SECTO-VIPER 1988

Secto-Viper is the ninth figure in the project, and the last of the 88 series. This figure was in bad need of a repaint, not only did he appear to be missing loads of paint apps, but his colors were also horrible. This guy was tricky to come to a conclusion on what his new colors should be. Since Secto-Viper isn't an Eel, the gray color scheme was out and by extension the Eel pilot's silver color scheme was as well. The Track-Viper and Motor-Viper color schemes were also considered but in the end neither proved suitable. Finally it was decided to use the color scheme of Copperhead and this would not only tie the two figures in together, but also their vehicles that both have a very similar color scheme.

With the colors decided, it was time to track down a Secto-Viper figure that was in poor condition that I could repaint. This proved more challenging than I thought, most figures I saw were asking a fortune and they all were in near perfect condition. On the odd occasion that I actually found one with lots of paint wear, it was priced as high as the near mint figures. I finally found a parts lot for a good price that had a number of useful pieces as well as all the parts to a Secto-Viper minus the left leg. This parts lot cost a third what a Secto-Viper was likely to run me, and it came with several other useful parts so it was the obvious choice.

While I was waiting for the parts lot to arrive, I disassembled the leg of one of my complete Secto-Vipers and made a latex mold from the pieces so I could cast up a new left leg for the incoming figure. Once the new leg was complete it was just a matter of painting the figure, which had a pretty simple formula. The sea blue color for all the soft areas of the dive suit, black for all the armored areas, and lime green for the ribbed areas. Black was added to the sleeve cuffs to break up the colors a bit on the arms, and also to the ear pieces and mouthpiece of the headgear.

The final touch was a Cobra logo, this figure had to have one, and it had to be silver to look right. The problem is that the only Cobra stickers small enough to use as sleeve logos are the kill marking for Joe aircraft, and they are all red. The sleeve is also quite wrinkly and a sticker probably wouldn't work well on the surface. My only option left was to hand paint the logo which is always a pain, but I think the end result was worth it and the silver logo was a needed detail.

So here he is in the new "Shore Patrol" color scheme.

Figure: Secto-Viper 1988

Scheme: Shore Patrol

Notes: A front and back view of Secto-Viper and a comparison shot with Copperhead. I left the bubble helmet off to give a better view of the head.