8-17-12 update While working on adding more panels to the head "ring," I worked on a couple other things. These are mods that aren't movie accurate but that I like for the toy... First, I'd like to give Devastator a bunch of Mech Tech ports so I can really arm him. Earlier I drilled some holes in the arms, and here I drilled a hole in Rampage. This will also allow minor stealth modes for the vehicles. I plan to do the same with Longhaul later... One of my bigger pet peeves with the toy was the shovel on the butt. This made it look more boxy... and just looked bad to me. I had some open space behind the head, so I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone. As you can see, I cut the shovel in half and drilled some holes in it. Now it can be attached to the current head connecting system. I plan to perhaps add more holes so it can be attached in other formations. I've also go a pic showing the Lego pieces I glued inside the shovel for putting it back together in vehicle mode. I haven't tested it out much yet and that may need some work...
9-4-12 update Since my last post I've given Longhaul a Mech Tech port, added a little more to the shovels to help them connect, and worked some more on the head panels. I also put some Apoxie Sculpt on the ball joint that connects the battery pack to the front of the head. I realized it didn't need to be moving, anyway, and this makes it more solid...
9-11-12 update I've done some more work on the panels, adding twist ties and Apoxie Sculpt. The main thing is I cut up the more external panels in half. Now the vortex can closer tighter and looks much better IMO. Having come along on the head, I've found I need to take a different approach to the Mixmaster barrel pieces. I'm going to try to make it so they stay on Mixmaster's arms and plug into the sides of the head. This should make the head more accurate and Mixmaster's vehicle mode sturdier. I also grabbed a couple huge straws from some amusement park drinks to use for the huge tubing on Devastator's back. I think one may be long enough if I cut it in half...
are you planning on having rampage combine with the dump truck that he pulls up with in the combination sequence? Reference: (0:15) Transformers Revenge Of The Fallen: Devastator (1080p/HD) - YouTube
Nope, I'm pretty much going to leave his limbs alone except for Mech Tech ports, a little paint, and some cables on Hightower.
9-26-12 update Got the cables on Just use some string, didn't even need to do any gluing or plastic cutting... I've also got the new connections done for attaching Mixmaster's barrels to the sides of Devastator's head. The panels look a tad loose in the pics, but I can hold them tighter with my hands. I'm hoping to make a ring in the middle of the head, like on the CGI model, and use it to hold the panels closer in...
Back tubes Had a little time to work on Devastator last night so I tried putting the straws on his back. I cut them down a little and glued some Lego Technic pieces in the ends. I'll paint them black to match the CGI when I get to the painting stage...
10-9-12 update I was going through my left over Mixmaster parts to find a ring piece to cover the gap in the middle of the head. I found one that seems to fit well after some cutting. I'm to attach some Lego pieces to allow it to come on and off. Also, I'm thinking of redoing the panels and attaching them to this ring. I'll have to look at it more, but I think if I attach the panels to the ring with "arms" instead of to the other panels with wires like they are now, it will look nicer and move easier... And I tried sliding the ends of the straws through some openings by Mixmaster's cab. Now the tubes have a better, more accurate shape IMO...
vortex Haven't been able to do too much work on Devastator lately. Thought I'd share a pic of what I'm planning on with the vortex. To make it look more elaborate, I'm going to glue the blade circles from another Mixmaster onto this one. I have another one that I could use more blades from, but I think that may be too many. I still have to sand down the bottoms some before I glue them on...
10-22-12 update I've decided to redo the panels as shown here. This gives a much nicer fit and clean look as opposed to using the twist ties as before. I just need to find a hinge now to attach to the Lego Technic piece to then attach the panel to...
That is the most cumbersome looking toy ever.Good job though.You've put some serious thought and time into it.Kudos!
Thanks guys! Yeah, one of my goals is to make this guy non-cumbersome. That's one of the reasons I scrapped the first connection system using just Lego bricks, the head kept coming off! Now I think of all the moving parts on his head like poseable limbs, like on a multi-limbed toy...
10-29-12 update I glued the vortex pieces onto the main vortex. I think I might start cutting up my third vortex and use those pieces, too... It's not shown in these pics, but I pulled out all the twist ties from the panels. I decided that I'll do all of them the same as the top one or permanently attach them to the ones that are already there. I'll have to play around with it some more...
Thanks guys! I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I think I've got the mechanisms figured out and now will just be cleaning and decorating before painting...
11-08-12 update I added some vortex panels to the slider to make it look more like the movie model... The last pic here shows two more vortex panels with twist ties attached. I'm going to attach the other ends of the twist ties to the ends of the slider, making them able to bend in and out. If you check out the pics of the full head, you can see where they'll fill in some gaps compared with the vortex panels on the jaw...
Since the last update, after examining the pics, I noticed that there's a big area around Devastator's head that doesn't have the grinders, so I removed those panels. I also added some plastic pieces to the upper back of his face. These hold the slider in place when the head is closed. I was planning to add more to these pieces to make the head look more like the model, but then realized that I was misinterpreting areas on the toy with those in the movie. I'll have to look at pics some more, but I may replace these flaps with vortex panels... And I added some pistons from my Energon Skorponok to the sides of the head. There were some CGI pics where these were very visible... Soon I plan to start painting him. Not because I'm done, but I think it will give me a better feel for how toy details relate to movie details. That should help me on further construction detailing...
