Charge!

[Marc]

Same question!

What did you use to sculpt the props? Wax like the figure?
I loled at the troll

[FilmMkr]

Zeke, the props in gray were sculpted out of wax by my sculptor, Troy McDevitt.  He also used sheet styrene, Sculpy, brass rod, and all sorts of other goodies.  Troy is the shizznit!

If you look at the original control art that I licenesed from Aly, you'll see the troll at the upper right corner of the mirror.  I LOL'ed too when I got the casting!

Mike, I got the bottles, jars with organs, and lab stuff at SP MINIATURES  <<CLICK HERE

Here is the page with some of the lab gear >> LAB STUFF

Browse around and you'll find all sorts of ridiculously expensive stuff.  My first shopping cart was $400 and something, so I, um, cut a few things out. 

That little haul in the first picture cost me $200 bucks!   :o  :o  :o

[FichtenFoo]

Very cool stuff... I can see spending a ton to do an evil scientist laboratory with it.

[AJCarrington]

Agreed - really neat stuff (have saved the link), though incredibly expensive.  Kind of glad my girls are happy with their Barbies and such - couldn't afford "true" dollhouses...

AJC

[FilmMkr]

[Joa]

Looking awesomely nice, Marc! =)

[FilmMkr]

Wax? Really!? There's a new trick I'll have to attempt. Any tutorials?

Okay, big time sculptor John Allard just posted a comprehensive Wax tutorial over at the Clubhouse, so here it is, cut and pasted.  (Any errors,  improper use of the English language, spelling, etc. is all on John, so leave me out of it!):

Hi Guys,
Tim aka darkeye made the suggestion that some of you may be interested in some of the techniques I use to make a sculpture out of wax. Now this isn’t a full blown tutorial just a place for questions and answers to the best of my ability. As for me for those of you who do not know me, my name is John Allard I am a commercial toy sculptor (former model kit sculptor) I have over a decade of experience working for Hasbro toys in the boys toys division as well as other companies. I was taught by folks like John Dennett, Mike Cusnelli, Ian coulter, Ken Ellis (former head of boys toys, ken taught me most of what I originally learned about wax) and many other amazingly talented people (if I spelled anyone’s name wrong I apologize). Our own Scott Andrews (massfx) is the guy that soooo many years ago brought me to a show to see the amazing model sculpts available, and well it was all over after that.  Like you all I continue to learn and grow, all the time. The info I will put out here is just my opinion and how I go about it. Everyone has their own techniques and there are things that may or may not work for you. With the availability of the new waxes that Gary, for instance, sells there are many new techniques that folks may prefer, so understand these that I explain are just one of the many ways to go about it.
I start 90% of all wax sculpts in Casteline. I know that a lot of guys/gals don’t like the stuff so polymer clays work just fine too. Me, I love it, I knew the late Barney Bright inventor of Castilene before he passed away from Cancer, Celia Smith his friend took over after his death and later as it became too much for her (she was a retired jeweler)and she ended up selling to Chavant. I wanted to buy it from her but the asking was more than I could afford and we both agreed that Chavant would do the formula justice, I believe in fact that they improved it,… you be the judge. I do not like to use clays that need a separator as it just adds time, and time is money. The first thing to understand is that when using a method that involves casting molten wax, is that it shrinks. How much? well that depends on a few different factors which we can cover later. First things first, I use one type of wax, that is a formulated wax that Hasbro developed this formulated wax can be adjusted to suit your own needs by playing around with the ingredients. Now the formula has long since lost its mysterious secrecy and many people have it, despite what some of the guys at Hasbro seem to think (hey ignorance is bliss).
So we will start off this topic by learning to make your own wax using one of my formulas. This should have no bearing on any of the other waxes out there because I always endorse that you all try as much of the available stuff out there as possible just so that you broaden your knowledge base, and possibly find something that works better for you (I know I have been dying to try out some of Gary’s waxes) this is a good starting point for those who want to learn (if I ever crack the Casteline formula I plan to post that as well, tongue out to all the prudes). I think that if you can make something yourself then it should be available to you.
You will need to have a crock pot, a stick for stirring, a high temp liquid thermometer, a postal gram scale, and the wax components. As to the suppliers….do your research, we have the internet now. I could suggest some but there are so many suppliers these days that I say order from the places most convenient to yourselves.
Now the formula; I am going to give you the weight for a half batch double it if you want more. With your crock pot preheated to high and your postal scale ready you merely weigh out the components and slowly add them to the pot until they are melted, keep stirring so that nothing burns (crock pots are not the perfect medium but they are cheap, have money? Buy a jewelers one gallon wax pot. That’s what I have, and set it to 330 to 350f to melt)
Carnauba Flakes – (7.5%) 150 grams
Paraffin 478T- (34.5%) 690 grams
Victory Amber or Microcrystalline KC278N (4.25%) 85 grams (This you can play with as it makes the mix more”creamy” for lack of a better word. Plus or minus to taste)
Sw12- (5.75%) 115 grams
Talc- (46.5%) 930 grams (this is not the baby powder kind it is coarser talc like the type used to de-air molds. Look up “industrial” talc, and again this can be played with too. Talc retards shrinkage but adds coarseness to the wax which makes it harder and wears on your tools like sandpaper, more on this later)
Colorant – (1.5%).50 grams this one is tricky I bought a pint decades ago and still have it, it is vinyl colorant but you can use other types as well. some use paints but I prefer the colorant they use for casting resin. This way to you can make the color of wax that suits you as well. try micromark.com for the resin colorant set) just a little goes along way!!! Be careful or you can screw up a whole batch by adding too much. Remember you have to deal with it if it comes out looking like A$$.
Now mix all this together (wax first) and slowly add the talc mixing constantly, talc settles at the bottom so when heating or when getting ready to cast with it, be sure to mix the talc up off the bottom and continue to stir until you are ready to pour. Add colorant sparingly until it looks good and wah lah! You are done.
Okay you’ve made some wax…now what. Well you can let it cool in the pot (turning off the pot…duh) and just re-melt when you are ready to use it, or you can do what I like to do which is pour it in some molds to make bricks, cubes, bars, whatever. Disposable Tin baking pans, ice cube trays, silicone molds all work great, even forming some tin foil can work. Now you’re asking yourself “why would I want to do this John?” well here is why I do it; wax can cook over time, so every time you heat it up to melt, and then cool it, heat it, cool it, heat it,… you will notice it changing color and getting darker….your cooking it. I am not a big fan of cooked wax, some will say it works just the same, but in my experience I found it works better when it is fresh and creamy. So now you see where I am going with this? You merely add the bricks, bars, or cubes you need to the pot in the future as you need it. If you don’t plan to use much and the pot looks pretty big for a few cubes (let’s say) then there are mini crock pots, or what I recently found at a craft store a glue melting pot (Suze Weinberg made by Ranger: melting pot)it has an adjustable temp and holds about a half pint US.
Okay so now you have wax, and you’re ready to start doing something with it! Woo hoo! What next? Here comes the expensive part…you are going to need a wax pen. Yeah,yeah…you guys who are saying no you don’t you can use a flame and metal wax tools…trust me new guys, that is not a fun method to learn. Great if you have patience to spare, but not me thanks, and since this is my thread, boo hiss on the flame technique.  friendly smiles all around mates, it’s just not for me. Alright back to the wax pen, Giles wax pens are the sh**, they are the classic, they are built like a tank and they will perform for decades without trouble. The next two are my nominees for acceptance. I personally use a Giles and more often a Kerr ultra waxer. Also I keep hearing very, very, good things about the Foredoom wax pen, and I like its small footprint and choice of tips, not to mention price and Foredom’s awesome reputation.
A little more on the Kerr which I am sure most of you drool over and hear a lot about. The Kerr is like a jaguar, it’s expensive, and it has a tendency to crap out, be temperamental, and just plain break. I use my equipment a lot so I am actually on my...hmmm…3rd one I think. I do love it dearly though especially the needle tip, pain in the butt though it may be. So to sum up for beginners try the Giles or the Foredoom, when you start making scads of money, or if you are a spoiled rich kid, then you can go with the Kerr. ( yes working in wax costs some money over all, but like anything else once you get what you need the expense goes way down after as you continue forward)
Next we go over how to begin actually making something:
For now I’ll stop and answer questions….hopefully this is interesting for you all … O.O
~John

_________________
"Abstract Art: A product of the untalented, sold by the unprincipled to the utterly bewildered."
quote by Al Capp
http://www.allarddesignstudio.org

[FichtenFoo]

Awesome! Keep it coming!

[e47art]

Stunning work! Some really amazing stuff on these boards.

[FilmMkr]

Well, I don't have any photos to show you right this minute because this has been kinda Top Secret, but Charge! is finished.  Well, about 98% finished, more about that laterz.

After a hectic ten days of marathon building - including an all-nighter on the eve of my departure - I brought her with me to Louisville and premiered her this morning at Wonderfest.  I think she turned out pretty well - I scratchbuilt the dungeon and lots of other components, did electrics for the first time with LEDs, and cast some custom parts, and she is drawing a lot of attention on the AFM Writer's table.

Since I was hustling to get her done, I still need to put liquid in the beakers, scratchbuild a Jacob's Ladder, and print up some labels, but other than that, she is done!  Yay!

I did take some pix on the tables, but I did not bring a cable for my camera so it'll be at least Tuesday before I get anything uploaded.

[FilmMkr]

Well, here are some crummy iPhone pix:

[mvm3897]

Outstanding man.  Looks just so cool.  All the little details plus the lights makes this in my opinion one of your best pieces.  Is this going to casted and for sale?  I might have to try my hand at a figure kit.

[Marc]

Haha, this is so cool! The lighting makes it looks so elaborated!
Love the wealth of details.

[FichtenFoo]

Bigger better pics please. What kind of bulbs did you use?

[Grail]

AWESOME.

[JohnLogan]

I am mystified by your talent!