EVO3 Posted June 22, 2009 Report Share Posted June 22, 2009 (edited) Ok, so i was just informed by a friend, about a thread on here that was accusing me of recasting Hovi Mix tips. I can tell you that i purchased a set of Hovi mix aerators a few years back. I cant remember who i bought them from but i do remember asking who the maker was. The guy selling the set wasnt sure. The aerators were cast in a tan colored resin and were almost solid all the way through. After getting them, i put them away in a box in hopes that sometime in the future i would have a more accurate TK helmet to put them on. Fast forward to about a year ago, when i decided to make the CNC machine comlinks. I needed a casting of a real Hovi mix aerator in order to size the rest of the comlink accurately. So i started digging through my greeblie box till i found the castings that i had bought a while back. After doing a bit of research, i found out that the hovi mix aerators i had were not as accurate as i had once thought. The aerator was supposed to have 4 horizontal slots cut right above the base of the aerator. The copies i bought, did not have that. Also, after doing more research and talking to a few people, i found out that there was supposed to be an interior to the aerators as well. From one pic that i found; it looked to be like some sort of nipple (for lack of a better word). As i stated before, the aerator i had was almost solid all the way through. I figured that if i could do enough work to it, i could make it more accurate. The first thing i did to it was to carefully route it out and make it hollow. Then i cut the aerator in half (horizontally) in order to rebuild the the four horizontal slots. Once that was done, i went ahead and started working on making the "nipple" shaped thing. When that part was finished, it was inserted into the hovi mix and the gaps were then filled in. I knew that the screens were just supposed to be pressed in, but there was nothing there to stop the screen from being pressed in to far. I then decided to put a step ring around the inside of the aerator tip in order to stop the screen from going in to far. As you can see, i did quite a bit of work to them in order to get them where i wanted them. I honestly cant tell you who made the aerators i bought years ago. All i know is that they were inaccurate and i just tried to make them fit my needs. Is it recasting? it depends on how you look at it. The recasting of "found parts" is a grey area. Not something that ive ever done, but i personally felt that i did enough work to this part, making it more accurate that it was ok. My goal was to make the most accurate comlink that i could make and to try and keep the price reasonable. I think i accomplished this. The resin parts that come with my comlink account for probably 5% of what you are paying for when you buy the kit or buildup. Most of what you are paying for is the machined part, the anodizing, and the shipping, time involved in making this prop come together. Have i sold a few of these aerators to people that asked for a set? Yes i have, but only to people that have asked. Ive never posted here or anywhere else that i am selling hovi mix aerators for TK helmets. In other words, im not making a killing selling aerators. Keith, ive given the whole history on my aerators as far back as i can. There was extensive work done to these to get them where they are at. I honestly dont know what "tells" you are talking about because as i said, they were extensively cleaned up. Any imperfections that are seen on the comlink photos came from a quick sloppy dump mold that had a few air bubbles in it. Those would be the dimples that are seen in those photos. If this issue wants to be pursued, then i will happily stop selling these aerators with my comlinks. I have worked hard to build up my good reputation, just to have it all wiped out over a $2 aerator. I still stand steadfast against people that recast "fan made" props. I spend countless hours working on props trying to get them as accurate as possible. The cost of this is, less time with the family, occasional arguments with my wife and no time to relax. I know that several other prop builders go through the same thing i do. It does suck to get something youve worked months on get recasted. Thats where the difference lies between recasting a "fan made" prop and reacasting a "found Part". How much time is involved in making a "found part" thats already made? Here are the slots that i made into the aerator. I have no pics of the interior detail but if anyone requests it, i'll make it happen. As everyone can see, ive laid it all out for all to see. Now i'll just wait and see what ya'll have to say about it. Edited June 26, 2021 by gmrhodes13 photos updated gmrhodes13 2021 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVO3 Posted June 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2009 I will also add that Armando mentioned that the interiors of Keiths aerators and mine are not the same. Why woould i go through the trouble of building a new interior if it was already there? Here is the quote....... I also ordered before hovi mix from Keith and I can tell you the interior are completely different to the EVO3. I do not know if they are recast or not, but I can say they are very nice. I also loved the hovi mix Keith used for his TM hero bucket but I never could get them from Keith so I decided to get the EVO3. And now I would appreciate it if we can keep it on topic Cheers A Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daric LaRone[501st] Posted June 22, 2009 Report Share Posted June 22, 2009 I must chime in here and vouch for Andy's character and integrity as I know it. I have gotten to know Andy over at ct.net and he has been incredibly helpful, a real stand-up guy. I have seen his work over there and it is quite excellent (he probably has the best Bacara in the Legion). I think he's a great guy and a credit to these organizations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gypsyboy Posted June 22, 2009 Report Share Posted June 22, 2009 It's a casting of a modified (by you) casting of a little thing that wasn't made by the guy who originally cast it. You made it original. If people want to go on about recasting then you may as well accuse everyone in the props dept at Lucasfilm of doing the same thing, because they did exactly what EVO3 did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daetrin[Admin] Posted June 22, 2009 Report Share Posted June 22, 2009 Andy - thanks for the detailed explanation. Your reputation for integrity, quality, and accuracy are unsullied, and it's good that these remain intact. For those that don't know - EVO3 has been in this biz a long time and is pretty active on the clone boards too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amish Trooper Posted June 22, 2009 Report Share Posted June 22, 2009 I am glad you came by and posted this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heatshock[501st] Posted June 22, 2009 Report Share Posted June 22, 2009 wow didnt even hear abt this mate Andy - is a a real standup kinda guy and top notch bloke. never for one minute did it even cross my mind that it was recast based on ur previous VOCAL views on recasting fan - made stuff. I have Keiths mikes, never seen urs Andy - but if past performance/practise (and we are talking abt a lllooooonnnnggggg past) is any indication; I cannot believe that this part is anything more than an original fan-make. aside from being active on clone boards - he is also our detachment armourer!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darman[TK] Posted June 23, 2009 Report Share Posted June 23, 2009 (edited) If you have the ability to do all of this, you wouldn't risk your reputation on a set on hovi tips. ---------------- Check out the Clone Pilot helmet he built over on the FMP forms too. Andy is a stand up guy, he does this because he loves creating. He wouldn't recast someone's work. Edited June 26, 2021 by gmrhodes13 link not working, removed gmrhodes13 2021 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keith Posted June 23, 2009 Report Share Posted June 23, 2009 (edited) The tell on mine is a little mark i made on the edge above and a little to the left of the hovi-mix text. These are the photos i seen of the comlink a few months ago: --------- I tried to get a photo of my master cast, which is white, but the flash was just making the white tip look like a bright light, so i took some photos of one of my reject tips blasted with some black paint: ----------- ----------- ------------ ------------ --------------- I don't want you to stop making the comlinks at all. Its just that i paid TE for the "rights" (if thats the correct word) to make these tips, so when i noticed AJCG's thread for his stormtrooper helmets and he said: "I used humbrol paints, Evo aerators and Mike's ESB decals" i got a little pi%*ed off. I did used to make them in a tan coloured resin, but i have never made solid tips. I'm not going to say anything else about it. Please continue to make your comlinks. Keith. Edited June 26, 2021 by gmrhodes13 link not working, removed gmrhodes13 2021 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVO3 Posted June 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2009 Keith, i think youve made made your case very clear. I guess that i had apperently stumbled across a poor recast of your aerators and just tried to make them better. Had i of known this, i wouldve never gone through the trouble of doing all the work i did. After the evidence youve provided on these, i'll step back and scratch build my own. PM is inbound to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keith Posted June 25, 2009 Report Share Posted June 25, 2009 Andy, no need to scratch build your own. Please contine with your comlinks as they are. Keith. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeR Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 Nice to see adult discussion. Keith and Evo you are a gents. Good men. Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daetrin[Admin] Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 Nice to see adult discussion. Keith and Evo you are a gents. Good men. Joe Roger that! Great to see that both men are able to work this out. The absence of baiting and foul language is quite refreshing. My thanks to Keith and Andy for keeping the discussion civil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runewolf[TK] Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 Wow! Being new here and reading some of the "history" threads and thinking "what the H!" it is good to see a decent, civil and appropriate conversation. Kudos guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daric LaRone[501st] Posted June 26, 2009 Report Share Posted June 26, 2009 Yes! Well done. It is possible to treat one another kindly and have mature discussion. Kudos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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