can someone recommend a good casting service?
- Thread starter SIGIL
- Start date
Dragon Forge Design
New member
Where you at?
Im not going to reccomend a casting service in Indiana..if your in Switzerland..
Im not going to reccomend a casting service in Indiana..if your in Switzerland..
DrEvilmonki
Active member
Dragon Forge Designs pet Peave!lol
Now I see what you mean.
Now I see what you mean.
Dragon Forge Design
New member
LOL.. yeah sorry about that. It happens all the time..it was horrible on th B&C message board ..it was always where do I find \"XXXX\" and you never knew where to tell them to go look.
As for casting companies in the US..I worked in this industry 15 years and pretty much know them all.. Whos best for certain things.. whis fast and cheap..whos quality is the best but if I post all the information only to find out he lives in say Sydney Australia.. what good would that of done the both of us.
Dragon Forge Design
New member
Hey I resemble that remark...lol
Now I just hope I didnt scare the guy off.. if your still here and in the US I can hook you up with some casting houses. if your in Europe or the UK Im sure we can get you some address there too.
DrEvilmonki
Active member
Ohh you better not have. His sculpts are great and a lot of people around here want to get hold of them.
You will get a spanking!lol
Unless I\'m mixing up members here i think it\'s UK in this case. So here are the casting services I\'ve got listed with 1listsculpting:
Miniature figurines: www.miniaturefigurines.co.uk
Amazon miniatures: www.amazonminiatures.com
The figure trader: www.thefiguretrader.co.uk
Griffin design studio: www.griffinmoulds.com
Scotia-Grendel productions: www.scotiagrendel.com
Note: if you want your green back after mouldmaking, make sure you tell them!
Miniature figurines: www.miniaturefigurines.co.uk
Amazon miniatures: www.amazonminiatures.com
The figure trader: www.thefiguretrader.co.uk
Griffin design studio: www.griffinmoulds.com
Scotia-Grendel productions: www.scotiagrendel.com
Note: if you want your green back after mouldmaking, make sure you tell them!
Well thanks for the effort Ming-Hua but I am in the US.
Thanks for the compliment Dr. Evilmonki.
I am interested in getting the absolute best possible casts I can. Time, and price are par for the course of being a success IMO. I want people who order my stuff to know they are going to get quality reproductions of my work.
The mini I have ready at this point measures 24 mm from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, and I am adding a slot to his feet for basing about 5 mm tall . At this point it is a single piece cast ( I tried to pay specail attention to the design and sculpting to allow it to be cast in a single piece ), but I may want to add in a couple of weapon options as seperate pieces on the same sprue.
As for the number of minis, I am unsure how many I should order in the first go round.
Would 200 be too many?
And getting my original back after casting ( preferably in the same condition I mail it in ) is an absolute neccessity. Is this possible, I sculpted it in Tamiya quick type and brown stuff.
Thanks for the compliment Dr. Evilmonki.
I am interested in getting the absolute best possible casts I can. Time, and price are par for the course of being a success IMO. I want people who order my stuff to know they are going to get quality reproductions of my work.
The mini I have ready at this point measures 24 mm from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, and I am adding a slot to his feet for basing about 5 mm tall . At this point it is a single piece cast ( I tried to pay specail attention to the design and sculpting to allow it to be cast in a single piece ), but I may want to add in a couple of weapon options as seperate pieces on the same sprue.
As for the number of minis, I am unsure how many I should order in the first go round.
Would 200 be too many?
And getting my original back after casting ( preferably in the same condition I mail it in ) is an absolute neccessity. Is this possible, I sculpted it in Tamiya quick type and brown stuff.
cdukino
Member
Well as to getting it back in the same condition as you send it, no-one can guarantee. Especially some kinds of casting (vulcanisation and pressure) can damage the greens. It\'s not always predictable or avoidable. Casting isn\'t exact science. Mastercast will be good but the green will be damaged. But even broken the green is still your property and you can get it back. Just make sure you make it clear on forehand the caster knows and doesn\'t throw it away thinking it can\'t hurt for that\'s what he\'s used to.... grrr... speaking out of experience here... grumble grumble ... Ming-Hua too.... sigh.
Dragon Forge Design
New member
Originally posted by SIGIL
Well thanks for the effort Ming-Hua but I am in the US.
Thanks for the compliment Dr. Evilmonki.
I am interested in getting the absolute best possible casts I can. Time, and price are par for the course of being a success IMO. I want people who order my stuff to know they are going to get quality reproductions of my work.
The mini I have ready at this point measures 24 mm from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, and I am adding a slot to his feet for basing about 5 mm tall . At this point it is a single piece cast ( I tried to pay specail attention to the design and sculpting to allow it to be cast in a single piece ), but I may want to add in a couple of weapon options as seperate pieces on the same sprue.
As for the number of minis, I am unsure how many I should order in the first go round.
Would 200 be too many?
And getting my original back after casting ( preferably in the same condition I mail it in ) is an absolute neccessity. Is this possible, I sculpted it in Tamiya quick type and brown stuff.
For a job like that Id reccomend Jeff Rodman at Fortress figures Hes done work for me many times and I think hes a top notch mold maker. You can reach him at
phone: (765) 677-9388
fax
765) 677-1451Regular (snail) Mail:
Fortress Figures Inc
P.O. Box 66
Jonesboro, IN 46938
U.S.A
Jeff Rodman email
Fortress Figures
He will return your green and your 200 casting will be no issue with him Im sure.
Dragon Forge Design
New member
Many things can cause a green not to survive the molding process. most common are caused by sever undercuts in the figure, void spots inside the green that collapse or allow rubber to seep inside. Even the skills of the mold maker can have bads results. Or its just bad luck and the forces of chaos against you. But if done properly a green should come out 95-99% intact.
Many Thanks DFD. I really appreciate the help. As far as deep undercuts and voids, I paid specail attention during the sculpting to avoid these problems. And I THINK I have avoided them. the only isssue I can think of is that the hand is not supported by an armature. I had to cut off the original hand armature for a reason I cannot remember, and just attached the sword to the end of the arm with putty and sculpted that putty into a hand..... NOT an experience I want to repeat. :flame:
Anyway thanks again, and sorry for not being more specific in my original post.
Anyway thanks again, and sorry for not being more specific in my original post.
Dragon Forge Design
New member
Originally posted by SIGIL
Many Thanks DFD. I really appreciate the help. As far as deep undercuts and voids, I paid specail attention during the sculpting to avoid these problems. And I THINK I have avoided them. the only isssue I can think of is that the hand is not supported by an armature. I had to cut off the original hand armature for a reason I cannot remember, and just attached the sword to the end of the arm with putty and sculpted that putty into a hand..... NOT an experience I want to repeat. :flame:
Anyway thanks again, and sorry for not being more specific in my original post.
Thats ok..glad I could help. If for some reason they cant help you PM me and I can reccomend someone else.
As for the hand, it should be ok, but id make sure whoever molds it knows this information.
Good luck to you with it.
Dragon Forge Design
New member
Originally posted by SIGIL
Many Thanks DFD. I really appreciate the help. As far as deep undercuts and voids, I paid specail attention during the sculpting to avoid these problems. And I THINK I have avoided them. the only isssue I can think of is that the hand is not supported by an armature. I had to cut off the original hand armature for a reason I cannot remember, and just attached the sword to the end of the arm with putty and sculpted that putty into a hand..... NOT an experience I want to repeat. :flame:
Anyway thanks again, and sorry for not being more specific in my original post.
Thats ok..glad I could help. If for some reason they cant help you PM me and I can reccomend someone else.
As for the hand, it should be ok, but id make sure whoever molds it knows this information.
Good luck to you with it.
Ah, I mixed up sculptors. Anyway, Jeff Rodman is a good one and having done several VIP casts he also has a fair bit of experience with sculptors who have their figures cast the first time.
By the way, I\'d recommend telling him about the hand and the materials you used so he can keep that in mind. (Edit: just saw Jeff making the same recommendation)
I\'d also ask what kind of arrangements can be made if you need further casts of it in the future. I\'d at least make sure to get say 10 mastercasts so they can be used for a future production mould if needed.
By the way, I\'d recommend telling him about the hand and the materials you used so he can keep that in mind. (Edit: just saw Jeff making the same recommendation)
I\'d also ask what kind of arrangements can be made if you need further casts of it in the future. I\'d at least make sure to get say 10 mastercasts so they can be used for a future production mould if needed.
Good luck with the casting! I will be interested in that dwarf you showed the other day! Make sure you post here when it\'s available for sale!
Will do. Which actually leads me to another dilemma..... How to market and sell it..... SHould I just contact different internet stores or what?
And thansk for the advice DFD and Ming Hua, I really appreciate it.
Set up a web site, get yourself a PayPal account (if you don\'t already have one) and start advertising yourself on miniature sites such as CMON, Jenova, Chest of Colors, etc. etc. Also it would help to have well painted versions of your miniatures. If you don\'t paint yourself, try contacting painters who seem interested in your minis.
That\'s a start at least. If you\'re planning on doing a lot of minis then you could look into getting yourself a web store. But if you\'re running a one-man operation you could probably do it more easily by email orders.
That\'s a start at least. If you\'re planning on doing a lot of minis then you could look into getting yourself a web store. But if you\'re running a one-man operation you could probably do it more easily by email orders.
