Advice needed please

[FrazzM4n]

First post and i want to say amazing work to all you guys that have showcased in this forum, its kind of inspired me to get back into sculpting but i need some advice.

I have had experience in wood carving, clay scultping and making latex mould making and have recently discovered the material (sculpey) you guys mostly seem to use. I dont plan on even thinking about competeing with you guys on the comic character thing you do , i just want to exorsize my own demons :P

Before i start to layout lots of dosh on equipment/materials again, i would like to know a few properties of sculpey from people who have had a lot or even limited experience using it.

Q: Is sculpey a good medium for a final project?
IE: how good is its long term durability?

Q: Would you rather recommend it for a "master template" for a final mould in resin?

Q: Does it have to be baked for a full cure?

Q: If it has to be baked for a final cure, could you recommend something that doesnt (ie cold cure) thats just as good?

Q: what wire would you mostly recommend for armatures?
ie: Does it react with certain types of none-ferrous/ferrous metal?


If you happen to know of any tutorials/advice pages that i may have missed (ive read the old tutes sticky and done the dan perez things which is excellent i might add) i would appreciate it if you could point me that way with linkage.


Thanks in advance for any replies, i have done quite a bit of research into this topic but these are the questions i have unanswered, plus theres no substitue for "real world experiences" next to a manual/product guide.


Again great work from all you guys i hope one day my standards will be upto yours.

Frazz out

Ps: Heres a couple of my paintings i plan to put into 3d work, i think they will lend quite well, do you?

http://img472.imageshack.us/img472/3654/keeperoiloncanvassmn3.th.jpg (http://img472.imageshack.us/my.php?image=keeperoiloncanvassmn3.jpg)

http://img472.imageshack.us/img472/8731/alieendq5.th.jpg (http://img472.imageshack.us/my.php?image=alieendq5.jpg)

[William Paquet]

First post and i want to say amazing work to all you guys that have showcased in this forum, its kind of inspired me to get back into sculpting but i need some advice.

I have had experience in wood carving, clay scultping and making latex mould making and have recently discovered the material (sculpey) you guys mostly seem to use. I dont plan on even thinking about competeing with you guys on the comic character thing you do , i just want to exorsize my own demons :P

Before i start to layout lots of dosh on equipment/materials again, i would like to know a few properties of sculpey from people who have had a lot or even limited experience using it.

Q: Is sculpey a good medium for a final project?
IE: how good is its long term durability?

Q: Would you rather recommend it for a "master template" for a final mould in resin?

Q: Does it have to be baked for a full cure?

Q: If it has to be baked for a final cure, could you recommend something that doesnt (ie cold cure) thats just as good?

Q: what wire would you mostly recommend for armatures?
ie: Does it react with certain types of none-ferrous/ferrous metal?


If you happen to know of any tutorials/advice pages that i may have missed (ive read the old tutes sticky and done the dan perez things which is excellent i might add) i would appreciate it if you could point me that way with linkage.


Thanks in advance for any replies, i have done quite a bit of research into this topic but these are the questions i have unanswered, plus theres no substitue for "real world experiences" next to a manual/product guide.


Again great work from all you guys i hope one day my standards will be upto yours.

Frazz out

Ps: Heres a couple of my paintings i plan to put into 3d work, i think they will lend quite well, do you?

http://img472.imageshack.us/img472/3654/keeperoiloncanvassmn3.th.jpg (http://img472.imageshack.us/my.php?image=keeperoiloncanvassmn3.jpg)

http://img472.imageshack.us/img472/8731/alieendq5.th.jpg (http://img472.imageshack.us/my.php?image=alieendq5.jpg)

First, your paintings are very cool and would trasnlate well into 3D.

1. Super Sculpey is fine for finished prodcut. No problem with long term duarbility if it is properly baked, and contains a strong armature.

2. Also fine to use it as a master for molding if you need to, but not necessary if you're making one-of-a-kind pieces.

3.Yes it needs to be baked.

4.The only cold cure materials appropriate for sculpting would be epoxy clays. Lots of guys use them, but they don't appeal to me because they cure as you're working. Less room for adjustments in the work as it progresses.

5. Use 1/8 inch alluminum armature wire. It's inert, and will not react with any other material.

Best of luck. If you can sculpt as well as you paint the pieces should be very cool.

[FrazzM4n]

Thanks very much for your reply, the only problem i have now is the characteristics of baking .., hmm maybe i will HAVE to make my sculpts in smaller sections rather than working a large clay block like im used to.
Im not thinking of working quite as small as some of the sculpts here maybe 2 or 3x as large.

Yes im not too keen on epoxy clays like you said as they cure whilst working, i would rather have a little more control as it were rather than working against the curing clock.

Thanks for the comments about the paintings too, im only hopeing i can be half as good as the works featured in these forums.