Cleaning Files

You may hear me from time to time refer to Swiss Files.  This are small hand held files of various shapes.   Some are square,  some curved.  Each one designed to help get into that hard to reach spot.  I use these Swiss Files to sand down any imperfections in a cast including cast lines.  Now its more common for larger files to get clogged with bits of steel,  but if you are like me, your 'work' area isnt far from the 'casting' area.  And occasionally I will drop some resin on a file.  While a wire brush can work if you are stuck, the best way to clean a file is with a piece of brass or aluminum bronze (cheaper facsimile).  You run the brass over the file going with the grain.  With the brass being softer than the file, the brass pushes whatever is stuck in the file out.  Steel, dried resin, last nights dried remnants of a banana split...and it doesnt hurt the file.

Is Mold Release Neccesary?

When I first got into casting, I noticed that mold release was only needed for the mold.  You didnt actually need to apply any to the piece being molded if it was injection molded plastic.  Thats what makes for part of the beauty of using LEGO as a framework for our molds.  The silicone doesnt adhere/stick to injection molded plastic. 

I recently made some molds for the back wings to help recon a Spidermobile.  And dumb ass me again, I thought of pictures of it too late.  I saw a hair stick to the wing I was making a mold off.  So when I got the hair out, I wiped all the release agent off of the wing, but not the mold surface.  When I made the 2nd half of the mold, I again sprayed the entire surface with a release agent.  Unwittingly, I let it dry and finished the mold.  The side that had the release agent sprayed on it was sooo terrible I threw it away and remade the mold at once.  I tried to see if I could sand it a bit, but it lost so much detail it wasnt worth the effort.

I am not saying to not use any release agents.  I am simply saying that for injection molded pieces you are making molds of,  you only need to apply the release agent to the mold surface.  It affects your detail and surface texture and the basic overall look is...well...I wasnt happy,  I dont expect you would be either.

I have since stopped using the pump action spray bottles they provide in the casting kits and am now applying the release agent to the mold surface manually with a paint brush.

Authentic Unofficially Official Magno Custom Capes

I dont mean to cut into this post.  Its unintentional.  But this next set of customs required I build something for it.

I have mentioned these in the past, but like stated in the previous post, I dont get make much time for 'playing'.  If I did, you would probably have seen more pictures of these next customs than you have...er...havent.

 I am not sure how many of you know this, but Lady Command of the Micropolis Embassy Group made the capes for the Palisades Toys Emperors.  Shortly after the Magnos were released,  I commissioned her to make some additional capes for me in various colors.  They havent seen much play time, so I took down the red one for a few pictures.  I have been looking for proper hooks/hangars for them and havent found anything yet.  However now that I am doing casting, hooks/hangars for these Capes is now on the list. 

I wished I had gotten a few more made.  This is actually the first time this Red Cape has ever been put on a figure.

 I didnt know what to do with these capes now that I had them. Keep them wrapped in a  bag? So I took some welding wire.  Wire, not rod.   It comes in various widths about 2 maybe 3 feet long.  And I bent some and soldered them together to make a Cape Rack

 I have more detailed pics of it being made, but you get the idea.  All the joints were filed/sanded and the entire rack primed and painted.

I think Im going to spend a bit more time playing.  Some of these other capes have never been on a figure yet either.

Reconditioned Mego Spidermobile

  A short while ago I came across a Spidermobile and a Hulk Explorer.  The Spidermobile was just a red shell.  The Hulk Explorer was the same, but it also had its original cannon.  No dart, but I could live with that. 

  So when ever I get a few minutes I put it to use reconditioning these vehicles back.  I make the parts needed to make it look like the original version.  If I come across the original parts down the road, I swap out my casts and use them for other things.

 Now I still need to find the proper rear axle or one I can cast, but this Spidermobile is better off than it was. I made it new fins for the back, the back wing is from a Star Defender but matches and I made both the single and the double ski's that are currently mounted on it.  The side mounted rockets are courtesy of a now defunct Palisades BK set.

 I also have a couple of other Solarions that I have put together.  My favorite has the front wheel from the Battle Cruiser.  It just looks that little bit sleeker I think. 






One of the good things about having a Blog, is that it literally forces me to 'play' with my collection.  Maybe I dont get down on the floor and build worlds, but I take out a piece in question and pose it for photographs.  With all the casting and a little thing called 'life',  I dont do it nearly as often as I would like.  So this helps out a lot in that regard.

   Bob & Doug Mckenzie.   Bloody Canadians and their beer eh.  Now look what those 2 have done.  Great...Just Great...Pharoid. Beer.  I hope he keeps it away from the Terraphants. 

Dam bootleggers.      :~)

Blog Issues

The problem I am currently having with my blog are set up issues.  I cant access certain features I wish to add to the blog.  Couple that with the fact that I cant post a question in the FAQ Forum, it is kind of frustrating.  While Blogger is a great "Free" service,  and is great for pictures, it would be nice if they had a help center that was a little bit easier to get help from.  They want you to figure it out yourself.  But if the information you are looking for hasnt been addressed in the FAQ forums, then you are SOL.  And if you cant post a question, then how do you get the help you need?

So it isnt a big problem, just a frustrating one.

All I wanted was to collect action figures...who knew I would end up getting an education.

Can Anyone Help Me?

I have been having a blog issue for over a year.  When I try to post a question, it asks me for a short description of the problem...Even if I dont type in a single word it tells me I have exceed the maximum number of characters allowed.  So I cant ask anyone for help to fix my problem I am having with my blog for the last year now.  Blogger doesnt have an email address or phone number or even a mailing address for me to contact them.  Or rather, I should say I cant find any way to contact them

Any suggestions on how I can fix my blog when I cant contact my host for help?

Rocket Tubes Diaries **AMENDED**

After I had posted the Rocket Tube Diaries,  I went back later and tried to rearrange the pictures nearest the information most relevant to it.  Blogger doesn't make for easily picture placement and you really have to fight to get the picture to sit in the blog where you want it.  In the process of trying to organize the pictures better,  I inadvertently deleted the first paragraph of Ray Millers article on the Rocket Tubes containing the patent information and information about its creator and companies involved.

This information has since been restored and my sincerest apologies to Ray Miller for my mistake.

Well, lets hit the custom trail with a BANG!  No mistaking this custom figure.  BUG!!!  The one that got away.  Of all the Micronauts who had ( IMO ) the ability to be a singular action figure that could have made it without the Micronauts, it was Bug.

And every once in a while Marvel will flex their muscle and throw out a 4 comic set with Bug making an appearance just to remind everyone that he is their property.  Its almost like they are sticking their tongues out at every one.  He's  OURS!!! Screams Marvel. MUWAHAHA....yeah...ok.

And in the meantime we get older and the property stagnates. 

LUCKILY for us we have talented people.  People like Vince Garma.  I commissioned Vince for this figure a few years ago.  He utilizes a Microman figure.  Vince has made a few of these figures.  Each one just a little different from the last as his trademark.

Not only did he make Bug, he also made 5 sets of hands to go with the figure.  I have received many compliments on this figure.  I have tried unsuccessfully to make Bug in the past.  Maybe sometime down the road I'll try again. 

But it would be extremely hard to top this.

Circus Roboid # 4

Well I finally got it finished.  Circus Roboid # 4.  The reason it took so long to get made is I needed a chest.  The whole premise behind a Circus Figure is that it is made from extra or left over pieces.  You mix and match the pieces available and do the best you can to try and get some decent color scheme.  Sometimes you dont get one.  I could have easily made a chest to complete the figure or made a few extra parts to make it more color cohesive, but that defeats the purpose of it. 

So while yes, you will look at it and go, the hands should be a different color or the head or whatever, it is as it is and maybe I might swap a piece or two from a different Circus figure, but I wont make parts to complete these figures.  What they are is how they are.  Sometimes I dont even want to make the parts.  Sometimes its a combination of having that particular part built into a mold and I happen to have a little extra resin and am filling the mold for other parts anyway.

In this particular case, the pink parts are remnants of the Series 1 Roboids I made for myself.  I have pictures of them in my Flickr account.  (see side link)  I was experimenting with the red tint.  With the white resin, it blanches out the color.  So you have to use what I would consider alot of tint to overcome this.  Most people will keep charts with how much of this and that they use.  I wish I could.  The amounts we are using are so small...how do you realistically measure half a drop?  Without spending a fortune on the scale...So its like anything.  The more you do, the more of a 'feel' you get for it and hope like heck you can remember it later.

Well at this particular point I didnt have much of a 'feel'.  And I got pink instead of red.  Again, nothing wrong with the parts, so why throw them away.  The green hands were left over from the Emerald Roboid.  The smokey clear head is an extra because of having extra resin and the head was in a mold I was using for other pieces.  The grey torso was my first experiment with black. Again the white blanched out the black.  So I had to use substantially more tint to get black with the white resin.  Its so weird.  With clear colors I can make a color so dark with a mere pin drop and with the white I need 5 or 6 really good drops from the bottle to over ride the blanching effect from the white resin.  The Smoked Grey Chest Canopy is what happens when resins get old.  They can still be used...but things change.  In this case the resin lost the ability to maintain its crystal clearness.  The compounds as they get older start to dry up and crystallize.  Thats why its so important to mix compounds thoroughly in their respective containers before you mix them together.  They will slowly separate and you wont get the results you like.  Even with fresh compounds.  In this case it didnt matter.  I just needed to make something with this resin to see if it was worth keeping.  It still is good for some personal things I want to make and use it up.  But its really no longer any good because I cant trust how it will react anymore.  And that wrecks molds too.  So after I made this canopy which was supposed to be a clear smoke color, it got tossed.

*PLEASE NOTE*

We are working with chemicals and as with all chemicals they need to be disposed of properly.  I take all my garbage from casting and dispose of it in the proper industrial garbage bins.  We have various disposal bins for various things including a liquid catch center.  None of the garbage I produce or any of the chemicals I throw away are put in with normal household garbage or sewage.

Circus Figure # 4

 I really need a photography class.  I have such a hard time hiding the shadow behind the figure from the flash and it kind of wrecks the overall look.

The figure is actually quite appealing in person except for the goofy greenish hands. That and the shadows distort the features.  Boogers.

They also help me see which colors work well together for future projects.  I recently made a commission for someone and ended up with a 2nd chest because I wasnt happy with the first one.  So the first one went into Circus Figure # 4. 

I still want to remake the Original Takara colors, but  I will do those in some spare time.  I am really pumped about  "The Commander"  project and once I finish the R & D will be going non stop till its done.  :~)  The reason being is this project opens the door to a total of  7 additional projects all related to one another.  Thats equivalent to about 3 years of projects. 

"THERE'S ALWAYS SOMETHING!"

Homeworld Passes 20, 000 Hits

Wow...I am quite frankly more than surprised.  I would like to thank all of you for your continued interest and hope I can keep bringing you things you like to see.  It might not be alot to some what with millions of people surfing the net, but this blog is pretty much word of mouth.  That you all thought it interesting enough to either tell someone or post a link somewhere to my blog is a very nice thought.  And its appreciated thank you.

So thanks once again!  :~)

Next Blog Segment: Custom and Proto Micronauts

Now that the Rocket Tubes have FINALLY been shared-Ray I'm sorry. I finally understand- Homeworld is next going to display Custom figures and accessories we have commissioned from others.  Also, I will be showcasing various Prototypes from Palisades that I have been fortunate enough to obtain.

I'll be starting that sometime in the next couple of days as soon as I find a nice place to start.

I have said it a few times, but it ALWAYS rings true..."There's Always Something!"

Bill Jones Please Email Me

Mr Bill Jones...Paging Mr Bill Jones of San Francisco California...Please email me. 

Ebay Caves

Ebay in its infinite wisdom has fixed whatever problems existed with my Ebay account.  The issue wasnt the fees.  I tried to pay them 4 times.  The issue was that it kept costing me money to rectify the situation.   Ebay has fixed the problem.  I have since paid my seller fees.  Everything is now honky dory (is that still a phrase in the english language?) and I didnt have to pay any more additional cash out of my pocket for something that I couldnt fix anyway. 

Most of what I have to offer for sale will still be through the blog first.  I still have alot of parts.

New Email Address

I have for the most part been using the email address from my IP.  But it appears it has been bouncing.  Too full.  After considerable thought and alot of prodding from various people I have opened up a new email account with Gmail.  While I will still be using my yahoo email address, this email address

golddober@gmail.com

will be the one where any and all blog queries should be direct to for faster replies.

It "WAS" Garbage

One mans 'JUNK' is another mans treasure.  I am not sure who coined that phrase...but its true.  I have a complete compressor with a spare tank.  I have a tankless compressor.  They all work.  The only issue is the on/off switch.  So I have to plug/unplug them when using them.  I can live with that. They were all in the metal garbage bin at work.  Including the 27" TV thats currently in my garage.  My boss pulled an almost completely perfect Honda lawnmower out of there one day.  Some days its a race to get to work.  Especially in the spring.  Its almost like going to a garage sale.  Furniture/foosball tables/exercise bikes/ mountain bikes/lawnmowers you name it.  All in the garbage bin.  I keep hoping to find a set of lawn darts myself.

Once you get into customizing, you never look at anything the same way.  Even more so if you start casting.  Or at least that has been the case with me.  Before I can throw anything away, I need to know that there is absolutely nothing available on the piece of garbage that I could possibly use.  I am however pretty practical so I dont end up with a junk pile.

Recently I posted about a magnetic hydraulic base I had bought years ago, that was perfect for mounting a Battle Cruiser to or (in my case) I mounted a Tron One Man Fighter Jet.  But I am having issues with it.  So I took it down.  Then just the other day, someone threw a computer monitor stand in the trash.

I modified a Micronauts "Tron" adapter and attached it to the monitor stand.  The fighter jet has a screw hole that is 5 mm so I then used a 5 mm adapter pin from a Mega City set.  they are even angle, so I can actually tilt the fighter jet up or down.  This is just rough, I am going to pretty up the connector some yet.  I just wanted to be sure this idea would work and that it would be stable.  Its very stable actually.

Plus the monitor stand has a release in the back (I think that is whats broken) to let it raise 6".  But even at the current height it looks pretty cool.

 Plus the base has an open design allowing me to put Micronaut figures all around it.  I want to put a pin somewhere and let Antron look like he's climbing up.

It works really well with this Tron Jet as the bottom is curved and it doesnt come with a stand. 

The Rocket Tube Diaries PART 1

Wow...I thought I had most of this done...I still spent over 4 hours doing this article today...PHEW....Finally...I introduce to you...

The Rocket Tube Diaries.

  A "NEVER BEFORE SEEN" Micronauts Homeworld Blog Exclusive featuring the infamous HMS Rocket Tube Blueprints with supporting article written by Ray Miller.


The year 2000 saw some new changes in the world.  Computers were storming the world.  Everyone was trying to cash in on it.  Ebay being no exception.  But Ebay kind of took everyone by surprise.  Before it evolved into the evil monster it has become, it was a new found way to finally get those items that one needed for their collections.  Finally one place to go to to be able to see if what you needed was available.  If not, computers at least allowed one to 'hunt' for whatever they needed with greater ease than ever before offered.  No more expensive trips to trade shows.  Ebay was born.

I always say, 'Don't throw it away, throw it on Ebay'.  Because someone always thinks your junk is better than theirs.  And back around 2000 and up till about 2004 or 2005, people began going through their attics realizing that their own treasure trove of junk might actually be valuable to the right person.  And then everything hit the market.  People for whatever the reasons had their little 'thing'.  Everyone of us has something.  Fishing/cooking/action figures, whatever.  We could now find the things related to what interested us.  And the lists were endless.

In the case of Micronauts, Bubbletrons were seen every few months.  A market was born.  People began assigning values to various things.  Price guides were now useless as the availability of alot of items that were before considered hard to get became available regularly. Slowly people filled their collections.  And as they did, Ebay evolved and more people began to get interested in various things that made up their hobbies.  And items once thought neat and nifty and commonplace...disappeared.  More and more people became interested and as the internet grew so did demand on a dwindling supply. 

Some were fortunate enough to occasionally be in the right place at the right time.  While Ebay has become a place where most sellers believe every item they have is rare and swear at you if you tell them different, you can still get good deals from practical people.  Other times however,  you have to factor in just how important is it to you.  While yes Ebay has organized a place where for the most part we can find almost anything we want, it can come with a price.  Like anything...How BADLY do you want it?  Lets face it...if after 10 years of searching you finally find that 1 item in the condition you wanted on Ebay, but its $20, $30...even $50 more than you know its worth...are you willing to wait another 10 years to see another one?  Maybe longer?

I cant exactly remember when.  I believe it was back around 2004 or 2005.  I used to spend hours a day searching Ebay.  Checking misspelled versions of things I was looking for.  Believe it or not, for some people that IS their job.  And I came across an Ebay seller who had some of the original HMS Micronaut Rocket Tube Blueprints.  Sometimes you have to be greedy.  I saw them and realized their intrinsic value.  While to some they might think it ok to sell off page by page.  I didnt.  I set out to get as many as were available to be able to keep them together as a set.  At the time I really didnt even desire them in my collection.  But I saw the loss of alot of information if they weren't kept as a set.  So I set out to obtain as many as I could.  I at first missed one of the prints that was auctioned off to another collector.  But seeing my desire and understanding what I was trying to do, this collector made arrangements to have the blueprint he had obtained donated to the set I had assembled.

Special thanks go to Phil Stevens of the UK.

Seeing my obvious interest and with the fees Ebay was now slowly ever increasing, The original seller offered me all the drawings he had and promised to inform me if he came across any more.  While I dont believe for a moment that I have every blueprint or drawing related to the Micronauts Rocket Tubes and various other items, I believe I have managed to put together a very rare set of documents that shows just what MEGO had in mind and how they looked at things.

These NEVER seen before drawings and blueprints were lent to Micronaut Historian Ray Miller, who graciously gave up alot of his time to study, analyze and offer his opinions on what he found.  The following is a short compilation of drawings with accompanying  article by Ray Miller.  Shortly after this article was done, another subsequent batch of blueprints and drawings emerged that as of yet have yet to be seen by anyone in the Micronaut Community. 

I have been meaning to get all the drawings and blueprints put to disk for easier viewing, but its not something that is always at the front of my mind. So the pictures following this article are exactly that.  Pictures taken of the actual documents.


"The Secret Ambition Of Rocket Tubes"   As written by Ray Miller






Thanks to Gold_Dober we've been given a rare look into several lost pieces of the Interchangeable World of the Micronauts: A set of ambitious plans to expand on Mego's daring and unfortunately unsuccessful-Rocket Tubes System.

 While it has been alternately implied and speculated that Rocket Tubes was a concept abandoned by Takara, the toy was actually conceived and patented almost exactly as we know them now by toy and product designer Gordon Barlow, and engineered by the now-legendary toy and hobby design firm "H>M>S> Associates" of Pennsylvania.  The molds for the toy system-which were confirmed to exist in their entirety as of 2005 and went unsold at an industry auction-were created by PAC (later to become PAC Toys) in New Jersey.

Patent Drawing

Patent Drawing

Patent Drawing

Patent Drawing
    

File Envelope

File Index of Drawings

Complex, sprawling and created with a tremendous amount of ambition, Rocket Tubes proved to be far too expensive for retail buyers, required too much shelf space for most retailers, and contained so many bugs and problems that it rarely worked with anywhere near the exciting results seen in the television commercials promoting it. The product was a flop, and it now costs more to mail than it will generally fetch at Ebay.

A cross section of a standard tube

 Had Rocket Tubes worked as intended for both children and retailer, we may have seen several more innovative additions to the system which added industrial and adventure oriented play situations to "The Transportation System of the Future" in the form of modules and stations that would be added the the Rocket Tubes system. Numerous sheets of these designs from the files of the HMS Company expand on the earlier design.   These designs from a period late in 1979 illustrate 5 NEW Structures dubbed the "Modular Space Pieces" which were drawn up as future play set additions to the Rocket Tubes.  These represent the whole Rocket Tubes system as a futuristic version of the traditional railroad play set - with stations, elevated tracks and even cargo loaders. 

Modular Space Frame

A generic item called a "Modular Space Frame" formed the foundation for the new elements.  This appears to be a base panel which could be situated on a solid surface or suspended by the systems tubing, which new structures could attach to.  This new element offered little play value in itself, and was simply a mounting panel with several 5 mm connection points and an upper rim designed specifically to support another structure.  In the case of these plans, that other structure could be the "Ore Loader with Vehicle", or the "Command Center". 

Ore Loader Cross Section and Elements

A complex module called the "Ore Loader" is the first of these possible new structures to add to The Rocket Tubes.  This featured a hopper loaded with tiny plastic ore nuggets, which would fall into a small wheeled vehicle and could be transported via a small conveyor belt inside the vehicle to fall into a Rocket Tubes car, presumably to be carried to another part of Micropolis via the Rocket Tubes.  A special tube end segment featuring a "Spring Loaded Canopy" is specified for use with both the Ore Loader and the Command Center, Allowing easy access to the tube car stopping at that location and to help secure the entire module to the length of the tube roadway.  The Modular Space Frame can be used to place the "Ore Loader" on a solid surface, or to suspend the Ore Loader in space in conjunction with "Web Connector" accessories (detailed later).  

Ore Loader Detailed

 The Command center illustrates another complicated mini-play set that could have become part of the Rocket Tubes System.  This is something of a station house if you use railroad anthology, and features a small, simplistic vehicle (reminiscent of the shuttle pod seen in Star Trek the Motion Picture) and a spot identified for a crane.  The module attaches to the Modular Space Frame and Web Connectors like the Ore Loader, and a tube segment can pass lengthwise through the module.  The Command Center features complex technological textures, and decals for control panels.  Also, an interesting element of this structure is that portals which allow a tube section to pass through the Command Center can actually allow the tube and module to orient themselves in directions other than simply a horizontal plane.  If supported by the tube, the module could be suspended on a slanted incline, 90 degree angle or even upside down for a zero gravity feel.  Or, the tube could pass through it at whatever angle was convenient to keep the Command Center flat.

Web Connector

The aforementioned "Web Connector' support accessory was also developed to interconnect the Modular Space Frame and tube segments as mentioned above.  This item is a single styrene plastic component that binds four tube segments together and features 5 mm connection points.  It appears that this combination of the tubes and Web Connector could be used to suspend the Modular Space Frame inside a network of tubes.  It may have been spectacular to see the Command Center or Ore Loader high off the ground amid a network of rushing rocket car tubes!  But given the fragile nature of the toy system, that vision would certainly be asking for a play room disaster.

Spring Loaded Canopy

A "Spring Loaded Canopy" was also developed for the top or end of tube segments.  This is essentially a hatch that will "spring" open when a tube car or Tube Traveller reaches it.  Given the access to a tube car required by some of the features of the Ore Loader and Command Center, this sort of accessory would be required as the Rocket Tubes Recycler Segment would not fit these toys as they are designed.

Spring Loaded Canopy Additional Details

 These designs may have been developed into physical prototypes.  Notations seem to indicate that a physical example ( "an engineering model" ) of the Ore Loader vehicle was ordered to be made at the very least.  But it is currently unknown if the toys developed beyond the paper and mock up stage before being cancelled.  None of these elements were listed in the manifest of Rocket Tubes molds auctioned off in 2005.  Astute Micronaut collectors will recall the glider launching station included in the Sears "Deluxe" Rocket Tubes Set, which serves as a possible example of the beginning of these sort of additional modules.  The television commercial for Deluxe Rocket Tubes also includes a parachute drop feature, which  doesn't appear in the final product.  The drawings are all 1:1 scale, so looking at them gives an immediate sense of the proper scale of the items.  They would have been comparable in size to the systems Blower Segment.

-Micronaut Historian Ray Miller.



The Ore Loader Detailed picture is taken from the original blueprint.  As these blueprints are very old,  it was altered for clarity and definition for easier viewing.  There are still some more drawings (at least another dozen or so) that have yet to be analyzed that go with this set.  Those will be posted as Part 2 in the VERY Near Future.  But I believe the bulk of information into the insight of MEGO comes from this set of blueprints.

A very huge thank you to Ray Miller for the time he invested analyzing these particular blueprints.  Ray was also nice enough to include the link to Mego's Rocket Tubes Commercial,  as well as all the ORIGINAL patent information. With out his invaluable contribution, this article/post would not have been possible.

OT-GO ESKS GO

Well after finishing dead last 2 years in a row,  the Eskimos have finished the season in 2nd place and will host Calgary in the Semi Final.  Should Edmonton beat Calgary we would then play BC in the final. 

Sadly I highly suspect it will be BC and Winnipeg in the Grey Cup.  BC beat Edmonton 3 times this year and they just destroyed the defending Grey Cup Champions Montreal yesterday.  Last I checked the score it was 37-1 for BC in the 4th quarter.

Dare to Dream!!! Go Esks Go!