Building Ice structure

[Enkiel]

I'm trying to build a tray with alot of ice (some sort of ice cavern), and i cannot come up with a nice (and relatively easy) way to do it.

I though about using water effect, but it would be way too expensive. Styrofoam could work, but would lack the transparency that would make it look real imho. My 3rd option would be a mix of styrofoam and plexyglass, but if i could i'd rather stay away from that option

Anyone ever done something similar to this on a large scale?

 

[kathrynloch]

I'm getting ready to start work on a base. Give me a few to get some pics up for you and we'll see if you like the idea.

 

[PegaZus]

I'm thinking a combination of Plexiglas and water effects is the solution, but I've never seen it done. Maybe Kathryn'll work things out.

 

[airhead]

casting resin

 

[kathrynloch]

hehe..well, I'm giving it a shot, that's for sure.

Okay what I have planned is a base for my Thundertusk, with just regular ballast/dirt, then I'm going to use these Selenite crystals.

It's basically Calcium Sulfate (gypsum) but I think this shape is more commonly found in Mexico. You can see the different effects from the light.

It's easy to work with and break apart how you want - the small pieces in the photos I just broke apart with my fingers but others I use an old sprue cutter.

I'm not going to go this large, I'll break them into more managable pieces but you get the idea. I also picked up some small rocks out of my drive way. I'm going to place the crystals on the base and secure them with GS, then glue the smaller rocks around them. After that I'm going to do a light dusting of snow effects, maybe an ice patch or two on the dirt. Nothing really heavy but more like tundra with permafrost ground.

I got a huge bag of this stuff for about $5 here: http://www.bestcrystals.com/selenite.html But you can also find good deals on ebay. Because I can break it pretty easily, I have to be careful with it, especially if I sell the piece and have to pack it for shipping but otherwise I think it will work.

Anyways, I'll give it a shot at least.

 

[Icantpaint]

Smooth-on makes/markets clear castable 2 part resin

 

[Einion]

I'm trying to build a tray with alot of ice (some sort of ice cavern), and i cannot come up with a nice (and relatively easy) way to do it.

The way I visualise an ice cavern, the ice has a frosted, nearly opaque appearance - like what builds up on the sides of a freezer.

I think a heavy acrylic medium (or a blend of more than one type) over styrofoam should work for a reasonably cheap, lightweight and inexpensive way of making large areas of this kind of thing. You could tint it with a little blue paint and/or do a final coat over a thin layer of blue, to give that blueish look that thick ice can have.

...I'm going to use these Selenite crystals.

Those look awesome, great idea for this kind of ice/crystal :good:

Einion

 

[Enkiel]

i'm thinking of something similar to this, but with more transparency....

 

[Shady Character]

My suggestion would be to make a master from extruded foam (the denser the better), RTV mold and then follow the suggestions above about a clear resin. Keep in mind you can do the mold in several parts, as well as the silicone pouring. Also experiment with adding blue tints to it

Those crystals look really good Kathryn. I'm sure you have heard of Future Floor Wax's ability to help transparency I wonder if it would work on your crystals there. I haven't tried i, andt of course it may be a total bust, but if you have the spare crystals, it might be worth testing.

 

[kathrynloch]

Those look awesome, great idea for this kind of ice/crystal :good:

Einion

Thanks Einion! I've got the base started now and I think they're going to work okay.

Shady, that's a possibility. Right now, they have the look I want but I might take a small piece and try it just to see what it does for future projects.

 

[Einion]

Those crystals look really good Kathryn. I'm sure you have heard of Future Floor Wax's ability to help transparency I wonder if it would work on your crystals there. I haven't tried i, andt of course it may be a total bust, but if you have the spare crystals, it might be worth testing.

Yep, that should work to remove much or all of the surface whiteness, just leaving any internal flaws; I'd imagine at best it'll greatly improve the clarity. Definitely going to keep this in mind if I buy any crystals that I'd like to try to make a bit more transparent.

Einion

 

[Enkiel]

My suggestion would be to make a master from extruded foam (the denser the better), RTV mold and then follow the suggestions above about a clear resin. Keep in mind you can do the mold in several parts, as well as the silicone pouring. Also experiment with adding blue tints to it

i tried looking into clear resin... not sure what\where to get. Since i'm thinking of something about 2'x2'x2', it kinda have to be cheap and lightweight....

 

[Milosh]

EZcast has some good products. You can get them at hobby stores like Michael's or Hobby lobby.

 

[QuietiManes]

Been in the hobby for a couple decades and I can't think of any miracle super easy and super clear and super cheap stuff to suit your needs. Not saying it isn't out there, but it'd be new to me.

The only thing almost as easy as some of the other suggestions and cheaper that I can think of is having a go at pop/soda/water bottles. These are free for everyone, even if you don't buy them regularly, you know someone who does, right? Anyway, they have a low melting point so you can heat them up in the oven, over the stove/barbeque, with a heatgun or maybe even a hairdryer would probably work. Just be careful and wear some gloves...and open up the windows! Fumes are horrible toxic if the plastic goes beyond soft to melted or burned. Cut up into sections it should be fairly easy to form the plastic into the desired shapes. The neck and cone feet can be pulled into shape and used for the icicles and such. As it heats up it shrink up into itself, gets thicker and much stronger then it is when you cut the bottle up. Even if you strech it back out it's usually still quite firm.

I don't think it would be easy to get all the detail into this plastic bottle stuff, probably want to put some water effects on top of it...or maybe some 2 part epoxy glue...or hot glue...or clear wax mixed with a hint of blue and a smaller touch of white (look in the candle making section of the local hobby shop). Wax would look great but it is horrible for durability. Dirt and hair will stick to it and it'll crack and fall off plastic...only good for a short play time, so if it's for more than a weekend, pass on the wax I'd say.

EDIT: If you're not an adult, don't try this without an adult to help. Seriously, it is not safe.

 

[airhead]

that large, I'd go back to the styrofoam. White beaded polystyrene or blue extruded. Cover it with a shot of Future (Klear) or similar (test first) to give it a wet look.

***
Be careful, beaded styrofoam does not have a lot of strength and will 'bend' if you clear coat it heavy and may take the base board with it or pull up from the base.

 

[Enkiel]

Been in the hobby for a couple decades and I can't think of any miracle super easy and super clear and super cheap stuff to suit your needs. Not saying it isn't out there, but it'd be new to me.

The only thing almost as easy as some of the other suggestions and cheaper that I can think of is having a go at pop/soda/water bottles. These are free for everyone, even if you don't buy them regularly, you know someone who does, right? Anyway, they have a low melting point so you can heat them up in the oven, over the stove/barbeque, with a heatgun or maybe even a hairdryer would probably work. Just be careful and wear some gloves...and open up the windows! Fumes are horrible toxic if the plastic goes beyond soft to melted or burned. Cut up into sections it should be fairly easy to form the plastic into the desired shapes. The neck and cone feet can be pulled into shape and used for the icicles and such. As it heats up it shrink up into itself, gets thicker and much stronger then it is when you cut the bottle up. Even if you strech it back out it's usually still quite firm.

I don't think it would be easy to get all the detail into this plastic bottle stuff, probably want to put some water effects on top of it...or maybe some 2 part epoxy glue...or hot glue...or clear wax mixed with a hint of blue and a smaller touch of white (look in the candle making section of the local hobby shop).

This could be an idea. I could definately get a nearly transparent look, and make some odd shape to the whole thing without too much problem... I think i'll try to find a bottle and experiment a bit with it.

And quite frankly, i dont want something that would cost me nearly nothing, i'm just scared if i went the resin route, that it'd cost me 100-200$ to do... Since i'll most likely only use it once or twice for sure...

that large, I'd go back to the styrofoam. White beaded polystyrene or blue extruded. Cover it with a shot of Future (Klear) or similar (test first) to give it a wet look.

Styrofoam does seems like the best idea, and since i'm ordering an airbrush within the next week, I could probably get the result i was looking for when i found the picture... i'm just kinda sad, as my first idea was something nearly transparent.