Hi ,all
Here, I’d like to offer you a double.
A. It’s a tutorial. B. The process is also part of the Zündap vignette project. Maybe some of you will be interested in it.
I want to cast the figures from the Preiser set featuring the motorcyclists. I don’t want to buy the kit again. The figures are interesting to me. I already have 4 Zündaps—that’s enough.
To demonstrate how I cast them, I took a few pictures.
I chose a small bowl—in this case, transparent, hard plastic, about 6x6 cm in size. Hard plastic isn’t suitable as a mold because it’s guaranteed to break when demolding.
Soft plastic bowls are fine. I filled them with water and then measured the amount in a small measuring cup with a scale. In this case, filled to the top—30 ml.
Since it’s difficult to cast arms that are spread wide or pointing upward, I sawed off all the arms and marked them with colors to match the figures. Then I lightly glued all the torsos and arms to a small plastic sheet using superglue. The sheet is about 3 mm thick and roughly the same length as the arms. Make sure everything lies flat. Otherwise, the resin will seep under the sheet, and you’ll tear the mold apart when demolding.
I hope the picture makes it clear what I mean.
I brushed a very thin layer of mold wax over everything. No liquid should pool there, or you’ll end up with sink marks.
The mold wax also makes it easier to remove the piece from the mold at the end. Here, the wax is blue, but you can also use baby oil. I bought this many years ago (Glorex, distributed by Hobby Time mold release agent). Hobby Time is a German brand for craft supplies.
There are also silicones that use a curing agent. Hobby Time, for example. I cannot recommend these, as they all have to be measured very precisely to achieve a good result.
1:1 silicones are much easier to work with.
Work carefully but quickly. Carefully, because otherwise air bubbles will be mixed in, and quickly so that the mixture doesn’t become too thick.
Make sure the mold is slightly larger than the limbs. For the edges, 5–8 mm is sufficient for such small parts; for larger parts, allow more. Leave about 5 mm at the bottom as well. Otherwise, themold will bulge outward.
Of course, don’t use pointed tweezers or anything similar when demolding.
You can also place the molds upside down in the casting mold, just to be safe. I secured the individual limbs to the bottom with double-sided carpet tape so they wouldn’t float up.
After pouring the resin, the parts are removed from the mold. Don’t worry—not everything will work out.
I always let my molds cure overnight. In any case, always follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
Here are the approximate dimensions of my silicone mold.
Thats for now.
Jürgen
Part II is Resin Casting.
