"Help!" for: Molding

[Dani Girl]

Hey again everyone, I accidentally forgot a question. What are the 'registration keys' for on the mold?

Registration keys are "notches" in a two-part mold that allows you to line up your mold pieces together when you are laying up your fiberglass/liquid plastic/resin.


Example of Registration Keys are seen in this (the circle notches all along the side of the cast): One side is "male" the other side is "female":

Here are some links discussing how to do registration keys for your mold:
http://www.smooth-on.com/gallery.php?galleryid=098
http://www.reynoldsam.com/gallery.php?galleryid=455

 

[drumcore19]

Thank you SO much for the help! Sorry about the terms, I just cont confused on a few of them. I now feel confident in going the molding route. Thanks again

 

[BLACKULA727]

I apologize if this is a dumb question, but does anyone know how long I need to wait before I can seperate my mother mold from the silicone mold. My mother mold is made of fiberglass. Thanks 405th members!

 

[Brandon McClain]

@blackula- you can remove it as soon as the fiberglass is cured. I usually leave mine overnight, but that is just me.

 

[BLACKULA727]

Thanks Brandon, Its been 8 hours and it seems cured, but I think I'll wait till tomorrow. Seems to be the general consensus. I'm just so damn impatient and I need to know if I jacked up the print layer or the keys or etc... Anyways, thanks again for your help. Whats one more day.

 

[GhostAlpha]

Hey everyone,
Just a quick question, I heard that molding and casting costs tons of money, so when you make a mold how many times can you reuse it?
Thanks

 

[Dani Girl]

Hey everyone,
Just a quick question, I heard that molding and casting costs tons of money, so when you make a mold how many times can you reuse it?
Thanks

depends

depends on how thick your rubber mold is; how it cured; how the plaster jacket was done; if you didn't screw up while casting (if done wrong, your pull can actually tear the mold).

depends on how you store it; how you handle it; where you store it. etc

 

[tomahawknutter]

hey guys, i have an army of two mask that i would like to mould to make more for me and bro, whats the best way, ive seen loads of vids but they all for helmets, ive figured out that cause theres no flat surfaces its a complex mould that needs a key or 2 part mould, but whats the best way to go about this with the mask ?? i really want to be able to wear them, thanks anyone who helps, pm please or anything lol, im desperate

 

[sk8almostbay]

can anyone reference me to the best method for molding my unsc knife and sheath? all i need to know is how-to and the materials. thanks guys

-Bailey

 

[BLACKULA727]

can anyone reference me to the best method for molding my unsc knife and sheath? all i need to know is how-to and the materials. thanks guys

-Bailey

Seal it with paint and make a two part mold using Rebound 25. Thats what I would do. You will need:
Paint
Rebound 25
Clay
Mold release, or Petroleum Jelly

Do something like thishttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSH19G_6Yeo

 

[sk8almostbay]

Thanks blackula! you are very helpful! i was thinking about using smooth-on products but they are very expensive! i wish that they had a medium size that you can order instead of a gallon or trial sized.

 

[iTzOminousTic]

What's the cheapest and best way to make a mold of a helmet? I wanna make a mold for my daft punk helmet

 

[LunarTorres]

Is it fine if i use Mold-Craft Liquid Rubber Mold Builder 3.78L(1Gallon) ( http://www.wallacks.com/catalogue/catalog.php?cat=pm7&table=ceramics )

 

[Fudz073]

For for the master helmet in which I'll form the mold around, I reinforced the pepakura with smooth cast 300. The setting time is about two minutes. There are several more options from the smooth cast line of products, with each resin taking longer to cure than the last. For the final cast into the master silicone mold, will I be all right using the 300 version or does anyone recommend using a longer curing version? If so, why? Thanks for the help.

 

[Fudz073]

Is it fine if i use Mold-Craft Liquid Rubber Mold Builder 3.78L(1Gallon) ( http://www.wallacks.com/catalogue/ca...table=ceramics )

I've never used the stuff but I have researched it as a possible mold compound. I personally wouldn't recommend it. From what i've read it shrinks considerably after drying which would distort the dimensions of your final casting. Again, this is what i've read. I haven't actually tried it out.

 

[HistoryFox]

After making the mold could you use rondo to cast the helmet?

 

[iTzOminousTic]

Any good alternatives to mold making? Like instead of using Smooth-on products because they are expensive as hell.

I was told that this would work for the silicon mold portion
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Silicone-RT...393?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3369dc54c1

 

[ventrue]

Any good alternatives to mold making? Like instead of using Smooth-on products because they are expensive as hell.

I was told that this would work for the silicon mold portion
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Silicone-RT...393?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3369dc54c1

Just for your reference: A 2 lbs trial kit of Smooth-On Dragonskin 10/20/30 costs 30.1$, so 4.4 lbs of the stuff would cost 66.22$, which is actually LESS than the 69$ of the product you linked there. But I don't really know much about moulding, so maybe the one you linked is better suited in the end, price isn't the only thing to look for after all.

 

[iTzOminousTic]

Just for your reference: A 2 lbs trial kit of Smooth-On Dragonskin 10/20/30 costs 30.1$, so 4.4 lbs of the stuff would cost 66.22$, which is actually LESS than the 69$ of the product you linked there. But I don't really know much about moulding, so maybe the one you linked is better suited in the end, price isn't the only thing to look for after all.

Thanx for this. I never heard of Dragonskin before so It's completely new to me.
The thing is, I don't know how much would I need to make a mold of my Daft Punk helmet.

EDIT: Well getting 2 Trial kits of Rebound 25 would match the 4.4 lbs of the one I posted but would it be enough?

 

[BLACKULA727]

Thanx for this. I never heard of Dragonskin before so It's completely new to me.
The thing is, I don't know how much would I need to make a mold of my Daft Punk helmet.

EDIT: Well getting 2 Trial kits of Rebound 25 would match the 4.4 lbs of the one I posted but would it be enough?

We would really need to see dimensions of the helmet. Also, Rebound is good, but it doesn't stretch as much as the Dragon skin, so you will need to use more of the Rebound to make a decent mold than you would have used if you went with dragon skin. Also, since its just the two trial kits, I would create a plan on this before you start slapping silicone on the helmet (to limit waste and make your silicone go further). I used a lot of rebound on my build only because I didn't plan appropriately. I found out the hard way that being ill prepared = headache and wasted material. I used roughly 12-14oz of silicone per layer and I had like 7 or 8 layers on my helmet (way to much). But it was my first experience at it. You will need to take into account the making of mold keys. Im not sure which Daft Punk helmet you are making, but the real popular dome looking one will need a few on it so that it doesn't fall in on itself. I'm no expert, so maybe some of the more advanced molding professionals on this site can way in. Good luck.

-Tony