Travis Grubb never shy’s away from creating a masterpiece when it comes to his next custom bobblehead idea. Recently, while scrolling through social media, Grubbs noticed a trade show with a stacked lineup of former and present professional athletes. Many nation-wide shows present opportunities for fans and collectors to meet their favorite athletes who stand in long lines for a chance to receive an autograph. One name that stood out instantly to Grubbs was Doc Gooden.
Dwight, aka “Doc” who won a World Series title with the New York Mets in 1986 was a fan favorite amongst baseball fans in the tri-state area for many years. “The idea came to mind to replicate Doc in a pinstripe uniform on a 1986 World Series “Ticket Base” with of course the shiny trophy to highlight the title for the Mets” says Grubb. The rest is history as Grubbs went right to work on a 3D preparation program called Chiutbox that improves quality when printing.
A total of 30 hours just for print time went into creating this custom Doc Gooden bobblehead. It took Grubbs 12 hours to print the base, 12 hours to print the body and 6 hours to print the head and trophy. Ultimately, 45 total hours with prep and paint made this project happen. “I started with an existing Doc bobblehead and scanned it using my Eiscan scanner. Next, I used Meshmixer to clean up the parts and made several tweaks and adjustments to the model. Lastly, the Chiutbox was used to set up the pieces for printing says Grubb.” From start to finish it’s a long process but the biggest pain in the ass was the painting. According to Grubb, the pinstripe on the uniform was so thin which made painting within those lines very time consuming. “I really took my time with this custom because when I present it to the player, it’s extremely rewarding for me to see their reaction. I want the entire piece to be perfect says Grubb.”
Once Grubbs hits the road to the VA Beach Fieldhouse on February 25th with the good Doc sitting shotgun, he understands and appreciates the countless hours in creating this custom bobblehead. “To see a players reaction when you show them an item that you personally created, makes the long hours working on the project seem minimal.”
Grubbs is excited to get his bobblehead inked by Mr. Gooden next month and Mets collectors have already reached out to him in hopes he can manufacture more customs. When asked what his intentions are for the 12″ custom bobble, “As of right now, this custom 1 of 1 is mine to get signed. I have my ears open and will always listen to what collectors want. I will never turn down a request to create something special for someone.” You can reach him via email [email protected] or DM him on Instagram at rva_bobbles.
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