Sculpting helmets question.

So I'm looking to move away from bondo. It's awful to work with.

Sure, it's hard, and you can get super sharp angles on it, but sanding is just a pita.

I'm looking at Chavant NSP Medium as the clay I'd be buying.
Couple questions though.

1) Is Chavant NSP medium the right clay for sculpting helmets and fine detail
etc?
2) Is it reusable?
3) Does it ever dry out?
4)My house is usually pretty warm. No shade, so house is in the sun all day. House rarely gets below 80 in the summer. Will my sculpts just melt?
5) I can make silicone molds right from the clay for use in slush casting resin correct?
6) Any good resources for learning how to sculpt? Tutorials, dvds, that kind of thing?

And lastly...What I was planning on doing was making my pepakura files as I normally do, resin the outside, rondo the inside for stability, then use that as my armature and my jumping off point for the sculpt...but I don't see people doing this. I'm fairly certain I couldn't do a sculpt from square one with just a giant block of clay and get the measurements etc as perfect as I'd like. Can I sculpt this way?

I think that's about it for now, if I have any more questions, I'll be sure to ask!

well i dont beleve you cant get away without sanding when working with perkura stuff and resin

Triton said:

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Couple questions though.

1) Is Chavant NSP medium the right clay for sculpting helmets and fine detail
etc?
2) Is it reusable?
3) Does it ever dry out?
4)My house is usually pretty warm. No shade, so house is in the sun all day. House rarely gets below 80 in the summer. Will my sculpts just melt?
5) I can make silicone molds right from the clay for use in slush casting resin correct?
6) Any good resources for learning how to sculpt? Tutorials, dvds, that kind of thing?

1)Chavant NSP Hard is the best for really fine detail work. But for someone just diving into sculpting probably want to start with the Soft.
2) Chavant NSP and other brands of oil-based clay are infinately usable, as long as you follow directions on use.
3) Nope, doesn't dry out.
4) 80 degrees won't melt it. Keep it slightly pliable maybe.
5)Yes, silicone and NSP are compatible. No sulfur in the clay.
6)when I first started playing around with mask making, I checked www.monstermakers.com out. Great resources, great dvds, and book. Little pricy on the supplies end, but great place to start. Also do research on youtube. Their are so many great tutorials, and product demos.

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I still use bondo on builds even after, casting from a sculpture....never know when you will need to smooth out imperfections, or reshape something that didn't come out just right.

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MaddMaxx82 said:

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I still use bondo on builds even after, casting from a sculpture....never know when you will need to smooth out imperfections, or reshape something that didn't come out just right.

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Absolutely right my friend. I don't mind using it for spot filler, it's the using it to build up and make a angular pepped file into a smooth shape that really grinds my gears. That and the sanding, dust, smells, having to stop working if it's cold or raining out, etc.

I figure, since I'm already molding my stuff, why not make it easier on myself, and do it in clay. Thank you for the words of wisdom.

In place of Bondo, I've been using a product called FIXIT SCULPT from the company Aves. It's very low-odor and nontoxic, and easier to sand than bondo. It gets hard as a rock & strong as hell. It's just like EPOXIE SCULPT, it's a 2-part putty you mix by kneading. It sticks to almost anything, only downfall is, it takes 3-4 hours to fully cure. but you can sculpt details into it & shape it while it's curing (and it's cheaper than bondo)

I'd go with one of the above suggestions and say try the NSP soft first. Calling it 'soft' is a little misleading...it's pretty solid, and will need to be warmed up before you can do much with it. If you find you're trying to put really fine detail on it and it just won't take it, put it in the fridge for a while (seriously, that works).

When moulding, DO A TEST FIRST. I did a (fortunately small) sculpt with the NSP, and the mould came off really tacky. I figured it might have been the silicone, so I sent a sample of the clay to smooth-on. They tested it, and said it was loaded with sulphur. I called Chavant, and they explained that because they make a lot of clay that contains sulphur, they have lots of it on site, and there can be occasional contamination. They sent me some free clay, and I haven't had any problems since, but yeah...do a small test patch anyway.

When I was a young lad, I used Van Aken Plastelina to get used to sculpting. Its very easy to shape, it warms and softens easily and quickly. By nothing more than the heat of your hands. Its also less expensive, than most oil-based clay options. Good call on the refrigerator, I do that all the time. Ticks the wife off.

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Thanks guys, all good info. I need to sculpt some iron man ears, so I'll probably just order me up a block of the soft, medium, and hard.

Is sculpting off the resined pepakura files a suitable way to sculpt? To use less clay and get the basic shape right?

I've never tried it, but I can't imagine that working off an armature that was only slightly smaller than the sculpt you want to produce would work very well. If you need to change something, you may find yourself hampered by the pepakura piece. Just a guess though. My feeling is that it would be easier to have the pep piece standing to the side as a permanent 3d reference.

I believe you can heat up chavant and build forms as it cools. I had to do that with Roma when I started but now I don't with chavant. I love it and use it to avoid sulfur.

RokkaRolla said:

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In place of Bondo, I've been using a product called FIXIT SCULPT from the company Aves. It's very low-odor and nontoxic, and easier to sand than bondo. It gets hard as a rock & strong as hell. It's just like EPOXIE SCULPT, it's a 2-part putty you mix by kneading. It sticks to almost anything, only downfall is, it takes 3-4 hours to fully cure. but you can sculpt details into it & shape it while it's curing (and it's cheaper than bondo)

I've been detailing my Doom mask with a 2 part epoxy putty made by JB Weld called waterweld.
It has a 15-20 minute cure time, so it works great in small batches. I use water to keep it from sticking to everything during the initial kneading, then by the time the water evaporates and it gets sticky again, I can lay it in place and work it with wet tools.

I've been doing this exact thing to finish off my iron man helmet Tastyburger.

I'm using milliput, and it is essentially the same thing. But it's a real bear to work with. Sticky, etc etc. At this point, I'm finding that I'm using milliput more than bondo so I figure switching to clay entirely makes more sense.

My theory behind is it is to use bondo to block out round areas where there are angles that need to get evened out. Then sand to a smooth finish. Go in and use the clay for adjustments, and detail work.

Now obviously this wouldn't work for someone that doesn't plan on molding and making casts of their work, but I got the molding bug, and find that VERY fun.

To answer your question about using the pep piece as an armature, yes it will work. But you will likely find that it will often get in your way while sculpting. I've done very nearly the same thing many times and frequently had to cut away some clay to grind away the armature underneath to make room.

What would help is if you used the Rondo inside your pep as your armature. That way you know for certain that it is smaller than the final sculpt and will be less likely to get in you way.

All you would need to do is resin up the outside of your pep as normal, but coat the inside with vaseline before slushing in the Rondo. After you get it thick enough, you will then be able to peel off the outside pep and have your smaller armature ready to go.

I've never used pep files before, but I've done the same thing with resin castings of helmets that I used as armatures.

I have chavant nsp medium, for my builds, i make predator bios and other stuff, i live in puerto rico a few days back here was 100 degrees, and the clay wasnt soft at all, i left my terminator bio helmet in clay for over 5 months, until i finally mold it, it is reusable,is a great clay in my opinion

I would recommend the Chavant Med as well. when you do any detailing work, the soft is too pliable, especially if you are used to the pep route.

I ordered a block of medium, and a block of hard and they should be in today!

Very excited!

I have 12 pounds of medium and im going to order 12 more for me theyre not enought goodluck and share pics when you begin