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For about the tenth time, I am not even a Batman fan and here I am doing another
Batman-related figure. But, like the Horizon Hobbie's Batman, Revell-Monogram's
Robin from the movie, "Batman Forever" leapt from the box and demanded
to be built (damned noisy plastic, that!).
Robin is an order of magnitude improvement in kit design compared to the earlier Riddler. The material for Robin is more rigid and the component fit exemplary. Like the Riddler and Batman figures, though, the sculpting is flawless and true to the actor with dynamic and lifelike posing.
Without belaboring the obvious, you will need to warm the kit parts for trimming, owing to the tough vinyl material. However, I saw no need for joint reinforcement as this material exhibited no tendency to sag once heated. I did epoxy a threaded rod into the left foot/calf part for mounting purposes.
Allow me to recommend Ambroid's Vinyl & Resin Cement for assembly. On vinyl, this cement has qualities far superior to CA adhesives, but for resin, you will want to stick with CA. Set-up time is quick with the glue tacking up in a matter of minutes. Throughout the life of the model, the bond will remain flexible enough to expand and contract with temperature changes unlike CA which will crack and weaken over time. Spread Ambroid's over both mating surfaces and press them together momentarily. Ensure the glue spreads to all joint areas. After a few minutes, reassemble the parts. I taped Robin's body parts together to ensure accurate alignment and, by working different parts, I had Robin assembled in about 30 minutes.
I found that I could still "break" the bond to realign parts even after one hour. The vinyl was undamaged and I could easily remove the old glue and reapply fresh glue. However, after a couple of days, that bond was there to stay! The joints on Robin have no interlocking alignment features and rely solely on the strength of the Ambroid. Ask your local retailer to carry this brand of adhesive.
The
next major step was the thick vinyl cape which needed thinning, especially the
edges. I "whittled" the molding ledge away and thinned the edges with the rotary
drum sander attachment for a Dremel tool. Wear glasses and take care as the
drum can get away from you and gouge the material. For a right-handed person,
hold the Dremel in your right hand with an overhand grip, drum pointed to your
left. Graps the cape with your left hand, molding ledge down and allow the rotating
drum to gently contact the vinyl from underside. Use a stroking motion away
from you to remove excess material.
Take care not to gouge the material to save unnecessary rework. The underside of the cape is the "drain" side of the piece and is therefore riddled with pits and bumps. I wet-sanded the underside with 80 grit and worked my way down to 400 grit. After cleaning, I primed with Plastikote's automotive grey primer, I laid on six full wet coats on the underside of the cape and misted three on the topside. On both sides, I wet-sanded the 400 grit down to bare vinyl leaving primer to fill any pits/scratches. I reprimed and polished with 0000 steel wool. The cape is "gold" underneath and "black" on top according to the instructions. Watching the movie, Robin's suit appears for less than 30 seconds of on-screen time leaving me to wonder what color the suit really is. I would have preferred mroe specific color notes for a kit obviously aimed at the adult market. Nevertheless, I base-coated the underside in Gunze Sangyo Metallic Gold. This is a lacquer-based paint that I applied with Testor's Model Master Pro airbrush. I polished the color with a soft cloth and oversprayed the deep folds with Polytranspar's lacquer-based Bronze-Gold. High spots were shot with PT's Soft Gold and the whole underside was glazed with Shimmering Gold. The effect is quite convincing in person.
Robin's head is a separate piece (makes for easy painting) which received three coats of primer. The eyes and head were masked with Parafilm M which is marketed by Testors. You can acquire this excellent masking medium at your local retailer or through Squadron Mail Order. Parafilm M leaves no residue and easily conforms to complex shapes. Follow package instructions and cut with a fresh knife blade. I cut out Robin's mask and misted several coats of Testors "Colors by Boyd" Gloss Black which is the deepest, glossiest black I have ever found.
Robin's costume appears to be a metallic green and plum or possibly maroon. It's anybody's guess as to the correct shade and I do not have an "in" at the movie industry. Exercising some artistic license, I used Polytranspar's range of transparent paints to get the colors in the ballpark. To obtain a metallic sheen, I used a trick taught to me by fellow IPMS-er, Les Sundt. There are dozens of methods to obtain a metallic finish, but, for a highly polished metallic effect, I find this works best.
Wet polish the surface as necessary to achieve a glass-smooth surface. Clean the surface with a tack rag and prime with a coat of airbrushed or spray can varnish. Any garden variety will do but make sure it is natural varnish and NOT polyurethane. Let the piece dry overnight in a dust free environment. Next day, spray another coat of varnish and spray a test piece too. In about two hours (depending on temperature and humidity), the varnish will get tacky. Use the test piece to determine tackiness. As a guide, a Post-It(TM) note is FAR too tacky. You should be able to touch the test piece and have your finger pull away with only a miniscule tug. YOu have to hit this just right so, try the technique on some scrap before you commit to a prized model. Once the varnish is ready, but artist's aluminum powder onto the surface with a soft rag. You can then polish the finish to a high shine.
With all the prep work required, finishing Robin's suit was a snap. I sprayed PT Metallic Blue into the folds of the torso, misting on successive coats to build the effect. I misted Metallic Green Pearl carefully to build the base color of the suit while ensuring some of the polished aluminum highlights showed through. I then followed with Transparent Medium Bass Green to carefully develop shaded areas in the folds and build on the base color. Highlights were accentuated with Shimmering Green. For the arms, I undercoated the folds with Intense Red overspraying slightly to lay in the base color. Highlights were effected with Shimmering Red. I used Testors Model Master Pro airbrush (now marketed by Testors using the Aztec name) for all my spraying needs. This versatile airbrush easily handles a diverse range of spraying tasks at an affordable price.
Gold highlights on the suit were done in Artist's Metallic Gold Oil Paint. The advantage to this is that oil colors go on very thin. Oil-based paints do not actually bond to a laquer finish which means that the oil merely "lays" over the underlying finish allowing the previously painted highlights to show through. The pigment is mixed with "Liquin" which is a drying agent that leaves a gloss finish.
The kit-supplied Batarang is done in white metal. The movie shows the thing to be a chrome-like device. So, I polished the piece with successive grits down to 1200 and then buffed it with metal polish.
I finished Robin's head and cape top in oils which is another story. I am still a beginner with oils and do not have the skill or expertise to be authoritative. As I learn more, I will begin sharing techniques with you as I feel oils result in a much more realistic finish. I also find the medium an exciting one in which to work. There is something entirely satisfying as you create colors and then build effects right on the model. Many thanks to Revell-Monogram for supplying the review sample...I can hardly wait for Draco!
Polytranspar Paints: WASCO Wildlife Artists Supply Co. 1-800-334-8012
Aztek Airbrushes: local retailer
