Custom 1/6 Drifter from The Batman 2022 + Diorama

I shared a some pictures and details of this project in the Hot Toys The Batman thread, but, in order not to deviate it furhter, I've decided to create this thread to share more details and insights with you. I very much appreciate your comments and contributions. I know many of you have a lot of experience with this and I'm sure we can share some ideas.




This project started with the idea to give the Bruce Wayne head (that comes with the Hot Toys Batman figure that I've pre-ordered) a separate body where it can stand out more. I thought that would be a shame to keep that sculpt hidden in the box. Especially since they also added the new messy hair in one of the latest updates (thanks Inart).



So I decided that the drifter look could be a perfect match for that. Then I started to make my research on the clothes and accesories that I could gather from diferent sources (kitbashing time!). In the Hot Toys The Batman thread I detailed how I came up with the different parts and pieces, and where I found them. Some of them needed a bit more customization, others were a straight use.

The figure is made up of the following parts:

- Body:
Since he wears many layers of clothing, any body that is not very muscular will do. I have used the Coomodel BD001.



- Pants:
Basically I painted the knee pads and pockets black with a textile marker to imitate CAT's work pants. I also added some grime with acrylic textile paint.





- Boots:
Black army boots. Nothing special, easy to find. These are good.




- Shirt:
Tinted with diluted acrylic paints so that it acquires the grayish greenish tone of the original.




- Hoodie:
I sewed a suede lining to the hood to resemble the shearling lining on the original UNIQLO brand sweatshirt.




- Jacket:
It's a Dragon Models MA-1 flight jacket. As I said, it has a greenish tone that does not correspond to the bluish one of the original. I am evaluating the way to dye it without damaging the orange inner lining so characteristic of this jacket.
I have left a link to one of the few that I have found on Ebay. But it's pretty hard to get.




- Cap:
Originally it came with the letters LA on the front. With a little acetone I was able to remove them without spoiling the color of the cap.


(Poor Arthur...)


- Balaclava:
The dark grey one. Colour 2416. Something like this:



- Backpack:
Shoulder bag from a DAMTOYS set. In proportion, it is a bit large. But the color and model is the closest thing I could find to the backpack he uses in the movie. I did some adjustments to the straps, but nothing serious.




- Bandaged hands:
Basically they are spare hands that I had from another figure and to which I added a few pieces of white band aid to simulate boxing bandages.



Recently, I had to re-do them with more durable materials, since the glue from the band aid wasn't stronger enough. So now I've used real bandage painted in white with a mix of acrylic paint and Mod Podge, to make it more durable. Also, I've done a couple more hands, in a more relaxed position. To give it more detail, I've added some black paint traces in the tips of the fingers and nails, as in the reference pics from de movie.

- Motorcycle helmet:
From Art Figures. I found this motorcycle helmet in a spare parts store for 1/6 figures and it seemed perfect for the figure. In hand, seems a bit undersized and of couse is slightly different from the one used in the movie, but is the closest match I could find. On the other hand, I don't thing the Bruce Wayne sculpt would fit inside it, but but it is easily interchangeable. There is no need to risk damaging the head.



- Backpack bottle:
It's a small detail, but one I could easily make with some Sculpey and paint. The result is a bit rough, but if you don't look close enough, it works. Batman sure can use some coffe on those long nights.




At the same time, while I was waiting for some of the parts to reach me, I built a LED-backlit diorama, based on a balcony from a Gotham neo-goth style building. To describe that process I could use another post. If someone is interested, I'm happy to share some details and images from when I was working on it.



I hope you like it.

Awesome. I would weather it up a bit for that pop of realism

This looks great! Agreed weathering would take it to the next level
I also had this idea, its a great way to display the unmasked sculpt. Really hope a 3rd party comes along and makes the outfit so I can display with my Inart when it arrives
Great work

Thank you guys for your ideas! Yeah, he definitely needs some weathering, but I'm waiting to get Bruce Wayne's head in my hands and see how it looks on the figure before adding the finishing touches. Let's hope it doesn't take long for Hot Toys to release it.

At the same time, one of the reasons I share this custom figure with the community is to encourage anyone to build their own, but also, perhaps... As you say, so that some representative, from a third party company, sees the potential and release their own version...

I really think it's not that hard for them to get this into mass production. We can only hope...

Which company do you think could make a version that is as movie accurate as possible?

Whoa! This is a very cool project. Like other's have said, it needs some weathering. To me the bomber seems a little off. Maybe a slightly larger/baggier one would be a better look?

Turtle882 said:

Whoa! This is a very cool project. Like other's have said, it needs some weathering. To me the bomber seems a little off. Maybe a slightly larger/baggier one would be a better look?

Click to expand...

Thank you so much! Yeah, surely the jacket it's a bit undersized and has a greenish tone, instead of the bluish one that would be more movie accurate (I think they used a Rothco MA-1 jacket that has been weathered with blue dye).

But it felt the right choice when I found it on Ebay, as this is one of the few Dragon Models MA-1 flight jackets on the market right now. And for that reason, I'm a bit reluctant to make mods on it. In case I screw up, there is no easy replacement that I could find.

Just last night I decided to dye the cuffs of the sleeves and the elastic band at the waist in a darker, bluish tone. With a bit of diluted textile acrylic paint. Now it looks a little better.

But with the size, I guess little can be done. (that's within my reach)

In any case, let's hope some third party company decides to make a proper sized and colored bomber jacket.

Project update.

Since Hot Toys is taking too long to give us the Batman, and has decided, for some reason, to release the bike first, I also thought it was a good idea to give the Drifter its road companion.



After doing some research, I discovered that the bike they used in the movie is a Honda CB750 customized cafe racer style.



Luckily for me, there are Tamiya 1/6 scale models that allow you to recreate it. Obviously, with many modifications and hand-sculpted or custom pieces.



This has kept me busy for the last month. I hope the Batman isn't delayed much longer, because at this rate I'm going to run out of room in the display case and too much room in my wallet.



The model is almost finished, I still need to include the LED bulbs for the headlight and brake light. It has been quite a challenge, full of errors and complications, but I think the result has been worth it.

I hope you like it.

Well, it seems like the Drifter fever has started catching up!

Here we have a solid version from Justina Chen:



At the same time, Topo has teased that they are working on a clothing set:

As promises are made to keep, here finally are a few pics of the Bruce Wayne sculpt on the figure. Also, the cafe racer with working head and tail lights:








Now I'm working on making a rooted interchangeable "scalp". My goal is something like this:



If I can get something similar, I'll be satisfied. For me, enough to ignore Inart.

I'll keep you posted! Wish me luck.

Topo has shown a teaser of his Drifter set in hand. Great news!

Nice work