@WWERetroStars
Superstar
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Jan 29, 2014 21:57:52 GMT -5
There are some great custom LJN threads on here and I was hoping to add one more. I grew up with LJN's. In fact, it was my love for LJNs that led to my love of WWF wrestling! Not the other way around. I started collecting LJN's in 1985. 5 years old and relying on my mom to drive me around, I scoured the city week after week in an effort to build my collection. For whatever reason, the Hart Foundation, The Killer Bees and Snuka were nowhere to be found in my area. It wasn't until the past few years that I was about to purchase these long elusive figures on eBay. Over the past few months - in need of a hobby and stress reliever - I've tinkered around with customizing and restoring some of the beat up LJN's I've scooped on eBay. (My original collection will always remain untouched) Based on the many threads on this site, there are a million different ways to approach this. I'll share here what has worked best for me, along with some of the products I've found to work best. I respect that other people might take a different path or use different products. If you do, please share, as I am always open to trying new avenues. PRODUCTS
PAINT- Material wise I've found that Craftsmart brand SATIN finish paint is a nearly exact match to LJN paint. LJN's have a glisten to them but NOT a gloss. Also, just as it does when used on the walls in a home, gloss paint pulls out a lot of imperfections in figures. On the other end of the spectrum, the flat lines of acrylic paint result in a chalky look - once again missing the look of the original LJN's. The satin line has less color varieties than other lines of Craftsmart but the finish is perfect. I pick it up at Michaels but it might be available at other places as well. SCULPTING- Recently I've made the switch from Sculpey III to Scupley Premo. Premo goes on much smoother and shows much less variation. I haven't had any issues with the oven. If you follow the heating directions there will not be any problems. That said, anytime you use an oven you should do so cautiously. Also, older ovens might not be as accurate temperature wise and it might not hit the exact temp of 275 that the product calls for.
PICTURES
I'm going to be posting some pics soon. It is hard to decide when one is done because of how much detail the 8" figure calls for. In some cases, simple repaints with the LJN's can be the best call...Even restoring them to their original state. That said, right now I'm putting the finishing touches on:
Kane
Brooklyn Brawler
Lord Alfred Hayes
Bezerker
Repo Man
Earthquake
Undertaker
New Version of Beefcake
New Version of Captain Lou
New Version of Macho Man
New Version of Hillbilly Jim
New Version of Heenan
New Version of The Iron Sheik
I'll also share some "in progress" pics in the case they might be helpful to anyone else that works on LJN's. Here is a pic of a Kane I am working on that I have not cooked yet. FIGURE: Kane MADE FROM: Greg "The Hammer" Valentine. No alterations to the original body. Full red body paint with black additions using Sculpey III.  I look forward to sharing some more images and thoughts soon! |
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Scotty's Customs
Mid-Carder
New website up at http://scottyscustomsandcaricatures.weebly.com
Joined on: Jan 24, 2014 18:02:14 GMT -5
Posts: 114
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Post by Scotty's Customs on Jan 30, 2014 11:44:45 GMT -5
Great thread. Looking forward to reading the tips & seeing lots of pics, have always toyed with customising LJN's but never got around to trying
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Deleted
Joined on: Nov 24, 2024 10:59:52 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2014 19:02:09 GMT -5
great post thanks for the advice
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Post by knupmc on Jan 30, 2014 19:03:31 GMT -5
Nice can't wait to see kane finished
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@WWERetroStars
Superstar
Joined on: Dec 8, 2013 21:34:21 GMT -5
Posts: 733
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Jan 30, 2014 21:26:44 GMT -5
Thank you for the kind replies. Here are 2 figures I finished a few weeks ago. FIGURE: Kane MADE FROM: Greg "The Hammer" Valentine No alterations to the original body. Full red body paint with black additions using Sculpey III. This was before I started using Sculpey Premo but it still finished nicely. This is an example of where I think sculpting works a little better than paint. Rather than just painting on the black part and the lines on the mask, the Sculpey gives it a little dimension which better resembles the original LJN's. As you see here, the satin finish has a little shine to it, but not a heavy gloss.  FIGURE: Earthquake MADE FROM: King Kong Bundy No alterations to the original body. Switched Bundy's outfit from black to blue and used Sculpey to add hair and to increase the size of his outfit. Again, I opted for Sculpey over painting the design on Earthquake's outfit. LJN's had a somewhat "cartoonish" feel. With the exception of a few figures, LJN's didn't really get into heavy detailing with paint colors. It would be hard to envision an LJN figure going to the extent of fully replicating Earthquake's outfit design with the full Richter scale and "Earthquake" written out. Because of this, I think the Sculpey better captures the simple, "cartoonish" look of the figures.  |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 31, 2014 0:12:25 GMT -5
Those are awesome and some great tips
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BelowNormal
Mid-Carder
LMAO...Seriously.
Joined on: May 28, 2013 18:06:06 GMT -5
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Post by BelowNormal on Jan 31, 2014 1:59:33 GMT -5
Awesome work man, can't wait to see what's next!
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mesteve
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Joined on: Apr 10, 2011 22:45:19 GMT -5
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Post by mesteve on Jan 31, 2014 20:07:16 GMT -5
I see what you mean about the paint. It looks good, and isn't too glossy. I look forward to seeing your Lord Alfred figure, and what figure(s) did you plan to use for your new version of Macho?
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lamby23
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Joined on: Dec 16, 2009 14:10:15 GMT -5
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Post by lamby23 on Feb 4, 2014 18:57:29 GMT -5
I think you are wrong about LJN not using detail on their figures in your explanation of the attire you chose for Earthquake. More than a handful of the LJNs had lettering or detail on their tights. Bulldogs, Sheik, Koko, Billy Jack Haynes etc come to mind. Even Volkoff had the USSR on his shirt. So to say they wouldnt have taken the time to add "earthquake" to his tights imo is wrong.
Had they made Earthquake and opted to use less detail they prob would've gone with his plain blue or his all brown attire. Or depending on the time frame a small Canadian flag (similar to small WWF on Ken Patera)
Don't take this as criticism of your work. Your figures look top notch! I always enjoy seeing Custom LJNs and I'm looking forward to seeing your take on anymore you create and you post.
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@WWERetroStars
Superstar
Joined on: Dec 8, 2013 21:34:21 GMT -5
Posts: 733
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Feb 4, 2014 21:04:17 GMT -5
I think you are wrong about LJN not using detail on their figures in your explanation of the attire you chose for Earthquake. More than a handful of the LJNs had lettering or detail on their tights. Bulldogs, Sheik, Koko, Billy Jack Haynes etc come to mind. Even Volkoff had the USSR on his shirt. So to say they wouldnt have taken the time to add "earthquake" to his tights imo is wrong. Had they made Earthquake and opted to use less detail they prob would've gone with his plain blue or his all brown attire. Or depending on the time frame a small Canadian flag (similar to small WWF on Ken Patera) Fair point! There are some occasions where they opted for paint for the detailing. Jake The Snakes' tights, Iron Sheik's pants... the examples you mentioned. That said, in my mind, it was the dimensions and layering that made LJN what it was. A shirt wasn't just "painted on", you could feel the actual spot where the sleeves ended. Same would be said for little details like buttons on some of the managers' dress shirts, etc. I probably did not do the best job explaining it in the Earthquake post, but that is the idea I try to capture. |
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@WWERetroStars
Superstar
Joined on: Dec 8, 2013 21:34:21 GMT -5
Posts: 733
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Feb 4, 2014 21:15:21 GMT -5
Figure: Repo Man Made From: Nikolai Volkov Started with a grey coat over all of Nikolai's body. Using Sculpey Premo I added Repo Man' s patented facemask along with a little extra hair. I again used Premo to add the detail to the Repo Man's outfit. Note: The only paint I used on this entire figure was the grey for the base and the black for the kneepads. Everything else was the actual Sculpey color. This allows lines to stay sharp and eliminates the unfinished look painting sometimes brings.  
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Deleted
Joined on: Nov 24, 2024 10:59:52 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2014 13:56:51 GMT -5
These look really good. Great job, man.
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@WWERetroStars
Superstar
Joined on: Dec 8, 2013 21:34:21 GMT -5
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Feb 6, 2014 21:01:39 GMT -5
FIGURE: Hulk Hogan MADE FROM: Hulk Hogan (1st) and Paul Orndorff. Simple part swap. Used the lower half of Orndorff and the upper half of the first Hogan. To bond the two I actually used a 3" screw and ran it up the center of Orndorff's legs into Hogan's torso. It worked out well because it actually split the legs apart a little farther and helped it stand easier. Rather than paint the tights I blended red and yellow Sculpey Premo together to give it the same look as the Jakks Classic figure. 
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Post by Midnight: Dark Knight on Feb 7, 2014 7:12:56 GMT -5
Im sorry I havent had a chance to respond sooner (been busy with my own customs).
Although I dont personally like the dimension the layers of sculpey gives instead of painting (stitching and patterns would never stick out that far), I think it makes yours very unique and very clean cut.
If the sculpey layers were thinner it would probably look a little better.
The hogan however is top notch. Its very smooth and i would never had expected that result with blending 2 colors together. id like to see it without the belt to see how clean and attached the waist is.
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@WWERetroStars
Superstar
Joined on: Dec 8, 2013 21:34:21 GMT -5
Posts: 733
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Feb 7, 2014 21:24:58 GMT -5
Fair criticism. I would like to be able to thin the clay out a little bit more but it tends to get a little brittle. Maybe I will explore some other options to trim it down a little.
Thanks for the remarks about Hogan. I will take a picture without a belt next time I upload another custom.
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@WWERetroStars
Superstar
Joined on: Dec 8, 2013 21:34:21 GMT -5
Posts: 733
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Feb 12, 2014 18:37:33 GMT -5
Here is a picture of the Hogan with the belt not blocking the waist.  |
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@WWERetroStars
Superstar
Joined on: Dec 8, 2013 21:34:21 GMT -5
Posts: 733
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Post by @WWERetroStars on Feb 12, 2014 18:42:49 GMT -5
FIGURE: Berzerker MADE FROM: Hillbilly Jim top and Hercules Hernandez bottom. Modeled this figure off of the Hasbro version of the Berzerker, thus, went with the brown tones and simple boots. Tried to give his top a little textured look by digging into the Sculpey prior to baking. Connected the Hillbilly Jim top and Hercules Hernandez bottom using a 2" drywall screw. 
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akawildfire
Main Eventer
Joined on: Oct 8, 2005 13:38:29 GMT -5
Posts: 1,026
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Post by akawildfire on Feb 12, 2014 20:01:19 GMT -5
If you want to do fur texture it's better to just slice small lines then to "poke" holes. (poking holes makes It look like he was pepper sprayed with a bb gun).The shirt is sculpted well but the holes takes ALOT away from the figure. In time you should attempt at changing facial expressions because the smiling face just doesn't work for berzerker. Overall the figure is painted really "clean" and your body part choices works well.
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Post by Turnbuckle Zealot(Phil) on Feb 13, 2014 18:56:00 GMT -5
Probably not your desired reaction, but that is the most adorable Kane figure ever created.
It's face just seems endearing, & the sculpt job is sublime.
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mesteve
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Joined on: Apr 10, 2011 22:45:19 GMT -5
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Post by mesteve on Feb 15, 2014 20:50:17 GMT -5
You have some great ideas for customs, and very smooth and clean paint jobs, which I think really adds to the final product, so nice job there. I think if you added more detail to Earthquake's and Kane's hair, like you did with Repo Man's, it would definitely improve the final look. I know it can be difficult as I'm finding out myself. And kudo's to you for "sharing your secrets". It seems that with LJN customs, the methods are much more closely guarded, and so you don't get the kind of forum discussions you see with Mattel's and Jakks, and people don't regularly give out their "recipes".
When I get a chance I'll share some of my custom ideas and methods on this thread, since I really do my customs for me, and so I don't mind anyone "stealing" my ideas, in fact I encourage it if it helps them. In the end, I just want to see more LJN customs. Plus it takes me so long to do one, so if someone else wants to use my ideas to finish one quicker, I would look forward to seeing it. There's been a surge lately, thanks in part to you and Midnight. There's another guy out there with a site called CustomLJN, and he used to offer on the site a lot of tips as well, but I think he's since removed that info though.
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