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One of the things I'm thinking about for my Guard army is making some heads with ANZAC-style slouch hats. And with the various equipment packs for Tallarn, Elysians, and DKoK all showing how each of these regiments have their own style of lasgun, I've been thinking of sculpting my own lasgun.

Here's my problem - I don't want to have to sculpt 50-100 of these. So I figure I should look into some basic resin casting so I can sculpt up one and then make my own copies of it.

Can anyone out there with some resin casting experience direct me to some sites with info on the basics of the subject?

I'm also interested in this.

Resin is little too finicky for very small pieces (such as guns) for the first timer. Metal casting will work out around the same cost, and be a little more forgiving. Note that the cost is still 'not cheap', for one-offs, but will pay off around the 20-60 units mark.

If you use the right rubber (the heat resistant kind), then once you get the kinks out of the mould (with metal, ALL your miscasts can go straight back into the pot), you can switch to resin without much of an issue.

One of the best sites I know for information on resin casting is actually a site that sells plaster cast molds - Hirst Arts. The Hirst Arts tutorial on resin casting is excellent though and has all of the basic info you need to get started:

Mold Making: http://www.hirstarts.com/moldmake/moldmaking.html
Casting in Resin: http://www.hirstarts.com/casting/plastic.html

Starship modelers website also has some nice articles on the subject:

Basics for beginners: http://www.starshipmodeler.com/basics/jc_molds.htm
Full Primer: http://www.starshipmodeler.com/projects/jw_resin.htm

Here's a few more articles from some other sites that you might find helpful:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Two-Part-Silicone-Casting/
http://www.thelastalliance.com/index.php?pid=disparticle&catid=4&subid=25&artilceid=3212
http://www.aeroscale.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=1564
http://ultrawerke.blogspot.com/2007/02/resin-castig-tutorial-part-i.html

I've done some resin casts before and it really isn't as hard as it might seem, and you can get some excellent results for really small parts.

Keith

Myrlyn wrote:One of the best sites I know for information on resin casting is actually a site that sells plaster cast molds - Hirst Arts. The Hirst Arts tutorial on resin casting is excellent though and has all of the basic info you need to get started:

Mold Making: http://www.hirstarts.com/moldmake/moldmaking.html
Casting in Resin: http://www.hirstarts.com/casting/plastic.html

Starship modelers website also has some nice articles on the subject:

Basics for beginners: http://www.starshipmodeler.com/basics/jc_molds.htm
Full Primer: http://www.starshipmodeler.com/projects/jw_resin.htm

Here's a few more articles from some other sites that you might find helpful:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Two-Part-Silicone-Casting/
http://www.thelastalliance.com/index.php?pid=disparticle&catid=4&subid=25&artilceid=3212
http://www.aeroscale.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=1564
http://ultrawerke.blogspot.com/2007/02/resin-castig-tutorial-part-i.html

I've done some resin casts before and it really isn't as hard as it might seem, and you can get some excellent results for really small parts.

Keith

Thanks alot.
Do you have an estimate on start up costs?

I picked up one of these for $60.
The book was mostly useless; the above links provided much of the same information. the Modeling clay was useful for making a half-mold. the silicone worked fairly well; although it dried out after a few casts, and some of the finer detail bits got lost. I used baby powder as a release agent some folks suggested other (personal) lubricants but I never tried them.

The Silicone worked well also for a series of cut-away molds. I had some issues with air-bubbles, but nothing a little Greenstuff wouldn't fix.

Be VERY careful with the resin, it's not terribly healthy to breathe; or get on your skin (vinyl gloves are good). Be attentive to the quantity for mixing (I used a scale to ensure equal mixing). Also; resin comes out of the molds a bit soft so be careful!

Alumilite sells a good beginner kit for around $30, as for using it I learned by just playing with the stuff.

After about 2 months I was capable of casting some really complex parts.
The real trick is getting ahold of a good vacuum pump&chamber AND an air compressor&pressure pot, both are vital for quality results.

NO_SUCH_LUCK wrote:Alumilite sells a good beginner kit for around $30, as for using it I learned by just playing with the stuff.

After about 2 months I was capable of casting some really complex parts.
The real trick is getting ahold of a good vacuum pump&chamber AND an air compressor&pressure pot, both are vital for quality results.

Agreed, I have about $1000.00 invested in equipment.

I recommend smooth on products http://smoothon.com

As for information, just google search terms how to cast resin, RTV molding, resin casting and so on..Pleanty of info out there.

Check the for sale section, Prezmas was offering a resin casting service to people .

Yep, I've put a pm in to him about it. I'm beginning to see that while learning casting would be a valuable skills and could do me very good in the long run, I don't know if I have the time or money to invest in doing it properly right now.

Xenite scuplted and cast gas-mask enclosed-helmet heads for his IG (see them here)- I'll see if I can track him down and get him to post advice from his own experience.

I have tried doing more fine detailed parts such as arms and legs with minor success, and major pain in the tail. I have some further methods that I have yet to try for that, but if you have any questions about casting larger, less awkward stuff like heads give me a shout.

Why not buy Anzac heads from a WW2 minitures company?

The only one that I know about that does separate heads is West Wind - are there others out there that do separate heads? If there's a place out there I can get ANZAC heads from, I'll be happy to order them from there.