Ra's Al Ghul Head(ache) Swap

It's funny. Sometimes you start out on a complicated custom, something that probably shouldn't work at all, and it goes so easy you'd swear the original toy was designed with this in mind.

Other times, you start with something so stupidly simple you think nothing could go wrong, and you wind up pouring four times as many hours just to salvage the project.

Guess which category this belongs in.

First, meet my two DC Direct Ra's Al Ghul figures, the Hush figure and the one from Trinity:

While I've always liked both figures, I've always preferred the Hush head and the Trinity body. I decided that I could only justify leaving one on display anyway, so why not have the perfect Ra's on my shelf? After all, what could be simpler than a head-swap?

I had no problem removing the heads, but then I discovered the pegs were dramatically different in size. No problem! I just used some kneadatite to sculpt something sized for the peg. That'll work, right? Right?

Wrong. The sculpted bit didn't stay in place. Besides, I soon realized the neck was too small to fit with the head. At least, without some paring.

Long story short: several attempts later, my wife and I did get something that worked:

He's even got articulation. Although, all this did come with a price: in person, you can see where we carved down the neck. I tried to get a picture of the issue, but none of them came out (honest). Still, it's a minor imperfection on a figure that captures what I love about Ra's.

So, was it actually worth the absurd amount of effort, time, and frustration it took to produce?

No comment.