Strengthening Weapons

[shaggy182182]

Me and my buddy made a Carbine model, but we can't think of a way to make it really durable without bondo'ing it. My idea was to Resin the outside, then cut the thing in half, fiberglass the inside and glue it back together.

If you guys have a better way to do this that is still fairly cheap, please please please let me know.

 

[rundown]

Well propmaking aint cheap so I cant really give you a cheap solution...
Maybe make it in wood. But youve gotta be a craftsman to be able to make it neat.

 

[shaggy182182]

I've already made the pepakura card stock model though, so how would i go about strengthening that?

 

[GUNNEY SGT bob]

hmm im cinda a noob but maby you could put a hole in it and put expanding foam in but not too much or you might have a blow out! thats just my idea.

 

[shaggy182182]

how much does that stuff go for?
another thing, if anyone has any tips for mold making, that would be good too

 

[rundown]

You should cut it in 2 like you said... Best solution to me

 

[shaggy182182]

Honestly I can't think of a better way to do it.

 

[sirblood]

well, here's an idea to strengthen the inside without cutting it in 1/2. Use smooth cast, cut a small hole, pour it it, plug the hole and roll it around. do that a couple of times and you should be set. Just be aware that it will get kinda hot and you will have to seal ALL of the holes 1st otherwise you will have a real mess on your hands.

 

[M07Marauder]

Literally ^

 

[rundown]

well, here's an idea to strengthen the inside without cutting it in 1/2. Use smooth cast, cut a small hole, pour it it, plug the hole and roll it around. do that a couple of times and you should be set. Just be aware that it will get kinda hot and you will have to seal ALL of the holes 1st otherwise you will have a real mess on your hands.

thats like impossible to do... since pepakura has holes everywhere... I kinda think it'll be one big mess

 

[Yodajammies]

For the smooth-cast method - Consider giving your paper model a couple coats of clear coat acrylic spray. This may seal up a couple of those smaller holes, but yes, you will need it completely sealed before attempting this or you will be wasting a lot of $.

 

[delta38]

I used expanding foam with my peped guns, and it worked great! I patched up some of the holes with hot glue then just sprayed it in in small amounts at a time, to prevent the pep from exploding when the foam expands. (i didn't realise it expands so much, lol)
But if u do it right, it works amazingly!!
Heres my stuff. A can of foam here costs about $15 AUD

 

[box o crayons]

yea expanding foam works the best and bondo isnt strong its really brittle thats why it needs something to keep its shape if you use it you need to fiberglass it first or it will crack

 

[ninjaspartan]

i believe there are stikies if not then black rose did a tut on expanding foam, but yeah the cutting in half is a good way to do it. good luck

 

[JediStumpy]

Yes expanding foam works well. Get the "window foam" it expands less so less of a chance it blows up.
Acrylic paint is a good idea as well or shellac spray but I'd go with the acrylic.
the smooth-on isn't impossible but it is the most costly (not to bad) but you would have to wait until it is shipped.
Expanding foam you can do in a day and get the same day.
Also you can resin the outside first with one thin coat if you wanted to as well.
good luck

 

[spaz47]

I think the best thing would be to:
1. Resin the outside of the carbine.
2. Cut it either in half or the back part off
3 Take a cup of resin and pour it into the gun and move it around so that it coats it all in a nice
thick layer and keep moving it untill it gets hard or un moving(15 minuets)

you can use the same idea with your helmet.
1.resin outside to fill all the holes(let dry first for 3 hours)
2. fill inside with like twenty ounces of resin and keep rotating it untill it is no longer runny.

Works like a charm and makes it very hard and fillsall cracks from the inside with a
good layer to make it smooth afterwards.

I really wouldny suggest foam becuse it does expand alot.

 

[shaggy182182]

thanks a lot guys, this is really really helpful.

 

[TheSpartanMjolnir]

hmmmm, well molding wouldn't help at where you are at right now. Expanding foam is a great method, but i would prefer to use the hot glue method. But if you already had fiberglass cloth and the resin, then i would already have the thing cut in half. Then I'd fiberglass cloth the inside. Try to hot glue the two together, then resin the outside. and cloth the cut lines.

 

[Spawn Camp3r]

well If you want you could resin and split it in two then fiberglass then use expanding foam and cut off the extra then glue them together

 

[abrant3]

Here's what I do:

Coat the entire exterior of the model with a 50% resin 50% body filler mix to plug holes (brush away excess).
Then rotary cast the inside with a mix of resin and fine fiberglass chop (make sure the chop is fine enough to let the resin flow freely; you need to get in every nook and cranny).
Sand, paint, detail, and install the barrel, scope, and other accessories.

I like this method because it is cheap ($35 for a gallon of resin), you don't have to worry about cutting your model in half then putting it back together, and adds adequate strength and weight to the model; making it feel like a real rifle.

It works just fine for me.