Doctor Doom -- UPDATE

Save for the usual touch-ups, etc., the putty work on Doom is done!

All that now remains to be done before priming is attaching the right leg to the body. The reworked gauntlet cuffs still have to be finished; but since the arms are to be painted pre-attachment, once I confirm the fit, I can set these aside until the time comes.

What will have to be done prior to priming is the groundwork. Since there are no mounting pegs on the throne itself , the assembled piece will be secured by a central brass rod into the body, and the slight indentations of the outline of the throne on the MS ground- work.

I'm about half-a-day behind schedule--priming is slated for next weekend, give or take.

FOLLOW-UP. . . The "groundwork" has been roughed-in using MS, and the assembled seated figure set upon it so as to leave an impression. Once the MS is cured, the "groundwork" will be surface-finished and detailed. Almost there. . .

FOLLOW-UP (2) . . . The "groundwork" is DONE! And with that, once the final once-over is completed, the figure will be ready for priming.

The gauntlets are all-but-done; just some minor touch-ups and final clean-up remaining. . . Back to the bench!

Doctor Doom -- Home Stretch. . .

Just something to tide those who are following this thread over 'til the weekend. . .

THE THRONE IS DONE!!! Anyone who is intimately familiar with the kit knows that the kit is now dry-assembled. I might have a few tweaks remaining here and there, but for all intents and purposes, it is done!

All that remains to be done is finishing the lames on the right sabaton; heel plates and "besagews" on both sabatons; and attaching the right leg to the body. I hope to have all this done over the weekend; but I have a feeling priming will have to wait until sometime next week.

Almost there. . .

Doctor Doom (III)

BENCHNOTES (3) 26.11.10 When we last left off, the critical areas remaining to be finished were the gauntlets and the sabatons.

Since then, I have finished all the prepwork on both sides of the throne/cape, and all but completed the left sabaton--still have the heel cap to do. The gauntlets are about 70% done, give or take; but they shouldn't take longer than a weekend to finish.

If I can get the left leg and the right sabaton completed this weekend, I should have this piece ready for priming in 2-3 weeks.

FOLLOW-UP. . . The head has been permanently attached, and the figure clean-up is all but done. The final fitting and filling of the back of the throne, a most critical step considering that the back will have to be painted--at least undercoated--as a separate piece is well underway: I will hopefully have this completed before the end of the day tomorrow.

FOLLOW-UP (2) 28.11.10. . . The turning point of this project occurred earlier this afternoon: the back of the throne was permanently attached to the figure! It now "works": major sub- assemblies are reduced to three (plus the two arms), and all are inherently stand-alone stable.

As to my earlier statement that the back would "have to be painted--at least undercoated--as a separate piece", there is no doubt that in an ideal world that would be the indicated call; how- ever, given the problematic design and fit of this piece, I'd rather face some careful painting (conveniently calling for essentially self-shading complementary colours!) than the potential mishaps of post-painting assembly, etc.

The next posting should be graphic update of the assembled--and disassembled--piece, before and after priming.

Until then. . .

Doctor Doom (II)

BENCHNOTES (2) 06.11.10 The raw putty work has been virtually completed. The critical areas remaining to be finished are the gauntlets, the sabatons, and the right poleyn: everything else is 80% complete or better.

The throne has been squared, and the back finished. Painting strategy vis-à-vis assembly has yet to be finalized.

I estimate an additional 7-10 days of work before the figure can be considered ready for priming.

Doctor Doom (I)

First of all, a Happy All Hallow's Eve to one and all.

While the kit is definitely not worth salvaging, I can not see my way clear to throw away $75.00! And as I know if I simply put it away, it will never get built, I've decided to press on until I can go no further. Fortunately, I just received a resupply of MS last week!

Progress reports to follow as warranted. . .

BENCHNOTES (1) 01.11.10 The one virtually insurmountable hurdle to be overcome is the differential in shrinkage between the PUR and the white metal. This is not only the primary cause of the deplorable fit, but due to the non-keyed joins, makes it virtually impossible to assemble intuitively.

The basic structure is now assembled. It took over 4 sessions of buttressing the undersides of cape/throne sides with MS. It also demanded that the drapery of the cape be restored to what I presumed were its original dimensions, again with MS: the left side is all but done; the right awaits. Needless to say, the miniaturist best be thinking about how he or she will tackle the painting of this "puzzle", lest all this work--and all that remains--amount to naught!

The sabatons have been ground down, roughly shaped, and the right one repositioned. The poorly cast floor, useless as provided, will not be used. The mantle clasps have been redone: the left one in my sample was missing a section of the turned edge: so much for quality control. Which is just as well as Doom's clasps were not turned! The gauntlet cuffs have been beefed up, and now await finishing.

Before closing for the day, should you venture to acquire this disaster, the key to it all is the back of the throne. Figure out what you're supposed to do with this, and everything will more or less begin to come together. . .

BENCHNOTES (1a) 01.11.10 I have just completed fitting the back of the throne to the assembled 3-pcs. "structure" described above. As there is a considerable gap between the back of the throne and the figure (cf. the green), the first thing I did was fill the hollowed back of the figure with MS. I then drilled two holes in the back of the throne, which when pressed into the MS, would create two male locater pegs. The assembled throne was then set aside to cure. Please note that this is but step one, albeit the most critical, of what will be a rather prolonged process to give the throne a finished look from any perspective.

Knight Models' Doctor Doom (KMV018)--REVIEW

It has arrived (from The Red Lancers, of course)!!! Issue #56(!)/500.

I consider myself a somewhat experienced, logical miniaturist who can think "outside the box" (literally and figuratively) and overcome just about any problem that a manufacturer can throw at me. Well... either I have an overinflated impression of myself; or don't expect to see many Doctor Dooms on the show tables in the near future--if ever!

The kit is comprised of 11 pieces: 4 PUR and 7 white metal. The PUR pieces and one of the white metal pieces comprise the throne and floor; the balance of the white metal pieces make up the titular subject: head, torso, 2 arms and two legs. The metal casting quality is overall Good: for a new casting it is, at best, Fair; in one notable instance, Poor. The PUR castings are decidedly below average, with mold deterioration obvious and an unacceptable amount flash present. I will say that most of the molding problems point to a less than "finished" master sculpt and/or production prototypes.

The design is deplorable! Neither the throne nor the figure is a stand alone item: the figure has no back, the throne has no seat, and most of the voluminous cape is part of the respective arms of the throne!! What makes this worse is the fact that there is no way to assemble a PUR throne around a white metal figure and hope to be able to correct any mistake/s! And given the different shrinkage coefficients of the respective mediums, how can any manufacturer expect to reproduce the fit--to say nothing of a seamless fit --of the master? [NOTE: If you look closely at "the green", the master's fit was anything but seamless!]

This will be the last Knight Models release I will buy. This company desperately needs to reassess its production design and capabilities-- AND its quality control!--if it expects to capitalize its niche market position, to say nothing of survive. Unless, of course, their true target audience is the collector, not the miniaturist--which would explain a lot!!!

FINAL VERDICT: After spending most of the afternoon trying to find "the key" that would unlock the mystery behind assembling this kit and making it fit, and discovering a number of production deviations from the master, I have come to the conclusion that this is very possibly the worst designed kit vis-à-vis its production quality I have ever had the displeasure to have purchased!

Knight Models: you have lost a patron and a fan . In the days to come, I will decide if it is worth salvaging, or if I've just thrown away $75.00!

Knight Models' Doctor Doom (KMV018)

As I mentioned in a comment to an earlier posting, KM's October releases will feature--on the Marvel side--the ruler of Latveria, Victor von Doom, bka Dr. Doom.

The presentation is classic: a pondering Doom, slouched on his throne, hands steepled before him. The only thing that might have been better would be one arm across an arm of the throne, holding a bejeweled goblet. . .

But I digress. The drapery of belted tabard and voluminous cloak is extravagantly exquisite. And there is a wrinkled rug, that while defying logic, serves a masterful purpose.

Why then have I not already placed an order for this kit? Two reasons: the leg harnesses and the cuffs of the gauntlet.

I am not particularly taken with the shape of the sabatons; but there is a canonical provenance to the style, if not the mass. The leg harnesses, especially the left one, is a different story altogether: the cuisse does not line-up with the poleyn; and the medial ridge of the greave is not straight. The right leg harness suffers from its own shortcomings, though not as dramatic, if not simply less visible.

The cuffs of the gauntlet are simply nonsensical: massive forearms are reduced to wrists less than half their diameter!

If these kits were not €50 srp, I might consider buying one and putting it away for an inspired rainy day; but at over US$70 srp--before customs; shipping; etc.--that is too much money to acquire an unfinished product.

FOLLOW-UP. . . Just saw "the greens" (read: masters) of the two new Marvel releases, and while my appraisal has not changed one iota, my estimation of the piece's build-up potential has. The necessary corrections can be made relatively simply, and I now have this piece on order. . . Full, hand's-on review to follow. . .