So I won a large lot of Necromunda Orlocks on eBay awhile back. Three of the four heavy weapons models had no weapons or backpacks. This makes me a sad panda. So here is a quick tutorial on how to re-create the missing way oop parts.
You will need one original to create the copy from!
You will need a flat clean work area, I am using a piece of plastic card here
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| I recommend Legos to build the mold box |
Next place Instant Mold in hot (not quite boiling) water until it is soft and pliable. Place the instamold in the bottom of the box and press your bitz around halfway into the IM. Allow the IM to harden at room temperature or place in the fridge.
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| First half of mold is filled. |
Next heat up another portion of IM and cover the other side of the Bitz, then cool as before.
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| Second half of mold is filled. |
Once cooled to room temp remove the mold from the box and slowly separate the IM halves. Mix up your green stuff or ProCreate putty and pack both halves of your mold. Re-align your mold halves and press them together slowly squishing the excess greenstuff or Procreate out, you will probably need to trim some of the excess off before it sets. I use very strong clamps and small boards of MDF when pressing the mold halves together.
I use Procreate at a 60-40 mix per the instructions for a hard curing sand able finish.
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| Mold half with ProCreat bitz in it |
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| Original compared to the copy |
Above is a photo of the original and re-cast bitz, Mold making time is around 30 minutes. The ProCreate sets up in around 4 hours, I let these set up while I was at work and I cleaned the mold lines after I got back home. ProCreate continues to harden over the next 48 hours or so, meaning mold lines are easier to clean sooner than later.
Best part of this is I can reuse the Instant Mold for the next project or lost bit.
More examples:
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| All of these came from eBay, missing weapons. The weapons are press mold copies made of ProCreate and the front 3 have copied backpacks. |
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| These vents are press molded from Green Stuff. |
So was outbidding me on those Orlocks!
ReplyDeleteLOL, love that disclaimer.
ReplyDeleteThat disclaimer makes me giggle. It also reminds me of trying to cast army men when I was a kid. Didn't work out as well as your recasting project, I'm afraid.
ReplyDeleteNow that's press molding! I aim to try that instant mold stuff soon.
ReplyDeleteThought I responded yesterday, but I don't see my comment. Didn't remember needing approval, so I apologize in advance if this is a redundant post. Then again, maybe the instructions on how you filled the molds wasn't bold yesterday, and it is today. i wouldn't be surprised. LOL
ReplyDeleteUsing this method to create a 2 part mold is a lot easier and makes much more sense than the way I used a couple weeks ago. I needed to copy a hand and pistol from a model (had a miscast, got a replacement, decided not to let the miscast go to waste), so I squished the Instant Mold all around the bit and then cut it in half to free the model and get the halves of my mold. It was really hard to get the Instant Mold tightly against the entire surface (arm could spin in a lot of attempts), and the clamps I used distorted the first good mold while I was trying to get the first cast. I did finally get a good cast to fix the model, but it was a little more time consuming than I expected. Starting with making the two mold halves similar to the way you'd normally work with latex and resin, would have made so much more sense. derp.
I'm glad I stumbled across your blog while I was blog hopping yesterday. Thanks for the tip.
War Frog, do you glue the lego mold box together? Do you glue the lego mold box to the plastic sheet you use as a base for the Instant Mold?
ReplyDelete