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Post by magengar on May 2, 2011 16:15:23 GMT -5
Wow, the Giaking wings look absolutely Phenominal! So crispy sharp, and the color looks nicely vivid too! Can't wait to see the Scrander for Maz, that's gonna be awesome. I'll check out that Reynoldsam site. When Hobby Lobby doesn't have what I need, I'll just order online from a distro near my region. I plan to score a gallon of silicone and a gallon of resin soon; that way I'll be stocked for a few months. Thanks for the info, and keep up the good work!  zozo-Mag |
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Post by KingboyD on May 3, 2011 12:59:27 GMT -5
This is looking fantastic! How well does it stay in place?
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Post by magengar on May 3, 2011 15:42:11 GMT -5
Well enough to drive Miss Daisy through multiple Org's. ;D
zozo-Mag
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Post by bourno on May 3, 2011 17:22:25 GMT -5
This is looking fantastic! How well does it stay in place? The insert piece is slightly smaller than the oval due to plastic shrinkage, but I used 1-1/2 wraps of yellow electrical to give snug fit then. It is going to stay in place, but if are aggressively having GaiKing fly after the bad guys, then it might have a chance of coming out. |
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Post by droutmaster on May 3, 2011 23:21:50 GMT -5
well done, it looks pretty awesome.
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Post by willohio on May 4, 2011 20:53:33 GMT -5
The wing design is slick. The weight and durable feel of the material is a perfect match for the Shogun line. This is what the Mattel release of Gaiking is lacking.
2 Ideas that popped into my head after checking out your work on the wing. If you could do casts of the removable arm clip on the Southern Cross (star shooter) for Dragun that might sell because I cannot tell you how many of those I've seen up for sale that are broke. The two I own for example.
The other is the lid for the Star Shooter. This is something that doesn't really need to be very durable as all it does is rotate out to reload the ammo hopper.
Anyway just me thinking out loud.
Great work man!
~Will
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Post by bourno on May 7, 2011 22:18:54 GMT -5
I re-adjusted the wing mold to reduce the trimming some. I am going to let the wing pieces set for several days to allow the plastic to cure harder before trimming. From the earlier molding, and I will update separately, but am looking at a couple more "cheap" wings to let go.
Just poured a mold for GaiKing's "wish bone" looking missile shooter mechanism. I bought a really cheap one off ebay and one side of the missile catch was broken, so... I am copying my other other GaiKing's good one.
Also, just poured part one of a two piece mold of the bow pieces from a Raydeen bowfist. The fist piece has already been made into a 2 piece mold, but am pouring a little more silicone to thicken the pieces (part of the silicone was a little thin around the fist area, as I ran out of mix earlier). Should be interesting on learning the art of roto-casting.
Maybe, tomorrow, I will start on a drawing for Mazinga's Jet Scrander.
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Post by willohio on May 7, 2011 23:04:25 GMT -5
Great news on the Bowfist!
~F
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Post by bourno on May 9, 2011 12:13:31 GMT -5
Just an update on my end. The bowfist molds should be ready for a trial run tonight (if the daughter gives me anytime, may be after she goes to bed  ) I am going to roto-cast the fist, but think I am going to go solid plastic for the bow pieces for this first run. For the quantity of resin, just not sure if trying to roto-cast these 2 pieces is worth the extra effort. I will tinker with them later, maybe. Poured a GaiKing missile tab piece and will see if the plastic is more cured tonight to allow its installation. Maybe one more night if needed. Took some photos of the GaiKing wing again (trimmed the wing mold and have less outside edge trimming, not sure if anything can be done since it is an open, single piece mold and can't see going to a full enclosed 2 piece mold for it at all), and will share sometime when I get to that. I have started to "vacuum" the resin after mixing, it reduces much of the little tiny surface bubble pits that could be present. With the resin I am using, only have about 4 to 5 minutes to get any vacuum done before the resin will start to set and thicken up in another minute or two after that time. One pour was very close, lol, started setting up seconds after I got the pour done. |
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Post by magengar on May 9, 2011 13:22:46 GMT -5
Wow, that seems like quite a task for sure,
but it's turning out awesome.
I don't have any Vacuuming tools, so I have to
pour my resin mixtures slowly to avoid trapping
air inside the mold.
I've been thinking about making my own Vac
drum using a 5-gal. bucket with a plexiglass lid,
gaskets, a rubber hose, and a fishtank pump...
...but the pressure would probably be too weak
to suck air bubbles to the surface.
If I do get air bubbles, I gently tap the mold with
a pencil against the side of the mold box to
bring the bubbles up to the surface and pop
them with a needle. ;D
zozo-Mag
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Post by bourno on May 9, 2011 14:38:05 GMT -5
With the silicone that I am using, it trapped a lot of air bubbles when mixing, so needed to pop those bubbles before pouring a mold. I bought a 2-1/2 gallon pressure paint tank, wanted to be able to pressurize castings as well. Pressurizing the resin to around 40-50 psi will take any tiny air bubbles down to nothing.
To pull a vacuum, I tried a Harbor Freight air conditioner vacuum pump ($15) that worked by an air compressor, but not good enough to pull the small air bubbles out of the silicone. I had to rotate the cup to help pop the bubbles. After pouring a little, I used an air blower to pop any bubbles on the first thin pour of the piece I was making a mold of, and then pour more silicone.
In the end, I got a 120 volt vacuum pump from Harbor Freight ($100) that is used for vacuuming automotive air conditioner lines. It can pull a little more vacuum (29" of mercury, compared to 27") and works great.
I do have to watch for trapped air when pouring resin in a couple molds, but that is a trapped air problem and need extra air relief instead. For the wing, I am getting a pretty nice mirror cure on the surface now for the most part. On the earlier wings, if you looked very close, you could see tiny little pitting at times or in certain spots from popped bubbles that came to the surface.
For my vacuum lid, I used 1/2" plexiglass and for the gasket. I first smeared some vaseline around the can lip, then used 100% clear silicone in a tube from the hardware store. I mixed the silicone with a little acrylic paint (the water in the paint helps cure regular, thick household silicone properly and much quicker). I spread this around the outer lid and then placed onto the can. Made a great seal.
Sorry for the different jumps in the post for my brain train.
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Post by magengar on May 10, 2011 15:20:40 GMT -5
That's great info on the vacuum and gasket-making stuff, Thanks! Soon as I get around to it asap I'll get the parts and stuff from my local Harbor Freight store in Albany (they've got awesome deals on top-notch tools!)... at least as soon as I'm ready to do large castings. I'm not math/tech-savy when it comes to psi's and the mercury stuff, but once I research and study those references I'll figure them out. For now, my castings and molds are small enough to Slow-Pour thus avoiding critical air bubbles. I've been lucky thus far not needing to make air-vents to let air outta the mold; but I should get into doing that as a standard practice. I had some large air bubbles in a top-half mold last night, because I added too much release agent and didn't spread it around evenly. The bubbles didn't affect the "print" area of the mold; and for the object which I'm making I'm gonna sand it down to trim off the "fat". A "mirror" cure? As in, so shiny you could almost see your reflection in it? That's an amazing feat to cure an object That smoothly! I imagine that Gaiking wing is probably a little bigger than a flat-opened human hand... is it made of Solid resin all the way, or did you use a filler inside the resin? It looks rigid, so i guess it is solid all the way. Great job, keep 'em coming! zozo-Mag |
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Post by bourno on May 10, 2011 15:42:11 GMT -5
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Post by magengar on May 10, 2011 16:30:54 GMT -5
I see what you mean, those missiles look awesome! And that Gaiking wing looks so beautifuly made, like it was meant to be there as an original part to that Gaiking! SchwEEt! Before I completely run out of materials, I need to cast a pair of horns for my Gaiking jumbo, asap.  zozo-mag |
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Post by bourno on May 12, 2011 8:59:39 GMT -5
Thought I would toss out a progress update. Played with the BowFist again last night. Making repros of fists is not an easy thing (to keep lightweight that is). I was roto-casting the fist and worked well except for any sharp corners, the plastic goes very thin there as it doesn't have a smooth surface to stay there. And roto-casting can be a little messy  To get a good fist (after 2 other attempts), had to leave the molds open for a first pour and slush around some. As the plastic started to thicken, I manually moved the plastic to the sharp edge areas to have a good, thick plastic coverage at those places. Next, I put the 2 mold pieces together and did a 2nd pour. Looking into the fist at a light, I saw a couple thin spots and did a small 3rd pour. Got a successful fist without weak spots now (won't crack or break at the edges very easily), but weighs twice as much as the original fist. I am re-thinking how to make this fist and yet not end up with a heavy, and resin hungry mold. (ie: have a middle insert and pour like a normal copy to have thick walls which would be easier, but the fist would take more resin and be heavy) Making the fist right now is a little messy and time consuming process to not have a fragile and easy to crack and break at any sharp edge. I tried to roto-cast the bow pieces and made a bigger mess than the fist, and took 2 pours to get the thickness I wanted. Pouring them solid takes too much resin and on the heavy side. Gonna have to brainstorm and then decide whether I really want to do many bowfists or other fists. Eats up a good hour of time to make the parts for one. Otherwise, the wings are going very well and making more. I still need to update on low cost "blemish" ones for those wanting. And a special 'RJ' price for quality wings that would be of ebay selling quality too. |
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Post by willohio on May 12, 2011 21:43:32 GMT -5
So you're really needing a real Bowfist to sacrifice to the cause aren't you? So you can split it and get a good cast for an insert?
Yahoo Japan has had them up sporadically as parts... I'll keep an eye out... seem to seel for 4000yen... atleast the last 2 I remember seeing...
Maybe Kitsir could find one as well...
~Will
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Post by bourno on May 13, 2011 7:25:27 GMT -5
For an insert, I would just make a plain jane silicone cylinder to stick down into it. The down side of that, the wrist/forearm could be down to an 1/8" thick, but the fist area could be anywhere from 1/2" to 3/4" for thickness from the insert as it would need to stay the same size or taper slightly in order to remove.
When I get back from a work trip next week, I will tinker around some more. I didn't think the sharp edges would affect so much and was hoping for quicker results.
Will, I will get you a repro bowfist or two, just let me know. The color I have now, is a dark purple without the hint a blue tinge when you look at the original fist. Is kinda close.
I just don't know how many more after making myself 2 or 3 with the method described above. I want to make a "custom" bowfist with a shooting arrow yet.
I may have an idea or two for easier re-casts, but may have to start over with new molds possibly if my idea for modifying the current molds don't work. But, am going to make a few repros just in case before doing that.
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Post by KingboyD on May 13, 2011 8:15:00 GMT -5
Depending on price, I might be interested in a bowfist too. Is there a risk of the resin cracking when placed over the arm? The original plastic can bend a little, so it fits easily over the ridges without risk of damage. How does the resin hold up when attaching it? |
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Post by magengar on May 13, 2011 13:40:10 GMT -5
Lemme see if I can draw a picture of an insert for you. From what I understand, yes, you may have to cut an original fist in half (along the seam) in order to make an insert which will allow you a hollow casting of the fist. The insert should be made of silicone and tapered in the fist area so it will pull out of the casting without stretching and breaking off in there, provided enough release agent is applied to it so it will come out easily... While at the same time giving you at least 1/8th to 1/4th of an inch thickness in the fist area around the knuckles and fingers. That's my rough-sketch calculation. I'll report back with a drawing by tomorrow afternoon. zozo-Mag For an insert, I would just make a plain jane silicone cylinder to stick down into it. The down side of that, the wrist/forearm could be down to an 1/8" thick, but the fist area could be anywhere from 1/2" to 3/4" for thickness from the insert as it would need to stay the same size or taper slightly in order to remove. When I get back from a work trip next week, I will tinker around some more. I didn't think the sharp edges would affect so much and was hoping for quicker results. Will, I will get you a repro bowfist or two, just let me know. The color I have now, is a dark purple without the hint a blue tinge when you look at the original fist. Is kinda close. I just don't know how many more after making myself 2 or 3 with the method described above. I want to make a "custom" bowfist with a shooting arrow yet. I may have an idea or two for easier re-casts, but may have to start over with new molds possibly if my idea for modifying the current molds don't work. But, am going to make a few repros just in case before doing that. |
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Post by bourno on May 13, 2011 16:20:26 GMT -5
Depending on price, I might be interested in a bowfist too. Is there a risk of the resin cracking when placed over the arm? The original plastic can bend a little, so it fits easily over the ridges without risk of damage. How does the resin hold up when attaching it? I need to let resin cure a couple days to check on that. I am using a less hard resin andthinking so be okay but will test tomorrow. Am going to make 2 or 3 fists the harder way and then I have an idea for modifying he mold from a 2 piece system, to 4 piece mold. But have a trip and wont get to that for at least a week then to begin on it |
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