John "jigsaw" Kramer, 1:1 Scale Bust

[Fang]

Cool, maybe this should give you enough money to pay me the $40 you owe me.

[🪦 TylerHaslett ●]

<!--QuoteBegin-Fang+Aug 22 2007, 02:44 AM<div class=\'quotetop\'>QUOTE(Fang @ Aug 22 2007, 02:44 AM)</div><div class=\'quotemain\'><!--QuoteEBeginCool, maybe this should give you enough money to pay me the $40 you owe me.<div align=\"right\"><a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=235104\"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><!--QuoteEnd</div><!--QuoteEEnd $40 for what exactly? Anyways,Thank you all for the very nice words! I was asked on another forum to go into the molding a bit if I could: Starting with the sculpture of John, which is sculpted on a metal pipe attatched to a flange which is attatched to a wooden circular base. When making the "armature" for John, I bulked it out with craft foam, aluminum foil, and wire. Wire to secure those materials to the flange, which is important in the molding stage to insure the sculpture doesnt float off the base should it not be properly attatched to it. I always make my armatures this way. Unless I'm doing an actual "mask", like horror masks or something. But always remember to think ahead when planning a piece. I started John too damn long ago, over a year, and through that year I used it to study anatomy better since originally the clay lay up on what John is now looked like play doh. <img src=\"http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y147/TylerHaslett/John%20Jigsaw%20Kramer/Picture54505pole.jpg\" border=\"0\" class=\"linked-image\" /> You can get the materials to make an armature of a 1:1 bust for not too much money. The base I use for mine would be located in the lumber area of your larger hardware stores, they're used as stool seats. The metal threaded pipe and flange can be found in harware for under $5 for both. The aluminum foil and foam can be picked up from the same place. The foam you can get from the housing area, which usually comes packaged in larger pieces. But dont shy away from being THAT much foam, because usually those larger packages of the white foam are only $11, and will last many projects from armature fleshing out to mold wall support frames when molding. The mold I did for John was a matrix mold, using a 2 piece hydrocal jacket. With the John sculpture laid out in a clean work area, I wrapped only the sculpture (clay parts not the wooden base), with syran wrap. That was becasue I covered the entire sculpture with about a half inch thick layer of WED clay.<img src=\"http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y147/TylerHaslett/John%20Jigsaw%20Kramer/Picture54513.jpg\" border=\"0\" class=\"linked-image\" /> I then made registration notches in that WED "sculpture", using a tool that has a wider end and narrower neck which will make it possible for the silicone version of that wed sculpture be able to grab onto the hydrocal jacket. That is very important to make sure of because after you demold your piece, the silicone will want to flop away from the mother shell since its a limper soft material. But with notches for it to stay locked into the stone shell with, it will remain secure resulting in a nearly seamless casting. I didn't get a chance to snap a picture of the notches I put in it since I tried to work on the molding, putting all of my focus into that mostly. After I did put those registration notches in the WEd sculpture, I made a wall around the sculpture using pieces of metal (I get my metal for molding for $6, which will cover 2-3 molds, and then is also reuseable, I get it from the housing dept in larger hardware stores in the gutter dept. Its about 12ft long aluminum which you can simply fold in half to get it in your car, take home, and use as needed). The wall I made (for those who dont follow), goes from the base, up the neck, past the ear, over the head, down past the other ear, and then back down to the base. That dividing line is how a 2 piece mold is made. You do the first half by applying plaster on the sculpture, and on the wall, in roughly 3 layers. I use layers of hemp fiber mixed in with the hydrocal as well to create a stronger more leeched together bond with the stone to itself. Once the first half of the plaster is molded and let set for about 10 minutes, you can now take off that metal wall, touch up and parts of the sculpture that need it, and clean off the excess clay from the wall itself. Directly on that wall, which is now hydrocal, you will paint on with a paint brush a thin but even, coat of vaseline. That is used on the stone to keep it from sticking to itself, making it possible to add stone directly onto other stone, which is how mulitple piece molds are done. When you peel apart the two hydrocal halves, you will need to clean away the vaseline and excess wed clay with a brush and some water to get them ready for either molding or casting into. In my case, I'm actually casting silicone into that when it comes to it, but at the same time molding the John sculpture since it is encased in that plaster shell. This is how one half of the shell looks cleaned off before I clamped the two tightly together. I made notches in the wooden base, for the hydrocal to realign itself with in order to keep john precisely aligned on the inside with that 1/2 inch void all around him which will be replaced with silicone. <img src=\"http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y147/TylerHaslett/John%20Jigsaw%20Kramer/Picture54514.jpg\" border=\"0\" class=\"linked-image\" /> And here it is setting up, with the silicone poured in. For this 1:1 scale bust, with (give or take) 1/2 inch of silicone fully around as the mold, took almost one gallon of silicone. A mental note to keep handy when doing things of similar sizes wanting to be molded and cast in the same materials. The back half of the mold, you can see a "snake hole". That is where I poured in the silicone. I poured it in very slowly to reduce airbubbles, and also occasionally turned it around to move any bubbles from off the sculpture. Before pouring the silicone, I also drilled about 4 "bleeder" holes hear where the eyes would be on John, to also insure that no bubbles get trapped in the ears, under the nose, under the chin, in the eye sockets, etc. <img src=\"http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y147/TylerHaslett/John%20Jigsaw%20Kramer/Picture54516.jpg\" border=\"0\" class=\"linked-image\" /> I will have some of the finished mold pictures, as well as a finished casting up later tonight. ThanksTyler

[🪦 knewby ●]

Its obvious you have an uncanny knack for likenesses. Perhaps you could try the original TCM Hitchhiker...to my knowledge he's never been done..........

[Fang]

<!--QuoteBegin-TylerHaslett+Aug 22 2007, 03:47 PM<div class=\'quotetop\'>QUOTE(TylerHaslett @ Aug 22 2007, 03:47 PM)</div><div class=\'quotemain\'><!--QuoteEBegin$40 for what exactly? <div align=\"right\"><a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=235163\"><{POST_SNAPBACK}></a></div><!--QuoteEnd</div><!--QuoteEEndI told you, but you don't like to return messages. You owe me money for the work I did on your website. Not my fault my PC crashed and I lost all my programs to finish it. I want my money for the work I did do on the site. <img src=\"http://forums.NIGHTOWLpro.com/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/dry.gif\" style=\"vertical-align:middle\" emoid=\"<_<\" border=\"0\" alt=\"dry.gif\" />

[🪦 bksenterprises ●]

That is one bad @ss piece great Job on that

[🪦 pooch ●]

Holy shit that's sweet....-matt

[🪦 WestlakeDarkman ●]

great job

[🪦 liquidaluminum ●]

That's a really awesome piece Tyler I can't believe the likeness. Congratulations on a killer sculpture bro.

[🪦 jwolf1277 ●]

great piece nice job <img src=\"http://forums.NIGHTOWLpro.com/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/thumbsup.gif\" style=\"vertical-align:middle\" emoid=\":thumbsup:\" border=\"0\" alt=\"thumbsup.gif\" />

[🪦 Chainsaw9 ●]

Can you please contact me???Tyler! This is Dave Webb. Can you let me know the status of shipping the Saw Billy Puppet and Tricycle I won from you on eBay over two weeks ago???I've contacted eBay as well as my CC company.It seems to me if you have time to post here about the bust.. you should have a few minutes for me to let me know what's going on!!!!!Davedaw@jhu.edu