Designing Dinosaur Models

Designing dinosaur and prehistoric animal models is a tricky business.  With the advent of three-dimensional printing technology and modelling software, things have got a little easier but there is still all the work involved in creating prototypes, mould building and so on.  Today, we feature the Kaiyodo Sofubi Toy Box T. rex figure, a dinosaur model that was developed to demonstrate how scientific thinking regarding the stance of theropod dinosaurs such as Tyrannosaurus rex has changed over the last hundred years or so.

The Japanese model maker Kaiyodo has employed state-of-the-art modelling techniques to produce fantastic, highly collectable dinosaur models and figures.  The design team excelled themselves when developing a collectable figure with ten points of articulation.  Many models have an articulated lower jaw, but for the design team at Kaiyodo, doing the ordinary was out  of the question, in their limited edition T. rex Toy Box figures, they opted for an articulated upper jaw instead.

Demonstrating the Articulated Upper Jaw on the Kaiyodo Sofubi Toy Box T. rex Figure

Video credit: Everything Dinosaur

Articulated Dinosaur Models

There has been a trend in recent years for dinosaur models to have articulated jaws and front limbs.  One of the benefits of an articulated jaw for example, is this feature does permit collectors to be able to close the mouth of their figure.  Many theropod dinosaur models tend to depict these animals with their mouth open, not a natural pose at all.

Most tetrapods don’t walk round all day with the jaws wide open.  It is the lower jaw that is articulated in the vast majority of these figures. However, in order to demonstrate their engineering credentials, the design team at Kaiyodo gave their Sofubi Toy Box T. rex an articulated upper jaw (premaxilla and maxilla), as demonstrated in this short forty-five second video.

The Kaiyodo Sofubi Toy Box T. rex in “Kangaroo” Pose

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

From Kangaroo to a Balanced See-saw

When first scientifically described, Tyrannosaurus rex was illustrated as a biped whose tail dragged on the ground.  The articulated tail of the Sofubi Toy Box T. rex permits the model to displayed in this position, a pose described as a “kangaroo pose” or sometimes a “kangaroo stance”.  However, the ingenious engineering allows this figure to be displayed in what is thought to be a more anatomically accurate pose, with the centre of balance over the hips and the tail lifted off the ground – a sort of pose described as a “balanced see-saw”.

The Kaiyodo Sofubi T. rex Model in a “Balanced See-saw” Stance

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

When it comes to the engineering behind the design of dinosaur models, you have to hand it to Kaiyodo…

A Handy Dinosaur Model

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The Kaiyodo Sofubi Toy Box T. rex figure is suitable for collectors from fifteen years and above and it can be found here: Kaiyodo Prehistoric Animal Models.

The Wild Safari Prehistoric World T. rex Dinosaur Model (2019)

Tyrannosaurus rex may have been formally named and described more than 100 years ago, but this iconic dinosaur has certainly not lost any of its appeal since Henry Fairfield Osborn’s scientific paper (1905).  The “tyrant lizard king” remains as popular as ever with casts of skeletons adorning many natural history museums and no dinosaur movie seems complete without an appearance or two of a T. rex.

Tyrannosaurus rex on the Front Cover of the First Edition of the Novel “Jurassic Park”

The Enduring Popularity of Tyrannosaurus rex

For dinosaur fans and prehistoric animal model collectors, there are a plethora of T. rex figures to collect and most manufacturers carry at least one replica of this, perhaps the most famous of all the dinosaurs, within their ranges.  Today, we take a look at just one recently introduced figure, that of the 2019 Wild Safari Prehistoric World T. rex made by Safari Ltd.

The Wild Safari Prehistoric World T. rex Dinosaur Model (2019)

Wild Safari Prehistoric World T. rex Dinosaur Model

A lot of print space has been devoted to trying to explain this carnivores’ enduring popularity.  In the 2019 Safari Ltd catalogue there are no less than five Tyrannosaurus rex models within the Wild Safari Prehistoric World range and that does not include the baby dinosaurs in eggs.  The most recent figure was introduced a few weeks ago (see picture above), this has led to some speculation that a number of the older figures in this range will be withdrawn.

Measuring around seventeen centimetres in length and with that powerful head standing some eleven centimetres off the ground, this is not the largest T. rex figure available, but as with all the models in the Safari Ltd portfolio, it is well painted and has lots of fine detail.  The figure has already attracted a 5-star review on the Everything Dinosaur website.

Safari Ltd have taken some beautiful photographs highlighting the exquisite details on their prehistoric animal models.  We intend to post these pictures up onto our social media platforms as they permit model collectors the opportunity to see more than just the standard figure studio shots.  Perhaps the photographs will inspire collectors to take their own pictures showcasing their very own “Jurassic Park”

An Outward Bound Tyrannosaurus rex 

To view the range of Wild Safari Prehistoric World figures available from Everything Dinosaur including the new for 2019 Tyrannosaurus rex: Wild Safari Prehistoric World,

Admiring the Details – The Skin Folds and a Beautifully Painted Eye

Visit the award-winning Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.