Getting Started with Resin?

[Ben Mininberg]

Hi all!
Sanjeev has encouraged me to take a real look at resin casting, so I'm trying to gather some information. I have some ideas, but I want to have a good understanding of the process and limitations before I start sculpting...
I've read through the 'Resin from the Grave' thread, and got some good understanding of the basic process of making a mold, but are there some good pointers for the nuances of that process? Unless I'm severely overthinking this, it seems like there must be a 'right' way to position the figure in the mold for best performance... What about products that you guys prefer? I's there an ideal starting product or set to buy? I get MicroMark catalogs, and I know they sell Smooth-On resin... is that any good?
Any help you guys have is greatly appreciated!

[Brian]

I use smooth-on products. They're super easy to use.

[Kel Wilson]

I buy my smooth-on products from Reynolds advanced materials. They are a branch of Smooth-on with a closer location that makes for faster / cheaper shipping.

They have several locations.

http://www.reynoldsam.com/

[Butch Adams]

Thanks for the info on Reynolds. I had been buying smooth on prods from smooth on and paying a lot more in shipping. I just put in a silicone and resin order, got it fast and a heck of a lot cheaper to ship.

Kel Wilson said:

I buy my smooth-on products from Reynolds advanced materials. They are a branch of Smooth-on with a closer location that makes for faster / cheaper shipping.

They have several locations.

http://www.reynoldsam.com/

[Robert Rodriguez]

I’m getting geared up for my first attempt at the resin process and have a quick question.  I’ve been debating whether I should get a mold release spray.  I didn’t pick it up in my initial batch of materials and am wondering how useful it would be, compared to Vaseline.  Any insight would be appreciated.

 

I saw this on Spanky Spokes yesterday on that it did a great job of summing up the process and showing potential things to watch for as a novice:

http://toyship.bigcartel.com/my-diy-toys-book

[Ben Mininberg]

Using mold release depends a lot on what silicone and resin you are using.  If you're just assuming you'll want a release agent, a spray kind is going to be a lot easier to use and clean up than Vaseline.

Robert Rodriguez said:

I’m getting geared up for my first attempt at the resin process and have a quick question.  I’ve been debating whether I should get a mold release spray.  I didn’t pick it up in my initial batch of materials and am wondering how useful it would be, compared to Vaseline.  Any insight would be appreciated.

 

I saw this on Spanky Spokes yesterday on that it did a great job of summing up the process and showing potential things to watch for as a novice:

http://toyship.bigcartel.com/my-diy-toys-book

[Robert Rodriguez]

Thanks.  I'll be using Alumilite resin and their quickcast silicone.  That Resin From the Grave tutorial really spelled things out for me and gave me the nerve to try it sooner rather than later.

Can't wait to get some practice under my belt.

[Ben Mininberg]

Sounds awesome!  Things really come together once you've run the whole process through from mold making to pulling casts once... from there, you've nowhere to go but up!

[Paperdaniel]

man, i love to see people being helpful and willing to share. some artisans and hobby people are just the best. grown up kids with good hearts. really. its like all those years of watching sesame street paid off for some. co-operation and the letter for today is J...

[Robert Rodriguez]

I wanted to chime in to share the devastation of my first silicone mold attempt.  I made two rookie mistakes that caused much cursing and heartbreak last night.  The first was not calculating how much silicone I'd need.  I had a 1 lb package and used a little too much creating the first half of the mold.  1 lb was surprisingly little, but I probably would have had barely enough if I used a little less on the first half.
The second mistake, which was the more boneheaded of the two, was forgetting to apply the mold release to the first half of the cured silicone before pouring the second half in.  I was freaking out a little about how little silicone I had to pour and just forgot this crucial step. 
It wouldn't have mattered too much I suppose, as there really wasn't enough silicone.  I was able to shift the mold in a way that barely covered the original inside, but it would have been an extremely thin in key areas.

Only slightly defeated, I feel like I've earned the 'If at first you don't succeed' badge that seems to plague a lot of first time projects like these.  I was able to cut open the silicone this morning and saw how nice it would have come out it it worked, which gives me hope for the next try.

I had used the Alumite Quickcast silicone, and even with the snafu, thought it was pretty easy to work with.  I've since learned there is a Tap Plastics nearby that sells a similar product and was wondering if I should pick some up.  Should I expect the Tap silicone to be essentially the same?

[Ben Mininberg]

I use TAP Platinum, and it's awesome.  I'm sure the other TAP silicones are good, but I've not personally used them or compared them to other brands.  Likes you said, though, you've gone through your trial by fire.  Even if your first mold didn't survive, you've seen where the challenges are for next time.

[Robert Rodriguez]

Steadily making progress and was hoping for more advice on how to improve.  I picked up that TAP Platinum and agree that it's awesome.  The mold making process went much smoother and I started pouring my first figures last week.  The first two pieces of my Chess Board Gang are The Mystery King (big) and Little Buddy (small):

Pouring a few really clued me in to how to approach seams and air holes and I think the next ones will be even better.  There are two issues I wanted to ask about before proceeding.

1. Buffing - I got a few different fine sand papers (320-400) and tried using a dremel buffing wheel.  I was able to get the seams really smooth, but the process has dulled the area.  I figure I should be using some sort of buffing agent, but am definitely in the dark.  Any recommendations?

2.Air bubbles - Seems like a common issue and I figure the chess piece ridges make it easy for air to get trapped.  I've been looking at a few pressure pot options and am looking forward to picking one up soon.  This should take care of the bubble problem, right?

(I kinda like the swiss cheese look it creates, hehehe.  I was tempted to rename it "Swisswreck.")

[Sanjeev]

Love the luchador head!

 

Anyway, I'm hardly an expert, so maybe the experienced guys can jump in...but here's one technique I've heard:

You take the master/pattern and use some cheap silicone to make a simple one-piece mold with *no* venting at all. Make a single casting with *no pressurizing*. Then examine the casting for where the bubbles are, or any other trouble spots. Then, with that knowledge, make your next mold with better stuff and vent it properly in those areas where the bubbles were. This method takes out the guesswork...and eventually, when you have your pressure pot, you'll already have an optimized mold.

 

Hope that helps!