Really? I don't think so. They could vacuform, and many details were made of plaster. They wouldn't have done injection moulding - the cost of making the moulds alone would have been utterly prohibitive for short runs like this.
Help with Fusion Furnace from Degobah
- Thread starter Massassi
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They talk about it in the ILM documentary on Disney plus
There's a part where one of the workers talks about getting an injection molding machine so they don't have to aquire a certain number of kits they can just make as many of the greeblies as they need.
Hm. I don’t recall that being mentioned in the documentary. I mean - it wouldn’t make sense. Injection moulding dies are really costly and it would limit what you could make. Do you remember when this was said? What era ILM?
Even then, California’s ILM didn’t make the Empire props. That was done by a team at EMI in England.
Perhaps this is a reference to the use of vacuforming in the original Star Wars film? The stormtrooper armour was HDPE and ABS vacuum-formed plastic, done by an outside firm. They also got a machine at EMI for vacuforming interior wall panels for the Death Star, blockade runner interior walls, etc.
Even then, California’s ILM didn’t make the Empire props. That was done by a team at EMI in England.
Perhaps this is a reference to the use of vacuforming in the original Star Wars film? The stormtrooper armour was HDPE and ABS vacuum-formed plastic, done by an outside firm. They also got a machine at EMI for vacuforming interior wall panels for the Death Star, blockade runner interior walls, etc.
You can make dies pretty easily for an injection molder. I'll find it and get back to you. A lot of the creators at ILM did work on Empire.
I distinctly remember them talking about how expensive the machine was, and when they asked for it the manager didn’t bat an eye at it and said “order one” they were all shocked how they got ahold of one so easily
This was for a new hope though.. I don’t know if this procedure was still around in ESB.. I can see it a possibility since ESB had a much larger budget then a new hope
I got to hang around some serious model guys this summer and they showed me some private pictures of the work shops that ILM staff worked out of. Cases and cases.. shelf’s and shelf’s of model cases hundreds and hundreds of kits.. piles of it everywhere..
After seeing these photos of all supplies they had, I think something like this is easier and faster to build with just grabbing some pieces out of the boxes, rather then making injection molds.
This was for a new hope though.. I don’t know if this procedure was still around in ESB.. I can see it a possibility since ESB had a much larger budget then a new hope
I got to hang around some serious model guys this summer and they showed me some private pictures of the work shops that ILM staff worked out of. Cases and cases.. shelf’s and shelf’s of model cases hundreds and hundreds of kits.. piles of it everywhere..
After seeing these photos of all supplies they had, I think something like this is easier and faster to build with just grabbing some pieces out of the boxes, rather then making injection molds.
It's on S1:E1 at 42 min in talking about the sand crawler. Not sure about Empire and the injection molding machine but it wouldn't surprise me if they used it. 15 or $1800.
Massassi
New Member
Here are the building instructions
Link to the files can be found here: Fusion Furnace | 3D Print Model
Looks like there's something, a wire inside the clear tubes.
Massassi
New Member
Yes, indeed, I think to reflect more light from the inside
Aha. So I've made a few enquiries, and yes, ILM had an inexpensive injection moulding device for Star Wars for certain frequently used parts. It sounds like the hand-operated type of thing that I remember using in school - very modest.
So again, a) it doesn't sound like it was something regularly used for many components, b) my source does not know if ILM used it during Empire, and c) the props for Empire were made largely at EMI, not ILM. It wasn't until ROTJ that a bunch of props were made at ILM in California.
