Classic Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Destroyed / Asylum Daleks

Welcome to the next instalment in this series of Dalek customs showcases, a tour through my collection of custom-made Classic Daleks that have been altered and painted to appear destroyed, with some marked with stamps for the Dalek Asylum. The previous instalment featured the New Series Dalek Asylum inmates, but one of the biggest draws of Asylum of the Daleks was the fact that there were Classic Daleks in the Asylum, so I was eager to include some in my collection. All of these customs are made by me unless stated otherwise in the description.

DISCLAIMER: I have not damaged or destroyed any rare classic Dalek figures to create these customs.

All of these Daleks are either common Classic figures painted to look like rarer figures, or figures which I bought on the pretence that they were damaged beyond repair and then painted and customised, so rest assured, no rare Daleks were harmed during the making of these customs. (At least, not by me, but I’ll explain that later…)

Duo of Destroyed Genesis Dalek Custom Figures:

These are two destroyed Daleks from totally different eras, even if they are of the same design. The left side Dalek has been altered to resemble a casualty of the early Dalek-Thal War that takes place on Skaro during the finale of Genesis of the Daleks. Damaged out in the wastelands of Skaro by a land mine and hit with a well-aimed explosive, this Dalek has collapsed in on itself as the mutant inside dies. I had to cut the neck rings to shape and use hot glue and paint to make it appear as though the front part of the Dalek’s neck ring had collapsed due to an impact on the back of the casing, which spewed green oil and fluid all over the top part of the Dalek and blasted off its weapons and eyestalk in the process.
The right side Dalek is my rendition of a Genesis-style Asylum inmate, who has been rotting in the Asylum since the very beginning. Long since destroyed by age and the other inmates, this relic to Dalek history sits abandoned, still bearing the scars of its former battles and stains of oil on its side. Whether or not the pole sticking out of its head is what remains of the eyestalk or a brutal makeshift weapon that has been embedded in the dome somehow is open to interpretation.

Damaged Revelation-era Asylum Custom Figure:

This Dalek was painted to resemble a Dalek from the 1980s using a Gold Day of the Daleks Supreme as the base, and then dirtied up with black, brown and green paint and stamped with an Asylum mark. This Dalek was also partially inspired by a bizarre story from 2009 in which a classic Dalek prop was found in a swamp and fished out, which you can read about here. the paint applications represent burn marks and stains of mud from a swamp or jungle which probably indicate that this Dalek was in some scrapes before being admitted to the Asylum but it is still very much active. Now it spends its time stalking labyrinthine corridors of the planet-sized facility, eagerly stalking bands of Imperial Daleks that have also been admitted to the Asylum, but more on that later.

Insane Emperor’s Guard Dalek Custom Figure:

A relatively prominent feature in the Asylum during Asylum of the Daleks was a dirtied-up Emperor’s Guard Dalek from The Evil of the Daleks, which featured in several of the promotional photos for the episode and actually appeared numerous times throughout the episode, unlike some of the other classic Daleks. Most notably it appeared as the Dalek which Amy, in her drug-induced hallucinatory state, imagines as a dancing ballerina, when it is in fact spinning endlessly and out of control. It would seem wrong then to not include this figure as part of the Asylum collection. For newcomers to the world of customising Dalek figures, this is one of the easiest customs to make, since 60s-era bodyguards are among the cheapest of the Dalek figures you can buy. All I used here was black and grey paint to dirty it up a bit and a tippex pen and red Sharpee for the Asylum stamp, as is the case with all of my Asylum customs.

Burnt Death to the Daleks Custom Figure:

Another Classic Dalek which was in Asylum of the Daleks but did not feature as prominently as the Emperor’s Guard Dalek was recreation of a Dalek from Death to the Daleks. Unfortunately, this Dalek prop barely featured in the actual episode, as it was painted with dull grey, making its unique design barely recognisable. This figure is therefore a representation of how the iconic Death to the Daleks Dalek should have appeared as an inmate in the Asylum. I created this model using a repainted Emperor’s Guard figure that I detailed in black paint to appear burnt, as a reference to the fact that several of the Daleks inexplicably catch fire in this episode. The orange lights indicate that this Dalek was once a commander before it was admitted to the Asylum, possibly having been scarred for life after the events of Destiny of the Daleks by that ridiculous-giant water eel that definitely wasn’t made of plastic and held up with wires. As a result, this Dalek is one of the catatonic Daleks imprisoned in the intensive care unit.

Destroyed The Dead Planet Dalek Custom Figure:

Another feature in the Asylum was a classic The Dead Planet Dalek, featuring the new updated colour scheme that would later become more prominent in The Magician’s Apprentice/The Witches’ Familiar, particularly since the props used in that episode were remarkably accurate yet updated for the modern era, with the addition of a blue eyestalk and a slightly altered yet more dynamic colour scheme. Oddly, some fans at the time complained that these Daleks weren’t ‘screen-accurate’ representations of the original Daleks from The Dead Planet, overlooking the fact that, although the props themselves were made by fans, they are still Dalek props that appeared in an actual episode, so they are now simply a canon variation of the original Dalek design. For this custom I modified a Dalek Saucer Pilot, replacing the base with a shorter one and painting the Dalek with grey and black paint to appear old and dirtied. I also added a ‘mutant reveal’ feature to this Dalek, by removing the front section and sanding down the parts that keep it in place so that it can be securely fitted but easily removed. The interior I created using parts of an old CD to give it a 1960s vibe, and the mutant is simply the top half of a Dalek Sec Hybrid figure’s head, held in place by a plastic sheet that holds the piece in place.

Duo of Destroyed Imperial Dalek Figures:

One of these is not a custom, but is in fact the destroyed Imperial Dalek that strangles the Seventh Doctor that was included in the Remembrance of the Daleks two-pack with Emperor Davros. The sculpting of the mutant on this figure is marvellous, far beyond anything I could do in a custom, and it was well worth the purchase. The Dalek on the right is a custom that I cannot take complete credit for, as I did the paint job but not the custom itself. I believe this to be one of CaptainJimiPie’s customs, the video for which is featured below. This Dalek has clearly been the victim of fire from other inmates in the Asylum and now sits dead, its rotting flesh hanging out of the scarred casing. One day I would like to do a custom of an actual Imperial Dalek model, but I would have to find one that was already broken as I could never bring myself to damage a rare figure of one of my favourite Dalek designs.

Next – New Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Other Asylum Inmates

Bonus – Custom made by CaptainJimiPie

This is another CaptainJimiPie custom that I got in a job lot of other Daleks. I have fitted with a new base since the original one had been removed when I received this figure. This Dalek features in CaptainJimiPie’s showcase of his Asylum Dalek collection, which you can view here (This Dalek that I now own features at 1:08 in this video):