G.I. Joe Classified Series Customs and Kitbashes

[@SethHMG]

These are excellent. Gridiron makes some great weapons and gear It’d be pricey but making the crew of space marines from Aliens would look sick.

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much Yeah Gridiron makes some incredible stuff. I've been eyeing their kit for Sgt Slaughter. Oh and the Space Marines would be very cool.

[@CollectorExpress]

The HD version will hopefully be up soon. KZbin is taking longer than normal to process the HD version of the video.

[@domenicvavala5646]

These customs look magnificent and a good way to fill out your Joe shelf. Awesome work my friend!!!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you my friend... right now it's the best way to fill out your Joe shelf. I checked out my Amazon preorder there are only two upcoming Joes and four Cobras one of which is a troop builder.

[@LatinBostonH8ter79]

This just gave me some new ideas for extra parts left over from other kit-bashes. Also picked up a Dremel tool to take things further..

[@chrisabcdef3908]

Fantastic collection and work.

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much!

[@rickdavis32]

The oldman hawkeye character looks like claymore great work.

[@ryansargent661]

I like these a lot. I’m working on some customs, mostly of characters I don’t think Hasbro will get to. Using some of the same techniques. I’m currently just finishing a V1 Style Rock & Roll (Hoping Hasbro recently announced version is V2) A V1 Zap, a Red Jackal (Minor Destro repaint and parts swap), an Alexander McCullen(Destro’s son) Darklon, General Hawk, and a couple others that I haven’t assigned any identities yet. Also working on adding parts to The Ram cycles to make personal bikes for Breaker and Rock & Roll. I’m moving slow because most of my supplies are packed because I’m moving soon(I’ve been saying it for like a year but housing markets crazy right now) Loving all the ideas and insight you provide, thank you.

[@miklawson211]

Some good figures. I wish some of thos figures you used were easier to obtain in the UK

[@jimmylouis4584]

Your sgt slaughter kitbash and the generic soldiers I love the ideas I’m gonna use them to make my general Colton

[@wilfredofigueroa2452]

Awesome setup 😁👍❤️💯

[@JamarNicholas]

Incredible work!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂

[@Ttaft]

Awesome customs!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much!

[@dwoncrawford5823]

The marvel legends Shang chi from hobgoblin baf wave makes a perfect kick quick to add to your joe team.

[@CollectorExpress]

Cool, I've seen some really cool Quick Kick customs using the comic Shang-Chi figure.

[@Manga_Lloyd]

I'm glad I somehow managed to catch this when I did. I'm new to your channel and this was incredible! They all look so cool! I especially like the Lara Croft lookalike and the ones that used the heads for Luke Cage and old man Hawkeye

[@CollectorExpress]

Welcome to the channel 🙂👍And thank you very much. Those are some of my favorites as well.

[@NeptuneKnives]

He also has a Sunday stream with a few other people all customizing same time its so cool

[@jonkane1312]

Man these are some superb customs! Great job…..

[@wolverinesnikkt]

Love the kitbashing job!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂👍

[@teslasuperdestinations]

masterful . . . they look company made

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much!

[@smyers9052]

Well done man, these are lovely

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂👍

[@donsawyer4521]

The team look great!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂👍

[@devildog1989]

I like the marvel comics look for Gung Ho. He looks like hes actually going on patrol in the woods/jungles, though to be honest, id still prefer he had a skivy shirt and a flak on

[@DavidMoore-eu3jv]

They look great!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much!

[@narceron360]

Your paint apps are awesome.

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂 👍

[@roclockdown3987]

These look awesome! I did a similar one with Gung Ho and the Sgt Slaughter accessories. Love the Mac from Predator. Might have to try that one!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂👍 I was really pleased with how well the one that looks like Mac turned out. I wasn't even going for that, but when I finished it I was like.. huh that looks like... sweet 😂

[@davidr8389]

Your customs look really great.

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂👍

[@helloagain3226]

Great work, your roadblocks look especially good.

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂👍

[@ChattanoogaEd]

Great job!!! Thanks a ton

[@CollectorExpress]

Thanks 🙂

[@somarriba333]

Man! These are REALLY nice!

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much!

[@peggy_zero_Dad]

Yo! This is a great looking squad.👏🏻

[@CollectorExpress]

Thanks 🙂👍

[@peggy_zero_Dad]

@@CollectorExpress kitbashing is some of my favourite stuff to do & this is a great example of how cool it can be when done right!🙋🏼‍♂️

[@twistedsyncapation413]

These look so good mate 👍

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂 👍

[@Michijere77]

Awesome. I missed some details of what you said. It would be cool to have a list. Good stuff tho.

[@corneliussmithgijoe702]

I really love what you did with those custom figures , Hasbro needs to put some packs of Joe’s out so the GIJOE team will be able to have a fair fight against cobra..... your custom are bad ass .

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much! Hasbro really does need to start pumping out some Joes, but they keep announcing more and more Cobra troop builders and other Cobra members... they all look awesome, but the Joes are so outnumbered... LOL

[@MADMONEYMAN5000]

I've been thinking about using some of my Overwatch figures to fill out my GI Joe and Cobra rosters

[@CollectorExpress]

Those should work out great for custom Joes and Cobras.

[@leyenda6149]

What recipe do you think would make a great classic looking, cartoon accurate Cobra Commander (I'm guessing whatever part i used would need a fair amount of sanding down & sculptwork). Thank you!

[@CollectorExpress]

Sculpt wise, the Crimson Guard figure's body looks a lot like Cobra Commander. Then take the helmet off the Classified Commander and use an cobra officer's helmet. You could also use the officer's arms and legs.

[@eduardomndz1181]

Buenos customs 😎👍

[@Cages_Customs]

Hiw did you remove the vest from Breaker? Also how do you take the butterfly joints out of the bodies? Great video love all your customs.👍😎

[@CollectorExpress]

To remove the vest I heat and popped the arms off and heated the vest slid the vest off. For the butterfly joints. Getting the butterfly joints out is pretty easy just a heat and pop. Getting them back in took a little dremel work. I used a round grinding bit to enlarge the bottom peg hole just enough where I could reheat the butterfly joints to pop them back in with the help of a small flathead screwdriver. And thank you so much!

[@jasoncallair5171]

Awesome customs. What paints you use for them. What brand you use. Like to repaint some of my figures.

[@CollectorExpress]

My go to for years was testors model master acrylics, but it's getting hard to find now that it's been discontinued. So I've started using Tamiya and citadel paints both of which needs to be thinned down before painting. I've also started using vallejo which have a great skin tones paint kit.The next brand that I'm going to try is Privateer Press Formula P3 Paint recommended by a friend. On Sunday nights we have a customizing live stream where we work on customs and talk shop if you would like stop by and ask us anything about customizing.

[@jasoncallair5171]

Thank you very much.

[@jonkane1312]

@@CollectorExpress Is Collector Express the name of this livestream?

[@CollectorExpress]

@@jonkane1312 the live stream is on the Collector Express channel, but the streams are called "Customizing WIP Sunday Live".

[@jonkane1312]

@@CollectorExpress Ahh okay thanks

[@marcusgreene8434]

In my Eric Cartman voice "Sweet!"

[@Taikuken]

did you have to do any extra fitting to get the Luke Cage head onto the roadblock body ?

[@CollectorExpress]

I did have to deepen the socket in the Luke Cage head for it to sit properly.

[@Taikuken]

@@CollectorExpress Thanks for the heads up. No pun intended. I’m gonna need to get a dremmel kit.

[@dmvdream-shootintheish...5266]

They look good A++

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much 🙂

[@dave52g]

Were you able to pop the waist ball joint?

[@CollectorExpress]

Only on the female figures. On the male characters you would need to crack the waist piece to separate the ball joint. So I just swap the rubber waist overlay pieces.

[@dave52g]

@@CollectorExpress ok thanks!

[@LandofMert76]

Can you just matte coat over the plastic to add washes? I want to do something to Firefly's flak jacket

[@CollectorExpress]

I wouldn't matte coat it first. If you matte coat before the wash the matte finish will absorb the wash too much. The flak jacket should take a wash as is, and afterwards I would apply a sealer.

[@LandofMert76]

@@CollectorExpress thanks! I know a wash wouldn't stick to the old o ring figures I attempted it with

[@numunky]

Awesome customs! I’m so inspired to make my own characters now after watching your videos. I’m just clueless about how you swapped the lower bodies on the 2 female figures. Is it easy to do? Thanks.

[@CollectorExpress]

Thank you very much! And that is awesome that it's inspired you to make your own characters. It's really fun to kitbash and customize your own characters. Oh, and I wish they would make the waist on all of the Joes like on those female figures. With those two I was about to use a blow dryer to heat the parts and pop the waist off, and both has the same size ball joints.

[@numunky]

@@CollectorExpress I have very little experience with kitbashing marvel legends. If this is similar, I’m excited. Going to get some extra figures just for customising now. Thank you for the amazing content btw. Looking forward to all your videos in the future.

[@Tsensabaugh5]

Awesome customs. No Snake Eyes?

[@CollectorExpress]

I don't have any custom G.I. Joe Classified Series Snake Eyes figures those have been great as they are. But before the Classified Series started I did make a Marvel Legends style Snake Eyes that I display with my SHIELD Agents.

[@Tsensabaugh5]

@@CollectorExpress I bet it looks awesome. Keep up the good work.

[@NathanChilds-dr0n3]

How can you remove/swap upper torsos from the pelvis?

[@CollectorExpress]

One the older Classified male figures you can't, but you can swap the rubber waist overlays. You can swap them on the female Classified figures and on some of the newer males like Big Ben, Snowjob, and General Hawk.

[@whiskeytangofoxtrot2]

Question, do Marvel Legends figures heads go onto G.I. Joe Classified bodies? Or does this depend on the ball joint?

[@CollectorExpress]

It really depends on the figure and the heads. Hasbro for some reason even within Marvel Legends doesn't standardize their ball joint sizes. Also on a lot of the GIJoes the ball pegs are really long. Some of the newer Joes though have shorter ones where Marvel Legends heads look okay without any modification. On the older Joes I've deepened the ball sockets on ML heads with my dremel tool to work on the joe bodies.

[@thesecond7355]

Do the marvel legends heads Need modding to fit on classified bodies?

[@CollectorExpress]

Some of the Marvel Legends heads do need the head sockets modified, and some do not. Hasbro doesn't believe in standardizing their ball joint sizes it really depends on the figures.

[@falcon048]

How did you pop off the torsos of the female figures?

[@CollectorExpress]

With the female G.I.Joe figures you can just heat the torsos and pop them apart at the torso joints.

[@eddyspurlock1299]

What washes do you use?

[@CollectorExpress]

I use Testors CreateFX Acrylic Washes

[@djc5015]

Do you do any prep before painting?

[@CollectorExpress]

I do indeed but the amount of prep work varies from the type of painting that I'll be doing. Basic washes and minor paint work just require giving the figure a good wash in hot soapy water. More extensive paint work I sand and clearance joints, and apply a primer to the figure.

[@guyverGODZILLAheiseiERA]

Every time I try to custom the inner socket keeps popping off ( heater and as well as 5 minute BOILING WATER DIP) can you help

[@CollectorExpress]

When you are removing the shoulders from the sockets you need to hold the sockets in place. I use my fingertips to hold onto the sockets when I start to remove the shoulders.

[@guyverGODZILLAheiseiERA]

Much love EXPRESS …. *I’m just waiting for python patrol to swap out TOMMY AND ZAMOT LEGS on the PYTHON VIPER CHEST* Then I’ll crack the pythons to create CRIMSON PYTHON TOMMY AND ZAMOT (held together with epoxy )

[@اغانيبطيء-د5ف]

I want bay like this?😢

[@lazylefthand]

Which marvel legend did u get the shoulder harness from?

[@CollectorExpress]

It's come with a few different marvel legends figures, but I believe that that one was from the Hydra soldier two pack.

[@lazylefthand]

@@CollectorExpress damn that set is expensive now! I ended up getting the jacket from thunderstrike. Gonna paint it black and put it on roadblock with war machines head to make a Blade figure.

[@Nicodastealthyone]

You accept commissions?

[@gabe_satx]

are these hand painted?

[@CollectorExpress]

All the ones that have been painted are indeed hand painted, but I do use a spray sealer.

[@SteamyHunnas]

You womt even need the new sarge lmao

[@CollectorExpress]

I'm still liking the head that I used on mine more...LOL I like having the hat and glasses as part of the head sculpt.

[@SteamyHunnas]

@@CollectorExpress looks better ngl