Official Sideshow 1/6 ANH Darth Vader PHOTO Thread

[Darth Cruel]

I just did a google search for "consequences of Sideshow Darth Vader's helmet sitting too high or too low on his head". And, just as I thought...






there was none.

 

[kl241]

I just did a google search for "consequences of Sideshow Darth Vader's helmet sitting too high or too low on his head". And, just as I thought...






there was none.

That joke is older than mine.

 

[Customikey]

What did you use as replacement tusks?

I cut the tops of a couple of common sewing pins about two millimeters below the head and wedge them into the plastic. I had to use a push pin to help make the hole. Then a dab of superglue.

It appears that a nude pred body goes for at least $70. Is this the going rate?

I got mine for around $45 a few years back, with all hands, feet, and heads included. I prospected it way before SS announced Vader because I figured I might not like the base body. I was wrong about that. I do like the body, but I still like this one better.

I also notice that the HT preds have different arm thicknesses. Which one did you use?

To be honest, I never paid any attention to the various Preds until Pred1 came out. It remains the only Pred I own or am interested in.

The skin is almost black and the paint on the chest is a sickly yellow, if that helps any.

 

[abake]

Sounds like one of the AvP preds.

 

[Customikey]

Sounds like one of the AvP preds.

Definitely and AVP. I just have no idea which one. Man, I used it for a lot of things, though. The dreads became the head tentacles on my Medusamaid from way back.

 

[MaulFan]

Hopefully SS will remove the post and ridges from the inside of the helmet on ESB and ROTJ Vader. If not, we'll be doing the mods again on each one. No biggie but it does make a big difference.

They could also just improve the dome, so even with the post and ridges, you won't need to do any work. That's my hope, and I think it's not unreasonable to, they continue to correct their ROTS clone helmet with details in the Cody helmet that they could have just not bothered with.

 

[Darth Cruel]

That joke is older than mine.

Well, then it fits in perfectly with the complaining about Vaders helmet, 'cause that is pretty old too.

 

[thenammagazine]

Here's another side-by-side comparison shot with a closer look at how the helmet is positioned. Again, I don't see how lowering the dome will "sacrifice accuracy."

Angle blows and doesn't even show what I'm talking about (but I'm guessing that's why you chose it ). Show a face-front photo. I'm not the only one who thinks Vader looks smooshed post mod. And that was determined by looking at all the photos after dremmeling out the Sideshow helmet. It's also the reason that the Hasbro dome was suggested as the appropriate alternative.

 

[Geil]

Ok getting a trooper body from a member here so going to attempt the torso mod
:

 

[Wor-Gar]

Angle blows and doesn't even show what I'm talking about (but I'm guessing that's why you chose it ). Show a face-front photo. I'm not the only one who thinks Vader looks smooshed post mod. And that was determined by looking at all the photos after dremmeling out the Sideshow helmet. It's also the reason that the Hasbro dome was suggested as the appropriate alternative.

Why you baggin' on us Dome Moddists?

Put on the emerald glasses, man.

 

[PJB-1138]

Angle blows and doesn't even show what I'm talking about (but I'm guessing that's why you chose it ). Show a face-front photo. I'm not the only one who thinks Vader looks smooshed post mod. And that was determined by looking at all the photos after dremmeling out the Sideshow helmet. It's also the reason that the Hasbro dome was suggested as the appropriate alternative.

Sorry, Nam. Been busy with work lately, so I didn't get to respond to your request.

The reason I chose that angle was to highlight how the helmet should sit: Down a bit in front, but even more so in the back. The latter was something I hadn't even figured out myself until a couple weeks ago. Not only does it undo the "pencil-neck" look that these Vaders originally had, but it allows the eyes to sit further back from the brow of the helmet. I used that Tantive IV photo as reference when I was fine-tuning my helmet mod since it looked liked Wor-Gar & Darren Carnell had done the same.

Here's a face-front photo that, unfortunately, isn't as detailed. I noticed my Canon Elph tends to bug-out my close-ups (I really should look at that manual again), so I had to take this sitting further back:

And here's yet another side-by-side comparison:

I know folks are getting sick of this debate, but I can't help it. Modifying this Vader has taken what was, IMHO, an almost embarrassing figure to look at to one that I'm completely in love with. And it's a love that I want to shout from the highest mountaintops!

Now, who else here is interested in knowing this love that I speak of?

 

[Geil]

Wow so shiny hmm so did anyone painted those two missing stripes too or was that again only added after ANH? I guess it was under the rope so can't tell
:

 

[PJB-1138]

Wow so shiny hmm so did anyone painted those two missing stripes too or was that again only added after ANH? I guess it was under the rope so can't tell
:

Wow, hadn't even noticed that. The photo on the left is based on Vader's ESB costume, while Sideshow's is from ANH. If it weren't for this hobby, I wouldn't even have been aware of the difference.

And, Geil, LMK if you need any help on modding your Vader. I guarantee you're gonna love the results. ;-)

 

[Deak Starkiller]

Angle blows and doesn't even show what I'm talking about (but I'm guessing that's why you chose it ). Show a face-front photo. I'm not the only one who thinks Vader looks smooshed post mod. And that was determined by looking at all the photos after dremmeling out the Sideshow helmet. It's also the reason that the Hasbro dome was suggested as the appropriate alternative.

Come on NAMmers it looks pretty good.

 

[QuiGonFishing]

PJB, did you widen the flare as well or simply lower the dome? I was leaning toward "enhancing" the flare as well, but if your is an example of just removing the ridges, then I may have to reconsider...

 

[PJB-1138]

PJB, did you widen the flare as well or simply lower the dome? I was leaning toward "enhancing" the flare as well, but if your is an example of just removing the ridges, then I may have to reconsider...

You know, I did widen the flare a bit, but not by a significant amount. Folks who had done this before said that the finish will crack if it's overdone & I didn't want to push it. Besides, looking at photos of the actual props, the lower rim of the helmet is more "C"-shaped than "U"-shaped when you look at it from the bottom.

But, like I've said before, what ends up really adding flare to the sides of Vader's face is pushing the back of the helmet below the base of the neck & closing that gap above the shoulders. You can see what a difference it makes when you look at my Vader figure a mere couple weeks ago here:

And after fine-tuning it again here:

And do NOT grind those ridges down completely! I filed only what was needed (which was about two-thirds of the original amount) & did nothing to the post. That helmet still needs to be supported by more than just Vader's bald head. ;-)

I didn't know how many people were actually interested in doing these mods (this figure was released over a year ago now), but I may be able to put together some pre- & post-mod photos in the next day or two to better illustrate what I did.

 

[QuiGonFishing]

Thanks, Man. Yes, I've had mine for quite a while too and have always planned to do this mod, but I couldn't quite scare up the courage when I first got him... perhaps now is a good time.

 

[katkuru]

Nice! Looks spot on to me.

I also like the way Vader looks with the shoulder armor over his robes, which is how I have mine & looks really good. It's a super-duper easy adjustment to make since all the costume pieces can be slipped on & off.

And I'd also like to agree with Wor-Gar completely regarding the Vader helmet debate. Ever since its release, folks here (including me) have argued over its inaccuracies. Is it the size of the helmet that's wrong? Or its shape? Or does the front need to flare out more? Perhaps the shoulders need to be padded? Well, after popping that sucker off, filing down its innards & incrementally adjusting its position, the answer turns out to be no, no, no, NO!

It was pretty obvious to me from the start how high the dome was originally mounted at the factory. But, what's not as apparent is how far back the head has to be positioned as well. In fact, as I slowly filed away at the back ribbing inside the dome, lo & behold, I started to see how Vader's mask was actually being properly framed by the helmet into the Vader we all know so well. Also, by bringing the back of the helmet down below the neck, it took away that pencil-neck look the figure used to have.

If you haven't tried this modification yourself, I can imagine how daunting this all must sound. But, trust me, once you do it, you'll see just how spot-on this figure actually is. It's almost like Sideshow took its time to painstakingly create the most accurate 1/6 scale Vader figure to date but, at the last minute, wasn't able to tweak the position of the helmet properly before it went into production. Luckily, it's a problem that is easily fixed!

To illustrate my point, here's another photo of my modified Vader:

And, since it's becoming an ongoing trend, here's my side-by-side comparison of the Sith Lord himself onboard the Tantive IV:

As always, feel free to shoot any questions my way! ;-)

 

[shocktrooper_au]

Nice! Looks spot on to me.

Never mind the helmet look how bad those gloves look

 

[Customikey]

Never mind the helmet look how bad those gloves look

Maybe trim off the first two rings? I don't think the gloves look bad at all! Maybe just a tad long.