Another P1 Mask... Silicone And Animatronics Done.

[MasterAnubis]

It's good to be revisiting this. 
The whole point of this thread was that I'm making a mask.  I haven't actually done that yet.  A fire got lit under me from Monsterpalooza so I'm at it again but this time I won't stop.  I don't know how much time I have to sculpt before it gets to a point that it cracks.  Steve Wang didn't seem concerned when we asked him about it so I probably shouldn't be either.  I'll just keep it moist and in a bag.  I guess I'll see.

I used a pottery clay for the mold of the first one.  It turned out to be really sandy and not what I expected.  WED turned out to be really smooth.  You may be able to contact Laguna Clay and find out who else covers PR.  The clay name is actually EM-217 WED.  That way there is no confusion about what "WED" is.  I get it from a specialty pottery store locally. 

 

[MasterAnubis]

So, day two.  Last night was almost a wash.  I promised myself I'd rock hard on this and I got distracted by family.  I did get to work on it a little.  I think it was a total of an hour or so.  I'll be working on this every day no matter what the progress.

 

[seahunterr]

Looking good Shawn! You are making him very accurate, is this open or closed mouth? Keep on it, and dont let that clay dry out!

 

[MasterAnubis]

Looking good Shawn! You are making him very accurate, is this open or closed mouth? Keep on it, and dont let that clay dry out!

Thanks!
  You see your picture as a reference.  I had Predator on the TV last night trying to figure out the movements and other details.  There are a couple of things that I’m seeing that I never noticed before.  Overall though, I’m really feeling this sculpt.  The clay is definitely something to get used to.  I fear the possibility that it cracks.  The firmer parts act differently than the fresh parts too.
  I’m going with a mid-mouth position.  I haven’t fully decided on the seam lines but the more neutral the position the better for movement.  Remember, I’ll be doing an epoxy mold for this and I’ve never worked with that before.  I have a tendency to make elaborate seam lines and I don’t know if I’ll avoid that or embrace it.  The goal is molding on Saturday.

 

[Usurper]

Shaping up very very nice.

 

[MasterAnubis]

Shaping up very very nice.

Yes... yes, it is.



End-o-day four.  solid progress today.  I'll be a texturing tomorrow and I'm on schedule for casting on Saturday.

 

[Robillicus]

Whoa... this is awesome! 

I'm really digging this sculpt! The forms looks great, and the likeness is fantastic. I'm glad to see the influx of new sculpts on here. 

 

[MasterAnubis]

Whoa... this is awesome! 

I'm really digging this sculpt! The forms looks great, and the likeness is fantastic. I'm glad to see the influx of new sculpts on here. 

Thanks Rob!
 ...  is this the shortes post you've ever made?

 

[made007]

And ive been a year in a sculpt tshhh!

 

[MasterAnubis]

And ive been a year in a sculpt tshhh!

I'm not trying to show anyone up.  Unless it motivates them.
Realize how long it took me to make the first head.  It was oil clay and harder to move.  The WED is soft and I have to get it done or it will be wasted effort.

I went with more subtle texturing and the light is pretty intense for the picture.  I'm calling the sculpt done thought.  Now, finger crossed that the mold works.

 

[seahunterr]

Looks excellent Shawn! Cast one up and get it painted!

 

[made007]

Great, when working with wed clay..... What process you take to mold? Do you have to use krylon clear to seal it too or what they use?

 

[TuaCathach]

looks excellent Shawn, well done mate

 

[MasterAnubis]

Thanks again guys!

Great, when working with wed clay..... What process you take to mold? Do you have to use krylon clear to seal it too or what they use?

  While I need to make sure this will work, I will spray Krylons Crystal Clear over the sculpt.  Then, spray a couple layers of hair spray(some use PVA) before laying on the epoxy.  This is a technique used in auto parts and I'm hoping it'll work good here.  The test mold I made yesterday of a small sculpt without clear coating was OK but I think it should have come out better.  I'll post process pics for sure.   The mold will be Smooth-on's Epoxicoat Red and then Free Form Air epoxy putty.  I really like the Epoxicoat so far and I like the end results of the Free Form Air, just not mixing it.  The down side is that it will not be very quick.

 

[MasterAnubis]

Five more days... to mold.  I'm not really that thrilled with my results.  I overcomplicate things sometimes. 

But... what I have now (after my repairing) is a mold.  On top ot the head is a test piece of silicone I mixed last night with some pigment to see how the crack repair would look and as a material test.  I need to touch up the cracks still and use less pigment.

lessons:
-The mold should have been thicker.
-Demold sooner so the clay doesn't stiffen up.
-Don't do a mold that takes days on WED clay.

 

[seahunterr]

Looking good shawn. The free form air will continue to crack, if thats what you used for outer. Some resin/ fiberglass will shore it up. It will also warp in heat/ sun.

 

[MasterAnubis]

Looking good shawn. The free form air will continue to crack, if thats what you used for outer. Some resin/ fiberglass will shore it up. It will also warp in heat/ sun.

Thanks for the heads up.  Yes, that's free form air.  That wasn't just a crack, it was a break.  I did matereal tests on my repair and after a bit of touch ups, I ran with it.  I'll go ahead and us the Epoximite 100 with fiberglass that I used for the underskull if it turns out good. I'll be demolding this afternood the moment I get home from work.  That free form air takes the epoxys and super glue well though.   I still need to make a mold for the madibles and teeth... and quills... and dreads.

Fingers crossed.

 

[made007]

Im not an xpert but i do my molds 1" thick, and never had problems demolding, the hands mold werent 1" ansd they craked alil

 

[MasterAnubis]

Im not an xpert but i do my molds 1" thick, and never had problems demolding, the hands mold werent 1" ansd they craked alil

Well, this stuff is supposed to be good for thinner molds.  It’s very light too.  What I should have said was that the beauty coat should have been thicker.  It is recommended to be 1/8 inch thick. The Free Form Air part was the right thickness.

 This is the epoxys I used...
EpoxAcoat (detail,print,beauty coat)
http://www.smooth-on.com/index.php?cPath=1366

Free Form Air Epoxy Putty (support and bulk of mold)
http://www.smooth-on.com/index.php?cPath=1384

It was recommended to me to use wood as a support on large areas.  I planned on it but didn't really figure out exactly how I wanted to do that.  I should have.  Now I will fiberglass the mold.

The fiberglass underskull is EpoxAmite 100 and fiberglass
http://www.smooth-on.com/Laminating-Epoxies/c1335_1336/index.html

Generally, I don't recommend this material for use like this... I like it overall but it has taken way too much time and cost too much.  There are way cheaper ways to do this and get good results.

 

[MasterAnubis]

Soooo.....  yaaaaaa!

The pull went well.  Just wanted to post the pic.  

We'll se how it goes.  I still have a lot to do and I need to get the underskull out.