3DPrintron has a wonderful head sculpt that they have done that is now starting to show up all over the net.

Really the only thing this head requires is a slight amount of paint and your all set. Overall there is some significant improvements giving him a bit more of an IDW look tuff guy look.

This alternative head for Megatron by @3dprintron really is a thing of beauty. #mtmte pic.twitter.com/QVTR1nWAMj

— Llama God (@TheLlamaGod) October 19, 2015

Interested in getting it? Then go to Shapways and have it printed!

If you like the more “rustic” appeal use the lower quality ABS plastic, as it is cheaper, but also will give that more dirty look as LlamaGod’s depicts. If you want a more smooth finish then you will want to go with the Frosted Extreme Detailed.

So a rather interestingly criticized MP-10 Optimus Prime is last years Year of the Horse Optimus Prime. I happened to buy him mostly because its rare to be able to buy ANY MP-10 for less than $150. Why you ask is he criticized? Well Gold paint… Transparent Trailer… Might as well have made him some gold chains to go around his neck and be 100% gangst!

Transformers Addicts Facebook group had a fan by the name Terry Binion share his changes to this figure and to be honest I think he looks better than the standard MP-10! In short all he did was painted all the gold parts “silver” and covered the autobot emblems with new stickers. The end result makes me want to take mine out of the box and paint over all that gold.

YOTH Optimus Prime Picture Source: Seibertron.com

Custom By: Terry Binion

If your not following Skids Customs you need to be. While this site is relatively bias towards the Decepticons cause… We do however find room for Autobots especially ones like this!

Skids Customs was commissioned to take a MP-10 KO Ultra Magnus and convert him to a MP-10D Optimus Prime based on the Deceased Optimus Prime from Transformers the Movie (1986.) (The Cartoon also has him in a few episodes like this also.)

His goal was to make this Transformer look exactly like the cartoon with a cell shading effect. And let me say this is possibly the best custom paint job I have seen yet!

First here is a small interview:

– How long have you been customizing Transformers?

I have been customizing Transformers since 2013.

– When working with customers do you try to draft up on paper the vision or work directly on the figure?

When working with customers, they usually tell me what they want and I just go to work on the figure.

– What is your process when beginning a custom like this MP10 Optimus Prime?

I started with a fine tip sharpie marking areas where battle damage and cuts where going to be on the figure. First the head, cutting in the damage, sanding, cleaning and then painting. Then I moved on to each limb doing each one at a time and finally the torso. Each part was disassembled as much as possible before painting. No primer was used on this particular figure because the plastic already the color I needed it to be. Everything on this figure was painted by hand with a brush and finally clear coated with a brush also.

– What is your preferred brand of paints and type of paints?

I normally use Model Masters, Testors Enamels, Tamiya Acrylics and Vallejo Acrylics. This one was all Vallejo.

– Decepticon or Autobot? If you had to choose which side would you join?

Autobot all the way. I’m a huge Optimus Prime fan and have about 100-200 Optimus figures in my personal collection.

There you have it Skids Customs does commission custom work on Transformers and has a lot more on his Facebook page so go and check him out.

So I took on this project about a couple months ago. And finally feel like its at a place where I can show some of the results so far. Now I have not dirtied him up yet, as I am going for a slightly clean look for the moment. So its definitely a lot different from Darkcave Customs version.

Take a look!

Basically I used several things here…

• Rust Oleum (Ultra Cover Paint+Primer) Colonial Red, Metallic, and gloss black
• Americana Acrylic paint (Might be looking into some other brands…)
• Darkcave 3D Printed Ironhide head

I tried using another black paint I think it was Krylon and it did not do well on the rubber parts of Hound. It was sticky and did not seem to dry very well. I ended up spraying over it with the Rust Oleum, and then finished with some acrylic to ruff it up.

The Acrylic paint I used here is very cheap… Some of the paint went on very smooth while other colors I had to fight. Which may be I need to shake it up and blend a bit more with water to soften it. Otherwise I am fairly happy with some of the results. I am going to smooth out the yellow a bit more as I had to go thicker than I wanted to due to the paint not working with me…

Reddit Member DrannorR posted his custom painted Galvatronus.

Taking 4 copies of Skydive and using “Folk-Art MultiSurface Purple/Metallic from Michaels.”

He did mention that the final out come is a bit sticky and not as smooth as normal Transformers.

In these situations I do recommend starting with a nice base coat of plastic/all purpose spray paint & primer. Taping off areas that will be painted later or even re-using sections that are within the color range you want. “Grays/Blacks etc…” In some situations even starting with a base coat of spray paint will even help the other paints not be as tacky after drying.

Probably my newest favorite thing to do is to customize transformers. I ran into a custom recently done by Darkcave Customs. He had taken AOE Hound and converted him into Ironhide. Along with that he has made his new head sculpt available for printing at Shapeaways. He usually sells his customs after finishing them. This specific mod that he did appears to have sold for $165 on eBay.

His work is by far some of the most intense pieces I have seen. And if your not following him on Facebook, you might want to start!

I about have my AOE Hound nearly torn down… Per Darkcave Customs I asked him how to remove his head. AOE Hound’s head has a metal pin instead of the normal pop on heads. He said to use a soder and then pull it off with pliers. I have yet to do this to mine just yet, but plan to soon.

I will be using similar color variation, but with probably a more shine and glossy look with some mud and war-damage.

Investment –

$24.99 (AOE Hound) (HTS still has it on sale and with coupon can make it $20.00)

$15.00 Spray Paints, Paint, Sealer

$8.95 + $4.95 shipping

Total: $53.49 (Approximately)

This may be a month or more before I have any further updates on my customs. But until then enjoy DarkCaves!

Images Mirrored:

So without surprise we get it already… And bad! Here are some great custom’s that are so good I want to throw my money at them RIGHT NOW!

急だなあ・・　　#エイプリルフール pic.twitter.com/7gBWQZRgtW

— printron (@3dprintron) March 31, 2015

So I purchased recently from someone the double pack from TRU… And have been wanting to do a custom on a Transformer for a long time. Because I had two now and only paid about $10 for Slag…. Why not?

My inspiration was actually the Black Knight version, however, darker… AD Soundwave!

I used two spray paints –

1) Rust-Oleum Metallic (Brilliant Metal Finish)

2) Krylon Paint + Primer Black Gloss.

3) Acrylic Paint (I use Americana)

4) Anything painted with Acrylic is then also sealed with a Krylon Clear finish. (Not necessary, but helpful!)

5) I used a thick green painters tape for details. This helps prevent the spray paint from leaking (not prefect but helps..)

6) If paint leaks over… You can always spray paint real thick onto a paper plate or cardboard. Then using a brush you can brush the areas needed. (Great for finer details!)

Below you will find the steps and final results. I dub thee, Soundwave’s Dinbot! (I hope to do two more like this. Snarl, and another Scorn…)

[Show slideshow]