Gun prop making - cutting tips, help...

[Fk23]

Hi folks,

I'm looking to make my first foam prop. Just as a test and skill up really.

I've tried one pass at the Punished Props free Destiny pistol blueprint, but my cutting skills seem to be less than I thought. The smaller cuts were not neat, and cutting through two layers of 10mm foam at a 90 degree angle was way harder than it should have been.

Am I doing something wrong? Should it be easier than that. It was a complete mess on just the base pieces, even after a dremelling.

I don't actually need a prop, so this is just for practice, is there a nice simple design you would recommend I could start with that isn't a massive rifle or a sword?
I just want a nice Fisher Price sort of hand gun that isn't overly complicated.

 

[renegadecow]

Posting at the right section would be a good start.

That aside, practice makes perfect and when it comes to cutting EVA, a razor sharp blade helps tremendously.

 

[Fk23]

Ack yeesh, there's a prop bit. If mods can move me, please do.

My blades were all new, and super sharp, I think I might just suck at detail.

 

[Strikerkc]

I know an actual heat knife made my life infinitely easier when it came to cutting foam (referring to the floor mat type of stuff).

 

[BTTFSpencer]

Ack yeesh, there's a prop bit. If mods can move me, please do.

My blades were all new, and super sharp, I think I might just suck at detail.

Don't worry about it. I think somebody was just being a bit of a stickler, you can contact a moderator however and probably have this thread moved to the appropriate section. No biggie.

I am sure it won't get to this point but let me bring Thomas Edison out of his grave with a quote of his. Edison said "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."

Keep trying and never give up, you'll figure it out. Remember. Other than theRPF, YouTube is ABSOLUTELY incredible for help on this sort of thing.

Spencer

 

[Fk23]

Thanks all. I'm just going to try this first idea again a different way and see if that works. Then I may consider investing in a mechanical cutting device. Maybe. When I win the lottery. Or start playing the lottery.

 

[Fk23]

Tried again to do the main piece in two halves. Can't even cut two even pieces. Going to go and make a helmet instead. I can do those.

 

[Strikerkc]

Tried again to do the main piece in two halves. Can't even cut two even pieces. Going to go and make a helmet instead. I can do those.

I've done scale modeling, and hobby stuff for almost my entire life, and the thought of trying to cut angles on two separate pieces of foam, that will line up with each other and be at the same angle when they match up, makes my stomach sink, and my head start spinning. don't trouble yourself with that nonsense. lol.

Your best friend is going to be nice fresh out of the pack, exacto blades and/or a $25 wood burning/foam cutting knife off amazon.

 

[Fk23]

I've got a bunch of new no11 blades for my knives but even then going through 2cm of craft foam seems hard going. Brr. May look into the hot knife. Ibhave a soldering iron /Woodburner, but that's not the same thing is it.

 

[Strikerkc]

It might be, actually. It depends on the soldering iron/wood burner you have.

I own this one from amazon
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000302YM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

it's about as cheap as they come, and has different tips for different things. all I do for foam cutting, is put the exacto attachment in it, and it literally just gets it hot as hell. It may just be a matter of ordering the adapter for yours (this one comes with everything), or hunting up the other ends that may have come with yours originally.

I will say, that even with this knife, it does best when it's very hot (and cutting with it makes it colder, so taking breaks to let it warm up again is good); and the exacto blade still needs to be sharp. this gizmo won't turn an exacto blade into a lightsaber that never gets dull (and cutting foam will still dull the blade pretty quick), but it actually lets you cut the foam, instead of hacking at it (which is what I tend to experience trying to cut thick foam with a regular exacto).

 

[Fk23]

I don't have the blade attachment so I'll see if I can get one.

 

[SimplyTim]

Just my two cents, but I see a lot of people using the cheapo snap-off slide-out blades... If your using one of those, this may be an issue as well.

Some people may be better with them than me, but I prefer a nice good ol' fashion box cutter/utility blade. I get 50 of them for not much more than a pack of replacement blades for the cheap harbor freight knives.

The issue I have with those knives, is that by design, there is a lot of wiggle at the tip of the knife itself, and the blades are much thinner and flex themselves. This leads to inaccurate sloppy cuts in my experience. Whereas the utility blade is very rigid, and most knife bodies (even the cheap ones) hold the blade MUCH more firmly. Also, I have found that the thicker utility blade lends itself to a sharpener much easier, effectively doubling my purchase to a 100 count, as I only sharpen once and toss the blade.

 

[Fk23]

I've got a range of knives. One set of multi blade exacto style knives by Stanley, a very solid heavy box cutter, a hot knife (as of yesterday) and a good scalpel. The issue is me not the tools.

 

[BigStick]

I feel your pain, although it'll be short-lived if you stick with it. My first attempt at building with foam was also the Punished Props pistol. I did struggle at first to get clean cuts. I found that a sharp, rigid blade & a 'fast' cut works best. Keep sharpening the blade every few cuts. I also found that trying to cut two pieces by hand & make them exactly the same is near impossible, at least at my current skill level. Once I got over the fact that all my lines weren't perfectly straight, I actually made quick progress. The beauty is in the imperfections anyway.


here's the result....



Its a fun learning process. Don't be afraid to F it up, it's how you get better.

 

[Fk23]

Thanks for the encouragement. I will try again. But I have started a random helmet to keep my creative juices flowing. Back to the gun after that.