Nasnandos wrote:By the way, for anyone who ordered the Smaug the Terrible statue, I just got a notice from Weta to pay, so it should be shipping soon.

Yep, I second that. Got my payment confirmation last night, and my shipping notice this morning! That was a long six-month wait!

Nasnandos wrote:Sorry N2, I missed this post. The staff repaint got put on hold when I started a new project - a Millenium Falcon conversion of the Hasbro Hero toy from last year into a 32"(ish) studio scale filming model replica. I'll get back to the staff sometime soon. I did get it mostly sanded down and some reshaping done on the fins.

By the way, for anyone who ordered the Smaug the Terrible statue, I just got a notice from Weta to pay, so it should be shipping soon.

No problem, and thanks for the update. I've seen a few people doing these mods on the RPF to there Falcons. Looks like a lengthy project. Love to see some photos when you get done.

I too got my payment notice yesterday and my processing notification today as well. Can't wait to see ol Smaug in all of his magnificence. Just need need a place to put him

Yes, it will be a lengthy project, but that Hasbro Falcon shell it a great base to work on. I'm cutting out the sections to be replaced and building the structural frame at the moment. I already have all my fiber optics and LEDs ready to go, as well as several model kits to use for kit bashing the greeblies. Lots of good resin aftermarket conversion parts are available from Shapeways and Randy Cooper.

Just got Weta's Smaug #268/2000 in today and he is a beast and just as difficult to remove out of the package as everyone says. I ended up cutting 2 pieces of wood about a foot in length and small enough to fit in the holes where the threaded posts go to help push him out of the box. Worked rather well as there is no room to get your hand under the base with him all the way in the Styrofoam. I held him off the ground and had my wife place the pieces in the holes and then just push the foam down and carefully support Smaug as he lifts up. No issues or broken pieces to report, just same things everyone else has mentioned, pail paint job and slightly warped base. Nothing to return or complain about. He is very cool piece and very glad I picked him up, but I do think this may be my last Hobbit piece as I can't think of anything else that would peak my interest at this point. LOTR on the other hand.......

And a couple more.

The size of this statue amazes me every time. Great pics!

Very nice, N2, and glad yours arrived in one piece and on time. After no less than four separate delivery updates by email, mine is supposed to be delivered tomorrow. UPS has changed the delivery from today to Friday twice now: first today, then Friday, then today, and now Friday again. I swear I will never understand this company and how they do things, and how they can remain in business being so incompetent. If only Weta would just ditch them permanently, all would be well in my world. With my luck, it will arrive tomorrow right after I have to leave for work. Sigh.

N2, I'm guessing by your comment that you won't be picking up Bard? I don't think you ever had much interest in him anyway, and the space issue can definitely put a damper on things. For my part, I'm also trying to figure out if there's anything from the Hobbit I would bother with buying after Smaug, and I can only come up with two possibilities that would interest me enough: an enviro showing all of Lake-town, which would be difficult in terms of size versus detail, and Beorn. I've debated how I wanted this last one to be made, and though bear-form was my initial choice, I came to the conclusion that it would just end up being a statue of a... bear. I think Beorn in human form or mid-transformation would be nicer. A distant third might be Dain Ironfoot.

For LOTR, I wouldn't mind an Eomer, but it seems to be a foregone conclusion that he will be mounted, and for that I do not have space, so I will have to pass. My holy grail remains a Pippin properly attired in Fellowship clothes. The only other character that might entice me would be Gil-galad but I think he's a long shot. A Minas Tirith on the scale of the Weta Barad-dur would be impressive and hard to pass up, but I really like my Danbury version, so the Weta one would have to blow me away.

UPS isn't always the easiest to deal with, but I do like them better than FedX. It's just the price you pay I guess. Hope it arrives safely tomorrow.

As for Bard, yes I'm gonna pass. I do think it is a great and dynamic statue and even looks like Luke Evans. Just don't have a stong connection to the character, kind of like most of the dwarves. Balin being the one exception. I liked him from the very beginning. Speaking of Balin, Kyle over on the FUD is making a Tomb of Balin environment but slightly smaller in scale then Elessar's tomb.

As far as LOTR stuff coming out from Weta, they say this year may be one of there most ambitious yet. So with SDCC in a few weeks we should be seeing some new stuff shortly and I'm guessing the Green Dragon will be available on the first day for order.

I didn't realize how close SDCC was!

Smaug looks amazing. If I had the money, I would break all the rules about bad guys and buy this anyway. What a tremendous effort and great paint job. Your photos are great as ever,

N2, are there some LOTR must-haves for you; are you adopting a wait-and-see approach; or a combination of both? Just really curious as to which specific pieces would make you part with your money. I listed mine, now I want to hear yours.

For example, are you getting The Green Dragon?

Well, I believe there are going to a lot of new pieces and some unexpected new lines (by this, I don't mean poly). I'm hoping this means mini helms, mini armour, mini weapons. I know there has been some development in this area but I'm not sure how far along the process is. Therefore, unsure whether these are part of the new lines or not.

I'm basically out of the poly game now (except for environments), but.... Counting what I think we might see, I'm coming up with 5 minimum for me.

If we see Eomer on steed - and the horse is appealing to me, then I would get it. If Minas T, Grond, Lurtz, Green Dragon are released - I'll buy them too. (As long as Lurtz is in battle armour which is likely). I also think we will see Galadriel and Saruman at some time. I will see how they turn out before deciding but I imagine Galadriel will be hard to pass. They are likely to sculpt her in the corkscrew pose. Also big possibility is the prologue Elf from LotR. Topped the old S&F poll just behind Faramir. Instant buy for me. So I'm stopping my poly collecting - you can tell can't you???

Yeah, sounds like you're really curbing your spending, Idril.

I've spent up to this point making lists and checking things off and frankly, it got boring. I've now adopted a piece by piece approach; if I love something or take a renewed interest in it and I have the money, I'm going to buy it. The more I stop and think about it and budgeting the money, the more I'll regret spending the money. I'm just gonna slow down and enjoy the hobby.

Valkrist wrote:N2, are there some LOTR must-haves for you; are you adopting a wait-and-see approach; or a combination of both? Just really curious as to which specific pieces would make you part with your money. I listed mine, now I want to hear yours.

For example, are you getting The Green Dragon?

There is definitely the wait and see approach. I will be continuing the hobbit hole line and that includes the Green Dragon. As for other environments, that would really depend on size and cost. Both of those were why I passed on Barad-dur, just too big and cost a small fortune. If Minas Tirith comes out I think it may be the same way for me. I'd love to see some more 1/6 figures of characters we missed like the HEW soldier or Eomer even on steed I would find room for. I'd love for the mini helm line to continue as with smaller scale armor. It's really hard to guess where all Weta is going to go as they have plans to keep this going for many years and I only have so much space and can't have everything.

I have my own projects I want to do and they take up space as well. As me and my wife are looking to move, more space for a collection room and a shop are high on the list of wants!

N2darkness wrote:I have my own projects I want to do and they take up space as well. As me and my wife are looking to move, more space for a collection room and a shop are high on the list of wants!

An even bigger dungeon?!? Wow! Well, I suppose that's one solution to increasing your collection.

Yeah, I think a wait-and-see approach is definitely what I will do also, although, as I mentioned, I feel as if there are only a few very specific pieces that will sway me to buy them. I have no intention of moving for many years, and when I do, it will probably prompt me to sell most or all of my collection. With that end-game in mind, I'm going to be very selective henceforth.

N2darkness wrote:...I have my own projects I want to do and they take up space as well. As me and my wife are looking to move, more space for a collection room and a shop are high on the list of wants!

N2, I'm sending you my address via PM.
Box up all your stuff (I'll pay for shipping) send it to me and I'll take care of it until you get settled in your new home.
That way nothing in your collection will get lost or damaged in the move, and you, know, that invariably happens in any re-location...some things always get damaged or go missing.
Then when you're ready to set everything back up ..... I'll ship it all back to you.

...really, I will...I promise...

Extremely long shot...but I would almost kill for an enviro of The Grey Havens.

I'm going to have to slow down as well. I don't have a dedicated space for my collection, so it's literally all over the townhouse. I only recently began picking up polystone pieces and have to admit that my range on those is almost entirely limited to Rohan and Gondor items -- and Eomer on steed is an absolute must-have for me.

Absolutely anything Rohirrim is an insta-buy for me. N2's Rohan spear, Thranduil's Theoden helm, and any other Rohirrim shields, helms, etc., WILL be in my collection without hesitation.
Beyond that, I will be forced to be a bit more picky on the larger more expensive items while still adding lots of the smaller stuff (coins, keys, small sculps, some homemade items, and so on) that I really enjoy collecting.

Hold on, hold on....you're making a Rohirrim spear??

Fingolfin wrote:Hold on, hold on....you're making a Rohirrim spear??

Yep, Aeglos first, then a Rohirrim spear and Gondorian one as well.

Deimos wrote: N2, I'm sending you my address via PM.
Box up all your stuff (I'll pay for shipping) send it to me and I'll take care of it until you get settled in your new home.
That way nothing in your collection will get lost or damaged in the move, and you, know, that invariably happens in any re-location...some things always get damaged or go missing.
Then when you're ready to set everything back up ..... I'll ship it all back to you.

...really, I will...I promise...

Alright I'll find the biggest cargo container I can find and ship it all you way, it will take a month to unpack all the extra bubble wrap alone

Valkrist wrote:

N2darkness wrote:I have my own projects I want to do and they take up space as well. As me and my wife are looking to move, more space for a collection room and a shop are high on the list of wants!

An even bigger dungeon?!? Wow! Well, I suppose that's one solution to increasing your collection.

Not sure how much bigger, but different lay out would definitely help and no theater this time as I just don't use it that much.

Very cool! So when you say Gondorian, are you referring to the one held by the Fountain Guards or the one held by regular infantry?

Not using the theater? You should rent out the seats and do movie showings!

Fingolfin wrote:Very cool! So when you say Gondorian, are you referring to the one held by the Fountain Guards or the one held by regular infantry?

Not using the theater? You should rent out the seats and do movie showings!

I'm referring to this one and I think it was used by both.


As for renting out my theater, I don't think the admission price would be worth it as the added insurance cost would be outrageous ,or you break it you buy it

My Smaug arrived today, with just enough time for me to unpack him before running out the door, yay!

Despite all the fuss I've heard about unpacking him, I did it while alone and in under fifteen minutes. He is completely blemish free, no breaks or paint flaws, and the base is perfectly flat. He must've come from the same crate as yours, N2, because he is #261.

Despite seeing the pictures one day before, I still wasn't prepared for how utterly huge this thing is. Just... wow! Weta has outdone themselves.

Awesome! Glad it arrived safely he is huge and no picture will give you the correct perspective to indicate how bug he really is. I took many photos of unpacking process just so I could figure it out when it comes time to pack him up.

[/quote]I have my own projects I want to do and they take up space as well. As me and my wife are looking to move, more space for a collection room and a shop are high on the list of wants! [/quote]

Make sure your new room is big enough for Shards statue. You pay shipping and it's yours!

I have no idea how I botched this quote.

Smaug arrived today. I was hesitant to get this one because I was not crazy about the pose. Having it now, I still don't care for the pose as much, but the sculpting detail is good. I was disappointed in the paint job though. It's not sloppy or anything, there just is not much to it not. A paint wash and a few more colors would have done wonders, especially adding more of a blend where the black 'stripes' meet the red orange. This one is definitely getting a repaint.

Glad yours arrived safely and I too agree with the lack of detail in the painting. There is so much texture in the sculpting this it screams for a nice paint job to help bring more of it out. Any suggestion for a type and color wash? I was thinking a very light or diluted brown wash or ink to help bring out the detail and add some age, not much but just a subtle darkening.

I'm going to start with some very diluted water washes with acrylic paints. Browns and oranges probably. Have to experiment a bit. After that, I'll try some more solid paint washes to blend those blacks in more, especially around the top of the head and spine.

When I do paint washes, I do them in layers, so as not to over do it. I dilute a lot, like this at the 6:20 mark: https://vimeo.com/51995786

Or this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ed5TbZRFQCI

The gold pile could use a paint wash of some dark orange to bring out all than detail too.

Thanks for the links and the info. I just thumbed thru a few of Randy's videos and I know what else I'll be watching this weekend. Thanks!

Weta have revealed a Minas Tirth at SDCC. Probably same size base as Rivendell

Also a Bilbo Pipe prop
1/10 scale vinyl Azog
Among some other 1/6 scale poly

The Dain and Uruk Hai Swordsman statues look good. The new Legolas statue is already up for pre order. I wish they had put him in a pose with his bow, to go with the Bard and Tauriel statues.

I'm not sold on Legolas and most likely will skip him. Not sure why but he looks cross-eyed in many of the photos fans took at the Weta booth. Also, the poses are getting way too over the top. I like dynamic poses but that one is bordering on ridiculous. The leaping thing has been done with Bard already. Not only that, these poses stick out so much that they require extra space on a shelf.

The new Elrond would almost be a miss for me due to the awkward action pose as well, but the armour is so gorgeous and the likeness so good that I think I'll have to pick him up.

Dain Ironfoot on his war pig is very cool, but I could do without the unnecessary height that useless piece of terrain adds to the sculpture. I'm guessing Weta is not getting the message that longtime collectors have little space left. Price will tell the story on this one for me.

Minas Tirith looks as awesome as expected but it breaks my heart to admit that after the Balrog and Smaug, I can't afford another $700 statue for which I do not have display space.

Azog and the Uruk-hai will be misses for me also. They look good, but I hate one character, and the other is too generic. Bring on a fully-armoured Lurtz and I may one day buy an orc.

Not sure where Weta is going with the 1/10 scale line, but vynil and interchangeable weapons just screams toys to me. No thanks.

Still on the fence about the Green Dragon, and the Hobbit holes don't really interest me.

The mini Frodo looks cool and I might pick him up. That leaves Bilbo's pipe, which I might get also as I did not pick up the Noble version.

Sad we got no Pippin. Guess my Fellowship will remain at eight members for at least one more year. I also feel bad for Buckeye because it looks like Eomer was a no-show.

I haven't collected many WETA items, but that Minis Tiriths looks AWESOME!

I am finding the dynamic poses annoying actually. Sideshow started it and it looks like Weta have caught the bug.

I'd prefer the effort be put into ensuring they have perfect faces and eyes.

That said, I 'may' get Elrond. Minas Tirith is an instant buy for me. Mini Frodo and the pipe too.

I'm still hoping we see some jewellery tomorrow, an art print and perhaps a weapon. It is still a possibility as the focus seemed to be on poly last night.

I have never really wanted any of the environments, but that Minas Tirith is making me want to find a place for it in the home.

Elrond looks like he is in a balley pose. I was really hoping they would do him in that armor, but not that pose. There are so many great action poses that were taken of all the characters for licensing reference, but it seems they are never used. This one is not even one of the better ones they shot with the sword out, but it would have been perfect.

I'm also smitten by Minas Tirith. I doubt I'll be able to afford it but it's been a long time since I've seen a piece and been so enamored that I could care less what the price is, I just want to look at it.

I was leery at first about Elrond but having seen him in a few different shots, I really like him. Not so much with Legolas. Idril and I had this conversation on the Flame; the poses were a neat idea but this one just looks silly, not to mention the likeness is kind of bad. It's a bit of a disappointment.

I do love Dain on his boar though, and the one thing I will definitely be getting is that Frodo mini statue. I totally didn't see that coming and I think it was a really smart sculpt. It captures the essence of LotR very well and for a low cost. I'm excited about him!

I was a little surprised that they chose an Uruk Hai swordsman as an LotR 1/6th, but then again, bad guys always sell. I just figured that if they went that direction, it would be Lurtz. There's already a ton of Uruk Hai statues but hey, bad guy collectors can't complain that they aren't getting attention for their monsters anymore. Now, hopefully they'll move in the direction of Eomer, Pippen, Haldir, a Prologue Elf, and all the other characters that are begging for attention.

As I already have the Danbury Mint Minas Tirith, I still really like the new Weta one and will decide based upon price. I've already started the Hobbit hole line and will continue those, and the Uruk-hai was a pleasant surprise. I'm sure there will be more in the coming months that people are after. Man, this isn't a cheap hobby

Lurtz would be nice, but I love that iconic Uruk Hai pose from TTT. At least they did not put him in one of those cirque du soleil ballet poses like the others.

I don't know who's face that is on the Legolas statue, but it sure aint Orlando's, unless he has aged another 20 years! I would have thought his face would be an easy one to sculpt, but faces are the hardest thing to get right. Elrond's face sculpt is perfect. I can't really see the face on Dain clearly, but he has so much facial hair and armor around it that it's a bit easier to pull off.

Nasnandos wrote: I don't know who's face that is on the Legolas statue, but it sure aint Orlando's, unless he has aged another 20 years! I would have thought his face would be an easy one to sculpt, but faces are the hardest thing to get right. Elrond's face sculpt is perfect. I can't really see the face on Dain clearly, but he has so much facial hair and armor around it that it's a bit easier to pull off.

Yeah, he looks constipated or something...not a flattering sculpt.

I like the Elrond statue quite a bit, but I don't collect them so I won't be buying. The Minas Tirith looks great, seems more detailed than the Danbury Mint (which I would expect), but I'm still content with the DM one. I'd rather shell out the kind of dough I expect that will cost on other things. Happy for all those who were looking forward to it though! Sad that Buckeye didn't get her Eomer on Firefoot.

It must not be a good feeling when an artist sees his work unveiled for the first time and people are so critical of it, but honestly, they should surround themselves with people that will catch these issues at the early stages. I do feel he looks more like Orlando Bloom that the early SSW statue, but Kit is absolutely right: he's aged tremendously.

As for the poses, the early SSW line was very subdued and I liked that. Then Sideshow went on its own and the poses started getting more and more crazy. Now Weta has followed suit and I don't think that's a good thing overall. They still do quite a few that are nice, like the dwarves and Faramir, but just like PJ has to turn all the elves into CGI circus acrobats, Weta seems bent of following suit. I'm guessing next we can expect a Thranduil somesaulting off the back of his elk with swords drawn and two orc heads flying.

I suppose the preference has to be between what a statue classically depicts in terms of pose, or whether these are meant to be snapshots of the characters in live action. I prefer the former.

On the Minas Tirith sculpt, my criticisms are that there seems to be far too much mountain rock flowing into the city from the sides, but I have to assume this being Weta, they are being faithful to what we saw in the movies (too lazy to look it up.) The bonus here is that it does include far more of the Hallows than I was expecting. The other thing I don't like is the off-centre position of the whole thing on the base. It just looks awkward to me and not sure why they wouldn't place the gates and road in line with the long end of the base. Maybe this makes it better for displaying as most people will have to align the base on the shelf along its length?

Minas Tirith and BIlbo's pipe are the only must haves for me, though it will come down to price and edition size for MT. Elrond Looks great (love the armor!), but I'm on the fence about it at the moment. Legolas looks silly and over the top and there's something really off about the likeness, so I'll give it a big pass. The mini-Frodo is cute. I don't collect the "baddies" or the Dwarven poly so I'm not tempted at all by any of those . . . okay I admit to being tempted by Thror on his throne . . . but I will say that the Dori sculpt/likeness is excellent.

I'm really, really depressed that we didn't get Eomer / Eomer on steed. I truly hope that just means he'll be debut at another event later this year.

The more I see of that Dain statue, the more I want it. And the more I see of that full scale Dain in the Weta booth, the more I think that helm and war hammer should be next up in UC's line.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/374/1935 ... 0823_b.jpg

Kit, what is the crest on Dain's helm made up of? Feathers?

Valkrist wrote:...
Minas Tirith looks as awesome as expected but it breaks my heart to admit that after the Balrog and Smaug, I can't afford another $700 statue for which I do not have display space....

Where did you see the $700 price tag for Minas Tirith? I did not see it in the pic.
How soon will it be available to order?

Deimos wrote:

Valkrist wrote:...
Minas Tirith looks as awesome as expected but it breaks my heart to admit that after the Balrog and Smaug, I can't afford another $700 statue for which I do not have display space....

Where did you see the $700 price tag for Minas Tirith? I did not see it in the pic.
How soon will it be available to order?

There wasn't a price posted yet, but it is speculated that is will be as much as Baradur. There is a rumor that it will be open edition which would bring the price down a bit, hopefully closer to $500.

Valkrist wrote:Kit, what is the crest on Dain's helm made up of? Feathers?

There is someone making Dain's helm over at MundoDVD and hey have a couple of screen caps from Weta showing the crest. Looks like fur or boar hair.

http://www.mundodvd.com/proyecto-yelmo- ... ro-126525/

N2darkness wrote:

Deimos wrote:

Valkrist wrote:...
Minas Tirith looks as awesome as expected but it breaks my heart to admit that after the Balrog and Smaug, I can't afford another $700 statue for which I do not have display space....

Where did you see the $700 price tag for Minas Tirith? I did not see it in the pic.
How soon will it be available to order?

There wasn't a price posted yet, but it is speculated that is will be as much as Baradur. There is a rumor that it will be open edition which would bring the price down a bit, hopefully closer to $500.

Thanks...I guess the days of an environment going for under $400 are long gone.
I have the DM version also. If the dimensions of the structure itself do not differ significantly between the two versions, I may pass on it.

On the prop they used horse hair with red paint on the tips. This photos shows the original prop colors, and the full scale Dain at ComiCon looks like it is made up of the original helm and armor props used for filming.

http://i.imgur.com/gjbJK0e.jpg

However, in the CGI version that was seen in BOFA they changed all the dark hued metal colors bright silver and gold, and removed a lot of the red coloring in the armor. What is interesting is that the Dain statue shown at ComiCon appears to be painted in the original coloring, not the colors used in the movie. I like them both, but I prefer the darker steel colors of the original props.



http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj5 ... g~original


http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj5 ... g~original

Here is the Weta statue for comparison.

https://farm1.staticflickr.com/421/1892 ... 194d_b.jpg

I like how they made his hammer styled like Thrain's war hammer.

https://www.tinkercad.com/images/jzLPHV ... t=553ae7c3

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5544/9281 ... a529d1.jpg

Although the original red axe prop, as in the book, would have been nice too. This is what Billy actually used when they filmed his scenes. I started the drafting drawings for a UC replica of this before we found out they changed it. I'm glad we put it on hold!