Now, chances are if you're following my blog, you're also following the blog of the Rhodey to my Stark, Ben Mininberg (hmm...that analogy didn't quite work the way I wanted it to...). Anyway, if so, then you probably have some idea of the grandeur that was the 2013 edition of Bwana Spoons' and Microbry's My Friend the Micronaut show at Grass Hut in Portland, OR! Ben's always been ahead of the curve when it comes to social media (at least when compared to a dinosaur like me!), so his coverage of our small corner of the show has been invaluable. For real, if you haven't checked his site lately, you NEED to peep his Buffalo Squad Allarounds and the epic, jaw-dropping Microman-scale Blockman. All 3D-printed in his own home!
Last month, I mentioned that the PSFT (Powered Suit Fake Type), my tribute to the Diaclone Powered Suit Type C, was going to be debuting at the show...with special thanks to Mason Fitch, Lisa Fitch, and Dylan Gould. These three amazing miniature painters absolutely killed the figures I ordered from Shapeways specially for MFTM. Well, not only can these figures finally be seen online, but they're actually available for purchase!
First up is Mason's figure, "The Foreman". Pretty obvious where the name comes from if you're a G1 Transformers fan! Devastator-style suit; Spike-style driver:
Next, sticking with the Microman theme, Lisa's Biotron-tribute suit is piloted by a driver painted like a yellow Micronaut Time Traveler:
And finally, we have Dylan's Real Type take on my Fake Type suit:
These figures are truly works of art...but they're also fully-functioning toys. As I've covered in previous posts about the PSFTs, they feature magnetically-jointed shoulders, a shoulder mount for the cannon, and a bunch of other little upgrades over their vintage counterparts. Unpainted versions of these figures will be sold as kits through my Shapeways store towards the end of the month (the price will likely be about $90).
But the biggest surprise of all has been a project just a handful of people have been privy to. See, back in March, I picked up my very own 3D printer! The Afinia H-series has been the driving force behind the majority of my toy development for the past several months. It's been an amazing ride...the product of which is something I'm really proud of.
Behold. The Powered Bio Suit!
This 100% 3D-printed titan comes from...well...downstairs. As you can probably gather, it's an ABS-plastic Diaclone Powered Suit C. But the real feat of this toy is that it's actually Microman-scaled! Yes, roughly three times the size of the original toy, this larger version is roughly six inches tall and has a peg inside the cockpit so that *any* Microman/Micronaut figure with a 5mm port on his or her back can be mounted inside!
The variety of features include glow-in-the-dark cockpit panels, a clear plastic face shield, ratcheting shoulder joints with gloriously-strong detents, and full 5mm peg compatibility. Like any good Microman toy. ;)
My hope is that the first production editions of this toy will be available at the East Coast Chogokin Summit held this year in Dracut, MA. From here on out, though, I'll be posting pics of these toys as their development progresses. The cat is out of the bag, after all! For those who can't wait for the first production run of this toy, you can always head over to Grass Hut's store to pick up THE very first ever fully-assembled prototype of this toy!
Oh, and 'cause I just can't help it, I had to post this adorable picture of CC of Onell Design stuffing keshigomu into a later iteration of the suit at Glyos HQ a little while back!
Kid tested. Doughty approved.
;)
