TROP_101
Sculpt update on the Parwan (Ron Cobb Tropical Rainforest Creature Cantina concept) - 1:18 scale.
So....per my last post, I made mold of the leaf sculpt and created a single cast. I allowed the cast to cure and attempted to use a heat gun to soften the plastic and bend to shape.
The heat gun works fine to soften the plastic cast. The problem is the cast cools too quickly and I have to heat it several times to get the shape I want. By doing so, the thin plastic begins to give and break. I didn't get a complete break, but there's obvious "splits" beginning to form as you can see in the images.
Also, there is an issue with what I like to call "muscle memory" within the casting. Whenever I reheat the cast, it wants to revert back to its straightened form which forces me to bend areas that were shaped once before...thus the breaking/splitting.
If any of you collect GI Joe Classified figures, you know some of them come with wonky, bent accessories. These can be easily straightened with a heat gun or hot water but most of the time they revert to their bent and wonky ways..."muscle memory".
My alternative to fix this issue will be to bend a cast, fresh out of the mold before it fully cures. I've done this before creating tubes and wire for the Nostromo dioramas so I don't see why it will be any different now. This will negate the "muscle memory" if ti cures at the shape I want...The trick will be to shape the leaves appropriately for the figure to stand. I feel I can use the heat gun again for SLIGHT adjustments if needed.
Hope all works well - updates soon!
#starwars #parwan #cantina #concept #cantinacreature #customactionfigure #roncobb #sculpture #casting #shaping #plastic #miniature #actionfigure
TROP_101
Sculpt update on the Parwan (Ron Cobb Tropical Rainforest Creature Cantina concept) - 1:18 scale.
So....per my last post, I made mold of the leaf sculpt and created a single cast. I allowed the cast to cure and attempted to use a heat gun to soften the plastic and bend to shape.
The heat gun works fine to soften the plastic cast. The problem is the cast cools too quickly and I have to heat it several times to get the shape I want. By doing so, the thin plastic begins to give and break. I didn't get a complete break, but there's obvious "splits" beginning to form as you can see in the images.
Also, there is an issue with what I like to call "muscle memory" within the casting. Whenever I reheat the cast, it wants to revert back to its straightened form which forces me to bend areas that were shaped once before...thus the breaking/splitting.
If any of you collect GI Joe Classified figures, you know some of them come with wonky, bent accessories. These can be easily straightened with a heat gun or hot water but most of the time they revert to their bent and wonky ways..."muscle memory".
My alternative to fix this issue will be to bend a cast, fresh out of the mold before it fully cures. I've done this before creating tubes and wire for the Nostromo dioramas so I don't see why it will be any different now. This will negate the "muscle memory" if ti cures at the shape I want...The trick will be to shape the leaves appropriately for the figure to stand. I feel I can use the heat gun again for SLIGHT adjustments if needed.
Hope all works well - updates soon!
#starwars #parwan #cantina #concept #cantinacreature #customactionfigure #roncobb #sculpture #casting #shaping #plastic #miniature #actionfigure