 October 9, 2008 - 2:53pm | Here is a website that will get you started. http://www.hobbycast.net/ You can get a decent mold for casting wax, ceramic, or plasic copies. Once you make one you can make several copies. Or, you can biuld your own CNC using this as a base. http://www.instructables.com/id/Easy-to-build-CNC-Mill-Stepper-Motor-and-Driver-ci/ It just depends on how much time you want to invest in it. I am trying to make some to the size of 10 to 20 inches for 3D details. |
 October 9, 2008 - 6:02pm | Do you have pics of your work in progress and casts? |
October 11, 2008 - 7:17pm | No I don't have any. I never thought about making a set of pictures on this. Anyway, I am still working on my home-made CNC to cut them out of larger stock. Hmmmmm, solid steel SF battleship makes you wonder. I am looking at making them with lights like an old Star Trek Enterprise ship I used to have. It might be awhile before I can post anything. My time frame I would like to have is in a few weeks, but you know how that goes. Maybe between Thanksgiving and Christmas is more realistic. Anyhow, I did not like the electronics that the designer used at the site so I made an easier design and a smarter layout If you want to make some miniatures quickly here is how. Get some playdoh, yes I said playdoh. Why? Because when you let it set over night it will harden. I like to let them set over two days. Anyway, here is how you do it. It's cheap and if you make a mistake you do not have $$$$ invested into it. Get something thicker than the miniature you are about to copy. Two is preferred to support a rolling pin to roll the playdough into a flat surface. Once you have done that take your mini and slowly press it into the playdough about half way up the mini into the playdough. Set it somewhere so it can dry. This is your mold. If it does not work the first time. Start over do it again with practice you will get it. After your mold dries you can coat it with water then press playdough into the mold firmly. Not to hard because your mold will break. Use enough playdough to be able to pull it out. Then you cutt of the playdough you do not want. If you want a 3D mini you have to make a mold from both sides. Set both halves on a flat surface to make sure that it is straight and flat. By the way, it took me about a million times to do it at a reasonable level of proficiency. When you get what you want. Let them dry for a few days. Then paint them any desired color you want like you would any other mini. The bad thing with this way is that it will not pickup on fine details. If you are good at working with clay modeling you can carve in the details. Or, make a completly different design based on what you used. I do not have pictures of them either. It's a trial and error learning experience. I do use this method to make many items. It is not perfect for any kind of detail. Keep this in mind. It is just a cheap method to get a rough molding of what you want to duplicate. Have fun. |
 October 13, 2008 - 2:58pm | Playdoh miniatures....learn something new every day. "You're everything that's base in humanity," Cochrane continued. "Drawing up strict, senseless rules for the sole reason of putting you at the top and excluding anyone you say doesn't belong or fit in, for no other reason than just because you say so." —Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stephens, Federation |
