InstaMorph - Moldable Plastic I just discovered this stuff. It's a plastic that becomes putty-like in 140 degree water, then solidifies into normal feeling plastic upon cooling. It's amazing, and you can reuse it over and over. It's machinable just like regular plastic. I used it to make a mold and copy of a ratcheting ring that was missing in a hip joint. Luckily I had the other side to make a copy of. It was a simple mold that only needed one half, as the ring was flat on one side. I made the mold, cooled it and used some cooking spray on it to avoid sticking, and then I heated more instamorph and forced it into the mold. I wasn't sure if it would work as instamorph sticks to itself, but the cooking spray did the trick and I now have a nice clicky joint again. The ratcheting teeth came out surprisingly well defined. Awesome stuff! Highly recommended for making simple part molds and copies, would probably work great for sculpting as well if you had a heat gun to keep the outer layer pliable as you sculpt, as the only downside to this stuff is the relatively short working time - maybe 2-3 minutes. I've never made a mold before but it was pretty simple. I can think of about 100 uses for this stuff.
SWEET! The biodegradable factor worries me for making parts FROM this stuff though... I need to dig up this amazing stuff I found for making molds so I can share the name. Similar concept, but it cools to a highly flexible state. I had some WONDERFUL luck with it just playing around. I'll try to remember to drop the name where when I get home.
This stuff might be EXACTLY what I need to finish that stupid SG Ratchet custom that's been gathering dust in my basement, because I don't want to canabilize the parts from the good condition secondhand E. Inferno since I need things like that damn neck assembly and the side skirts, along with the entire right arm.
Wonder if you might be able to get away with making 2 part molds then as well. If spraying it with cooking spray kept it from sticking to itself, as long as you work quickly, you might be able to make quick and simple 2 part molds for weapons and such.
Sorry to bring this thread back after 4 years, but has anyone else had experience with this material? I heard about it recently and I want to know if it's good for 5mm weapons.
Necroing the Thread. Just got some of this stuff to play with. It can indeed be used to make a two part mold. The trick is to just make sure the heated side is warm enough to be pliable but cool enough so it won’t stick to the other side. Great stuff though. I’ve so far made a couple of the cerebros arm joints for g1 fort max as well as a replacement head for my sons topspin (a custom painted copy of a different head as we have misplaced the original) and a replacement g1 strafe gun. I’ve got some of the coloring pellets on the way to try to make colored plastics , but so far I would recommend! It’s also a lot cheaper although not as versatile as silicone molds
