I ordered it back on 10.29.2021 so that I could have parts to build the missing arm and to have spare parts in case my Nonnef adapter adventure for fixing the coccyx didn't work out (spoiler alert, it didn't).


Ractonite usage:

I had to give up on using Ractonite's alt mode pelvis/tail as the pelvis on Selects Transmutate because, I couldn't get any of the Nonneff adapters to work with it. For clarity, the Nonnef adapters work and they do exactly what they are supposed to do. I just couldn't get anything to lay in Ractonite's alt mode pelvis which isn't shocking because that's not what they are supposed to do. It's going to require custom parts and/or a permanent hard mod in order to use Ractonite's alt mode pelvis and, that's unfortunate because it really helped out with weight distribution and balancing ad I really liked the aesthetics.

I had considered opening the second Ractonite I have to build another Mindflayer and trying to cobble something together with the spare parts from the original Ractonite and the spare parts from the Duplicate Selects Transmutate but, I think I'm just going to return/exchange the extra Ractonite since I would up not liking the motorcycle fan mode (using all three Fossilizers) and I'm fairly certain that I will never get Ractonite's alt mode head to seat/nest on anything's shoulder to use as a spaulder/pauldron. I haven't tried using the Nonnef adapters yet to seat it closer to the shoulders of anything yet but, I'm not sure that I want to try anymore since I wound up not liking any of the fan mode Fossilizer necklaces/jewelry/armor.


Nonnef adapter usage:

Some of the Nonnef adapters did find a home though. I used 2 of the "plates" that have three 5 mm ports grouped together and 1 of the 90° angle adapters that has a 5 mm peg on each end to "lock" the cannon together and to peg Ractonite's alt mode head into it (it still nests flush in the same position as it did without the adapters). The tiny little blue T-rex arms are still between the horns but, that's only to keep the skull from slightly articulating. I would need to remove one of the 5 mm holes from the "plate" that's vertical in order to clean it up but, I only did this so that I wouldn't have to worry if Selects Transmutate looses balance or I need to articulate the cannon arm or the cannon arm falls out. I've "blown out" the following 2 images so that everyone can clearly see how the adapters are positioned.




Wingfinger usage:

Wingfinger turned out to be a complete waste of resources (both time and money). Nothing looked right, parts were either way too long or way too short, and the modular system on Wingfinger is extremely limited because of the over-reliance on 5 mm ports.


Original Selects Transmutate usage:

I didn't change anything with the upper torso layout beyond adding the missing arm and that will be discussed in the next section.


Duplicate Selects Transmutate usage:


I used the factory left (your right if face to face) arm to create the missing arm but, I bent the foot back against the forearm. The upper arm will probably stay but the lower arm needs to be replaced with something better. There currently isn't anything better though (I would honestly settle for Wingfinger's actual hand if any of the other parts could accept a ball-joint).

I used the axe piece to form the pelvis. I'm tempted to cut the axe blades off in order to clean up the aesthetics.

I didn't use anything else so the spare parts will be lying around in case something ever needs to be replaced.


Current build (yes I know these are blurry, it's late AF and I'm exhausted):




Future build(s) & plans:

I'm pretty much committed to knocking the pin out of the T-rex head/jaw in order to remove them since that light blue piece is the jetpack with a 5 mm port, and the piece that it is plugged into is hinged can can mover forward/backward, and the hinge that connects it to the gold piece also functions.

I'm not sure about cutting the axe blades off of the current pelvis. I think it will look better but, it's going to make weight distribution and balance even worse and I'm not sure if it will compromise the strength/integrity of the rest of that piece.

I will most likely remove the Ractonite appendages from the upper torso. They do their job but, the hinged peg that plus into them only moves forward so, the have to rotate the arm around if you want it to swing backwards which also requires that you rotate the forearm. It's cute in an awkward Transmutate way but, it's super cumbersome and it gets old really quickly. There really aren't any 5 mm peg options though and there are even less if you want the shoulder to work like a shoulder since none of the parts have a universal hinge (other than the mushroom pegs which are "locked" into their housings with a screw and a glued peg and, those would make really bulky arms which would lack 5 mm ports). In case anyone is wondering why I don't plug the upper arms directly into the rib cage pieces (similar to the factory robot mode for Selects Transmutate), the 5 mm pegs are too small for those 5mm ports, it would make the upper arm really wide from the front/rear profile, and the arms would always be in an A-stance. It's impossible to get any other rib cage pieces around the axe piece and, Ractonite's are the only ones large enough and shaped correctly to not stick out to far to the front and to obscure the "spine".

For clarity, I'm going for a what would KBW Transmutate look like if it hit all the right notes. Everything is currently fairly proportional to the BW CGI (other than the Triceratop's skull making the cannon longer/larger but that's staying because it's terrifying), it just looks a little "lanky" because BW Transmutate had really wide sides on the arms/legs (excluding the cannon, hand, and feet) but the rest of the arms/legs were really thin. Unfortunately the upper arms are the only Fossilizer pieces that even come remotely close to that look but, they can't be used for the thighs.

I don't think I can really do much else without new Fossilizer molds that randomly have parts that will work, or someone starts making 5 mm port to 5mm peg as well as 5 mm peg to 5 mm port adapters that don't change the angle and don't add length, or actual Transmutate limbs that work like Weaponizers/Fossilizers do.

 

Since I'm cheating and using Nonnef adapters (on the cannon) and and clear bands (on the Ractonite rib cage pieces), I decided to mess around and do a "slimmer" build for anyone that might want something that better matches the cylindrical shape of the limbs. It's more of a proof of concept since it definitely needs refinement:

The neck:

The light blue plastic that the light blue neck with Transmutate's/Paleotrrex's head is plugged into is articulated. The range of motion is limited only be the Transmutate/Paleotrex rib cage pieces as well as the gold/bronze piece of plastic that it's pinned to but, it looks "detached" if you swing it all the way back (so that it butts up against said gold/bronze plastic) since it's clear that it's not in the middle of the Transmutate/Paleotrex rib cage pieces. The T-rex skull really needs to be unpinned, it's unfortunate that it doesn't just "pop" in fir air-lock/friction tabs.


What about a jetpack?

There is no 5 mm port on the back to act like the jetpack. There is a 5 mm peg/post on the gold/bronze plastic though which you could plug something onto though so it's a bit of a moot point. I didn't bother to look for anything to pop onto it.


The rib cage:

There is a single clear band wrapped around the Transmutate/Paleotrex rib cage pieces to keep them nested together. This is taller/longer than it should be but, there isn't a way to remove material from it because of how it's constructed and how it's being used. The clear band isn't enough to prevent movement of the gold/bronze plastic that's nested between the rib cage pieces, that piece should stay stationary. I'm using one of the larger bands that came on The Ark though so it's not as "tight" as it could be but, I don't believe that more pressure would help in this case. That movement also makes it really difficult to articulate BW CGI Transmutate's walk since the gold/bronze plastic that's nested can jostle around and pop out then back in. This really needs a more refined attachment system since it's nowhere near as "solid/firm" as my build is that uses the Ractonite rib cage pieces but, I'm not really sure if it can be refined with existing pieces/adapters without winding up with a lot of bulk/structures where there shouldn't be.


Is there ab crunch?:

Yes, there is a significant amount of movement forward and it will reach at least an 85°+ angle. The movement backward (arching the spine) is also fairly solid even with it being limited by the blades on the Transmutate/Paleotrex axe piece. If the axe blades weren't there, it would reach a full 90° angle.


The shoulders:

The shoulders are attached with Nonnef 5 mm adapters that change the angle of 5 mm pegs. I originally tried to use the Noneff adapter "plate" that has three 5 mm ports on it (like I did for the cannon) but, it's too short to peg onto the light blue 5 mm pegs/posts on the Transmutate/Paleotrex rib cage pieces (you would need to plane down the ribs on the gold/bronze plastic that's nested between the rib cage pieces for the adapter to work) and it would prevent any neck reticulation while also lacking a place to attach shoulders. The shoulders sit too far back, they should be roughly in the middle but I didn't bother trying to put anything together in order to reposition them.


The arms/thighs & elbows/knees & hand:

The arms and thighs are far too symmetrical but, I used what I did for ease of assembly and access. Using the pieces like I have, the elbows are double jointed. The knees are also double jointed. I still haven't come up with a better hand.


The pelvis:

It needs a vastly better pelvis. The Transmutate/Paleotrex axe piece that I'm using would work a lot better if the light blue plastic and the gold/bronze plastic weren't flat pinned together. The ideal spot to start a cut would be on the gold/bronze plastic right before the first individual vertebrae starts (where the first groove is). That hard mode is a significant commitment though since it would remove the ability to make any of the previous fan modes (as well as other existing fan modes) unless you were willing to make further modifications in order to plug those sections back together.


The "heel spurs":

These are temporary and are just something I decided to play with once I opened the other 3 of my 4 Nonnef adapter sets and clipped/finished the adapters off the sprues. The Nonnef adapter "plates" aren't really wide enough to help with balance but, they would look silly if you rotated them to point to the sides rather than point to the back. The feet do need some sort of heel spur for balance and aesthetics though but, it's probably going to have to be a custom piece to get the most out of it.


The "slimmer" build:

 

He's not Sky Lynx, he's Lynx-O  



The Real Sky Reign!
I like to think those aren't G2 Aerialbots, but just four new characters that form the real Sky Reign Squad/Combiner. Even if they aren't official, they look fantastic together that's for sure!  



Can Sky Lynx ride Sky Lynx? Hell yes!  
Sky Reign + Sky Lynx = Skyfire Magnificent!  
 

 

What even is sleep?

In the process of trying to nest Transmutate's/Paleotrex's rib cage pieces around the Transmutae/Paleotrex axe piece, I decided to take apart the pelvis and the rib cage pieces. The pelvis has a screw and a tiny glued peg. The rib cage pieces have two screws and a tiny bit of glue on the strait edge section (I thought I broke an itty bitty tiny peg but it was just a dab of glue, there is a large rectangular peg on the straight edge section that had no glue). Taking the rib cage pieces apart is pointless but, taking off the gold/bronze pelvis got it out of the way and allowed me to peg the Transmutate/Paletrex rib cage pieces to the light blue 5 mm pegs/posts on the Transmutate/Paleotrex axe piece. However, I couldn't come up with a workable solution for a neck attachment point so it was ultimately fruitless as well. Removing the gold/bronze pelvis did encourage me to try pegging the Transmutate/Paleotrex rib cage pieces to the gold/bronze 5 mm pegs/posts on the Transmutate/Paleotrex axe piece though and, I eventually found a position that worked and that allowed me to put the gold/bronze pelvis back on to solidify everything. I had to use 2 Nonnef adapter pieces (one on each side) to connect the Transmutate/Paleotrex T-rex skull assembly to the Transmutate/Paleotrex rib cage pieces and that allows this build to have the same aesthetics to the neck/jetpack as the larger build. There are some caveats though:

There is no neck articulation so, you're stuck with the minimal amount of head articulation (you would need to plane down the "ribs" on the gold/bronze piece that the light blue neck is plugged into in order to get any neck articulation and you would also have to remove the mask). The jetpack also doesn't have any articulation. There is a minimal amount of forward ab crunch but, there is no rear ab crunch since the spine stops in the vertical position. The shoulder articulation isn't a lot of fun since the Nonnef adapter "plates" with three 5 mm ports aren't connected to the front of the torso and left (your right if face to face) shoulder doesn't really have any side lateral movement since it's using the 5 mm peg in the thigh piece (there is probably a better solution but this a quick and dirty build).

It's not all bad news though. Since the Transmutate/Paleotrex spine is pegged into the Transmutate/Paleotrex T-rex skullassembly, this build has a side crunch which means the chest/arms/back/neck/head can all rock left to right similar to a diaphragm joint. That allows Transmutate to do a hilarious caricature of a power walk. Yes, the Transmutate/Paleotrex "mask" is tabbed into the top of the chest (that's what those small rectangular tabs on the Transmutate/Paleotrex rib cage pieces are for & the "mask" has matching rectangular ports). None of the other articulation has been altered. The Nonnef adapters are the only cheat, there are no clear bands used anywhere.

I feel like this build is too short since the BW CGI Transmutate was rather tall (which is why I'm still messing around with the larger build) so . . .

smoll build:



I've "blown out" the following image so that everyone can see how the 3 Nonnef adapters are arranged on each side:




Large build (update):

The changes are somewhat minimal:

I used Nonnef 2 (one on each side) 5 mm 90° adapters (there is a 5 mm peg/post on each end) to attach the Transmutate/Paleotrex shoulders to the Ractonite appendages that are plugged into the Ractonite rib cage pieces. Nothing else will support the weight of the arms because all the Ractonite 5 mm pegs/posts/ports are oversized.

I used the Transmutate/Paleotrex spine to form the pelvis. That means that there is no longer any rear ab crunch since the spine's hinge stops in the vertical position. However, it really streamlined the pelvis like it should be and it improved the balance considerably (which is odd since it reduces the distance between the hips considerably).



Closing notes:

Nothing is really going to mimic the pelvis/spine movement unless it's a custom piece or something that has a posable core (e.g. articulated stainless steel inside of a low shore durometer/strength platinum silicone casing) or it has a ton of hinges (e.g. the Matrix Labs SS86 Sharkitcon tail/mace upgrade) but I don't think that 3D printing a pelvis/spine can handle the weight/stress/platime.

You can't build both of these at the same time with only 2 Selects Transmutates. However, you can build both of the upper torsos at the same time so all you need to do is plug the arms legs onto the build that you want to use. That also means that you need to knock out the pins on both copies if you want to ditch the T-rex skull. The T-rex skull assembly is easy to remove from the large build because, nothing is in the way (it literally goes on/off the 5 mm peg/post without any clashing). The T-rex skull assembly on the smoll build is not going to come off without removing all of the Nonnef adapters and that's not something you're going to want keep taking apart and putting back together.

Fun fact, the light blue 5 mm port "hips" that plug onto the light blue 5 mm pegs/posts on the "pelvis" don't go on all the the way. That means that you could plug on pistons/struts onto those pegs/posts to fill the small gap if someone were to make them but, there isn't anywhere to attach them to the upper torso so they would need to "float". You wouldn't want to attach them to the upper torso anyway though unless the actually worked since it would remove all ab articulation on both builds. None of the Nonnef adapters would work to fake pistons/struts because they are all to wide/large as well as too long/short.

It would be neat if someone made a hose assembly that could easily attach to the head but, I don't see that happening.


I don't foresee any future revisions to either build unless:

I can find a way to attach the shoulders better or make the appendages more asymmetrical. I might use Wingfinger's "thighs" as the shoulders because that double 5 mm port at the "hip" would allow me to try and plug something in to try and create the "counter-weights/blades on each shoulder but, it would lose the double elbow joint if I were to put the counter-weights/blades on the top where they belong (BW CGI Transmutate had extremely limited articulation so it's not a big deal).

I find something articulated/hinged to plug onto the gold/bronze 5 mm peg/post on the neck that I can plus the light blue neck with head into. It obviously won't slide up/down like the BW CGI Transmutate but, it would put the light blue neck w head attachment point in the center where it belongs. This isn't really an issue on the smoll build since the neck doesn't move but, it would drastically improve the large build since it has neck articulation.

I find a suitable hand.

 

Tiny Turbo Combiner

 

Aw that's adorable.

 

Credit goes to Lumakin Studios. Saw how they did their Transmutate and I was like. YUP NEED TO GO THAT ROUTE!

 

Hunter meets the hunted

 

Since the Exosuit looks so much like an astronaut I thought I'd try to make some kind of "rocket" & "launch pad" out of TR Arcee. Still debating how well I did. ^^;

 

“Bumblebee Movie” Soundwave

 

Another angle and bonus lamp post

 

 

Neat, I grabbed a core Soundwave earlier but haven't had a chance to search for fan modes yet. Now I want to line Siege Omega Supreme's tracks with core Soundwave lamp posts . . .

 

i took your idea an grapple n ironworks build back better lol

 

Got my hands on Paleotrex and Wingfinger, and made this:

 

“Shockwave blaster mode” and “Bumblebee Movie” Tank mode

 

I have a request. Would someone be willing to take Earthrise Airwave and Siege Six Gun and combine them onto Generations Selects Star Convoy (or GS Hot House, Powerdasher Cromar & POTP Prime, whatever works)?

I'm wondering if Six Gun and Airwave could be customized into Sky Garry and Grandus respectively. Grandus should be much bigger, granted, but combining the Battlestars in robot mode seemed like a fun play pattern to me. Just wanted to see if it works visually, any help is appreciated.

 

so after watching transformers movie the real one not the bay crap lord zarak seeing dannel with his hover board he quickly repurposed fasttrack lol now hangs10 on the weekends on the lava lakes of charr lol

 

"Who will rule the Galaxy?"
"ME! IT IS MY DESTINYYYY!"
"We shall see, Galvatron, we shall see... now watch me pop this Ollie into a 360°!"