Tutorial: Mercurius x Leo kitbash


Step-by-step: Mercurius x Leo kitbash - Main Body Modifications

Intro

After completing the Vayeate build, I began constructing the Mercurius immediately. The progress was much quicker since I had become familiar with the customization procedures. I decided to create a step-by-step tutorial of how I built the main body of the Mercurius/Vayeate to demonstrate some scratch building techniques that I use.

I've been posting on IG a section at a time, but now that it is completed, I've compiled the images here with the instructional text side-by-side for ease of reading. These procedures document all the structural modifications for the main body that allows for significantly improved articulation and poseability.

Surface detailing and painting stages are next, but I'm electing to stop the tutorial format here. Eventually I want to produce a ebook that showcases all aspects of the build from scratch building to painting and finishing; this work will be ongoing.

Tools

  • nippers
  • hobby knife
  • sanding sticks and sponges(400 - 2000 grit)
  • T-square
  • caliper
  • hobby saw
  • chisels
  • clamps
  • drill bits
  • circle cutter
  • epoxy
  • plastic cement

Materials

  • 1/144 HGAC Leo
  • NG Mercurius (or Vayeate)
  • plaplate - thickness 0.4, 0.5, 1.0 mm
  • platube - 5 mm diameter
  • jigen Build knuckles (round, M)
Notes:
  • It is important to be precise and use a caliper. The margin of error is small, especially when dealing with small pieces with tight tolerances in later steps. Misfitting could cause your paint job to scratch and your joints to seize during final assembly down the line.
  • In terms of sanding, I would recommend wet sanding to reduce the amount of plastic/epoxy dust


Legend

Annotations:
All units are in millimetres.
[xx] = Mercurius Part #
(xx) = Leo Part #






1. Torso Unit - Waist Joint

Cut [1/13] at the dotted line;
Use the (B2) to measure and mark the lines;
Make the cuts 7.9 mm apart
At the cross section of [1], expand the hole into the shape of a rectangle 2 mm high and width equal to the original inner circle;
Chisel out a 2 mm gap from the center of the peg in part [13];
Surround the peg with a 5 mm pla-tube, cut the tube at an angle to make contact with the inner wall for cementing;⠀
fit (B) into the new socket you made and assemble the torso, don't forget [polycap D] from the Mercurius.⠀
Bulk the waist by adding 1 mm plaplate, sanded at the interface so it is slightly tapered, using (A9) as a guide;
Measure as described and make v-shaped grooves deep enough for easy bending, cut at the dotted line, mirror on the opposite side;
Spread epoxy putty around the torso;⠀
fold the plate around the waist and hold it in place as the epoxy cures, cement the plate where it contacts the torso, note the orientation (f)ront and (b)ack.






2. Torso Unit - Shoulder Joint

Cut at the dotted lines, triangle is for orientation purposes; ⠀
Cut the handle at this angle, retain for later use⠀
Cut at these dotted lines
After cutting, discard the center piece and retain the joint pieces. Moving (B1) back and forth you can identify the plates that define the range of motion; do not cut those areas; ⠀
Trim off unneeded material from the back;
Note the change in orientation, remove extra areas according to dotted lines;⠀
Cement a piece of plaplate at the blue interface only; also trim off a piece at the blue arrow (piece would be protruding out of the screen); after cement has cured make a new cut at the yellow dotted line to create a 90 degree notch; this piece will be the left shoulder piece, repeat on the right side.⠀
Make housing for the joint pieces by modifying [2] and [14]. Use the top corner and the existing pieces' circlular dents as reference points
Use the (B1) to help trace the shape;
The previous piece should fit right inside the housing, sand and trim as needed;⠀
Cement the piece and align it to the rest of the torso.⠀






3. Torso Unit - Finishing Up

Make mods to the back to close it off by adding 0.4 mm plaplate in blue; exact measurements will depend on previous steps;
Layer epoxy on top of the previous piece
Construct plating according to the the dimensions listed; width should match that if the suit's back
Add a diamond shaped 0.4 mm plate to extend the back. Clean up as needed.
Looking from this angle, you'll see a gap between (B1) and the torso, which allows the joint to overextend inward. Wedge and cement a piece of 1 mm plaplate in the gap to act as a stopper;
Add supports pieces that align with the front and back vents;
Cut a strip of plaplate (mine is textured; or scribe your own) and cement to close off the bottom.⠀
Retrieve the handle piece cut from (C3) and note the flat surface made from the cut;⠀
Cut off the handle piece on the mercurius;⠀
Scribe a groove on this new area to make a flat surface;⠀
Cement the two surfaces so the handle piece is pointed up at an angle.⠀
Filling out the front by bulking up the hatch armour using 1 mm plaplate; start with the 2 sides, cement a piece of plate that follows the angles of the original hatch, but extend it further past the existing hatch; then file down both sides until they are even in order to apply a bendable piece of 0.4 mm plate to cover, using epoxy as filler;⠀
Apply small pieces of plaplate to cover the gaps on both sides; size will depend on the size of the gap;⠀
Assemble the head unit, but cut out a notch to improve neck articulation.⠀
Attach the Leo parts to assemble the completed torso + head. Clean up as required to ensure fit.⠀






4. Arm Unit - Shoulder

Extend the shoulder by 1 mm using plaplate. Drill two holes spaced apart so the pegs on [20] fits exactly;⠀
Thread through the plaplate and attach to [19]; cement the whole structure and trim as needed;⠀
To friction fit the shoulder piece while retaining articulation, convert the hole into a protrusion. Start by measuring the hole depth.⠀
Find a peg with a round top and shape to < 2.2 mm in diameter; measure how deep the peg goes when it fits into the leo shoulder piece;⠀
Schematic diagram of the fit, accounting for the gap between two parts and the two previous measurements, the peg needs to be 2.81 mm in length;⠀
Cement this peg into the holes in the shoulder pieces (test fit first);⠀
Make a circlular hole to create 4 arch pieces; trim the corner to match the shape of the Mercurius shoulder.⠀
Using a plaplate piece as support, fit the 4 arches under the shoulder piece, being as precise as possible;⠀
Sand and clean the part; aim to have no seams;⠀
Repeat in the other shoulder;⠀
Final fit on the shoulder: the swivel should be smooth and stable with adequate clearance, and no stress/tension to the shoulder pieces






5. Arm Unit - Forearms

Assemble the Leo arm as directed, except flip part (B4)'s long end out; place 2 small pieces of 1 mm spacers inside the socket; this allows for wrist articulation;⠀
Cut at the dotted line;⠀
Clean out the inner workings.
It should look like a bracelet with a flat side and a slanted side;⠀
Add supports at the corners; they should be placed at the slanted, outward facing side; each piece needs to be on the same plane, parallel to the opposite, flat side;⠀
Trace and cut out a hexagon on a 0.5 mm plaplate guided by the bracelet and cut out a hole at the center; it should be placed on supports such that the piece is parallel to the bottom of the bracelet;⠀
Thread the leo arm into the bracelet and the hole; file down as needed; cement it in place; note the alignment to the rest of the arm.⠀
Cement 1 mm plaplate to bulk up the elbow;⠀
Use putty to secure both wrist and elbow pieces;⠀
Sand using a flat sanding block along the coloured planes;⠀⠀
There are multiple planes; follow and extend the leo’s existing elbow angles.⠀ ⠀
Continue to file down to make chamfers;⠀
Additional chamfers in blue;⠀
Round out the sharp edges and drill a 2.1 mm circle;⠀Clean up as needed, I replaced the original hands with jigen build knuckles (M)






6. Waist Unit

Cut along the lines to extract the butt plate [31]; ⠀
Cut off the connection pieces; ⠀
Cut the Leo thruster connectors off (A14) and retain for later use. ⠀
Assemble Leo waist unit and place backplate [31] on top, tracing along the contours of (C19); ⠀
Sand and file [31] so it is neat; ⠀
Bind (A14) and [31] with cement and plaplate; note the small wedge of plaplate; ⠀
Putty and sand to fill gaps. ⠀
Assemble waist parts (C19) and (C20); cut along the dotted line; ⠀
Produce a wedge using 1 mm plaplate on both sides, and an additional 1 mm plaplate to match the existing contours;
Cement the cut pieces to change the crotch thruster angle; trim the wedge pieces as needed; ⠀
Assemble Leo waist pieces and the (A14) + [31] combo piece; I added a small piece of pla-plate for neatness.
Cut remaining piece of [31] to extract 2 side panels;
Combine the side panels with the Leo’s side panels (A13) and (A17) using thin pla-plate for cementing surface; ⠀
Trim everything on the panels except for the circle socket and supporting pieces; ⠀
Seal off the opening of the socket using a flat piece; I used MSG parts; also cut a plaplate piece that would fit as the outside cover. ⠀
Glue the piece on top, keeping everything neat; ⠀
Putty all hollow areas and let cure completely (>24h); ⠀
Sand and clean edges so they’re neat; ⠀
Assemble the waist.






7. Leg Unit - Thighs

Remove the round sockets on [3,15,4,16]; ⠀
Remove the kneecap; ⠀
Construct 4 plaplate pieces using a strip of 1 mm plate cemented to 0.5 mm plate with overhangs.
Remove all internal structures; ⠀
Attach the plaplate pieces and cement, trim off excess overhang and sand the top opening until a 13.7 x 13.7 mm inner diameter is achieved;
Assemble (A21+22) and (A23+A24) and saw off material from all sides; use the center seam as a reference to mark the cutting points; ⠀
Cut off the top as well, so the remaining piece is 18.6 mm. ⠀
Sand the sides until the dimensions of the Leo leg is 13.7 by 13.7 mm; ⠀
Slide the Leo thigh pieces into the Mercurius, sand as needed; aim to have the piece fit so the top is flush and not loose; putty and cement the pieces together, allow a full 24 h cure;
At the back of the knee, sand the Mercurius piece until it aligns with the Leo’s; ⠀
The piece should look like this.
Trim off the bottom of the piece, using the existing lip as a guide;
Cut a piece of 1 mm plaplate; the only important measurement being the angle; it must match that of the Leo part (inside) to be cemented solidly; place this piece and mark the overhangs; ⠀
The markings should appear like this; cut along lines to generate this template piece; ⠀⠀
Use the template to trace 7 more pieces; having overhangs is not a big deal since cleanup will be required later; ⠀
Continue to stack these pieces inward until flush with the Leo part; I find that 2 pieces is usually enough, though I have had to add a slice of 0.5 mm plaplate on one of the sides; ⠀
Putty the voids and add a piece of plaplate at the front; cleaning the part according to the existing side profile of the thigh piece; ⠀
Cement with 0.5 mm plaplate to close the exposed areas. ⠀
Use (B11) to assess clearance; sand the thigh until there is no friction between the thigh and (B11); ⠀
Take the piece [37+39]/[38+40] from the Mercurius and saw off the peg portion;⠀
Clear out the inside and cement the two halves;
Extend the gap to 9.55 mm. ⠀
Test the piece on the (B14+B16]) leg pegs to ensure it clears;
Cement the domes onto the leg pieces; there should be just enough points of contact to hold the piece in;
Use putty to support the join, make sure there is still clearance for leg pegs to fit; ⠀
Clean up the piece, I added small plaplate pieces to the front to match the knee gap.






8. Leg Unit - Lower Leg

Cut off the shin on [23+26]/[24+27]; ⠀
Remove the connecting pegs and walls at the top and sand the sides; after cementing the piece together, slowly create clearance to accommodate the Leo leg (A28+A29); ⠀
It should slide in and fit flush to the top, securely but does not stress the shell. Tac-cement the join area at the shin to keep it in place; ⠀
Cut the calf so that it matches the dimensions of the inner Leo piece; ⠀
Test for clearance using (B12);
Sand/saw off the excess area to create more clearance for leg articulation; ⠀
Epoxy the gaps and joint areas, sand the join area for a smooth transition. ⠀
Sand the knee area to create sharper angles, also sand down the sides of the calf; ⠀
I sanded until the hole detail was no longer visible; ⠀
Sand and clean the epoxy, all surfaces should be flush as shown;
Connect the thigh with the lower leg using (B12); there should be clearance (yellow box) for (B11) to fit without impediment, but do not push (B11) in all the way, as it will be difficult to retrieve. Do the same for the other leg.
Retrieve (A31) and start filing along an existing groove to create a flat plane;
File down the front until flat, followed by the side; ⠀
Ankle armour complete.






9. Hip Thrusters and Kneecap

Side thrusters: Retrieve the thruster sockets cut from (A14) and trim them to remove extra material; ⠀⠀
They should look like this straight on; cement the flat surface (arrow) to the inside of [5]/[9]; ⠀
Further trim [5]/[9] by cutting off the sharp tips at the bottom and remove the center peg; also trim off the top for better clearance; ⠀
I filed a groove as well for added detail. ⠀
Knee cap: ⠀Using the assembled leg unit as reference, map out the dimensions of the would-be knee cap, note that it will be attached to (B12); ⠀
Cut out a piece of 1 mm plaplate with a notch to connect to (B12); ⠀
Trace out the dimension of the knee unit using the assembled leg as a reference, and stack additional pieces of pla-plate on top/bottom of the joining piece; I used 13 pieces total cemented together; allow for 24 h complete cure;
Sand/cut the piece as needed to the desired dimensions that will fit the knee socket; ⠀
The knee cap – before and after sanding; ⠀
Do the same with the other knee cap, be prepared for a lot of sanding and test-fitting; ⠀
The piece should fit flush to the socket; make adjustments as needed;
In my case, I added 1 mm piece of plaplate to the back of the knee cap to fill the empty space;






Assembled



Primed


Hope y'all found some ideas/inspiration from the methods I've used here. They are by no means the only way to do this, but it is what I found suitable for me based on my own skillset and available tools.

Next up, surface detailing, weapons, and painting.

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