by generalsjoes | Oct 23, 2009 | Customs, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Toys, G.I. Joe: The Movie, Kick Ass Custom, Pursuit of COBRA
Back in my day, I was a fairly prolific customizer in the vintage Real American Hero format, but in these newer days, the simpler a custom is, the better I like it. I just don’t have time these days to rip figures apart, paint them religiously, and put them all back together, so I always love to hear about simple part swaps, especially when they’re amazingly effective. MadMac41 over at JoeBattleLines has been doing some little part swaps and tweaks on the Rise of Cobra figures pretty much since the day they were released.
He first got my attention with a trio of customs seen on JBL here. Salvo was a very simple part swap, yet looked really neat. Outback didn’t take much messing with, but, again, looked like a really effective movie style update. Recondo was the same way. Here are pics of those three customs that first kind of got my attention:
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As cool as they were, though, I wasn’t sure they were kick ass custom of the week material…but then MadMac posted a pretty neat Dial Tone, and then followed up with Scott McCoy (Chuck Norris in the Delta Squad movies!) and finally a Major Bludd that really rocked. It was the Major Bludd that finally put me over the edge, using the awesome Jungle Assault Ripcord figure base with that great camouflage scheme, a Reactive Armor arm, and the Anniversary Bludd head. It all just fit together too nicely.
So, due to the sheer volume of work and the amazing improvements he’s made since beginning, and my love for this Major Bludd, MadMac gets this rendition of Kick Ass Custom…well-deserved!
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by generalsjoes | Oct 13, 2009 | Customs, G.I. Joe
The countdown has begun!
JoeCustoms.com will be kicking off Custom Celebration 4 on October 19 through November 1. Custom Celebration is a two week event where the site is flooded with customizing and collecting content that nobody will want to miss.
Past Custom Celebrations have included interviews with some of the finest customizers, who often share tips and techniques through tutorials posted to the site’s wiki. Visitors can also read in-depth articles on G.I. Joe, customizing and related topics, as well as reviews of figures from the site’s extensive gallery by some long-time members. This year promises to have all of that and more, so be sure to stop on by.
An independently run fan site for G.I. Joe hobbyists, enthusiasts and collectors, JoeCustoms offers free hosting for more than 9,000 customized action figures, 700 customized vehicles, and 100 playsets, as well as commentary from the artistic minds behind them. The site is supported by its users – including the artists themselves – who share their thoughts and insights on G.I. Joe, customizing and any number of topics through the site’s forums.
For more information on JoeCustoms.com’s Custom Celebration 4, please feel free to email contact@joecustoms.com. The schedule of events will be updated daily.
by generalsjoes | Oct 13, 2009 | 12" Scale, Customs, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe: Resolute, Kick Ass Custom
I’m a little ashamed to admit that I’ve been a monstrous fan of G.I. Joe in pretty much any characterization or scale out there… except for the one that started it all. For whatever reason, I just find it hard to get into the whole 12″ figure scene, but that’s not because I don’t like it or have a certain appreciation for it. Usually it comes down to price or what you get for your buck, and it’s very rare that the 12″ scene gives me a good “go between” there. The figures are either simplistic, non-detailed, and dull, or they are overly exagerrated, insanely detailed, yet priced way out of my affordable range. There doesn’t seem to be anything in between. Some of the Spy Troops and Valor Vs. Venom stuff gave us the best of both worlds, in my opinion…a reasonable price range, yet still enough bang for the buck, but recent releases have just been dull and uninspired, especially for the recently elevated price tags, even on basic retail shelves.
The Sideshow Collectibles stuff is out of this world, of course. It’s simply fantastic. However, the $100 – $120 price tag per figure doesn’t fit my somewhat limited Joe budget. So, it always amazes me when I run across 12″ enthusiasts who actually accumulate enough fodder to do some crazy customs. And I’ll tell you, the customs don’t get much crazier than a member of the One Sixth Warrior forum, gaiagear. I’ve seen my fair share of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero themed 12″ customs, but gaiagear tackles something near and dear to my heart, G.I. Joe: Resolute. There aren’t really enough words I can type in this post that express just how insane these customs are. They are truly works of art and things of beauty. In fact, pretty much every custom that gaiagear has done affiliated with the G.I. Joe universe really blows me away…but it’s really just the tip of the iceberg. Check out a small sampling of gaiagear’s incredible work below, all found on the One Sixth Warrior Forums. The gallery below features incredible versions of the following characters:
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Crazy stuff. But the craziest thing is this is just the beginning. There are a wealth of insanely talented 12″ customizers on the One Sixth Warrior forums, and there is some equally insane Real American Hero styled customs over there. Check out this thread for some of them. While I don’t have the budget or the real incentive to dive headlong into the 12″ scale, I can certainly appreciate the work that goes into these customs. Some awesome stuff here, I think fans of any scale will really dig ’em.
by generalsjoes | Sep 24, 2009 | Customs, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary, Kick Ass Custom
Well, I haven’t done one of these in a while, and haven’t really felt a burning desire to, even though I’ve seen a lot of pretty damn cool and creative stuff out there lately. However, when I stumbled upon Slaughters_Renegade on the Terror Drome…well, I just had to make mention of it!
His work ranges from simple tweaks to existing figures, to entirely new part sculpting and flawless paint apps, he has filled in a TON of holes in the 25th Anniversary roster. I’m sure everyone knows by now that I’m not all about reliving the past, but his work is so good, I just had to mention it. These images were all pulled from posts on The Terror Drome, and mirrored here. Some fantastic work.
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by generalsjoes | Aug 25, 2009 | Customs, G.I. Joe, G.I. Joe Toys, G.I. Joe: The Movie, Kick Ass Custom
The self-proclaimed OCD Joefan, “Werecat” of JoeSightings and JoeBattleLines went the extra mile with his Pit Playset, and spent a whopping 14 hours doing detail work with a very small paint brush and a whole lot more patience than I have! Check out his post on JoeBattleLines here, or check out the gallery below. Very impressive.
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by generalsjoes | Jun 30, 2009 | Customs, G.I. Joe, Web Stuff
JoeCustoms administrator Pluv has announced a contest on the site to encourage folks to send in G.I. Joe related customs for the custom archive. Contest details are below:
“For every custom that you submit during the month of July that gets greenlit for the Gallery, your name will go into the hat for one (1) of three (3) $20 cards* to go see the GI Joe movie on August 7th. I want to stress that the custom must meet the submission guidelines in order to be greenlit. If your custom is denied for not following the guidelines your submission will not count.
*Your choice of movie theater gift card, or Fandango gift card, or Paypal.”
Check out the full details here, and get working on submitting those customs! See G.I. Joe: The Rise of COBRA for free!
