Unique Toys Desperado (3P "Transformers Masterpiece" DOTM Megatron) repaint. COMPLETE

[Kanrabat]

EDIT:
This first post is only the "prototype". Scroll down to the 3rd post to see the FINAL results.



It's been a while since I posted anything here.
I worked really hard on this and I'm proud of the results. So I had to share.

Unique Toys Desperado was a 3rd Party Dark Of The Moon Megatron that I waited for a long time. It was freakishly eensive but I traded-in some stuff that I no longer wanted at my local geek store. So, the financial blow was greatly lessened.

But here's the thing. The original has ZERO paintjob and it's an ugly green. Even the "battle damage" version suck color wise. Here, have a look:



GODDAMMIT, BING!  #-o

Google to the rescue:



That's the version I got. Not only there's nothing painted, the plastic feels soft to the touch like a blackboard! The thing BEGGED to be painted. So despite the high price of the thing, I want to have the PERFECT one. (I know about the Alien Attack version, but that thing is a nightmare to transform so nope.)

That plain green is bleh. Especially compared to the movie:



What I did was to apply several layers of watered-down acrylic paint for airbrush. I used silver, copper, and black. I used the natural green of the plastics to my advantage too. Then once the robot mode was done, I transformed it (Thank you EMGO!) and then I painted the vehicle mode. After some final adjustments, here's the result:









The vehicle mode is pretty bad-ass. But that's no tanker unfortunately. It's a thing. Meh, it still looks good. I painted the "trailer" an uniform silver to give the illusion that it's a separate part from the cab.













That is one HEAVY boy.



I dirtied up the tarp. But to place it on the vehicle, it's not easy. Especially for the chains that have nothing to latch on to. So they just rest there.







Comparison time with the official Transformers DOTM Megatrons. First the original voyager, then the Studio Series leader, and finally the 3rd party Unique Toy's.
Desperado is a BIG boy.





And now for that glorious robot mode!











Poseability is limited and those shoulder connectors barely hold the arms in place. But despite these flaws, the bot looks AWESOME. Especially with my paintjob.







The hood is not perfect, but it does the job.





I darkened Igor a bit:









Comparison with the originals:



So what do you think? Did my painting looks good?

[davidd]

Whoa! Nice paint work! That was an impressive... transformation from toy-like to movie-like!

The vehicle mode looks great! I like the realism of the tarp with the chain on the trailer.

This project must have required countless hours!

[Kanrabat]

Whoa! Nice paint work! That was an impressive... transformation from toy-like to movie-like!

The vehicle mode looks great! I like the realism of the tarp with the chain on the trailer.

This project must have required countless hours!

Yeah, my paint work was nice enough... for a day.

However, something was nagging me and I found that the colors were all wrong. It's nice on it's own, but it's NOT the "true" colors he's supposed to be. So I spent the whole week to make things right.

Now Megatron have his "proper" colors. Plus he now look truly battered and rusted.

You can look up the first post to see original version I came up with and my impressions on the toy itself. It was not easy to do but I think that NOW I got it right.

Enjoy the updated and FINAL pictures!

First, a reminder of the original vanilla toy:



Then, what I did at first for the truck mode:



And now the improved and FINAL version:



















The tarp and chains still can only rest there with no way for things to be solid. A design oversights.





And now for the robot mode.

First, a reminder of the CGI model from the movie:



Then, see my previous version who do not looks like the movie shot at all:



And then, here's the DEFINITIVE version that I came up with:





















By flipping the calve panels over, you can directly compare the unpainted plastic to the painted areas.



Now with the accessories. First the shotgun storage:



And the final completed look with chains and hood.









Final comparison, with the other two "Megatrons" from Unique Toys:



Now I think I got it right and everything is perfect. Do you think so too?

[davidd]

Wicked-cool rust-work on the vehicle version.

The bot version looks much more metallic now!

A challenge with achieving "screen accuracy" is that, in nearly every movie, costumes, props, and pretty much everything appears to be a different color from scene to scene.

[Kanrabat]

Wicked-cool rust-work on the vehicle version.

The bot version looks much more metallic now!

A challenge with achieving "screen accuracy" is that, in nearly every movie, costumes, props, and pretty much everything appears to  be a different color from scene to scene.

Thanks!
And that movie fact is so true. I struggled to find a good and clear enough screenshot. There's tons of fan arts and concept arts, but I wanted to base my work on what we actually saw on the screen. It wasn't easy.

Maybe I don't see the shine on the bot because both you and my mom said the same thing! 
The rust is really apparent on the truck but seems to be outshined by the metal bits on the bot mode.
Interesting phenomenon.

[Kanrabat]

All the pictures above have been taken with my old digital camera. The quality of the pictures SUCK. Too often the pictures are blurry, and I notice it only when I post them. So as a test shot I too and cropped a picture taken with my phone.
Guess that's what I will use from now on.