Prometheus Rising Studios   Ben Mininberg's models, toy customs, and design work.

Armored Trooper VOTOMS is just about my favorite ‘real robot’ anime ever.  The plot has both down to earth grittiness and real world action, and an interesting blend of space opera elements.  The main robot in the series is the mass produced ATM-09-ST Scopedog.  The Scopedog is the epitome of the walking tank mecha ethos, and is used in some fashion by almost every armed force in the VOTOMS universe.  The Scopedog in its basic form is a line-standard machine, and has the capacity to be upgraded with many different mission packs and specific equipment including a parachute, a space maneuverability pack, and extra weapons (LOTS of weapons).

The Scopedog Turbo Custom ATM-09-STTC is the main machine used in the movie The Last Red Shoulder.  Without spoiling anything from this fantastic series, the Red Shoulders are an infamous special forces unit what a record of brutality and mercilessness.  Main character Chirico Cuvie and his military companions have a score to settle with the Red Shoulders, and use the custom modified Turbo Custom units in their fight.  The Turbo Custom is named for its extra maneuverability and upgraded booster package for ground combat.  Most AT units in VOTOMS have some form of wheeled propulsion built into their feet, enabeling them to basically skate around in combat, and with its upgrades the Turbo Custom does it better.  Each pilot in LRS also equips his machine with extra weapons, including shoulder mounted missile launchers and waste mounted armaments.

Max Factory makes a series of approximately 1/35 PVC highly articulated action figures for VOTOMS.  These figures are typically overpriced and not the most durable figures in the world, and the sculpt is far from perfect (the head is faaar too big).  I got the Turbo Custom on deep discount and decided to enhance the paint job on it, as in general the figure is still alot of fun.  Minor details were painted in, included some hand painted markings, and then I went on to weathering, including chipping and dirt using acrylic paints.  I did not go nuts on the figure as I still wanted it to be mostly play with-able after customizing it.  Even tho the MF figures are made of PVC and sometimes need a little tweaking out of the box to tighten joints, I still recommend them above the CMS Corps figures, which are made of cheap plastic and nowhere near as durable.