Hey all. (I put this thread in the Mattel section, over the Customizing section, as I'm really interested in the opinion of other JLU collectors first an foremost. If it's in the wrong section, I apologize)

I'm interested in your thoughts, guys. Who do you think creates the best overall quality JL custom figures? I'm talking sculpting, painting, etc, etc.

I'd like to contact a top notch customizer to commission a character. But...I really want it to be professional looking.

So who are the top names I should look into? Thanks guys.

-Peter

Well, since Cason (Casimir) doesn't sell customs & Matt (Iron-Cow) is too busy with all his official work, I'd say Pierre (Airmax). I bought three customs from him (The Ray, Lobo, and Captain Atom) and they were perfect. The Ray was just a paint job on a test-shot, but man was it perfect and in all ways superior to the released figure. His Lobo was one of the best customs I've ever seen of a JLU figure (if not THE best), and his Captain Atom is far better than nearly all the ones I've seen done.

Peace,

Chip

jlustew is pretty darn good too! darthennis does some good work as well! superpowers makes cool customs as well!

Casmir and Airmax are incredible! LOVE their work!

Casmir is my personal favorite, but Airmax is incredibly talented as well. I saw his Lobo and I have to agree with Chip, it's awesome.

Depends on what you want to spend. Some of the customizers out there can be very expensive, and that's when / if they take commission work. Lars and Airmax come to mind. Like Chip said, Iron-Cow & Casmir don't generally take commission requests.

There are others that are not quite as expensive who do take commissions. Batstew / stew, Darthennis, and Super Powers take commission requests. All three of them have proven track records on ebay, and their work is incredibly good. I also believe that Victor Kraven takes requests - he has his own website and can be found on ebay as well under crimsonelephants. Another one I personally like is Guff. He goes by the user name blueantz on ebay. I don't know for sure if he takes commissions, but it can't hurt to ask him.

Hope that helps you.

I also own an Airmax Lobo, and it's fantastic. Pierre does great work.

So... How does one get in touch with Airmax and Lars?

Visit Airmax's web site, www.airmaxanimated.com. There's an e-mail link you can use to contact him. Plus you can look at his cool customs.

Lars' email can be found on his section over at RTM. Here's the link:

http://www.toymania.com/custom/Galleries/Lars/lars.htm

I'd have to say Pierre, but then again I'm biased. He's taken great care of me in the past as far as customs go!

Check out my favorite custom of all time:)

More love for Pierre...







*sigh* I miss those figures...

Peace,

Chip

Guys, thanks so much for your insightful and helpful replies. Those Airmax customs are drop dead gorgeous.

Just what I was looking for, guys. Thanks again.

I guess I'm going to cop out on this one. Picking a favorite customizer is like picking your favorite child. You love each one of them for different reasons (unless they are Adolph Hitler, Charles Manson or the like - in which case you put them in a sack and throw them in the river).

What I will say is that I am utterly amazed by the talent demonstrated and I appreciate the skills and am so very happy that they share their work with us.

Yes, the thread title is a bit misleading, but since "best" is in quotation marks, I assumed that JTD was looking for the best customizer to fit his needs, not the absolute best customizer. Personal preferences, individual interpretations, customizing methods, subject matter and other factors would make such a decision impossible.

Therefore, I issue the following disclaimer: My support for Airmax in this thread is not to be construed as a vote against the work of other customizers, including but not limited to Casimir, Lars, Super Powers, et al., whose work I have enjoyed. I just know Pierre does good work and takes customs.