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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Jan 1, 2010 20:25:00 GMT -5
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Jan 6, 2010 15:10:36 GMT -5
Thanks Rob for this awesome stash of weapons! Very nice work!!!
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Feb 1, 2010 23:37:44 GMT -5
When I opened these pics in an email from our member Rob1 I flipped. He really put the effort in and made a outstanding Flocking Cabinet/ tray flocker. Check it out! ...And the finished head! He said he'd like to do it again and that he still needs to master it, but from that pic it's outstanding- plus he took the concept and added his own ideas. Check out the cut notches in the front to guide and hold the stick. This unit looks nicer than the boxes I've made! Nice work Robert Ray ;D
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Feb 25, 2010 15:10:20 GMT -5
Rob1's finished restored ebay Adventurer! Sweet looking figure!
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Post by rob1 on Feb 26, 2010 0:04:28 GMT -5
Ray, I just wanted to say thanks. Because of your guidance I'm now able to produce high quality Gi Joe Figures. The flocking that you provide is perfect! Others out there can do this, if they're willing to put the time and effort into the hobby. Thanks, Robert
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Feb 28, 2010 15:32:52 GMT -5
Rob, Thank you for being motivated to put the time in. At least now when you see an old balding Joe you know you have more options than Dealing with it, sending it out, or just passing on the figure. There is a nice size group of collectors who have pushed to learn this- many wish to remain nameless and I respect that, but know you are not alone in your excellent efforts.
I do wish that those who have been successful would post or let me post some of their hard work.
Others who have or are struggling to get the hang of it. Don't give up. Trial and error is how it works. Know that many have also in the end given me tips. This is outstanding to me because the more minds working on a project- the better.
Don't forget to ask for help. My teacher showed me lots of things, but for everything he showed me, it brought up more questions and on many of them he left me on my own to figure out. I would say, "Why didn't you just say that in the first place?" He would respond, "Would you have known what I was talking about?" Answer- No! I always say, "once you're into this project... then the right questions come..."
Thanks! Ray
PS Rob, I also want to thank you for the great items you have sent me! You are very talented!
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Mar 4, 2010 19:31:00 GMT -5
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Mar 17, 2010 8:25:32 GMT -5
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Post by rob1 on Mar 18, 2010 21:20:53 GMT -5
I'm very happy with the flocking machine that I've constructed. Anyone out there can do this and get the same results. The heads that I've done look like new again. As you can see the before and after pictures, the flock is pretty darn close to the original. When I get the heads I scrub them with a tooth brush. I strip all the old flocking and repaint eyebrows, scar and lips. I apply 30 minute epoxy with a brush and begin flocking. Sometimes I mix different colors to the flocking. Overall the final product is excellent.
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Post by traud on Mar 21, 2010 3:33:36 GMT -5
Hey Rob excellent work on the molding and casting...and the flocking to...not to mention the flock box that is sweet. One question I have is, how far away does the ball have to be from the plate? Thanks
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Post by rob1 on Mar 21, 2010 10:53:50 GMT -5
Traud,
Looks like you know the process of casting as well. I made a pressure chamber from an old paint gun and put a air regulator on top. This worked well for small castings and removed all the air bubbles. I usually do to piece molds and just hope it works.
The ball is about 1 to 1 1/2 inches from the plate. Since the ball is egg shaped I can turn it to make it closer or farther from the plate. I always leave it at 1 1/2 inches. This machine seems to work better with humidity. Ray had explained that to me when I started all this. I'm very happy how everything works.
Rob
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Post by traud on Mar 23, 2010 19:18:29 GMT -5
Rob, Thanks for the info. I'll lock it away for when I get around to making my box.
I've been thinking about making a pressure pot using a...well pressure pot for cooking. I figure I'd put an indicator on it and an air inlet. It should be quite safe I think you only need no more than 10lbs of air pressure to do the two part molds. I figure using the cooking pot...should give lots of room for different molds + I already have an air compressor.
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Post by rob1 on Apr 2, 2010 23:38:50 GMT -5
Here are some Matt Mason helmets and visors I casted in my pressure chamber. Attachments:
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Post by traud on Apr 3, 2010 7:27:47 GMT -5
Hey Rob,
A couple of questions for you.
Do you have a store bought or a home made pressure pot? How much pressure do you use? What do you use to cast in color, dyes or paint?
Nice castings BTW. You really need a pressure pot or vac chamber to do the clear stuff.
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Post by rob1 on Apr 3, 2010 9:17:25 GMT -5
I used the home made pressure chamber from an old spray gun. It has a rubber seal and then I put a air regulator on top. I kept it a 20 lbs of pressure. It worked well for the visors which was clear. No air bubbles at all. It worked well for the small castings. You can find the casting products at www.alumilite.com. The sell everything. They have dyes and different resins. I've been happy with them. They sell pressure and vac chambers that are very expensive.
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Apr 3, 2010 14:15:54 GMT -5
Holy Crap, that's really impressive! Nice
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Apr 7, 2010 9:55:38 GMT -5
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Post by rob1 on Apr 7, 2010 11:22:34 GMT -5
I added more Yellow and Red Fuchsia to the mix. Ray had sent me some different colors for mixing. I tried to copy the original hair colors as close as I can. I've noticed that the flocking on some late Joe's (1976) have more reds and yellows in the brown. I think this one is pretty close to the original flocking. This is the one I used the vaporizer for the humidity. The flock stuck to the head quickly. I tried to post the pictures on the forum but can't figure out how to do more than one picture. Ray posted them for me.
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Apr 7, 2010 13:14:37 GMT -5
I know I have a tough time with it too. I think they have to be resized smaller. Either way is fine- I don't have a problem posting them for anyone who needs it. I just end up linking them from either flickr, photobucket, or imageshack. Although I do need to reorder the pics on those sites. They are kind of jumbled up.
This is why I add the mixer packets. This way the buyer can tweak the base mixes to their liking or needs.
Another thing I tend to do while flocking is add a dusting of those colors after most of the head has been flocked. I'll sift in some more yellow and red. On some spot repairs a little orange makes the yellow and red pop more. It just goes back to color mixing. you can get a later date Land Adventurer mix by using orange, black, red, yellow and no brown in there at all, but it'll look brown.
The whole basic mix is really gray, but by adding extra of certain colors it'll turn Land, Sea, or Air mix. Many of the Sea Adventurers I buy from Canada have the real reddish color I look for. I wonder if Hasbro did that on purpose.
On a side note, I am working with a company (flock supplier) that may start offering my solid colors at a fair enough price- then we all can have as much as we need without collectors having to rely on either a choice of my flock or others that are, for the most part the, wrong color flock. I also may have some updates on a new (in testing) Adhesive. If all goes well I hope to be able to offer it in usable amounts and price range for collectors/flockers. Fingers crossed!
On the paints I am trying to get more, but the stuff is in the $80 a 1/2 pint range and the thinner is a standard $160 per pint, but is needed because the paints need to be thinned out to make them usable in paint kits. Most of which I can justify purchasing if I need it in some way and the left over I can offer to others.
Ray
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Post by traud on Apr 10, 2010 10:52:45 GMT -5
Thanks for the info Rob. I've been on the alumilite site before...man they have a ton of info on there. I get my stuff up here in Canada from a place that is about 2 hours away. Shipping from the states can be costly specially when it's resins and adhesives. They can be pretty sticky at the border...I don't know why.
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Apr 16, 2010 6:03:13 GMT -5
I've tried this and it does work! Excellent idea and work Rob! Thanks! Ray an example of Rob's restoration work below! Just Outstanding!!!
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Apr 18, 2010 16:28:56 GMT -5
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Post by rob1 on Apr 19, 2010 17:59:51 GMT -5
Here's my latest restorations. These are 1976 Muscle figure talking commanders. I bought them on Ebay and got the talker boxes repaired. The Camo clothes is for the regular muscle figure Land Adventurer, but I liked how it looked. The green commander needed new hands, which I purchased from Cotswold. I re-flocked the heads and pained the eyebrows. I cast the rifles and one of the dog tags. I think they turned out nice. Attachments:
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Apr 19, 2010 20:13:22 GMT -5
Nice? Shit what do you want for them??? Just kidding! You've done it again. Now isn't it more fun doing all that you do to repair them, when you do it yourself? For me it just makes them more worthwhile. He's done it again! Very nice work! Ray
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Post by rob1 on Apr 20, 2010 7:59:17 GMT -5
Ray, It is fun to restore them! I like to make color changes in the flock to make them look different. Back in the day these figures all looked the same. I also like hunting for the clothes and parts for a decent price. I didn't pay that much for the figures because they were in bad shape, but if I were to buy these finished I would pay in the hundreds. At least when I'm through with them I know they're perfect. I'll never buy one complete from ebay unless I can see it in person. I've been ripped off before with people saying that they're mint. I'm going to a toy show on the 25th and I'll probably find more figures to restore.
Robert
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Post by Ray (Flock Man) on Apr 20, 2010 23:37:24 GMT -5
They look better than anything Hasbro ever put out that's for sure.
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fastclick
Newly Reflocked
Flock Concepts Member
Posts: 6
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Post by fastclick on Apr 26, 2010 8:29:09 GMT -5
Outstanding! Looks like professional work! Gt
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Post by rob1 on Apr 26, 2010 9:43:11 GMT -5
Thanks for the compliment! Ray gave me some great tips. I first bought some flock from Ray and built a flocker out of a electric fly swatter that you would shake. It worked fine for small spots. I was very impressed with the color of the flock that Ray provided. Compared to others it was almost a perfect match! Then Ray flocked some heads for me and I was blown away with the quality! I then built a flocker box with Rays help. I was hooked after that.
Robert
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Post by rob1 on Apr 30, 2010 15:38:29 GMT -5
Here's some more GI Joe's that I restored. The Sea Adventurer is the one that had the nose job. The Land Adventurer is one that Ray Flocked for me. I just recently found a Helicopter rescue jumpsuit that was very nice. These figures were restored with miscellaneous parts and clothes that I had. It's fun when you can bring them back to the original form. Attachments:
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Post by traud on Apr 30, 2010 19:32:18 GMT -5
All of your refurbished guys look great It does feel good when you can restore an old beat up figure and bring him back to his former glory...or even better. I'm getting to the point now where I forget which guys have been reflocked in the traditional colors.
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