Classic Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – 1980s era Daleks

Welcome to the next instalment in this tour through my collection of custom-painted Classic Series Daleks. The previous instalment featured the 1970s Dalek Customs, so this one includes a tour of my collection of 1980s Dalek customs. All of these customs are made by me unless stated otherwise in the description.

Resurrection of the Daleks Supreme Dalek Figure:

Since most of the Daleks from this era are only available in expensive and increasingly rare box sets, I created this custom of the Dalek Supreme from Resurrection of the Daleks using a Gold Dalek for the base. The black Citadel paint is easy to apply but the part that makes this custom tricky is the white paint, which requires several coats to form a solid colour. The finished product could pass for the original, however, particularly since I adjusting the finer details with black Sharpee pen and covered the brush marks with a glossy finish. Overall, the design itself is not one of my favourites but this custom was very fun to make.

Resurrection of the Daleks / Revelation of the Daleks Standard Dalek Figure:

Although I did not paint this Dalek, I bought it broken and had to reconstruct several pieces from spare parts. Thankfully, the distinctive reshaped eyestalk was present and intact, giving this Dalek the unique character of a Resurrection-era Dalek, but it could also pass for a Renegade Dalek from Revelation since both designs are practically the same. Although I much prefer the later Renegade Dalek design, I do like the orange lights and larger eyestalk of these figures, and the gloss paint that the props had in these stories gave them an eerie metallic sheen.

Revelation of the Daleks Necros Dalek Figure:

This Dalek figure started out as an Emperor’s Guard, and although that means it technically has the sculpt of a 1960s Dalek, the colour scheme that I applied with white Citadel Paint and Gold Humbrol Paint gives it the distinct look and character of a Necros Dalek, as seen in Revelation of the Daleks. What sets this Dalek apart from its Imperial successors is the black trim around the base and eyestalk, the classic light design and the differently shaped lower section. Due to the paint applications I used, this Dalek has the look and texture of porcelain, which was an intentional decision to give it more character and to better resemble the odd set design seen in the episode.

Remembrance of the Daleks Renegade Dalek Figures:

Unlike their Imperial Dalek rivals, the Renegade Daleks seen in Remembrance of the Daleks have a much more mismatched and nonstandard colour scheme, with some having more black and others featuring totally different neck or eyestalk designs. This is due in part to the fact that the Renegade Dalek army seen in Remembrance was actually just every preexisting Dalek prop that the BBC still had at their disposal, repainted and repaired to form a fairly consistent colour scheme. Due to the damage of years of wear and tear, given that some of these props had been in use for well over a decade, the Renegade Daleks have an authentic battle-hardened rebel look about them, whilst also looking presentable without appearing too shabby. An interesting quirk of these two standard Dalek figures is that the one with the black slats was the original Renegade Dalek release featured in the Remembrance of the Daleks box set, but it is not screen-accurate as it lacks the grille design between the slats. After receiving feedback on the design, Character Options re-released the Renegade Dalek in a two-pack with the Seventh Doctor, this time with a slightly altered paint job (removing the black slats) and adding the grille feature.

Remembrance of the Daleks Imperial Dalek Figures:

The Imperial Daleks featured a totally new sculpt of the props used in Remembrance of the Daleks, that were vac-formed so that they could be mass-produced. The new design included a steeper lower section, a new sculpt for the lights, manipulator arm and eyestalk, a diamond pattern below the slats and a brand new paint job reminiscent of the Necros Daleks but now with a predominance of gold and white on the casing. Oddly enough, these figures do not accurately capture the look of the Imperial Daleks seen in the episode, as the sculpt used is the same as other Daleks (so it lacks the more vertical lower section) and, for some reason, the eyestalk is painted blue, just like the post-2005 Daleks. This hardly matters, however, since they look incredible regardless – unfortunately they are quite rare now and I have only been able to acquire two, as well as the destroyed Imperial Dalek featured in my Asylum Customs Collection Tour. The centerpiece of  my Imperial Dalek collection is the Emperor Davros, which is a fantastic sculpt of an iconic and unique design.

Remembrance of the Daleks Imperial and Renegade Special Weapons Dalek Figures:

Remembrance of the Daleks only features one Special Weapons Dalek, which was in itself a stand-in for a much more elaborate concept – a mobile Dalek weapons platform that stalked the streets on hoverpads and blasted anything in its sights, Human and Dalek alike. However, budgetary limitations forced the writers to improvise, instead creating the concept of a singular Dalek that had the firepower of an entire army, and the iconic Special Weapons Dalek was born. Although only one was made in the end, another idea that was floating around at the time was to have several Special Weapons Daleks, some working for the Imperials and some loyal to the Renegades. I have captured the spirit of that concept in this unique Special Weapons Dalek custom, painted in Renegade livery to give some much-needed firepower to the Renegade Dalek cause. This was a fun custom to do, since I had never painted a Special Weapons Dalek before, and it was only possible thanks to a very lucky job lot I bought on ebay that had not one but two Special Weapons Daleks included, one broken, to add to the preexisting two that I already had, one from the Remembrance of the Daleks box set and one from the talking Dalek range.

Next – Classic Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Other Classic Customs

Bonus – Dalek Battle Computer Custom Figure:

One of my most ambitious customs is this recreation of the Renegade Dalek Battle Computer as seen in Remembrance of the Daleks. Despite lacking its occupant, who I have replaced with the Dalek mutant from the Genesis of the Daleks set, this custom looks very nice and I am really pleased with how it looks, although it may require some touching up here and there at some point in the future.