In robot mode, you can rotate the part of the hand that carries the small claws as part of the foot transformation. That's the joint that I'm adapting to serve as the elbow. The section with the 2 large claws is one piece all the way back to the rotating joint at the shoulder. My mod separates the 2-claw section from the main arm and attaches it to the small-claw section that rotates. It also removes the little gray wheels under the treads; since I usually remove the rolling wheels under tankformers anyway, I don’t consider this a problem.
Right up front, I’ll tell you that this mod will change the appearance, but not as far as I can tell, the function, of Rampage’s foot mode.
My mod:
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Original:
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The tall humps in the treads are reversed- they originally go in closer to the main body, my version has them further out. Similarly, the small claw parts in between the treads are on the front end on mine, but in the rear on the original. Since we don't have the rest of SS Devastator, we can't tell how my changes will affect the completed combiner. All I can tell you is that my version of the foot feels as solid as the original did, before I modded it.
Now then, if you want to continue, you will need to make a single straight cut, and drill 2 holes. The holes are for the screw that will hold these 2 parts together. You may be able to just use glue or epoxy, especially if you will mostly be displaying your Rampage. But I wanted to be able to disassemble and reassemble as needed for development.
If you do decide to use a screw, you should drill the hole before cutting off the 2-claw section, so it’ll be easier to get it lined up. The hole goes in the space that the gray wheel fits into alt mode. Drill a hole through both sections to allow your screw to thread in. (Later, you’ll drill a larger hole in the cut-off section to let the screw pass through.).
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Note: There are 2 slots that lock in the arm that carries the wheel; one slot locks the wheel down so it will let the bulldozer roll, the other slot locks the wheel up for leg mode. The way I did it, that second slot is no longer usable (there may be a way to prevent this, more later), so I had to cut off the peg that holds the wheel so it doesn’t hang down below the tread on alt mode.
The cut is just below (that is, away from the shoulder) the pivot for the small-claw section, which helpfully leaves the tab for one of the fingers to attach to in alt mode intact. I used a fine-tooth coping saw. For the second arm. The first time I just scored the plastic with my multi-tool blade and cracked it off. Whatever works for you. Drill that larger hole mentioned above if you’re using a screw, then shave a little plastic off the edge of the cut-off section so there will be clearance for it to turn. Carefully screw both halves together for a test fit. If you’re happy with it, you can just tighten the screw and be done, or you can use super glue and the screw to solidify the whole thing.
That’s about it; IMHO it’s a very clean mod. The leg mode basically keep the entire lower half of the bulldozer intact, so the treads stay assembled. My mod, as done by me this first time, does not appear to affect the stability of the bulldozer treads in either leg mode or vehicle mode. Your mileage may vary.
