That's what's appealing for me in the Ontos - it is dimunitive. The thing (no pun intended) is so small that it'll be fun to work on. Even scratching it isn't that difficult because it's so small. I think it'll be a worthwhile effort - as opposed to dropping down all that money for the Hobby Fan 1:35 scale Ontos. For that price - I might be able to crank out two...

Gunnie

Hey guy's,
Got a Hobby Fan resin Ontos from a friend who chose it to be his first resin kit and it wasn't the right chose i guess as he gave up on it and gave it to me,( i hate seeing a model get through away,i'm funny that way) well he tried putting the hull together and thats as far as he got,so if anybody wants it let me know,just pay shipping,maybe $6.00 for priority.
[email protected].
later- modelmaniac

I'll give it a good home...

Hey Guys,
I've picked up an Hobbyfan Ontos for the specifcic reason of modifiying the upper and lower hull to include an interior and casting this in resin to perhaps market as a conversion or update set. As simple as it is, a "drop-in" engine and compartment would be a snap. I'm not sure if I've ever heard of aftermarket accessories for an aftermarket kit. Any feedback would be helpful, as the ethics are a bit "grey" on the hull recast. I figure this is the place for staight talk.
Thanks in advance
Chuck :-)

Do you plan on "copying" their hull and adding an interior to the hull top and bottom, then market the "combined" hull? Or are you casting the hull so you can design your own interior that adds to their hull? I think you are doing the latter, which is what most aftermarketers do, and I believe is OK. If you are doing the former, then you are taking someone else's work and making it your own. That might be a no-no, but I am not sure.

Good luck.

I'm in agreement with Sabot. If you're gonna make a straight copy of their castings (knock-offs) and produce them as a retail set of your own - then that's wrong. If you're going to make knock-offs for yourself - as many modelers with resing casting experience do - then that's probably OK.

A lot of aftermarket shops take the original parts and change or update the details on them. While it makes you go hmmm, it is done in the industry...

Gunnie

Hi Goup,
Let me explain myself. What I had in mind was to make a direct copy-mold and cast a few "slush" copies (ten or so) to work from, making several changes in the process. {1-Open the drivers hatch which is molded shut and add the associated details}{2- Open the engine compartment which is molded shut and add the associated details}{3- Create a turret ring(there is only a small hole for a peg an the bottom of the turret)}{4- On the inside, the entire surface of the HF kit is "clay-cast" so all the interior walls of the outer armor must be replicated, along with any of the interior surface details to be in the final product.
As to the lower hull, the Interior surfaces are again "clay-cast" so it will require the same treatment as the upper hull plus the floor will need to be replicated along with any details to be included in the final product, such as the turret floor, gunners seat, ammo rack base, etc...
Any other details would need to be scratchbuilt, test fitted and then disassembled to be molded. Once these goals are met, new molds would be madefor prototype/ analysis. Once final adjustments have been made,"production molds" would be made with a hi-repetition compound.
While I would be starting with "thier product" these changes would make it less "thiers" and more mine ( ? ) And this product doesn't replace "thiers" but complments it. It doesn't compete with "Them" but it requires the builder to aquire thier product in order to use this one.
More feedback, PLEASE!!
Thanks
CARFACE :-)

OK, I get it, I think. Make a few copies of their stuff so you can make an interior that will fit in and/or replace some of the parts of their kit. I think that would be OK, but again, I am not an authority on recasting/casting/or any other replication methods.

CARFACE - what you just described is so extensive that what you're doing is no longer a copy of the "original" - I think it's okay too.

Gunnie

Hi All,
What I'm considering is to give out a free sample of these preliminary works to the members of this discussion thread for analysis and report. It makes sence to get feedback, both positive and negative from the potential end-users of any product. As an incentive to partisipate in this process, the one's who do will recieve an end product. All they need do is analise what they recieve, report by post (here-PM) or by e-mail. If they, after the development is complete, wish to have the end product, they merely pay shipping when it's complete and they would recieve the complete conversion. ANY TAKERS???
Chuck :-)

Fire me off one of these when you're ready Chuck - I'll give it my best go!

Gunnie