Dennis Hogan’s Judge Dread

A few years ago now, I sent in pictures of a build up I did of this same type kit. You can still see my Judge Dredd on CultTVman. This one however, was built up differently than before. I actually took the time to weight and balance the figure so it not only feels like a statue, but has the balance needed for free-standing display.

Now, the instruction sheet says you can add plaster to the ankles on the boots, but the kit is actually designed to be glued to the vinyl base for the standing display. I did not want to do this. I wanted it to stand on it’s own. So, I started by mixing a small amount of plaster and pouring it into the small boots (see pics). Now, the next problem that accord was the fact that the nob on the top of the boot is supposed to go into a small hole that is cut out of the bottom of the leg. To prevent leakage of the plaster, I first had to putty that area. Once that is done, I pour some more plaster and now the figure is weighted from the waist line down.

Once all the plaster is dried, the figure will not stand upright. To fix this concern, I cut open the boots front ankle area and place a small vinyl wedge into place to keep it separated (see pics). To balance everything out on the legs, I have to do the same operation to the back of his knees. Finally, I get it all balanced out and the figure stands by itself.

The only other thing I would mention on this custom build is that I used a chrome silver wash over the eye shield on his helmet. Once that is dry, I take modelers tape and mark the small portion at the bottom off and then use a Blue wash over the part that I need to be tinted.

All in all, it was a little bit of extra work to make this fantastic and detail kit into a custom made, free-standing figure.

Dennis P. Hogan