Are you single-minded or a multi-tasker?

Ok, I know the title sounds weird, but here's what I'm driving at from a customizing stand-point. Do you work on one custom at a time (single-minded) or several customs at a time (multi-tasker). I used to be a one-at-a-timer, but lately I've found that I'm able to actually finish more of my projects while working on them together. Just interested in seeing what works for you.

Also, I'm curious as to how you guys (and gals) come up with your inspiration for your customs. Is it planned parts from the get-go or just randomly piecing together fodder to see what might work?

Feel free to share your thoughts and ideas.

Apparently I'm a Multi-tasker (more than one custom at a time) that has my customs thought out in advance (Planned).

I have 5 on the go right now..... well.... 7 if you include the Joe Meet.

Multitasker for ideas, Franken-fodder for relaxation.

My inspiration comes from either things I have seen(like the cool camoflage patterns and colors in "Ghosts of Mars", and "Final Encounter"), or things experienced, like gaming characters.

Other times, I may look at a figure, and see something totally unrelated. When I saw that Star Wars "Dark Woman" figure on the shelf, I immediately thought that the mold and the figure would be better served as a Drow custom. So I started looking at my pile of stuff and found that Liz Swan vest, which I noted immediately that instead of putting in the flintlocks, I could put in the sweet daggers from the Army of Darkness line. With the whole thing in mind, all I need do is sit down and start it, even if I am right in the middle of other customs. I really don't enjoy putting my creative fun on a schedule, so I will customize any figure or any line simultaneously, as the inspiration flows.

When I am pensive, I pull out the shoebox of fodder pieces all disassembled, and get my screwdriver and start looking for interesting combinations. Very relaxing.

I have custom ADD... I just counted and I have over 80 "WIPs" in my various drawers...all in various stages of completion. and then at least 10 different Vehicle Customs arround me as well.

I know I have 2 bottlenecks in my custom production. 1 is painting I give everything a basecoat via spray paint...and I'm never satisfied with the durability of acrylic paints over top of spray paint...even with a clear coat...a lot of times that is enough to stall out a figure and stick them in their WIP drawer.

After painting...even when I feel a custom is done physicaly the finishing touches really drag me down...Photos and bios. I like my digital camera...hate my computer...It's old and slow and I just don't want to put up with fighting it to edit the pics to show off customs. For Bio's I just never take time to write them...I may have a few parts and peices that I know go with the character...but it's never enough for me to feel like they're truley integrated into my "Verse". I have around 15 customs, beyond the WIPs, that are "done" but need bio's and photographing.

My last problem is fear of being "Chad-Matted" I've got soooooo many ideas and things I'm working on...but I never really want to share them till they're done, because I'm afraid one of the faster working customizers will take my idea..pump it out...get all the praise...steal my fapping material...and leave me looking and my origonal idea looking like Jonhy come afterwards..being a copy-cat and not Origionator...

I think the only person other than myself who has seen the scope and scale of my ideas is Lance Sputnick...and that's only cuz he's walked into my lair and stolen inspiration from my mad genious.

LOL...custom ADD.

Well, up till recently I've only actively worked on one at a time. That doesn't mean I don't have something else started...but that it's just put away till I finish what I'm focusing on. but I need to work my way through a waiting list, and so I've actually got 3 active customs on my desk right now. Now if I go and count the customs I've started and got set aside that I'm not working on, I think I have 2 more.

As far as planning...lol...story of my life! I plan everything to death! Inspiration strikes me at the oddest times, so I've got this notebook I keep all my ideas in. Each figure I want to do has a page where i list all the physical things and colors I want to use, and also every piece of gear I need and what needs done to that, and I check things off as I find them. And when I find a cool piece of gear I go through each figure first and see if it works for any of them so I can earmark it for a custom or for fodder. Sometimes gear will give me a figure idea, but mostly I get ideas from characters I really like and start planning away. I think I have 5 planned figures on paper right now. The only figure I don't have fully planned is an original character, because I'm rewriting his backstory. When I first started customizing I would not start the custom until I actually had every single thing I needed. Not so much now, tho I do like to have most of what I need.

I'm definitely in the "bit of both" camp for both options.

I'll take a figure and work exclusively on it one time, then have 5 going at once the week after; I'll plan out a figure, yet find great relaxation (as Cap pointed out, it's HUGELY relaxing) laying out parts and seeing what I can come up with. I have 40+ such figures bagged up now, though not all will be completed (some ideas seem good at first, not so good later.)

After I get working on them is when things turn critical...if a figure takes more than say, 3-4 days for me to complete, I start to rush, start to grow tired of it. I have this constant *need* to finish things and put them behind so I can move on (probably from OCD) so it's tough for me to do a long-term or heavily detailed project. Small failures like paint chipping can drain me to the point of where the figure gets tossed aside. I'm very fickle.

Bios and photos, like with Nova, are my final sticking point. I have to clear off the table to take the photos, do multiple shots and edit the best of them out, and am never satisfied. Bios are harder; I try to say too much, or say too little, or just can't find the right words and give up entirely. I've got a LOT of figures just waiting bios because of that. Sometimes it's more a case of not being sure which of my Joeverses I want them in, so I hold off the bios until I'm sure. In a few cases it's been over two years now...

I have to say I'm a Multi-Tasker/Franken-Fodderer (Fodder-er?).

Considering that most of my stuff is WIP and is put together to see what looks good...


I'm not one that starts with a mental image of what I'm looking for.

On paper I have two index card boxes (ask PoetFlint 'cause he saw them) full of simple bios of characters. Before I thoght to even make any of them in LBC I was putting figures together and naming them as I go.

Lately though I have been trying to come up with recipes for specific ideas, but I seem to get frustrated at the lack of available parts.

Currently I am working on my JCW figure and trying to carefully cut the 'ushanka' hat off of a rough Big Bear head.

BTW-Has anyone considered casting just the hat?

I sanded down another Big Bear hat to form one of the half moon motorcycle helmets I see all the time.

Once I cut off the Big Bear hat, I am going to try to cut off one of the peaked hats off a Corps figure (one with the eyepatch) so put on a v1 Big Brawler head.

I cut off a Daina hat and hollowed it out for an OG custom and also have cut the beret off a Stalker head (Colton body version?) for another OG.

So, I like parts combos and seeing what different figures look like at once...

I try to be good and finish a custom before starting a new one, but sometimes inspiration strikes... then I end up with multiple WIPs that sit on the shelf for months and NOTHING gets finished.

For the last few years, I've planned every custom, sometimes to the point where I sketch things out. But it's gotten so bad that if I don't have my ideal parts, I won't start the project.