MONDO - THE THING

Collector Freaks Forum

Help Support Collector Freaks Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
You'll work it out mate - no worries. Given the abilities we have here, any number of "fixes" will get documented, and then us "less able" folks can pick and choose results from talented people like yourself per our preferences.

This thread is an awesome example of just how many SERIOUSLY qualified folks we have here - regardless of our opinions differing . . . and we're always polite to each-other too! :family


.

I went for it.

I'd used double sided tape on the collar yesterday when it was on the Zendaya figure, so that part was already sorted.

Given the confidence that xvsopx had shown it was possible to stretch the jacket I tried doing that before putting it on. The material isn't as elastic as some formulas of pleather, and there was no noticeable improvement.

So it was onto the figure with it - bearing in mind this is the Mondo body with the traps cut down, sides reduced severely to allow the arms to close up to the body, and the biceps slimmed.

I had to be brutal with the jacket to force it up from his back and over his shoulders so that the epaulettes were sitting in the right place.

And it pretty much worked...

IMG_3430.JPG


It still seems to be a bit short at the front, but that's the full length of the jacket. The only solution for that would be a body with a slightly shorter torso.

Evidence of the double sided tape under the back of the collar revealed itself, which wasn't surprising considering the fight the jacket put up!

IMG_3431.JPG


It's almost there. The epaulettes should forward slightly more, which would lengthen the front and shorten the back so they're level.

IMG_3433.JPG
IMG_3434.JPG


IMG_3435.JPG



Don't know which jacket I prefer, because they're both compromises. The DID is fuller fit with longer sleeves, but the Mondo is technically more accurate and has nicer looking fur.

I'll carry on working on it as I'm sure there's still room for improvement with some gentle, or no so gentle persuasion.
 
I think we’re all just thankful that they evolved away from these:
View attachment 720676View attachment 720677


In any case, mine is arriving later today, excited to unbox and get to work! It was always going to be an overly expensive kit figure, in that regard I don’t feel like it strayed too far from the preorder proto. Need a Mac!

Thanks to everyone for the photos preparing us for what to expect, and how to get started improving!

40478-kenny_rogers.jpg
 
cpoll36's suggestion of using a makeup sponge to apply the weathering gave me the idea of using a small piece of washing up sponge.

magpie9's amazing weathering was the inspiration, though I didn't have the confidence I could match it.

I used Games Workshop Graveyard Earth acrylic paint as I had on the DID jacket, and with the sponge it felt much more natural than using a brush. It took several passes, stopping to take photos, blowing them up to see missing areas. It's hard to know when to stop, because some of the original leather surface needs to remain in places.

In the end this is where I got to.

(The camera flash shows up the weathering, but isn't kind to his face and hair!)

IMG_3488.JPG

IMG_3489.JPG
IMG_3490.JPG
IMG_3491.JPG

IMG_3492.JPG
IMG_3493.JPG
IMG_3494.JPG
IMG_3495.JPG



I'm pleased with the result because it could've gone very wrong. :lol

The elasticated hem tends to wrinkle up, particularly on his left hand side. It's not due the jacket being tight any more, but the fold in the hem itself not being perfectly aligned. I think if it was made wet and pulled straight it would sort that out.

His flight suit legs could do with some weathering now, and maybe the flamethrower straps too, but I'll have to find some reference photos, or watch the movie again.


As an aside, I tested the two handed flamethrower pose and managed to get his right cuff to cover his wrist joint. Though went back to the double weapon option as it looked a more interesting option. I imagine him arming up ready for the battle to come, planning to keep his shotgun near at hand for when the flamethrower runs dry.
 
cpoll36's suggestion of using a makeup sponge to apply the weathering gave me the idea of using a small piece of washing up sponge.

magpie9's amazing weathering was the inspiration, though I didn't have the confidence I could match it.

I used Games Workshop Graveyard Earth acrylic paint as I had on the DID jacket, and with the sponge it felt much more natural than using a brush. It took several passes, stopping to take photos, blowing them up to see missing areas. It's hard to know when to stop, because some of the original leather surface needs to remain in places.

In the end this is where I got to.

(The camera flash shows up the weathering, but isn't kind to his face and hair!)

View attachment 720755
View attachment 720756View attachment 720757View attachment 720758
View attachment 720759View attachment 720760View attachment 720762View attachment 720763


I'm pleased with the result because it could've gone very wrong. :lol

The elasticated hem tends to wrinkle up, particularly on his left hand side. It's not due the jacket being tight any more, but the fold in the hem itself not being perfectly aligned. I think if it was made wet and pulled straight it would sort that out.

His flight suit legs could do with some weathering now, and maybe the flamethrower straps too, but I'll have to find some reference photos, or watch the movie again.


As an aside, I tested the two handed flamethrower pose and managed to get his right cuff to cover his wrist joint. Though went back to the double weapon option as it looked a more interesting option. I imagine him arming up ready for the battle to come, planning to keep his shotgun near at hand for when the flamethrower runs dry.
Looks loads better.
 
@Asta what did you use to glue the studs on the DiD jacket?

Bostik All Purpose Clear Glue.

It's the stringy kind so I squeezed some onto a cocktail stick then tweezered the button onto the glue.


After deciding on going with Mondo's I weathered the DID some more, removed the fur collar and put it on the VTS Dark Zone Agent I'd bashed into a TLOU2 Washington Liberation Front fighter (he was previously wearing a spare Joel Winter coat, so the leather jacket provided much needed differentiation).

IMG_3496 VTS Dark Zone TLOU.JPG


While I hadn't applied any glue directly to the collar, and only glued the sections of fur to the double sided tape, pulling the tape off revealed what I suspected: DID's A-2 isn't genuine leather.

It's bonded leather (particles of leather fused together on a fabric backing), which became evident when the tape pulled up a tiny bit of the surface.


This is MacReady now back on display:

IMG_3502 Mondo MacReady.JPG
 
You guys are making me want to buy this figure just to work on it. That's the fun part. However, it's about $240 and I don't get some of those nifty extras. I'm not completely sold on the sculpts. At times they look good. Sometimes goofy and nothing like Russell. The clothes seem like the worse part. There is a threshold on how much I'm willing to pay for a figure that needs a lot of work. This one is past that threshold, but I'm tempted.
 
You guys are making me want to buy this figure just to work on it. That's the fun part. However, it's about $240 and I don't get some of those nifty extras. I'm not completely sold on the sculpts. At times they look good. Sometimes goofy and nothing like Russell. The clothes seem like the worse part. There is a threshold on how much I'm willing to pay for a figure that needs a lot of work. This one is past that threshold, but I'm tempted.
Same for me. But I also find modifying figures part of the fun. I'll wait till it discounts and then pick it up.
 
Incredible improvement on the jackets, guys.

I wasn't sure what to say about this figure at first, but I've been checking in knowing people would start to bash and correct the problems.

Making a fully "fresh out of the cold" "frozen MacReady would look great also. I hope someone tries that. Looking forward to a full repaint on that head too.







BTW, if anyone is looking for a blue hoodie, there's tons on ebay (just need to dye the right color maybe)

s-l1600.jpg
s-l1600 (1).jpg
 
On opening the box the first thing that reminded me of vintage Sideshow was the paintwork. It has that heavy application rather than layers of shading. It's most evident on the dog and spider.

The box itself was also retro Sideshow (and current Threezero) - an end opener made from cardboard as thin as a cereal packet.

It has a wonky body - Sideshow's were wonky in a different way,, being skinny and floppy, though they were capable of more dynamic posing (sometimes unintentionally due to their floppiness!)


This was a $265 figure delivered free from China, which is the same as buying a $265 figure from OneSixthKit, who ships out of China with delivery included. Though it's difficult to make a comparison with figures priced similarly - you could get a more basic Hot Toys that would be much higher quality throughout, but MacReady comes with the dog and the spider.


These reviews went up a few hours ago:





Finally found time to watch these vids (thanks for posting).

The 1st is 42mins, and the 2nd 14mins, but both are well worth watching . . . particularly if - like me - you don't have your copy in-hand yet.

The guy who made the first is obviously a HUGE fan of the movie, and it's such a shame that his arrived with the box slightly damaged and with a massive issue with Mac's left leg. Have to be honest - if I get something like that, it's going back for a replacement - totally unacceptable.

I resisted (so far) posting a comment on his video about perhaps this being the final proof that Mac WAS assimilated by the end of the movie :horror

.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top