Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien)

Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

everything is very promising. The area is beautiful and expresses Alien feeling. it is also nice silver. I'm just wondering how you're going to pull out all the mold, if the direction of extraction of the back is orthogonal to that of the rest of the dome. Do you think you make the mold in several parts (I think 6 share)?
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Thanks guy's :)

DD, no mould being made here, this is the buck that I'll vac-form or thermo-form clear polycarbonate over. I've got to build up the area under this to support it securely. I'm expecting to have to flex the dome to remove it from the buck after forming & cooling due to the undercuts & I may add a row of holes to aid the forming of the undercuts. DD, it'll be very similar in design to the buck you made for your dome :)
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

OK, I've cleaned all the silver off as it was only for reference, I've separated the dome from the rest of the head, cleaned up all the undercuts & filler primed it.
I'll let it dry fully for the rest of the day before I do anything else :)

Here's the remains of the head:
767.JPG


& here's the dome buck drying :)
768.JPG

769.JPG


Later on I can start building the supporting structure for it. I'm thinking about making it in cardboard, soaking the cardboard in polyester resin & then adding a layer or two of fibreglass :unsure I might just use the cardboard as a mould & build it in FG :unsure We'll see what happens when I get there, I've got the day to think about it :)
 
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Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Leigh said:
OK, I've cleaned all the silver off as it was only for reference, I've separated the dome from the rest of the head, cleaned up all the undercuts & filler primed it.
I'll let it dry fully for the rest of the day before I do anything else :)

Here's the remains of the head:
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/767_zps1df9c1e8.jpg

& here's the dome buck drying :)

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/768_zpsd1b28c68.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/769_zps4cf47025.jpg

Later on I can start building the supporting structure for it. I'm thinking about making it in cardboard, soaking the cardboard in polyester resin & then adding a layer or two of fibreglass :unsure I might just use the cardboard as a mould & build it in FG :unsure We'll see what happens when I get there, I've got the day to think about it :)
Click to expand...


The time now is clear to me, because I saw that the back is not a single piece but split as the original. Ok, now it all comes back. Keep in mind that the thermoformed tends to be a little wider. The critical area, this extra width cause, it is the back of the head, because it is very obvious pairing on the perimeter. I was able to solve the problem by caulking the head.

In other areas, if you can get the undercuts, so pronounced, as your mold, you should not see large misalignments with the perimeter of the head. Another problem is the cutting of thermoformed. If you are using a hacksaw, risks of starting cracks and ruin everything. I used a hot knife for polystyrene (not the hot wire).

165009710.jpg

Another problem, it is likely you will not have clear the perimeter of the cut, so you have to keep a little 'abundant and closer to the correct perimeter, trying several times to mount the dome on the head. :)
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

All great advise, many thanks :thumbsup
I'm planning to use scissors to roughly cut the bulk of the waste away, then my Dremel to cut close to the line & finish with abrasives. I'm going to try to make the cut line fairly clear in the buck, for example at the rear I'll create a small step & then cut just above as the step will be my cutting guide. I'll do a similar thing all the way round. If this comes out as intended then there should be just a bit of the perimeter tube exposed where the dome fits over it all round.

:)
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

As far as I'm aware, the buck has to be strong enough to be stood on, and has to be able to be heated for 30 seconds by the material it is forming without deteriorating.

A combo of MDF and stone casting plaster would make a solid base for the dome to sit on while forming. Stone plaster is inexpensive and very strong with the added advantage that bolts and other hardware can be embedded for attachment/clamping/alignment purposes :thumbsup


Here's where I get mine from:

Casting & Moulding, Plaster-Of-Paris, Alginate, Modroc, Latex, Cold-Cure Rubber, RTV Silicone ...
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Leigh said:
All great advise, many thanks :thumbsup
I'm planning to use scissors to roughly cut the bulk of the waste away, then my Dremel to cut close to the line & finish with abrasives. I'm going to try to make the cut line fairly clear in the buck, for example at the rear I'll create a small step & then cut just above as the step will be my cutting guide. I'll do a similar thing all the way round. If this comes out as intended then there should be just a bit of the perimeter tube exposed where the dome fits over it all round.

:)
Click to expand...

I also tried it with the Dremel, with thin cutting disks. is very difficult, from identifying the right speed, because you foot down, they break, they can take different directions suddenly, it will not save the cracks. The hot blade, however, is even faster, not aggressive, melt the material and can eliminate small edges and even out the surface of the board. Remain loose burrs, which come off with a fingernail or sandpaper. I'll recommend it, but you're free to try. :)
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Many thanks for the advise guy's :)

I've got a mini drum sanding attachment I was going to use to get up close to the line after using scissors or snips. I figured I'd get a little melted plastic build up using the drum attachment that I could just sand off by hand :)

I'm not really in position atm to go buying more materials like plaster & I'm not too keen on using plaster either but I do see your point Canobi :)
Although I've never vac-formed before I understand the buck really needs to be strong. As it is it would take my weight without buckling (16 stone) & I'm intending the under structure to be pretty sturdy, the FG should be fine with the heat though I am a little concerned about the paint :unsure I'm guessing the plastic will be heated to 100-120 degrees C :unsure
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Leigh, my advice is to make the first pull with your fiberglass model........then fill the clear dome with plaster to make a more permanent buck. I think over time, your fiberglass will distort unless you back fill it with something. Paint will probably be damaged by the heat.
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Seconded. Also, are you making infill for the plastic to draw over, as part of your understructure?
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Thanks for the feedback Guys :)

OK I'm still not keen on using plaster for this, probably just me being me but...
I'm intending to make the rest of this in Fibreglass with polyester resin, they make car body's & boats out of this stuff. Providing I make it right it should be solid as a rock & very strong but also light & easy to move about. I want to be able to pick the thing up easily & remove it from the form without slowly damaging edges due to the undercuts.

Here's where I'm at so far:
770.JPG

771.JPG


I know it looks amateurish being cardboard but I needed something simple to start this off. The dome (yellow bit) is very strong on its own, its also made using polyester resin & fibreglass over rigid polyurethane foam over polyurethane plastic, all these materials are thermo setting & should not soften with the application of heat. Now the cardboard is glued in place I've soaked it in resin & let that dry. Next I'll start to build up the layers of FG on the inside of the cardboard. Once I've built it up enough I'll start adding cross bracing to tie the two sides together & make the whole thing very stiff.

That's the current plan :)
 
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Leigh said:
OK :) Time for an update:

All the sculpting is finished :D no more modifications, no more changing anything or reshaping, he's finished!

Here's some pic's:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/556.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/557.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/558.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/559.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/560.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/561.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/562.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/565.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/564.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/573.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/571.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/568.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/577.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/LJH74/Alien stuff/574.jpg

I guess the next step will be creating the moulds for him.

What do you think?

:)
Click to expand...

it kinda looks like xenomorph/borg hybrid!:)
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Man that is incredible! Has to be the finest looking Alien bust i have seen. Just wow!:eek
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

One of those sculpt that kicks some major behinds:cool Keep up the great work!!
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Many thanks for the support folks :) I'll have an update for you as soon as I have a good thickness of FG on the inside of this buck & some stiffeners glassed in place :)
 
Re: Bob the Alien (Giger inspired Alien) Sculpting finished page 45

Aw yeahhhh, Leigh. That buck looks like it should pull like a trooper.

Actually let me rephrase that... :lol
 

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