Discussion on Building a HIC prop? within the The East Platform forum, part of the Star Wars Universe category; Here we go HIC builders. Lets get those blueprints and
Here we go HIC builders. Lets get those blueprints and pics up to start, Ill put the blueprint up here shortly. I don't know where it came from ORIGINALLY. If anyones got a problem with it, Ill remove it.
Don't know if these specs have any relation to the studio prop....just getting rolling in my research too
but if we help each other out.....It'll be easier for all of us.
[/IMG]
Last edited by miqt; 09-18-2009 at 08:58 PM.
To my knowledge two boxes were built. One with a rectangular shape and one with a trapezoid shape on the sides.
My guess is:
Trapezoid: ESB
Rectangular (90° sides): ROTJ (The prop we see when Leia starts to meld Han out of the carbonite).
Correct, two were built.
Iīve found a Pic that might be interesting, found in an old Lucasfilm-mag. Thatīs the rectangular one...
The pic was made in the 90ies in the Lucasfilm archive:
Good pic!
Here is another one I've found but I'm unsere whom to give credit so plz let me know if I should remove it!
The perspective is a little tricky but you definately see there is a trapezoid shape. But I'm unsere if this is just the case on the top panel or really the sides.
............
Last edited by Lufo1138; 01-26-2010 at 10:39 AM.
Well, im not convinced the whole IC han solo is a mold of the full HIC from the movies. I think that the details of han may be, but the rest the textures are not (rest of textured surface and the sides etc).
The IC's dont have sharp enough edges, and they have too much texture on the surface.
Theres a pic in the freezing chamber, where they show han and he has a LOT of water on it. Well they sculpted that into the IC's, and its not thre in the movie stills, which makes me think that they only molded hans body, and put it on a quick box mock up.
Everyone can have their theories, thats mine
But i _DO_ know where you can get a nice center piece for anyone building a HIC display, at a reasonable price
I've compared some high-res full front shots of the actual prop with my the cast I've got here and they match up almost dead on.
In some spots the lines on the cast are less sharp and less pronounced than on the screenused piece. In other spots it's is the other way round.
But then in other areas there are some things that seem to be present on the cast but NOT on the screenused piece.
The overall amount of texture is 99 % the same.
My conculsion:
It would be more difficult and time consuming to just only cast the details of the face and the body and leaving the rest of the surrounding are aside in order to just rebuilt it at the Illusive Concepts shop.
For the reason that LFL has NEVER allowed a licensed product to be a 100 % 1:1 copy, I think the guys back in the day made the following:
They've put some little amounts of clay on the original here and there in some areas where only the texture is in order to eliminate some characteristic features and in other areas to further pronunce them.
This way they can slightly alter the look in order to execute the politics of LFL not to bring a 100 % 1:1 prop to the fans.
Then they molded the whole thing . After molding they cleaned the original (removed the clay they added or whatever material they used) prop and voila, you have a slightly altered version which is now not 100 % the same as the orginal.
This would be the easiest way to do it. I think it wouldn't be suitable for the IC guys if they only molded the body without the textured surrounding area in order to resculpt that area in their shop.
Sounds a little weird but again, I'm german native speaker so plz. forgive my clumsy style of express myself.
Here is a quick comparison:
The red dots should mark a detail which is present on BOTH pieces. The green dots should illustrate spots which are more pronounced on the cast then on the screenused prop (and vice versa).
Last edited by skynet; 09-19-2009 at 08:49 PM.
Just wanna say that this is great stuff guys....keep it coming.
remember to go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HICBuilders
get resources and share them here! I hope to start my HIC box
this fall. Im also toying with the idea of having the box able to
take a few different front panels. One con could be a HIC, then
a Jar-Jar in carbonite, any number of SW creatures that you
can pick up a mask for (sculpt hands and body etc). That way
you get FULL use of the prop. Im SLOWLY putting together
custom mandos.....it'd be way wrong for my wife and i to cart
along a HIC (for Bobas only). Also have to look into doing a
starwarsified wheeled dolly so that it can "float" along with us.
keep the good info flowing gang!
Mike
Im likely going to do a boba in carbonite. Though I dont forsee making a mold. I dont forsee a real market for it, and it would have to sell 5-10 to make it worth it.
I would suggest using the pink foam from home depot, for the body, maybe with a sintra around it. It would be strong and light, and solid, so it wouldnt dent.
And sintra can be rub and buffed, so you could make the chrome surface.
I'm building a rectangular one at the moment. Started out with a VERY broken HIC cast that I picked up in May or June.
made out of MDF and lots of bondo. I fixed all the cracks and filled in all the screw holes. It's further along now than in the pictures I have posted. I'm currently putting some KILZ on the sides so seal them and will hopefully have the whole thing primed by the end of the week!
-Matt
Hey Jawa, I see you're active on the Yahoo HIC group too.....cool.
Ive put my name on the list for those HIC decals also. Here are the
decals that I got from TK 4510 over on white armor....Ive been waiting
for a chance to show these off they're very good. The only thing is Id
prefer to have those lines of script (and all of them) as a rub-on application, but noone seems to so them that way...even waterslide
would be more to my liking. These are really good though so here they are:
Ah those are nice! I am actually ordering a set tomorrow for mine. Once payday rolls around I'm picking up a set of Angela's panels that she has set aside for me. Just need to figure out how to get the right lights for the hero panel.
Some have used a piece of 'frosted' plastic and a blinking LED for that panel. Others have suggested using EL sheet since its available in the right color...don't know how to make EL blink though...I think EL sheet does not energize fast like a LED but Im not sure. Im thinking of doing 2 hero panels at the top of both sides...the 'idealized' version of the ESB
HIC. They only had one on the original prop right? and they moved in from side to side as needed? I think thats how the story goes on that.
Mike
Yeah, blinking LED is the route I've been considering going down. As for how they did the original, I really am not sure. I lucked into the panel I have basically for free so I just started building because I figured it was a waste otherwise.
I found more images here for anyone doing this build.
http://rebelscum.com/gallery/carbonite/default.asp
These pics and all the info is great. I'm getting my HIC molded front in black on Tuesday then it's on to start building the box, panels, lights etc. I'm sure I'll give you all a shout once I get going on it. I want it to look as movie accurate as possible.
Cool, some good photos for reference.
Where are you sourcing the "Angela's" panels?
Can anyone find any screenshots/screencaptures from the movie of the panel when Leia is about to defrost Han? on this panel...
PFB -Angela is the gents wifes name...he uses her email etc.
PM me for his name and contact info. I have a full set of his
panels. They are well priced and very well cast (even the
smallest greebs are really quite good....and there are some
SMALL greebs). Im going with the angular sides like the ones
on the "King blueprint" I put up on the first post.
Make sure you check the HIC builders group at Yahoo guys.
The message format there sucks (imo) but there are some
real pearls of wisdom and some talented prop makers participating.
I'm still in the planning stages of my HIC. I think Ill start with
a PVC square tubing rigid skeleton and skin it with .125 HIPS.
Lots of angled .125 braces cut to the angles req'd by
the blueprint. It'd be simpler with maple plywood I guess, but
Im just no good with wood. Its easy to get 4x8 sheets
of styrene where I am and I find it easier to work with.
Oromatoko: That pic you posted....is that the ESB or the
ROTJ HIC? by the way the panels are recessed Im thinking
its the ESB hero panel but unsure.
Mike
Last edited by miqt; 10-23-2009 at 09:31 PM.
Cool thanks. I'm gonna go for the angled box as well. I'll probably build the frame out of steel just because I just started welding and I'm always looking for an excuse to fuse some metal together.
@ miqt
I believe it's a photo of the ESB HIC but I would like some screen captures from ROTJ, the scene where Leia dressed as Boushh is playing with the dials about to defrost Han, so I can get an idea of lighting/electronics and so on.
Oro
miqt-
Is there any way you can send me the "King Blueprint" or any specs or blueprints you have for a HIC and maybe the name of the guy who you got the panels from? I am going to be starting my HIC soon and need a place to start from. My membership is pending right now at HIC builders club so I don't have access to those resources yet. Any help you can give me would be much appreciated.
PFB - a metal frame....wow, that should last and last -are you skinining
it with sheet metal or wood? Are you planning on trooping with the HIC
or just for display? I guess you'll need a sort of 'trolley' if you're trooping
a metal prop.
Jacob- PM sent, I'll see what I can dig up. You should be able to grab the
blueprint off the first post though.
Mike
Oro-
I did some movie research last night and found some interesting and differing things between the electronics and hero panels in ESB and ROTJ.
ESB- R=red Y=Yellow O=orange
In ESB when Lando checks the HIC status he uses the upper knob of the two knobs on the hero panel, the black one. Normal light set up seems to be RYOYOY lit with the top red LED off inside the triangle. The grid panel flashes slowly off and on. When Lando turns the knob the lights go to a RYYYR lit pattern with all of the orange LEDs off and the top red LED in the triangle on. The grid pattern still flashes slowly green through the opaque white plastic after the knob is turned. On the ESB Hero panel there is also a green LED on the top of the grid panel that is always lit. This is not on the ROTJ panel, the LED circle is just a hole that flashes green along with the grid panel plastic. The grate or piece under the knobs is
completely different in ROTJ. In ESB it looks like metal ridges going vertically up the piece, in ROTJ it looks like rows of tiny slits or vents stacked horizontally up the piece.
ROTJ-
In ROTJ when Leia is unfreezing Han she turns a dial on panel two under the hero panel to start the process. The larger of the two dials (the top one) has a very noticable door or plate that swings open upwards to show the dial underneath. Has anyone tried to mold or recreate this piece? I know some of these pieces were originally car dashboard parts but who knows what it is. Leia disguised then turns the lower blue knob on the Hero panel to finish up the unfreezing. It looks like the normal light set up is only the 3 yellow lights on. After she turns the knob the green grid panel begins to blink on and off more rapidly than the usual flashing it does.
I would love to build the electronics on mine to have 3 light patterns based on what is seen in both movies. I do think I'll pass on adding the green LED above the grid panel seen in ESB though. So to recap, the upper knob on the Hero panel would have two patterns in it - one that is RYOYOY - one that would be RYYYR. Then I want to have the lower knob pattern it to all 3 yellow lights lit only, then another pattern to change the flashing to a faster blinking of the green grid panel. I hope this helps out anyone who is starting their electronics, I don't know too much about wiring up something like this but anyone who does give me a shout if you come up with something. I just got my black HIC front from Stormrider today and it's awesome, I can't wait to start building! Has anyone mounted one of these bad boys yet? I am debating where to trim or cut it and thinking about what to use to sand it and smooth it to a flat surface. I guess Han and the texture could be popping off the surface a little bit.
Id suggest making the frame out of sintra and sheets of orange foam from home depot. Or polystyrene, but its heavier. This way you can geet a nice, smooth finish, very light, and very very sturdy. Id wager youc ould drop it down stairs and nary damage it.
I may go that route too. I've never worked with sintra before though. I know you heat it up and can mold it. Do you think it would mold well over the rounded corners, or should I piece it together somehow? Then I could rub n buff with the silver leaf and it would have a cool finish like you suggested.
Ill bet you you can get sintra compatible 1/4 round bead in
HIPS, PVC, or ABS. Ill find out when I cost my plastics.
Mike
Hey all. I've cut my Sintra and trimmed Han down to size and I'm getting ready to build him tomorrow. To make it easier to cut the slots for the side panels and the shapes on the top and bottom I made some templates in Adobe Illustrator. I put EPS files and PDF files in a zip file so everyone should be able to use them. The shapes are to size and I marked the centers with a dot. I also drew lines to show where the top and bottom edges of the sides are. I'll probably cut mine out and make a stencil to trace on the side of the Sintra. You'll have to print them on 11x17 paper or larger, but the smaller shapes you could print on letter size. I'll attach the files and hopefully you guys can use them on your HICs. Enjoy!
Templates.zip
Thanks for posting templates Jacob!!
I'll DL them as soon as i get home from work.
Mike
have you guys seen the boba maker tutorial on this?:
http://www.bobamaker.co.uk/Han%20in%...e_Project.html
Thanks BobaMaker!!
Bobamaker does some incredible work. I've talked to him a few times to ask him some questions about his HIC. I got a lot of useful info from his step by step HIC page. Using that, and the info and help I've got from everyone here and at the HIC Builders group I am on the right path to finishing up my HIC.
If anyone is looking to buy a set of panels, I am selling mine due to a financial emergency. I have included some cool extras and greeblies. Check out my post in the Cargo Hold or PM me if interested.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
