My first silicone mask

So I just finished painting up my very first ever silicone mask for my Halloween costume. It's Jason Voorhees from the '09 Friday remake. Not the best of the series, but also not the worst (I'm looking at YOU,Manhattan!) But it did have my favorite version of Jason.

So, yeah, this is the first paint job on my very first silicone mask, pulled from my very first mold, molded from my very first ever sculpture!

Now, it's not perfect as - at a crucial point in the making of this thing - something went cataclysmically wrong (as, I'm told, always happens the first time you try anything like this.) The pvc coupling that connected the tube from the silicone injection gun to the pvc tube inside the head form cracked for some reason closer to the end. There was no way for me to get to Home Depot and back before the pot life expired and the silicone was too thick to continue injecting, so I just had to let that silicone go to waste.

Fortunately, it wasn't a lot and I was able to fill most of the mask, save for the bottom 3 1/2"of the chest and 4 inches from the back (You can see where I had to cut it). Also, I got a little excited pulling the cast out of the mold that I accidentally tore the top 1/4 off of the left ear, but having that ear tip sliced off looks kinda cool,

But, my methods were sound and this thing would have come out perfect! ...if that stupid coupling didn't fail ...

Sculpted in Monster Clay, molded with Rebound 25, cast in EcoFlex 00-30. The paint is GE Silicone 1 caulking mixed with Silc Pigs and Naphtha. The teeth are acrylic and glued in with the GE caulking (that stuff is tough!) All that's left to do with this one is finish painting the teeth and hair punching.

This was a good piece to practice painting on and will make a half-decent display bust or backup, but I rush ordered some more EcoFlex to do this thing right! Here's what came out, though (pardon the crap cellphone pics):




I gotta say, thanks to StanWinstonSchool.com. That place is awesome. I learned so much from watching their lessons and classes. That place is a treasure trove for beginners like me.

Very cool! That looks great!

Thank you! Thank you!

Congrats, man. That's cool as hell! and congrats on your first silicone mask!

As another looking to trying my hand at a silicone mask; what did you use for a mold release for silicone on silicone? And was this a one piece mold? Much thanks.

Thanks!

I used Mann's Ease Release 200. Worked like a charm. Though don't expect the casting to just fall out of the mold. You gotta slowly peel it out of there.

And yeah, this was a one-piece mold with a slit down the back. Made it a lot easier.

Also, I've heard horror stories about Eco Flex being temperamental and a general pain in the ass to use, but I had ZERO problems with it. The stuff looks and feels great.

Nice! I have a nice vat of platsil myself. Thanks for your response

Awesome job!

How did you keep the mold from distorting inside the jacket? Wouldn't the core prevent you from registering it properly?

Looks Awesome!!!! Great job!

Thanks, guys!


October B,

A few things helped:

1) Rebound is pretty firm and doesn't actually flex a whole lot. Which is good, but it does make it a little annoying trying to get the casting out.

2) The form (from David Mosher) has keys built into it, on the front and back at the base. I also use several features on the face as "keys" like the left eye and the mouth (which is open on the form) if that makes sense. Also, as you can see in the photos, the sculpt ends just before the shoulders so the silicone mold lays flat against is and when strapped, hugs it pretty tightly.

3) I made a crazy thick plaster mother mold. Basically a box and a half of gypsona bandages. The thing is super rigid and allows me to strap it really tight and doesn't shift or flex. and it's strapped in 4 places: the base, around the chest, around the neck, and around the forehead. When strapped this tight and the pressure evenly distributed the silicone really won't flex.

And, as a tip, I coated the inside of the plaster mother molds with vaseline and then line the back seam with some seran wrap, just so the silicone would get stuck and ruin it.

Jonc, thanks for the info. How thick is the rebond 25? I've made a few molds with that stuff and I've always had to run my hand down the inside to prevent deformations in the cast. I do use hockey puck sized silicone keys on the outside of the rebound mold. they need to pop in...so are you counting on the silicone pressure to keep the mold inflated?

Do, you have any photos of the mold?

I heard about silicone mold deformation, so I took no chances and used an entire gallon unit of Rebound 25 so the thing is pretty damn thick. The only key I made was a ridge from the top of the head down the back where the seam was to be cut that connects the front and back pieces of the mother mold so those two pieces "snap" together nicely. The rest is just the pressure from the mother mold and the counter pressure of the silicone being injected. I probably should have made big 'ol keys in the front, but for whatever reason I didn't.

I'm at work right now, but if I remember I'll take some pics of the mold when I get home.

And Monster Clay is awesome. I was able to cut out the face of the sculpt, then down the front and back leaving me with 3 intact pieces that I boxed up. They just popped right off, easy. Once I knock out a couple with the Rebound mold, I'm gonna put the Monster Clay pieces back together, fix the seams and try my hand at making an Ultra-Cal mold.

Killer job a buddy of mine just made a predator head out of dragon skin and now he's trying the ecoflex on Monday but yours looks great and yes the Stan Winston school rocks

Second casting came out damn near perfect:

Congrats mate both masks are fantastic! I always love to see sculpts and masks making here and for your first i think it's amazing. Costume to.

Just luv !

Thanks very much, guys!

Great work Jonc! I wanted to ask u what type of silicone did u use to adhere the teeth in place? Im doing the same thing and I've tried different silicones but nothing seems to adhere resin teeth to the silicone mask. thanks!

Great work jonc, this is really great. THUMBS UP FOR THAT!!

wow, how about to glue or paste few drops of blood on mask to make it more real.

you first silicone mask ? congratulations this is amazing :thumbsup