It's so clear now...
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I've begun experimenting with Crystal Clear casting resin. I was inspired by my friend Dave's (nerdelemental) current ice pillar project and decided to work on something similar. Dave was experimenting with using Envirotex Light to make casts which turned out really cool.
Snatching up his idea I visited the local plastics/SFX supplier to see if there was a material that might work better. They suggested trying Smooth-ons crystal clear series. To be honest looking at the giant red sticker on the box warning about toxic fumes I was a little nervous. The salesperson assured me it wasn't as difficult to work with as it seems, so I picked up a trial size to test out.
According to the box it's best when the material is less than 3" thick. My mold for Ice Pillars is pushing the limit but I figured why not try it out. Worst case I ruin my mold and have to make another one. At the same time I go out the mold I created for my rock bases to see what type of effect I could get.
Mixing isn't quite one to one so it's recommended to use a scale. Also it's important to gently stir the product to prevent bubbles. According to the instructions it takes 16 hours to cure. I found I could pop them out after 10 hours but they are a bit tacky. Lesson learned: put the bases on wax paper or some other nonstick surface the yellow bits are from a cardboard box I set them on ... doh!
The end result is pretty cool and I think I might offer them up on the online store once I work out the kinks in casting.
