***A of people have been telling me that I “should have used ‘clear’ blue paint”, or asking me why I didn’t. There are a couple of reasons why that’s, imho, not correct: 1) it’s more work. This video is meant to be a guide for a simple hack that most anyone can do. To paint it, you’d have to take the lights out of the clear parts and risk damaging the setup. Not a lot of people are comfortable doing that stuff, or using spray paint, and this video is meant to show people how to do this in a simple, effective way. 2) this is the important one; “clear paint” is an oxymoron. Even “clear” paint is made up of pigment, and applying pigment means that you’re occluding the clear part, which will prevent light from coming through on some level, especially if you apply too much paint, which is very easy to do. I’m not saying it won’t work; some light will definitely come through, but it might not be enough and you might have a hard time changing it if you don’t like the result. These acrylic sheets I used are literally made for changing the color of lights. Trust me when I tell you that I think about this kind of stuff, you guys!
Out of all the customizers I have seen, you and The Perfect One Twelve make the best stuff. I dont make videos but I have used many things I have learned here. Thank You for all your hard work making these videos for us to watch.
That's really nice of you to say, man! Thank you so much! Perfect One Twelve is a buddy-- we message about figures pretty regularly, and I love his work a lot so thank you for holding me in similar esteem!
I can not thank you enough for this video. I was thinking of doing the exact same thing so I'm glad you showed the issue with the sheets and showed a solution. Thank you thank you thank you.
That was a cool quick demo. Mine hasn't arrived yet, but I definitely plan on doing this mod. I actually think I prefer the color on yours to if it were perfectly accurate. It gives it some depth and interest. This isn't my favorite Batmobile either, but I've always admired the design and thought the lights were a cool visual detail. I think I may mess with those headlights too. I gotta see how thick they are in person. Thanks for sharing. It's always great to get a new video from you.
Jamilyn! Thank you my friend! That means a lot. Yeah, I'm finding that more and more I'm like "do I care about it being perfectly accurate, or looking cool on the shelf?" lol. But now after sleeping on it for a night, I want to go all out on this thing, lol. Hope you dig yours when you get it!
I always really liked this Batmobile design... it was always just so 'out there'. I really liked the design idea behind it, the kind of 'biomechanical' thing they were going for. One year at SDCC they had all of the Batmobiles up to that point and I was really impressed with this version. I think you're right, it looks way cooler without the big crazy fin on the back. Also, Val Kilmer is a super underrated Batman.
Blacky! Yeah man, I agree. I saw in a batmobile doc they said that this was kind of meant to look like a bat with its wings folded on itself, and that made me like it a lot more. I saw all of the batmobiles on display 8 years ago, and I took a bunch of pictures-- I gotta dig those up!
@@Ibrahim_M Yeah that was when I saw them. They're super impressive in real life. Even the Tumbler (which I admit I had to warm up to) was really striking in real life. This version was honestly my least favorite until I saw it in person, and it was just so rad looking it raised up a few notches in my list!
Thanks for the video. I don't care for that version of the batmobile either. But I'm going to add it to my collection and paint those panels with blue iridescent paint and light it up with led strip. Great video.
Thank you! I have the Modoking Tumbler, just hoping to find some time to build it. I don't have the McFarlane version because I knew I was getting the Modoking, but I have my custom tumbler that's the same size as the McFarlane. So I might show that for comparison. I'm worried that the Modoking is too small for 1/12, even though it's supposed to be in scale.
That’s brilliant. I think you could paint the built in clear plastic with tamiya clear blue and replace the bulbs with a led strip. One on the top and the second on the bottom. It’ll give that diffused look.
Thanks! You could absolutely do that, I think it would look great. I'm going to revisit this in a few months when I have time and use a strip like the real car did.
Maybe we'll get a Forever Batmobile with actual blue lights later on? After the uproar over the canopy with the '89 Batmobile followed by the improved Gold Label reissue, hopefully they're planning a Forever Batmobile reissue with blue lights (and maybe paired with a panther suit Kilmer Batman)?
The lights were more of a teal green in the movie. When I bought my AMT model in 95 I ended up getting a model master spray paint for the chrome pieces that was a metallic teal green and lightly drybrushed silver over the engine details and it looked just like the film. Still have the model.
Yeah, I think it's one of those cases where the car looks one way in certain lighting, and then different in others. I know the accurate replica by JazzInc used blue lights. I think the way it came is totally fine, personally. But I know a lot of people wanted it to be blue so I thought this would be helpful.
Thanks for sharing a review-mod video in this one, I'm also a fan of the movie though I never digged the batmobile,but,times change nostalgia comes along and now after your video I might actually get it and mod it,as always excellent video,and yes,you owe us a tour buddy,lol, still love your videos and time/detail on them make your channel so unique,see you next time,and keep your head on swivel!!!
Gracias, Hermano! Haha, man, I posted this video late last night, went to bed, and woke up this morning wanting to do the full mod on this thing! I don't know when I will find the time, but I have the itch to do it now. Collection tour coming soon! Haha. Thanks again, my friend! Head on swivel!
@@Ibrahim_M please do mod it,and film everything, I'll binge watch even if it last six hours or more, bell is always on,on my end!!!Always a great feeling to watch your vids!!!
Very nice review, I had the chance of seeing of of these cars in life. I stil have the pics when they drive it in the parade...love your custom work bro. Right now I customize a Raven from M.A.S.K. and hope I can make some differences
Thanks so much, dude! I got up close to this one in person back in 2016 at the WB studio tour, and I wish I could do that again today and take as many pictures as I need, lol. Have fun with your Raven! That's gonna be cool
Thank you! It’s a bunch of ikea shelves that I enclosed with custom cut plexiglass from a place called Tap Plastics. They’re a nationwide chain (in the US), and it was all pretty affordable!
I love the story behind the design of this Batmobile. Schumacher went to H.R. Geiger to design a Batmobile for the new movie. Geiger came back with this wacky, fleshy looking four legged wheeled creature with eyes. Schumacher said thanks for the design and didn't use it. Then he went to his design team and told them to design a Batmobile that looked like Geiger designed it, hence why this one looks like was built by a Xenomorph.
I got mine last Saturday and I'm OK with the lights inside not being blue . But I am thinking of just painting the headlights a gloss white . I really think they should have done something with them . And to me I love the big giant fin on top .
Yeah honestly I thought the way it came looked pretty cool, lights-wise. But I know people wanted to see how to make it bluer. Gloss white on the headlights is a good idea! I might do that too until I have time to mod them
Are the shelves you're using to display the vehicles custom built by you or something you bought pre-made? They look like they're built modular in such a way that they could individually stand on their own with glass/plexi-glass on the front/sides or placed adjacent to each other to make a wider, multi-shelf display with a glass/plexi-glass front.
This is what I was planning to do! Though I was imagining a thinner type of wrapping material that might not work as well. Thanks for sharing your technique!
First time on your channel, just wanted to drop a comment to show some support and help boost the channel. Always enjoy meeting a fellow customizer! Cheers!
I made the panels blue by painting the inside/underside of the panels with Citadel Paints Talassar Blue Contrast. For a darker shade of blue paint the outside of the panels as well (they are removable). I hope this helps! 👍
Nice! Thanks for the view of the inside of the car. I did see someone go and swap the body LEDs with blue ones and it worked out decently - I think I will do it that way (especially since my soldering station is currently out for other projects!).
Nice! You're welcome man, thanks! Yeah I think blue LEDs would look incredible in there. I'll probably do that eventually when I circle back to this thing. Have fun!
A simple solution to make the translucent plastic more blue, is rit dye for plastics. I didn't think it would work, but did it with an almost white faded halloween pumpkin last year, and the orange dye was almost too color intense.
Thank you very much, my friend! Still thinking over the headlights. I’m probably going to end up doing a full customization to this (because I can’t help myself, lol) so I’ll post a video of that and hopefully I’ll have a solution for them!
Thank you so much for your efforts to make it accurate, your idea is great ! I'm thinking of painting like you said with some blue light ink, and then drybrush silver (like the kenner one !!!, nostalgia ^^) I don't know... there is that shot in the movie where we first see batman go to Nicole Kidman, the bat mobile is on a bridge and batman zipline to her... the color is greet so.... it's really difficult to make my mind right on that one ^^ congrats from France ! you nailed it !
More reason Mcfarlane should have made the figures 1/12. All the vehicles are actually sized for 6 inch figures. They screw it up by modding it as a one seater to fit only one 7 inch figure. The Tumbler was the only exception.
I think a wash would be good. I actually just ordered lights to do a proper custom job on this thing. Once I slept on it for 24 hours I was like "I gotta customize this all the way now" lol
I wonder if you can customize the lights to be super light blue almost white like some of the pics of it in the cave. I kind of prefer that look you should check it out!
There are a few ways one might do that! It does look much more blown out in the film. Thats the thing about replicas, it’s like “do you make it how it was irl, or how it LOOKED on screen?” Haha
Nice! I hope you dig it! Honestly, I don't think I would, haha. I was asking myself that question, and I think I've seen that movie once... MAYBE twice. I don't really care for the design or aesthetic of it, so I don't feel a burning need to have it. And thankfully I'm not really a completionist.
That looks a lot better. Mine is supposed to be coming this week and I might be trying something similar with the blue light issue. There are times in the movie it does appear bluey-green depending on the scene. Yes, I agree it looks better without the large fin on top. Without it looks like an evolution from the 89 Batmobile.
Yeah I honestly think the way it came is perfectly fine because it definitely has some green tinting at times on screen. But I know most people seem to want it to be blue. Now 24 hours later I want to fully customize the whole thing 😂😂
@@Ibrahim_M Yeah, also people do see colors differently from others. That whole “what color is the dress” thing from several years back. It’s possible to pull the wiring set up and go with an LED that changes colors with a remote. Probably wouldn’t take much finagling. There’s a site I’ve purchased lights from called Evan’s Designs that has a lot of custom light options.
I'm looking at this thinking it looks really cool. A lot cooler than I thought. Then you mentioned how you left the back fin off. THAT was it. It looks MUCH better without it.
Looks great… this is the beauty of being able to customize. You can alway go back later to add to it. I’m one of those folks who like Batman forever too so you’re not alone, lol.
Thanks, bro! I agree! And yeah I think this movie is actually pretty well liked among people of a certain age group. I know a lot of folks within 5-10 years of my age who love it. Kilmer was definitely underrated! I really want a figure of his panther suit from the beginning of the movie
It might, but I think it would look really streaky and bad. Hard to get even coverage with something like that, and it would likely rub off super easily
I just got a sneaky feeling the blue one is coming. As for the car being a one seater, Todd is visual person, he don't care, (IMO) Todd really doesn't want Batman in it! It appears it's meant to be seen behind Batman as a display, but it's a toy so he makes the concession to make it function as a toy. All he had to do was rescale it so it's wider.
Great video! I also have a huge amount of nostalgia for Forever, I was 5-6 when it came out and it was the greatest thing ever. Also really cool to see the car without the big fin, I've heard others saying it looks way better without it and, well, it does look pretty cool :) Now, I'm gonna go get drive-through.
I’m not a fan of the Kilmer Batmobile but you certainly improved the colour and lighting and it’s always a pleasure to see your work and listen to your enthusiasm. Nothing can beat the 1989 version but the 1966 version is a close runner up. I enjoyed the 1989 conversion you did and will get round to watching it again. Great video once again mate and all the best. Rod 👍
Thanks so much, Rod! Yeah, I think a big part of it for me is that this car had the misfortune of being the first one after the 89 design. Anything that didn't completely reinvent the look (like say, the Tumbler) was going to suffer a bit by comparison. But it has grown on me a lot, and now I really want to put more time and effort into it, lol. Thanks as always for watching, my friend!
The 89 Batmobile was and still remains unique and is a thing of absolute beauty. 35 years later and it still thrills me to watch it on screen. You are right that anything else after that was going to suffer from comparisons and maybe that is a little unfair. The Tumbler and simplified The Batman version are decent efforts and are classics in their own right. The whole Keaton and Burton Batman thing for me is hard to beat. Cheers Ibrahim and look forward to more of your wonderful work. Rod 👍
I think I’m gonna wait to see if McFarlane drops a more accurate release like he did with the 89’ batmobile, or just buy it later if it’s still available maybe next year. Also maybe a 3rd party seller will create a 2seater cockpit like Ramen Toys is in the process of doing for the ‘89 Batmobile. Either way, thanks as usual for this how to vid and the value you continue to bring to the collector community 😎👍🏾
You’re welcome, bro! Thank you for the kind words! Yeah, I think the track record proves now that it’s pretty safe to wait. That 89 2-pack is still up on Amazon for $75. lol.
Try a test shot first on something else that’s clear to see how it’ll work. Paint is pigment, so it’s going to create a new layer, even if it’s supposed to be transparent, and that can dull the light. I ended up painting mine to look metallic, and some light can definitely still pass through, but it’s pretty obscured. (That was solid paint tho).
I think that would work better- it would be much more similar to what I did with the light gel sheets. The nice thing about using stuff like that is that it’s a single consistency, whereas paint can end up being overpainted. And the bonus is that you can just peel it off if it doesn’t work, haha.
@Ibrahim_M True, true. Alright, you've convinced me. Going to try the translucent vinyl tape first. Thanks brother. Great video by the way. Your vehicle came out amazing!!!
I got the 1989 Batmobile, skipped the Tumbler and Batpod (and I really wanted a Batpod - but neither looks quite right to me) and I think McFarlane did a fine job here. The compromises made feel like the right ones to me. As you mention, this is going to live on a shelf, and it certainly looks the part there. I agree that it looks actually quite good without the central fin. It looks much more like an updated version of the 1989 Batmobile. it would be interesting to know if the reason why the fin was added was precisely to give it a more distinct silhouette.
I agree with everything you said here, and I think that's a really good way to put it/look at it: there HAVE to be compromises when shrinking these things down into a toy. There are all kinds of things to consider; cost vs price, shelf space that retailers will give to the company, shipping weight, etc. Thanks!
Quite some effort put around the color hack! Much appreciated sharing these ideas. I saw the movie once more just to be sure, and it's funny that most of the times its blue but in certain scenes the lights are green too. So, not sure if the lights are supposed to work in a specific manner depending on certain mode of the vehicle or not. Congrats! on the Modoking kit, you'll sure enjoy it :) The addition of head lights is something I'll definitely work on. We all need a 1:12 scale Panther suit batman 1995.
Thank you, my friend! YES to the panther suit! And I agree, you do see some green in the movie. The challenge with these is always "do I make it how it WAS, or how it LOOKED?" haha. I'm worried that the Modoking Tumbler is too small! But I won't know until I put it together, lol. Thanks for watching, as always!
@@Ibrahim_M I have seen some reviews of Modoking build and it is quite good size, plus very sturdy for a kit. I have seen reviewers shaking it and it does not fall apart. You can easily fit Mafex Batman in it. It's perfect 1:12.
@@Mr767267 I hope so! The one video I saw made it look very small, but I am going to pair it with my Mafex Beinds figure. Can you link me to the reviews you saw? I wasn't able to find many!
😂 just to see if it would actually fit on the shelf, and for when I took the pic for the thumbnail. If it wasn't in the thumbnail image, I'd be fielding endless comments from people who didn't watch the video about how it was missing, lol.
Oh they're definitely getting repainted when I have the time! lol. I completely redid Paul and made a cloth stillsuit for him, "real" hair, etc. But I don't have it in me to do that 5 more times, haha. Bit I'm definitely repainting them at some point. Here's a link to the Paul video: th-cam.com/video/k1vCszQwdyQ/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ppn7Fa8A8A2NoCs2
I was thinking of using transparent blue paint and looking at the Jazzinc review maybe I can highlight it slowly with bits of metallic silver with a darker wash. Nice catch on the exposed wiring, you can easily put in to for the headlights. You're definitely giving me great ideas.
Possibly, but I've never tried it. It would probably come out uneven and it would be a lot of work. Much easier to just paint it with some transparent paint or do what I did with the lens sheets.
Right? I think the fact that the 89 is SO good, this one always felt like a let down to me. BUT, it has grown on me a lot and I think that would have been a shorter journey if the fin wasn't there, lol.
Man that made such a huge difference! I passed on it I’m not a fan of that Schumacher design but inspired me to do some customs to my 89 Batmobile I’ve been procrastinating, and I 100% agree on not displaying it with that ugly ass fin it looks so much fn better without it.
Interesting hack, I think you put a pretty good shade of lipstick on this pig. I wonder if the darkness of the middle of the panel could be fixed by painting the back of the panel silver. It seems like it's only dimming because of the darkness inside the car showing through, and silver would act as a catchlight instead of a void; you could probably even dry-brush or paint-wash the exterior to bring out those details a little more once that was in place. Alternately, I was thinking you could swap the white LEDs to blue, but that's a whole piece of work at that point.
Yeah, this was meant to be a pretty simple thing for the average collector to do. Most of my projects are pretty involved, but keeping it simple was key here. But I've done the reflective trick you're talking about before and it definitely helps! I chromed out the headlight bezel on my 89 mod and it was nice. Hell even tinfoil inside this thing would do the trick. But I got the bug after doing this video, so now I'm going to be knocking out a full customization and painting the clear bits to be metallic, then stringing blue lights throughout to make it look more screen accurate. A custom Kilmer Batsuit is on the way, too, haha.
@@Ibrahim_M That sounds pretty great, I look forward to seeing what you come up with. I only noticed after I commented that this thing doesn't have its headlights so between that and the front grille alone, that'll be quite the job! As for the Kilmer Sonar Suit, I look forward to what you come up with there even more as I have no idea why the retail version is blue with black - the costume is all black, and the production shots making it look blue are from set lighting gels so everything should be a haze of dark blue-gray like the WB100 version had.
@@JTKirk Yeah, I'm not looking forward to cutting out the grille 😂😂 These things can be tricky; something I learned when I customized the 89 Batmobile is that there's how it was in real life, and how it LOOKED on screen. The latter is what we see and what we remember, so it makes sense that the Sonar suit looks a metallic blue/grey even if it was only lit that way. I'm going with the black suit he wore at the beginning, though!
@@Ibrahim_M I suspect getting that grille done won't be nearly as difficult as you suspect and you'll make quick work of it. You are absolutely right about how things look on screen vs real life, the '89 Batmobile being purple on set so it'd look black in camera is my favorite one. As for the batsuits, the Panther Suit and the Sonar suit are entirely different worlds so I am curious what you come up with. Even the cowls are different or I'd pick up the retail figure and plop it on the Clooney body, call it good enough for now.
Yeah the cowl is requiring a fair bit of sculpt work! Luckily the McFarlane version is juuuust inaccurate enough to the sonar suit that I’m able to augment it pretty easily into the Panther version 😂
@@PlasticGeek Oh I missed the word "clear", lol. Yeah I think that would work! You'd have to disconnect the lights, though. A bit more work but not too bad.
Several reasons: 1) it’s harder to do that; you’d have to remove the lights from the clear parts and risk damaging them- it’s a tight fit. Then you’d have to buy paint, go outside, spray it, wait for it to dry and air out, then reassemble everything. Using the sheets meant I never had to leave the work bench. Very quick and easy. 2) this is the important one; even “clear” paint is a pigment of particles, and applying particles means that you’re occluding the clear part, which will prevent light from coming through. So it would block the light. I don’t know why nobody thinks about that!
Man, who knows why they do some of the goofy stuff they do, haha. I mean, there are scenes where it kinda looks blue/green, so it’s possible that’s why. But more often than not with McFarlane its some factory mistake that they pretend was on purpose, lol
Right?! My friend has a custom Panther suit BAtman he made and it's SO dope. If they re-release this with blue they'll probably do a panther suit version, lol
It was two seats ,God why do so many batmobiles get remade as one- seaters ??? Just sooooo wrong remember Viki Vale sat next to Batman ? and later in Bale's "Batman Begins" Tumbler had 3 seats thats right folks 3 😮😮😢
@@Ibrahim_M in 89 TOY BIZ had no problem giving us a two seater Keaton BATMOBILE , , ,so I really don't believe or buy any excuses from today's greedy toy makers , , , ,🤔🤔ps what's next ? A one seater Dukes of Hazard -General LEE ?? heck all Knight Rider Toy Cars have 2 seats , , it boggles the mind sooooo hard , 😒😔😠
😂 trust me, if I didn’t give a reason as to why I didn’t go all out on the mods, I’d have 50 comments saying “oh you should have done xyz” and “why didn’t you do xyz?!” Now y’all know. Lol
***A of people have been telling me that I “should have used ‘clear’ blue paint”, or asking me why I didn’t. There are a couple of reasons why that’s, imho, not correct:
1) it’s more work. This video is meant to be a guide for a simple hack that most anyone can do. To paint it, you’d have to take the lights out of the clear parts and risk damaging the setup. Not a lot of people are comfortable doing that stuff, or using spray paint, and this video is meant to show people how to do this in a simple, effective way.
2) this is the important one; “clear paint” is an oxymoron. Even “clear” paint is made up of pigment, and applying pigment means that you’re occluding the clear part, which will prevent light from coming through on some level, especially if you apply too much paint, which is very easy to do. I’m not saying it won’t work; some light will definitely come through, but it might not be enough and you might have a hard time changing it if you don’t like the result.
These acrylic sheets I used are literally made for changing the color of lights. Trust me when I tell you that I think about this kind of stuff, you guys!
Out of all the customizers I have seen, you and The Perfect One Twelve make the best stuff. I dont make videos but I have used many things I have learned here. Thank You for all your hard work making these videos for us to watch.
That's really nice of you to say, man! Thank you so much! Perfect One Twelve is a buddy-- we message about figures pretty regularly, and I love his work a lot so thank you for holding me in similar esteem!
I can not thank you enough for this video. I was thinking of doing the exact same thing so I'm glad you showed the issue with the sheets and showed a solution. Thank you thank you thank you.
You’re very welcome! I’m so glad you found it helpful! 🙏🏼🙌🏼
That was a cool quick demo. Mine hasn't arrived yet, but I definitely plan on doing this mod. I actually think I prefer the color on yours to if it were perfectly accurate. It gives it some depth and interest. This isn't my favorite Batmobile either, but I've always admired the design and thought the lights were a cool visual detail. I think I may mess with those headlights too. I gotta see how thick they are in person. Thanks for sharing. It's always great to get a new video from you.
Jamilyn! Thank you my friend! That means a lot. Yeah, I'm finding that more and more I'm like "do I care about it being perfectly accurate, or looking cool on the shelf?" lol. But now after sleeping on it for a night, I want to go all out on this thing, lol. Hope you dig yours when you get it!
man the new blue looks so much better. your resourcefulness on this kind of stuff always blows my mind.
Thank you bro! I’m knee deep in making it look screen accurate now 😂
I always really liked this Batmobile design... it was always just so 'out there'. I really liked the design idea behind it, the kind of 'biomechanical' thing they were going for. One year at SDCC they had all of the Batmobiles up to that point and I was really impressed with this version. I think you're right, it looks way cooler without the big crazy fin on the back.
Also, Val Kilmer is a super underrated Batman.
Blacky! Yeah man, I agree. I saw in a batmobile doc they said that this was kind of meant to look like a bat with its wings folded on itself, and that made me like it a lot more. I saw all of the batmobiles on display 8 years ago, and I took a bunch of pictures-- I gotta dig those up!
@@Ibrahim_M Yeah that was when I saw them. They're super impressive in real life. Even the Tumbler (which I admit I had to warm up to) was really striking in real life. This version was honestly my least favorite until I saw it in person, and it was just so rad looking it raised up a few notches in my list!
Absolutely one of my favorite displays I’ve seen! Love these videos bro!
Thank you bro! Really appreciate your support, as always!
Thanks for the video. I don't care for that version of the batmobile either. But I'm going to add it to my collection and paint those panels with blue iridescent paint and light it up with led strip. Great video.
Thank you! That's going to look rad!
Nice review and mod upgrade. Will you get and build the 1/12 Modoking Tumbler model kit and compare it against the McFarlane version?
Thank you! I have the Modoking Tumbler, just hoping to find some time to build it. I don't have the McFarlane version because I knew I was getting the Modoking, but I have my custom tumbler that's the same size as the McFarlane. So I might show that for comparison. I'm worried that the Modoking is too small for 1/12, even though it's supposed to be in scale.
That’s brilliant. I think you could paint the built in clear plastic with tamiya clear blue and replace the bulbs with a led strip. One on the top and the second on the bottom. It’ll give that diffused look.
Thanks! You could absolutely do that, I think it would look great. I'm going to revisit this in a few months when I have time and use a strip like the real car did.
Maybe we'll get a Forever Batmobile with actual blue lights later on? After the uproar over the canopy with the '89 Batmobile followed by the improved Gold Label reissue, hopefully they're planning a Forever Batmobile reissue with blue lights (and maybe paired with a panther suit Kilmer Batman)?
It wouldn't surprise me at all, lol. OR, they don't change the lights and they still just pair it with the Panther suit, haha.
Great work, thanks for sharing & I agree about the center fin.
Thank you, man! You’re very welcome. And yes, it really looks more like a batmobile without it, which is still so funny to me.
The lights were more of a teal green in the movie. When I bought my AMT model in 95 I ended up getting a model master spray paint for the chrome pieces that was a metallic teal green and lightly drybrushed silver over the engine details and it looked just like the film. Still have the model.
I guess they just like it blue? Looks more accurate the way it came to me.
Yeah, I think it's one of those cases where the car looks one way in certain lighting, and then different in others. I know the accurate replica by JazzInc used blue lights. I think the way it came is totally fine, personally. But I know a lot of people wanted it to be blue so I thought this would be helpful.
Thanks for sharing a review-mod video in this one, I'm also a fan of the movie though I never digged the batmobile,but,times change nostalgia comes along and now after your video I might actually get it and mod it,as always excellent video,and yes,you owe us a tour buddy,lol, still love your videos and time/detail on them make your channel so unique,see you next time,and keep your head on swivel!!!
Gracias, Hermano! Haha, man, I posted this video late last night, went to bed, and woke up this morning wanting to do the full mod on this thing! I don't know when I will find the time, but I have the itch to do it now. Collection tour coming soon! Haha. Thanks again, my friend! Head on swivel!
@@Ibrahim_M please do mod it,and film everything, I'll binge watch even if it last six hours or more, bell is always on,on my end!!!Always a great feeling to watch your vids!!!
@@carlosrodrigueznava4076 Thanks you, my friend! I will certainly make a video on it!
Very nice review, I had the chance of seeing of of these cars in life. I stil have the pics when they drive it in the parade...love your custom work bro. Right now I customize a Raven from M.A.S.K. and hope I can make some differences
Thanks so much, dude! I got up close to this one in person back in 2016 at the WB studio tour, and I wish I could do that again today and take as many pictures as I need, lol. Have fun with your Raven! That's gonna be cool
What a quick and easy workaround for the lights, thank you for the content!
You're so welcome, and thank YOU!
Ibrahim absolutely one of the best. Thank you so much for the videos and showing how it’s done!
Ah dude, thank you so much! And you’re very welcome! 🙏🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼
Great video. Thanks! Also, where did you get your display cases?
Thank you! It’s a bunch of ikea shelves that I enclosed with custom cut plexiglass from a place called Tap Plastics. They’re a nationwide chain (in the US), and it was all pretty affordable!
I love the story behind the design of this Batmobile. Schumacher went to H.R. Geiger to design a Batmobile for the new movie. Geiger came back with this wacky, fleshy looking four legged wheeled creature with eyes. Schumacher said thanks for the design and didn't use it. Then he went to his design team and told them to design a Batmobile that looked like Geiger designed it, hence why this one looks like was built by a Xenomorph.
lol, I saw that in the Batmobile documentary a while back. So funny that he made such a weird thing and they were like “uh… not like that”. Hahap
I got mine last Saturday and I'm OK with the lights inside not being blue . But I am thinking of just painting the headlights a gloss white . I really think they should have done something with them . And to me I love the big giant fin on top .
Yeah honestly I thought the way it came looked pretty cool, lights-wise. But I know people wanted to see how to make it bluer. Gloss white on the headlights is a good idea! I might do that too until I have time to mod them
Was never a fan of this version of the Batmobile so I did skip it, that fin is so huge haha good work as always man 🦇
Haha, thank you bro!!!
I think it looks much better without the long fin in the back, great review
Thank you! Yeah I’m really digging it without!
Are the shelves you're using to display the vehicles custom built by you or something you bought pre-made? They look like they're built modular in such a way that they could individually stand on their own with glass/plexi-glass on the front/sides or placed adjacent to each other to make a wider, multi-shelf display with a glass/plexi-glass front.
Yep, that's exactly it. They're just IKEA shelves that I enclosed with custom cut plexiglass.
This is what I was planning to do! Though I was imagining a thinner type of wrapping material that might not work as well. Thanks for sharing your technique!
You’re welcome! Yeah I think a lot of different options would work, and it’s really nice that it’s so easy to access once you take it apart.
First time on your channel, just wanted to drop a comment to show some support and help boost the channel. Always enjoy meeting a fellow customizer! Cheers!
That's super nice of you, Brad. THank you so much! Please feel free to stop by any time!
@@Ibrahim_M I will definitely check out your other videos. I showcase customs of action figures and I see you have those as well
@@bradforever4489 I do, indeed! I'll check out your stuff, too, thanks!
I made the panels blue by painting the inside/underside of the panels with Citadel Paints Talassar Blue Contrast. For a darker shade of blue paint the outside of the panels as well (they are removable). I hope this helps! 👍
Nice!
Nice! Thanks for the view of the inside of the car. I did see someone go and swap the body LEDs with blue ones and it worked out decently - I think I will do it that way (especially since my soldering station is currently out for other projects!).
Nice! You're welcome man, thanks! Yeah I think blue LEDs would look incredible in there. I'll probably do that eventually when I circle back to this thing. Have fun!
A simple solution to make the translucent plastic more blue, is rit dye for plastics. I didn't think it would work, but did it with an almost white faded halloween pumpkin last year, and the orange dye was almost too color intense.
I like the method I chose because it took 15min and I didn’t have to boil any water!
@@Ibrahim_M lol! Theres that!
Amazing work as always Ibrahim, very easy and effective mod bro. will do it when it arrives. Any thoughts on installing the head lights?
Thank you very much, my friend! Still thinking over the headlights. I’m probably going to end up doing a full customization to this (because I can’t help myself, lol) so I’ll post a video of that and hopefully I’ll have a solution for them!
Thank you so much for your efforts to make it accurate, your idea is great ! I'm thinking of painting like you said with some blue light ink, and then drybrush silver (like the kenner one !!!, nostalgia ^^) I don't know... there is that shot in the movie where we first see batman go to Nicole Kidman, the bat mobile is on a bridge and batman zipline to her... the color is greet so.... it's really difficult to make my mind right on that one ^^ congrats from France ! you nailed it !
could it be that mirrors pieces would reflect the center light so it could light the centers of the sides ? or some light diffuser pieces ?
Reflective surfaces inside to bounce more light around is a very good idea! Merci beaucoup for the very kind words!
I know the George Clooney B & R Batmobile was actually a one seater, so if they make it, the seatng should be accurate.
More reason Mcfarlane should have made the figures 1/12. All the vehicles are actually sized for 6 inch figures. They screw it up by modding it as a one seater to fit only one 7 inch figure. The Tumbler was the only exception.
Dude it would be SO funny if they made it a 2-seater
@Ibrahim_M Knowing Mcfarlane, it may just be a 2 seater. Same with the 89 Batwing.
Great video! Nice tutorial on how to customize the Batmobile with blue lighting.
Thank you very much!
I wanna either do some paella lining or a wash on those inside panels so I can see the detailed design through the lights
I think a wash would be good. I actually just ordered lights to do a proper custom job on this thing. Once I slept on it for 24 hours I was like "I gotta customize this all the way now" lol
I wonder if you can customize the lights to be super light blue almost white like some of the pics of it in the cave. I kind of prefer that look you should check it out!
There are a few ways one might do that! It does look much more blown out in the film. Thats the thing about replicas, it’s like “do you make it how it was irl, or how it LOOKED on screen?” Haha
nice planning to get one!. if a batman and robin batmobile comes out would you get it?
Nice! I hope you dig it! Honestly, I don't think I would, haha. I was asking myself that question, and I think I've seen that movie once... MAYBE twice. I don't really care for the design or aesthetic of it, so I don't feel a burning need to have it. And thankfully I'm not really a completionist.
Dammn you’re so good at these customs. You should try and make the front light up
Thanks man! After sleeping on it I was like “I gotta do a full customization on this thing” so stay tuned, haha
That looks a lot better.
Mine is supposed to be coming this week and I might be trying something similar with the blue light issue. There are times in the movie it does appear bluey-green depending on the scene.
Yes, I agree it looks better without the large fin on top. Without it looks like an evolution from the 89 Batmobile.
Yeah I honestly think the way it came is perfectly fine because it definitely has some green tinting at times on screen. But I know most people seem to want it to be blue. Now 24 hours later I want to fully customize the whole thing 😂😂
@@Ibrahim_M Yeah, also people do see colors differently from others. That whole “what color is the dress” thing from several years back.
It’s possible to pull the wiring set up and go with an LED that changes colors with a remote. Probably wouldn’t take much finagling.
There’s a site I’ve purchased lights from called Evan’s Designs that has a lot of custom light options.
Yup! Evan's Designs is where I get most of mine, too. They're really great
I'm looking at this thinking it looks really cool. A lot cooler than I thought. Then you mentioned how you left the back fin off. THAT was it. It looks MUCH better without it.
HAHA right?! It improves the look SO much.
Great custom. I also prefer this car without the massive middle wing. How about using aluminium foil inside to brighten up the light?
Thank you! Yeah it really looks so much better. Yeah, foil or another reflective material would really bounce the light around more.
Looks great… this is the beauty of being able to customize. You can alway go back later to add to it. I’m one of those folks who like Batman forever too so you’re not alone, lol.
Thanks, bro! I agree! And yeah I think this movie is actually pretty well liked among people of a certain age group. I know a lot of folks within 5-10 years of my age who love it. Kilmer was definitely underrated! I really want a figure of his panther suit from the beginning of the movie
@@Ibrahim_M ah man I loved that beginning
I wonder if a translucent blue marker would work. Like a highlighter
It might, but I think it would look really streaky and bad. Hard to get even coverage with something like that, and it would likely rub off super easily
It looks way better with out the large fin…
Looks cool…
It really does!
I just got a sneaky feeling the blue one is coming. As for the car being a one seater, Todd is visual person, he don't care, (IMO) Todd really doesn't want Batman in it! It appears it's meant to be seen behind Batman as a display, but it's a toy so he makes the concession to make it function as a toy. All he had to do was rescale it so it's wider.
Lol, you know it!
I didn't know it was already released! I'll look forward to watching the video later today :)
Thank you! Yeah I believe they just started shipping them out in the last week!
Great video! I also have a huge amount of nostalgia for Forever, I was 5-6 when it came out and it was the greatest thing ever. Also really cool to see the car without the big fin, I've heard others saying it looks way better without it and, well, it does look pretty cool :)
Now, I'm gonna go get drive-through.
@@Peweskimooxy Thank you! Haha, every time I see that drive-thru line/scene, I remember it was in the movie and not a McDonald's commercial, lol
I’m not a fan of the Kilmer Batmobile but you certainly improved the colour and lighting and it’s always a pleasure to see your work and listen to your enthusiasm. Nothing can beat the 1989 version but the 1966 version is a close runner up. I enjoyed the 1989 conversion you did and will get round to watching it again.
Great video once again mate and all the best.
Rod 👍
Thanks so much, Rod! Yeah, I think a big part of it for me is that this car had the misfortune of being the first one after the 89 design. Anything that didn't completely reinvent the look (like say, the Tumbler) was going to suffer a bit by comparison. But it has grown on me a lot, and now I really want to put more time and effort into it, lol. Thanks as always for watching, my friend!
The 89 Batmobile was and still remains unique and is a thing of absolute beauty. 35 years later and it still thrills me to watch it on screen. You are right that anything else after that was going to suffer from comparisons and maybe that is a little unfair. The Tumbler and simplified The Batman version are decent efforts and are classics in their own right. The whole Keaton and Burton Batman thing for me is hard to beat.
Cheers Ibrahim and look forward to more of your wonderful work.
Rod 👍
I think I’m gonna wait to see if McFarlane drops a more accurate release like he did with the 89’ batmobile, or just buy it later if it’s still available maybe next year. Also maybe a 3rd party seller will create a 2seater cockpit like Ramen Toys is in the process of doing for the ‘89 Batmobile.
Either way, thanks as usual for this how to vid and the value you continue to bring to the collector community 😎👍🏾
You’re welcome, bro! Thank you for the kind words! Yeah, I think the track record proves now that it’s pretty safe to wait. That 89 2-pack is still up on Amazon for $75. lol.
@@Ibrahim_M And the Flash batwing is still up for sale on McFarlane's site... yeah, I ain't got no problem waiting lol.
@@cdubbart LOL facts!
That's an interesting idea. I have mine being delivered later week and I was planning on using Blue Translucent Paint.
Try a test shot first on something else that’s clear to see how it’ll work. Paint is pigment, so it’s going to create a new layer, even if it’s supposed to be transparent, and that can dull the light. I ended up painting mine to look metallic, and some light can definitely still pass through, but it’s pretty obscured. (That was solid paint tho).
@Ibrahim_M Good point. I was also looking at blue translucent vinyl tape. How do you thing that would work??? I'm new to customizing.
I think that would work better- it would be much more similar to what I did with the light gel sheets. The nice thing about using stuff like that is that it’s a single consistency, whereas paint can end up being overpainted. And the bonus is that you can just peel it off if it doesn’t work, haha.
@Ibrahim_M True, true. Alright, you've convinced me. Going to try the translucent vinyl tape first. Thanks brother. Great video by the way. Your vehicle came out amazing!!!
@@webzllove1122 Thanks very much, dide! Good luck ,and have fun!
To be fair, design wise it does look better without the middle fin(s), that massive peice was so impracticle lol!
It’s true! Lol
I got the 1989 Batmobile, skipped the Tumbler and Batpod (and I really wanted a Batpod - but neither looks quite right to me) and I think McFarlane did a fine job here. The compromises made feel like the right ones to me. As you mention, this is going to live on a shelf, and it certainly looks the part there.
I agree that it looks actually quite good without the central fin. It looks much more like an updated version of the 1989 Batmobile. it would be interesting to know if the reason why the fin was added was precisely to give it a more distinct silhouette.
I agree with everything you said here, and I think that's a really good way to put it/look at it: there HAVE to be compromises when shrinking these things down into a toy. There are all kinds of things to consider; cost vs price, shelf space that retailers will give to the company, shipping weight, etc. Thanks!
Quite some effort put around the color hack! Much appreciated sharing these ideas. I saw the movie once more just to be sure, and it's funny that most of the times its blue but in certain scenes the lights are green too. So, not sure if the lights are supposed to work in a specific manner depending on certain mode of the vehicle or not.
Congrats! on the Modoking kit, you'll sure enjoy it :) The addition of head lights is something I'll definitely work on.
We all need a 1:12 scale Panther suit batman 1995.
Thank you, my friend! YES to the panther suit! And I agree, you do see some green in the movie. The challenge with these is always "do I make it how it WAS, or how it LOOKED?" haha.
I'm worried that the Modoking Tumbler is too small! But I won't know until I put it together, lol. Thanks for watching, as always!
@@Ibrahim_M I have seen some reviews of Modoking build and it is quite good size, plus very sturdy for a kit. I have seen reviewers shaking it and it does not fall apart. You can easily fit Mafex Batman in it. It's perfect 1:12.
@@Mr767267 I hope so! The one video I saw made it look very small, but I am going to pair it with my Mafex Beinds figure. Can you link me to the reviews you saw? I wasn't able to find many!
@@Ibrahim_M 2.30 onward for shake test:
th-cam.com/video/GCvQVnARz8M/w-d-xo.html&ab_channel=%E5%8D%95%E8%BD%A6%E5%B0%8F%E5%8F%AF%E7%88%B1
Should’ve cut the grill too. I got the gitd version and I’m going all out on the blue
Should’ve got the light up version
Nice and quite easy fix. Now, I love this Batmobile but…the lack of twin wings at the end of the car is a no go for me.
Thanks! You mean the fact that the big one doesn’t split in two like in the movie?
@@Ibrahim_M Absolutely
I see you added the fin on at the end, haha
😂 just to see if it would actually fit on the shelf, and for when I took the pic for the thumbnail. If it wasn't in the thumbnail image, I'd be fielding endless comments from people who didn't watch the video about how it was missing, lol.
Smart man
Awesome work as usual. Kudos
Thank you, my friend! I appreciate it!
Hi, Ace!
I saw those Dune customs, you tease!
😂😂 they’re mostly just as they came out of the box! I did make a custom Duncan that I still need to do a video on!
@@Ibrahim_M They all had that horrid McFarlane paint so very curious to see what you do to them, if you go that far!
Oh they're definitely getting repainted when I have the time! lol. I completely redid Paul and made a cloth stillsuit for him, "real" hair, etc. But I don't have it in me to do that 5 more times, haha. Bit I'm definitely repainting them at some point. Here's a link to the Paul video: th-cam.com/video/k1vCszQwdyQ/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ppn7Fa8A8A2NoCs2
I was thinking of using transparent blue paint and looking at the Jazzinc review maybe I can highlight it slowly with bits of metallic silver with a darker wash. Nice catch on the exposed wiring, you can easily put in to for the headlights. You're definitely giving me great ideas.
I'm glad! These are all about inspiration for me. I think the techniques you're talking about would look awesome!
Is there a way to die the plastic with a little bit of blue?
Possibly, but I've never tried it. It would probably come out uneven and it would be a lot of work. Much easier to just paint it with some transparent paint or do what I did with the lens sheets.
The design of this batmobile is great but the center fin always held it back for me, i may alter it or leave it off altogether
Right? I think the fact that the 89 is SO good, this one always felt like a let down to me. BUT, it has grown on me a lot and I think that would have been a shorter journey if the fin wasn't there, lol.
There is also transparent blue spray paint that would be perfect for this
Nice!
Man that made such a huge difference! I passed on it I’m not a fan of that Schumacher design but inspired me to do some customs to my 89 Batmobile I’ve been procrastinating, and I 100% agree on not displaying it with that ugly ass fin it looks so much fn better without it.
😂😂😂 so far you’re maybe the 5th person to say you agree about the fin! Have fun with that 89! This one made me nostalgic for that project!
The Sega Saturn Arcade version of Batman Forever the lights are Green.
I remember always wanting to play that game but never getting to try it!
Def looks alot better, but damm should we even have to do this.
Thanks! Lol, yeah, it's funny because I LOVE doing this kind of stuff, but I am also annoyed that it's necessary 😂
Interesting hack, I think you put a pretty good shade of lipstick on this pig. I wonder if the darkness of the middle of the panel could be fixed by painting the back of the panel silver. It seems like it's only dimming because of the darkness inside the car showing through, and silver would act as a catchlight instead of a void; you could probably even dry-brush or paint-wash the exterior to bring out those details a little more once that was in place.
Alternately, I was thinking you could swap the white LEDs to blue, but that's a whole piece of work at that point.
Yeah, this was meant to be a pretty simple thing for the average collector to do. Most of my projects are pretty involved, but keeping it simple was key here. But I've done the reflective trick you're talking about before and it definitely helps! I chromed out the headlight bezel on my 89 mod and it was nice. Hell even tinfoil inside this thing would do the trick. But I got the bug after doing this video, so now I'm going to be knocking out a full customization and painting the clear bits to be metallic, then stringing blue lights throughout to make it look more screen accurate. A custom Kilmer Batsuit is on the way, too, haha.
@@Ibrahim_M That sounds pretty great, I look forward to seeing what you come up with. I only noticed after I commented that this thing doesn't have its headlights so between that and the front grille alone, that'll be quite the job!
As for the Kilmer Sonar Suit, I look forward to what you come up with there even more as I have no idea why the retail version is blue with black - the costume is all black, and the production shots making it look blue are from set lighting gels so everything should be a haze of dark blue-gray like the WB100 version had.
@@JTKirk Yeah, I'm not looking forward to cutting out the grille 😂😂 These things can be tricky; something I learned when I customized the 89 Batmobile is that there's how it was in real life, and how it LOOKED on screen. The latter is what we see and what we remember, so it makes sense that the Sonar suit looks a metallic blue/grey even if it was only lit that way. I'm going with the black suit he wore at the beginning, though!
@@Ibrahim_M I suspect getting that grille done won't be nearly as difficult as you suspect and you'll make quick work of it. You are absolutely right about how things look on screen vs real life, the '89 Batmobile being purple on set so it'd look black in camera is my favorite one.
As for the batsuits, the Panther Suit and the Sonar suit are entirely different worlds so I am curious what you come up with. Even the cowls are different or I'd pick up the retail figure and plop it on the Clooney body, call it good enough for now.
Yeah the cowl is requiring a fair bit of sculpt work! Luckily the McFarlane version is juuuust inaccurate enough to the sonar suit that I’m able to augment it pretty easily into the Panther version 😂
Are you going to convert it to 2 seater?
Maybe down the line!
Someone will make an aftermarket kit for these with 3D printed pieces, guaranteed.
RamenToy, bro, RamenToy
Where did you get your display case?
They’re ikea shelves that I added plexiglass panels to the front and sides of
That was awesome
Thank you!
I wonder how it would look if you just sprayed the clear parts with clear blue paint
You wouldn't be able to see any light coming through anymore, but I bet it would look kinda cool!
@@Ibrahim_M even transparent blue? It would probably be a little darker but the light should still brighten it up
@@PlasticGeek Oh I missed the word "clear", lol. Yeah I think that would work! You'd have to disconnect the lights, though. A bit more work but not too bad.
Brilliant 🎉
Thank you!
why don't you just spray a clear blue paint towards those clear parts?
Several reasons:
1) it’s harder to do that; you’d have to remove the lights from the clear parts and risk damaging them- it’s a tight fit. Then you’d have to buy paint, go outside, spray it, wait for it to dry and air out, then reassemble everything. Using the sheets meant I never had to leave the work bench. Very quick and easy.
2) this is the important one; even “clear” paint is a pigment of particles, and applying particles means that you’re occluding the clear part, which will prevent light from coming through. So it would block the light. I don’t know why nobody thinks about that!
It looks better with out the big wings
It really does!
Mine came missing the battery box cover!😡
Doh! That's annoying, sorry dude! At least it's on the bottom!
@@Ibrahim_M yeah, im glad its on the bottom for sure
Your the f man bro 🔥😎👍
AYYYYY Thank you so much, dude!!
@@Ibrahim_M you got it Ibrahim your middle name should be Alfred your the f man bro cool stuff 🔥🔥🔥😎👍
LOL Thank you bro! "Ibrahim Alfred Moustafa" sounds dope 😂😂
@@Ibrahim_M yes it does 🔥😎👍
So this Batmobile illuminated was blue in the movie ...but McFarlane made it Green. Why??
So they can re release it with the panther suit like they did with the 89 mobile haha
Man, who knows why they do some of the goofy stuff they do, haha. I mean, there are scenes where it kinda looks blue/green, so it’s possible that’s why. But more often than not with McFarlane its some factory mistake that they pretend was on purpose, lol
What sucks is the sonar batsuit NEVER rode that car. Come on todd give us the panthersuit
Right?! My friend has a custom Panther suit BAtman he made and it's SO dope. If they re-release this with blue they'll probably do a panther suit version, lol
@@Ibrahim_M been thinking that! And dreaming they made it 2 seater :)
It was two seats ,God why do so many batmobiles get remade as one- seaters ??? Just sooooo wrong remember Viki Vale sat next to Batman ? and later in Bale's "Batman Begins" Tumbler had 3 seats thats right folks 3 😮😮😢
Yeah, I give the explanation as to why later in the video. It's frustrating!
@@Ibrahim_M in 89 TOY BIZ had no problem giving us a two seater Keaton BATMOBILE , , ,so I really don't believe or buy any excuses from today's greedy toy makers , , , ,🤔🤔ps what's next ? A one seater Dukes of Hazard -General LEE ?? heck all Knight Rider Toy Cars have 2 seats , , it boggles the mind sooooo hard , 😒😔😠
You really don't like this batmobile 😂
😂 trust me, if I didn’t give a reason as to why I didn’t go all out on the mods, I’d have 50 comments saying “oh you should have done xyz” and “why didn’t you do xyz?!” Now y’all know. Lol
BRUH...Like minds!!! I'm leaving the big fin off of mine as well and will customize it to look more like an alternate version of '66 Batmobile.
Nice!! You gotta send me some pics when you’re done! Would love to see it!
Mcfarlane will redo this and say “folks, I got you again!”🖕🫵
😂😂