question about Fimo and vulcanized molds

[El Guardian]

Ive always sculpted with GS but as you may know lately ive been starting to try FIMO and i love it, the only miniatures ive done are for myself so far, but i whant to artar making commision jobs with it, the problem is in bot sure it will stand the process.

ive notices its quite fragile and it tends to crack specially in the feet. so to all the professional fimo users out there, can i sculpt with it and cast vulcanized molds???

also is the Soft variety different from the classic one in those terms??

 

[minimaker]

Hi,

the subject has been discussed already over here:
http://www.coolminiornot.com/forums/viewthread.php?tid=8124

Warcrow and many of the French companies can take Fimo master. With all other you should check. And as I wrote in the other thread: you can use Fimo for masters but you will limit your market since not all companies can process it.

Bye, Ming-Hua

 

[El Guardian]

thank you very much that was really helpful

 

[Shawn R. L.]

Fimo has a very low baking temperature. Vulcanising MIGHT be too hot for it. Fimo can get blisters when heated too much, I think.

 

[Galante]

Ok, I\'m going to kind of hijack this thread. Sorry El Guardian!
I\'ve seen the Beastman that Allan C sculpted and apparently it was with fimo too, so I\'m terribly inspired to give sculpting a go.
Like El Guardian, I really dislike green stuff, so maybe this is the right stuff for me.
I was checking the CMON store and didn\'t see it there (I don\'t think white stuff is it), but did a search and found some pictures of the product.
It seems like you can buy it in any art store.
Is this the stuff? I also saw some \"soft\" fimo, coloured fimo... I\'m a little confused now, can anyone point me in the right direction?
Also, after sculpting it I assume you put it in the oven and bake it?
Any tips will help. Thanks in advance!

 

[Bestrafer]

Galante,

you can buy Fimo in many art stores in little 56grams blocks.

There are two principal sorts, Fimo \"Classic\" and Fimo \"Soft\".
The difference is classic is harder/firmer and sometimes slightly crumbly, soft is easier pliable and more like childrens clay. You can mix both to find a firmness you like.
I\'d say get two or three colours of both which your eyes like working with and try yourself.

Knead them well before sculpting.
After sculpting you put it in the oven and bake it. I do so at about 120 degrees C because I only did some small bits yet.
Let it cool in the oven, its still weak when hot. When its cooled down you can sand or carve it and add more Fimo and rebake.

If likeme you find problems to get it to hold on an armature wire put some greenstuff over the wire - no more problems ;-)

 

[Galante]

Thank you very much for your tips, Bestrafer!
I will definately give this a try.
Oh, and welcome to the forums!

 

[minimaker]

From the 1listsculpting FAQ:

Fimo Soft or a mix made of FIMO Classic and FIMO Soft. Not all colors have the same properties and a favorite color is Champagne. Other colors mentioned are Flesh, Light Grey, and Green. The FIMO is used for general sculpting.

Play around with it and see if it works for you. Materialwise it\'s not the properties that are important (any miniature can be made in any of the sculpting compounds, be it epoxy, polymer or even wax) but what fits best to the sculptor. I can\'t work well with Polymer clays for instance. To soft so I miss the material feedback I get with GS.

 

[QuietiManes]

also is the Soft variety different from the classic one in those terms??

I\'m not %100 sure about this with Fimo but with Sculpey (a very similar product if you\'re not familiar with the name, all but identical) it is true. The different varieties have varying procedures to use i.e. cure times/temperature and max thicknesses they suggest curing at a time and more importantly vary different properties while sculpting with them. Lastly in answer (sort of since it\'s a different product) to your question, they also have different strengths and weaknesses when cured. Some stick to previous layers of Sculpey or metal better, some have more flexibility, some are tougher and less likely to crack etc.

The classic is most likely much better than the soft for survivability. I assume you can track down the specifics off the Fimo website. Sculpey has all that stuff on their site anyway. As most sculpting medium sites do. OR ask at the art store, they often have \"technical data\" sheets on the products they sell.

 

[Sophia]

I have had very mixed results with the Fimo products, but have never tried it with vulcanizing. I remember when I first used Super Sculpey I had commented that it is just as good to scult with as Fimo, but doesnt warp, blister or crumble as much.

I hope that you find success with your vulcanizing of Fimo. Your preference in using Fimo to sculpt has made me want to try Fimo once more. I do love the green stuff, and \"super green stuff\" (3parts green stuff, one part sculpey), but one must be explorative when trying materials.

Good luck.