1/4 Scale - Raiders of the Lost Ark - Indiana Jones statue by Arnie Kim

[LiLJawa]

After being lucky to be in daily communication with Arnie during his creation of this statue, I respect his honesty when he stated that he's not skilled at making real whips. When I found out that the whip was going to be sculpted a while ago, I expressed the same disappointment about not having a real whip included for the price (but I didn't call it cheap). However, I quickly came to the realisation that it is the decision of the artist not to do something that he has no skills for so he chose to rely on his sculpting ability to try and recreate a decent whip for display purposes. Personally, I don't think his sculpted whip is as well done or accurate as what Trevor Grove sculpted for the Sideshow PF. However, everything else on the statue is so beautifully realised, that I didn't feel it was a hardship to pick up a real whip directly from Joe Strain to put the finishing touches to what will surely be the most perfect Indy statue from Raiders ever likely to be offered.

For 5k he could have possibly found a whip maker. Im not sure how much Joe Strains whips were but a real whip could have been factored into the price of the statue and imo for 5k it should have a real whip included. I thought it was cheap looking when Sideshow did it with their Indy releases. Even though it wasn’t perfect at least Hot Toys attempted a real whip.

 

[cking]

Yes, I had exactly the same discussion with him and tried to see if there was a possibility that it could be included in the price, but he's an artist at the end of the day and he can do what he wants. The Superman and Clark Kent statues sold for even more than this Indy, so I was just thankful that the price didn't get raised as it's already way over what I would normally pay for something like this, but I just couldn't resist it based on the accuracy that is being put into the statue and clothing.

For 5k he could have possibly found a whip maker. Im not sure how much Joe Strains whips were but a real whip could have been factored into the price of the statue and imo for 5k it should have a real whip included. I thought it was cheap looking when Sideshow did it with their Indy releases. Even though it wasn’t perfect at least Hot Toys attempted a real whip.

 

[Luisenigma1]

Though i understand that the price should have included a real leather whip, what good would it be. It's a statue there is no movement on it so if it will be displayed having a functional leather whip would be useless as opposed to just having something coiled. Hell he could have asked Mike to do one for him as his 1/4th whips are just as good then the leather ones.

 

[cking]

This is just phenomenal.

 

[Mr.E]

Those are some nice 1/6 Indy's there (except for that SS TOD satchel strap!)

 

[The Jerker]

Idk, not feeling that head sculpt now.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[Cap'n Cook]

Idk, not feeling that head sculpt now.

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Looks a little wide eyed there.

Plus jacket looks too dark in my opinion.

Congrats on your pickup though it’s a stellar piece.

 

[bmarz1000]

Congrats Chris! I'm glad you're happy with it.

Agreed about the jacket looking too dark (unless it just photographed that way). My real nit is the Webley-sized holster. Looks too dark and large to be a Raiders holster. Hot Toys made the same mistake on their "Raiders" release.

 

[cking]

I don't have it yet. These are photos from Arnie. I won't be getting mine until later in the year after I've finished making payments for it. LOL.

Sometimes, I think people forget about how dark Ford's jacket was in Raiders.

Congrats Chris! I'm glad you're happy with it.

Agreed about the jacket looking too dark (unless it just photographed that way). My real nit is the Webley-sized holster. Looks too dark and large to be a Raiders holster. Hot Toys made the same mistake on their "Raiders" release.

 

[LiLJawa]

Though i understand that the price should have included a real leather whip, what good would it be. It's a statue there is no movement on it so if it will be displayed having a functional leather whip would be useless as opposed to just having something coiled. Hell he could have asked Mike to do one for him as his 1/4th whips are just as good then the leather ones.

Then what good is having a real leather jacket or real cloth pants if it is just a statue?? The addition of actual materials adds a more accurate and authentic feel to the character imo. Also Mike would have been a great person to ask as well.

 

[Cap'n Cook]

I don't have it yet. These are photos from Arnie. I won't be getting mine until later in the year after I've finished making payments for it. LOL.

Sometimes, I think people forget about how dark Ford's jacket was in Raiders.

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It was dark that’s for sure, but the statue photos above are almost black.

Found these photos on Instagram where I think it shows more:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bt0w1FUnxN3/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=qe2sptta5qhb

 

[cking]

Holster is definitely too dark. Something got lost in translation there. Before, Arnie had it too orange. I sent him pics to show that it should be a medium brown but he's gone too far with it. I've requested a medium brown for my holster (and a slightly darker bag strap).

I sent him this photo to show it visually so hopefully there won't be any translation errors this time. I think the jacket is perfect and once it's had a dusting with fuller's earth powder to weather it, should be great.

I'm also going to ask him to press out the front pleats towards the bottom of the pants. Indy's pants were never that neatly pressed.

 

[Luisenigma1]

Then what good is having a real leather jacket or real cloth pants if it is just a statue?? The addition of actual materials adds a more accurate and authentic feel to the character imo. Also Mike would have been a great person to ask as well.

There is a difference between the clothing and gear. But i suppose you make a valid point. Still we can agree Mike would have given him something good.

 

[cking]

I received the 1/4 scale whip from Joe Strain today. What a beautiful piece.
Here's a photo of it next to the fabric samples that Arnie sent to me. Note how much darker the pants fabric is compared to the photo above. All depends on lighting, type of camera / phone etc.



The small fabric sample is a piece taken from the MBA Costumes (Noel Howard) Raiders pants which were made from the same fabric / dye color that was used in Raiders. Arnie got REALLY close with matching the color and picking a fabric that had the same weave texture, only smaller scale so it looked correct on the statue.

 

[Luisenigma1]

Holster is definitely too dark. Something got lost in translation there. Before, Arnie had it too orange. I sent him pics to show that it should be a medium brown but he's gone too far with it. I've requested a medium brown for my holster (and a slightly darker bag strap).

I sent him this photo to show it visually so hopefully there won't be any translation errors this time. I think the jacket is perfect and once it's had a dusting with fuller's earth powder to weather it, should be great.

I'm also going to ask him to press out the front pleats towards the bottom of the pants. Indy's pants were never that neatly pressed.

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Definitely awesome. And agreed on the color of the jacket i remeber the color being a dark chocolate brown almost black. Some brown wear on it is noticeable but overall it's ment to be dark getting reference like this helps because it shows the work put into it.

 

[Luisenigma1]

So the jacket material is black or very dark brown? Like you said lighting plays a part in how something looks.

 

[cking]

The jacket leather is dark brown shrunken lambskin. As you say, when it is weathered, the more brown under tones show through.
I got your PM by the way and will reply at the weekend.

So the jacket material is black or very dark brown? Like you said lighting plays a part in how something looks.

 

[cking]

Arnie sent a movie of the painted head because he was concerned about how bad the customer's iphone photos were making the sculpt look. Even though I've seen all of Arnie's in-progress photos and was already totally sold on the likeness, these customer photos were not doing the sculpt any favors and some doubts had started creeping into my mind too.

However, true to form, Arnie came through and sent a video to give some reassurance that in reality, the head is a brilliant likeness. Here's a couple of screengrabs from the movie he sent. My mind is instantly put at ease again when I see how superb the likeness is.

 

[IndianaPaul]

Personally, I'm not a big fan of the sculpt. It does look an awful lot like Dennis Quaid for some reason.

 

[The Rogster]

Cking, congratulations on being able to grab this and being a helping hand in the process. I. Sure your references were appreciated by Arnie. If I could, I’d be on this. However, I think the jacket is more black than brown here. While it should be the other way around. Yes the raiders jacket is very dark, but still, more brown than black
. I also think the sleeves should sit just a bit lower, over the hand a bit. I wish there was more character put into the pose or posture too. That lean that the SS PF achieved is great. Also why the bag? I wish he was gripping that revolver.
This thing in my eyes has its flaws and stuff but where the hell are you going to find an Indy that looks even this good?! It looks amazing, best Indy ever probably. It’s truly a work of art. People will always see faults in things like this. We all perceive things differently. As long as you love it, that’s all that matters, but I promise you, that all of us nitpicking, wish we could grab it all the same. Haha