Fallout 3: Mini-Nuke (Finished on page 7)

[NormanF]

Mold Orientation Question

Not sure if this is the right forum. I posted this question in the thread I have for my current project, but the person with the answer might not be reading it.

I am making something that is roughly the shape of an American football or rugby ball with one end cut off. There are some screws around the perimeter at the wide end just above the line in option 2 and eventually some detail on the very bottom. I am going to use a two part mold on this. Originally, I planned on making it using option 1 below:

I was going to leave a 1/16 inch hole in the bottom to insert a detail piece as part of putting everything together. But, if I go with option 2 I can do that now before I make the mold. My only concern is how hard it will be to remove casts, but I think it will not be as hard as I think.

So the question is: which way is better?

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[LMFAOSchwarz]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

I'm no expert...but I think no. 2 is a non-option, as there'll be no way to remove anything from a mold if the part goes beyond the widest point of the mold (I think it's called an undercut(?) ). Others here will be able to explain it better....

 

[Finhead]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

Need way more information to make the right suggestion.
Is it going to be a silicone mold? Or hard mold?
Block mold or jacketed mold?
What material are you casting?

 

[NormanF]

It is going to be a thin silicone with a plasti-paste mother mold. I will be using it to hand rotocast SmoothCast 300. The master is just over five inches wide and just under seven inches tall.

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[clonesix]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

It would work fine either way. If you are planning a 1/16 hole at the bottom, I would go with #2.

This all depends on many factors, such as how you will make the hole, but like I said, either way works.

 

[NormanF]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

It's not a 1/16" hole, it is a 1.5" wide hole that is 1/16" deep. It will be a pocket where I will insert a detail piece after the body has been cast. But if I go with option #2 I will put the detail piece in before I make the mold and not have to worry about it later.

If it helps, here is a link to what I am making: Fallout 3 Mini-Nuke

And here is a shot of the pocket I am talking about before I applied filler to it:

-Thanks

 

[Finhead]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

Yep I would go with #2 as well just put some keys in the mold so it locks into the jacket proper and your set.

 

[LMFAOSchwarz]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

Wow, did I totally miss your point! Forget I was even here!:$
Good luck!!

 

[NormanF]

Wow, did I totally miss your point! Forget I was even here!:$
Good luck!!

I do that sometimes too. Usually at work.

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[Locry]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

Option 2! Simply because the separation line will be easier to deal with.

 

[NormanF]

Ok, looks like option 2 is it. Unless someone tells me not to.

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[NormanF]

I stated another thread for the mold question and it looks like option two is it.

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[JohnLogan]

Re: Mold Orientation Question

I'd go with option #2, Less silicone.

 

[NormanF]

Re: Fallout 3: Mini-Nuke WIP

Ok, I glued in what I felt was the best firing pin. I filled the gaps with Apoxie Sculpt and sanded that down. Filled in some larger pin holes (kids, don't over mix Evercoat Rage) and sanded those down. So now it's busy soaking up primer and tomorrow I should be able to put on a few coats of regular paint to keep it safe for molding. I'm really looking forward to having next week off to work on molding parts.

The next big hurdle: The ring that goes around the bottom of the fins. I was going nuts trying to figure out how to make that thing. I tried forming acrylic and that didn't go well. Then I used an oatmeal container and laminated some extra card stock on it, but it was still a bit flimsy. Then about a week ago I remembered a show I saw a couple years ago about some rocket competitions. One of the competitors made their rocket tube out of carbon fiber formed over a cardboard Sonotube (A tube used for forming concrete columns). What they did was they wrapped the tube in carbon fiber and after the resin was cured they threw the entire thing into a swimming pool to soften up the cardboard so they could remove it. So I decided to try an experiment. Thanks Discovery Channel. Or it might have been The Learning Channel.

My plan was to use the center from a roll of toilet paper. That cardboard is thin and flimsy so I needed to put a balloon in it to make sure it stays round. Then I would put on some Apoxie Sculpt (I am really starting to like that stuff) and just made a ring around it. I thought I had some balloons left over from when I made some paper mache Angry Birds for Halloween at work last year, but I could not find them. So I used a glove instead.

The next night I removed the glove/balloon and put it in a bucket of water.

Success! The red and green light is actually my dog's eyes. She has one brown and one blue so they reflect different colors. That's her under my name.

So, time to go full size. I am using a large oatmeal container (good thing I like that stuff) and an actual balloon. I probably don't need the balloon because this tube is a lot thicker and has plastic on both ends to keep it round. But better safe than sorry.

I made it a little too thick so it's going to take a while to get it shaped correctly, but overall I'm happy with it so far.

 

[NormanF]

Re: Fallout 3: Mini-Nuke WIP

I was going to wait until tomorrow to post an update, but it is going to be a lot of pictures.

So, I got the main body painted in preparation for molding. And I just noticed the overspray on the recycling container. Oops.

The next day after work I sprayed some more paint on it when it decided to jump onto the ground and bounce around. After I calmed down I looked at it and noticed that for the most part there was just some scraped up paint. However, there was some damage on the top. I did a quick patch and it looked ok. Sunday afternoon I planned to get it more polished when I noticed a hairline crack. I don't know if it was when it fell or if the humidity was getting to the balsa core. I was tired of minor fixes so decided that the next morning morning I would fill the crack with some clay and get on to making the mold.

At this point I had three other concerns:
1. Would the clay I have inhibit the rubber?
2. Would the paint I used inhibit the rubber? I was not concerned about this until I saw a post from Volpin about the axe he is making and a problem with the paint he used.
3. Was the rubber still usable.
To answer those questions I taped down an earlier test firing pin on a piece of foam core and used the clay to make a box around it. After that I just needed to mix the rubber. I'm using Rebound 25 that came in the brush on starter kit I got when I went to a seminar from the local SmoothOn distributor. That stuff was so thick I was sure it was bad. I mixed some up anyway and tried it on the test piece. The next morning I checked it and everything looked good. You can see it in a few of the pictures.

I used some old foam core to make a stand and made a clay collar. Made some registration holes in the clay and mixed up some Rebound 25. Holy cow that stuff was thick! When I first opened it I thought it had gone bad.

Print layer. I still thought this stuff was way too thick when I started but it flowed pretty well.

Fourth layer with a half-assed attempt at adding keys.

I finished up with a layer of PlastiPaste (still wet in this pic).

That is how I spent Monday. That and watching Falling Skies on the TiVo.

The next morning I removed the stand. Here you can see the underside of the clay collar. Don't worry, the other side of the clay was fairly smooth. Not exactly level, but smooth.

Clay be gone! I wish it was that easy. It took a lot of effort to get all the clay off.

At this point I decided the shell was too thin and put another layer of PlastiPaste on. I don't have a picture of that, but here is my lovely assitant:

I put a couple coats of that sonite wax that came with the brush on starter kit I am using. My biggest fear is that this will turn into one huge piece of silicone and I'll have to cut it open. Not to mention the PlastePaste.

Print layer.

Fourth layer with another attempt at using keys. This time seemed better.

By this time my hand was getting pretty sore from all the mixing.

And that is where it stands. In the morning I'll put on the second half of the shell and by the afternoon I could have my first pull.

 

[NormanF]

Quick follow up. Thought I would take a quick look before bed and there were only a few small areas where the two silicone halves tried to become one.

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[NormanF]

No pictures for this update, but I pulled my first cast. I'm tired, my back hurts, and it takes 10+ minutes to boot and log on to my computer. There are some issues, but I think they are fixable. One is that some areas look like cellulite. I think they are where my keys are. The other is the seam between the two halves. I may have compressed the mold.

I have to decide whether to buy a lot of SmoothCast tomorrow so I can sell some of these. I should probably finish the other parts before I worry about that.

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[pwrofbauer]

Re: Fallout 3: Mini-Nuke WIP

Glad to see you're still progressing on this!

 

[FutureorBust]

Re: Fallout 3: Mini-Nuke WIP

I think fallout nuka break on youtube had a digital version of one of these.

 

[plasmajunky]

Re: Fallout 3: Mini-Nuke WIP

Why cant you set up the bondo work so you can re set it in your lathe drop the rpm a bit then take a heavy paint stick with some 80 grit an ruff it down closer to shape then it will at least be symmetrical then you will only have to fix the nose. As for the weathering Harrison is right also bear in mind the weapon was made in 2077 How much ferrous metal would have been used in the construction I honestly I think it would have been ( providing an example actually existed) made from aluminum , stainless steel ,titanium or carbon fiber like a lot of todays military weapons are turning to just the fasteners would possibly still be rustable steel. Also in my opinion be cool with the weathering it is just my opinion ( and you know what they say about opinions ) a lot of really nice fallout props are way to over weathered Just normal handling in a short period of time would knock off a lot of surface grime sweaty hands and dirt is like fine sandpaper
Just a thought
And Good luck
Jerry