Rodne Gold
02-29-2012, 1:23 AM
Some new developments for us this year is that we have taken new premises about 2km from us , mostly for storage - its 1800 sq ft with a mezzanine floor. Importing a whole years stock has hurt me in a few ways , room in my factory/workshop is at a huge premium as there are towers of boxes , stacks of acrylic and so on making it difficult and dangerous to navigate there , apart from that , the dent in my cash flow is only now starting to unravel. I am going to store excess stock there , maybe a vehicle or 2 (I collect american muscle) but more importantly , the small industrial unit we are renting has a huge extractor into one of its "rooms".
I have always wanted to expand and develop my limited moulding and casting setup , which was mickey mouse. The extractor is perfect , it will allow us to cast using cheaper polyester resins and use other stuff we couldnt cos of inadequate ventilation.
In terms of using silicon/rubber rubber moulds , one can cast using polyester , polyurethanes , epoxies , clear casting resin and low melting point metals like pewter and lead and zinc etc. You can simulate bronze , copper , brass and pewter by mixing metal powders with the resin , thus making something that looks and feels like metal (cold casting)
I have been on 2 weekend courses re mould making and casting and am now all fired up and ready to go , we have bought vacuum machines (for degassing) , scales , mixing and dosing machinery , have made large casting tables and heat chambers (to accelerate curing etc).
I have tons of products I would like to make , and one can basically use ANYTHING as a master , clay , plastics , acrylic , wood , mechanical wood , wax etc . With a laser , a cnc machine and some hand carving , the range of items and products one can make is limitless.
I plan to use mostly products from smooth-on (www.smooth-on.com (http://www.smooth-on.com) ) , I don't really wanna use the cheaper chinese stuff , even tho the smooth on stuff is more , it WORKS!!!
Lots of videos of casting on their site. The total one would need to start out moulding on a semi decent production basis is about $2000 , but you could start off at much less , $200 for enough stuff to "give it a bash"
I intend to cast custom awards , figurines , trophy fittings , resin and acrylic jewellery , badges , car badges , car lens replacements , faux bronze/metal plaques , make my own marbelised , custom and wood bases out of resin , do embedments , make various household items etc.
As I progress with this , I will post some pic's of what we are doing/making.
Watch this space!!!
I have always wanted to expand and develop my limited moulding and casting setup , which was mickey mouse. The extractor is perfect , it will allow us to cast using cheaper polyester resins and use other stuff we couldnt cos of inadequate ventilation.
In terms of using silicon/rubber rubber moulds , one can cast using polyester , polyurethanes , epoxies , clear casting resin and low melting point metals like pewter and lead and zinc etc. You can simulate bronze , copper , brass and pewter by mixing metal powders with the resin , thus making something that looks and feels like metal (cold casting)
I have been on 2 weekend courses re mould making and casting and am now all fired up and ready to go , we have bought vacuum machines (for degassing) , scales , mixing and dosing machinery , have made large casting tables and heat chambers (to accelerate curing etc).
I have tons of products I would like to make , and one can basically use ANYTHING as a master , clay , plastics , acrylic , wood , mechanical wood , wax etc . With a laser , a cnc machine and some hand carving , the range of items and products one can make is limitless.
I plan to use mostly products from smooth-on (www.smooth-on.com (http://www.smooth-on.com) ) , I don't really wanna use the cheaper chinese stuff , even tho the smooth on stuff is more , it WORKS!!!
Lots of videos of casting on their site. The total one would need to start out moulding on a semi decent production basis is about $2000 , but you could start off at much less , $200 for enough stuff to "give it a bash"
I intend to cast custom awards , figurines , trophy fittings , resin and acrylic jewellery , badges , car badges , car lens replacements , faux bronze/metal plaques , make my own marbelised , custom and wood bases out of resin , do embedments , make various household items etc.
As I progress with this , I will post some pic's of what we are doing/making.
Watch this space!!!