Other days, not so much.
I had time and opportunity to do some casting today. Having had a look at my first attempts, I did a little venting and some test pours, then a little more, then I played a bit with the clamping.......
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| SYW Prussian body with new Jaeger head. Now to turn this into a 1793 Austrian or maybe I'll start with an Hungarian unit if I can find the bleeping Hungarian mould. (Hmm looking at this, I think I need to flatten the crown of the cap.) |
Finally I tried a few trusty moulds to see if they were still working well. Hmm.... not so much. Whether it was me, atmospheric conditions or something else, some days its just not worth the hassle or risk spoiling a new mould.
Anyway I have a few more fully cast bodies and some pieces including an arm waving a hat for General Montcalm, just no complete casts from any one mould let alone enough skirmishers to make a unit of Grenz or Friekorps for my Allied army.
Another day then.
We have one local gamer who's become pretty adept at 3D printing. (His kids got it for him last Xmas.) Wondering if there's a file for Fr Rev Österreich inf. If so, you could bang out, say, two a' these babies every 90 mins! All while eating your breakfast, taking a nap, etc.
ReplyDeleteWell that would be considerably slower as well as more expensive than my current system. Once I get a new mould settled in I can cast a couple of figures a minute...
DeleteYes, most certainly there are some days that the combination of metal temp, atmospheric conditions or just a capricious nature to the rubber causes not much to work out.
ReplyDeleteWhat are you using as a mold release and pour agent?
I have really liked using the extra fine graphite powder, as it works well on the home made RTV ones and the Prince August ones I have. I did 10 packs of the RIVETS BOPPERS today for an order someone has made, and needed to 're-dust' the molds one time with the powder.
Nothing so fancy. Just the talc version on baby powder. Over the last decades its generally worked well enough for me.
Deletehow do you store your talc? from what I understand it can become less useful if the moisture gets into the material
Deleteperhaps it is time to get a new container of talc? I am suggesting this because I have found the mold release is something that I did not think enough about in the past, yet now that I have embraced the better quality graphite powder I have had better performance from my molds
The Goddess of Home Casting is very fickle with her favours ....
ReplyDeleteLike most goddesses...
DeleteThis is a great result! For an Austrian casquet, a flat crown would be better.
ReplyDeleteShould be an easy enough jib so I only need 11 but there are a few other little details to consider. Luckily they are supposed to be toy soldiers rather than models so there is some leeway.
DeleteJust a thought, with my rubber moulds I must dust occasionally with French chalk to improve the flowing of the metal into all the detail. But my moulds are home-made.
ReplyDeleteMichael
I dust mine with talc, both the homemade and the store bought ones.
DeleteAre you going to convert each head into the flatter topped Austrian version? Or do one and make a mould?
ReplyDeleteI only need 11 so a bit of filing will be cheaper, quicker and easier for me than making a new mould.
DeleteWell, Ross, since I don't have the patience for homecasting, I'd say your figure looks just the thing.
ReplyDeleteHope you get to enjoy a Happy Thanksgiving, tomorrow.
All the best;
Eric
Thanks.we'll do our best.
DeleteRoss
ReplyDeleteI agree there are some days when they cast and others they don't.
On a good day I keep going until the moulds are too hot to handle - or beer time.
Steve
Always best to save the beer till after!
DeleteIt must be quite engrossing to be able to put together different configurations and cast your figures; I know it's engrossing to read about the process. As an aside, your mention of "venting" as a step brought to mind how I use that process as well--although in my case it is a verbal exercise usually following a slip of the brush.
ReplyDeleteand that process is just as useful and is much better than throwing the figure against the wall!
DeleteIt was discouraged on my mother's side but one of her brother's used substitute French phrases like a convincing "CREME de menthe!!"