Using fimo

[7ommy]

I\'ve just bought some fimo after being told how great it is to sculpt with but before i start i wanted to know something...

Say i was sculpting an entire leg from scratch and i mde the foot and then baked it in the oven. Then i sculpted the lower leg and baked it again. Then i made the upper leg and baked it. By now would i not be seeing cracks in the foot? or perhaps lower leg too?
Thing is if i sclupted it all at once i\'d leave finger prints etc in parts that are not cured
???

Also how does greenstuff cope in the oven?

Thanks,
Tommy

 

[minimaker]

Green stuff should be ok. It can withstand 300F (149C) for a limited time.

As to baking FIMO, I understood it;\'s best to bake it at a lower temperature for shorter periods when doing small bits like you do.

 

[freakinacage]

although gs can take high heat, i have found that it goes runny so it kinda looses it\'s shape. try using a lamp or radiator. if you must keep the oven on a really low heat

 

[minimaker]

Origineel geplaatst door freakinacage
although gs can take high heat, i have found that it goes runny so it kinda looses it\'s shape.

Er, was that with cured putty? It should only do that when it has not yet cured. After curing it is able to withstand the mould vulcanisation process which is a tad warmer still (say 310-350 F) and under pressure.

 

[Shawn R. L.]

I have done ALOT of work with fimo. Yes you can re-bake as you add stuff on. The only problem I have found is the new part dosent stick really well. As far as finger prints are concerned what I do is use a clean, VERY soft brush (watercolor brush) and simply stroke the area till the print is gone. You can get a really smooth to shiny effect this way. A couple ways to cure the stuff is about 15 minuets with a blow dryer on high or boil it. For stuff that\'s real fragile the blow dryer works good. ALWAYS use an armiture for dilicate stuff. Fimo is really weak. When fully cooked it has a little more strength than a say wax or a bar of soap. Fimo is FANTASTIC for organic stuff, guts, flowing robes, water, etc... It\'s terrible for hard edged stuff, machines, really flat surfaces. Good luck.

 

[UncleHex]

I have always found it best to only partially cure fimo when working in stages on a complex model. This involves nothing more than leaving it on a radiator or under a desk lamp for 20 mins or so. At this point it becomes what is known as \"leather-hard\", that is; strong enough to be resilient but not yet fully hardened. Using this method, newly applied fimo will adhere readily to the leather-hard fimo as it has not yet aquired the high surface tension that full-cure baking produces. Final, conventional, baking can then take place without concern for having overbaked the medium.
HTH

 

[No Such Agency]

The only problem I have found is the new part dosent stick really well.

This is a problem that it shares with Sculpey. Drives me nuts...

Fimo and Sculpey are quite soft, if you want a harder product try Super Sculpey, apparently it\'s harder when it\'s cured.

 

[freakinacage]

Originally posted by minimaker
Er, was that with cured putty? It should only do that when it has not yet cured. After curing it is able to withstand the mould vulcanisation process which is a tad warmer still (say 310-350 F) and under pressure.

yeah. it should be fine once cured but as for sculpting, it\'s probably not the best idea to use it to speed up the curing as some detail and/or shape may be lost

 

[minimaker]

That\'s what I though. As to speeding up the curing using heat, it\'s as you say. Best to use a lamp or a putty oven like in my case (i.e. 25W bulb in round container).

Putty will soften in my oven as well but will not normally loose/soften shape unless it\'s too close to the bulb. When there are sharp detail I tend to put it away from the bulb as far as possible while keeping check on the temperature. You can also use this property by the way:
- when you need too soften sharp details you can cure it closer to the buld. For instance after you cut in wrinkles sharply.
- when you need your putty sticky you can warm it till it becomes soft.
- you can also warm your figure in the putty oven a little before adding putty. The warmth of the mini will soften the putty you apply and make it stickier.

Note, about hte last 2: too long and it will cure. It also speeds up curing in general so work fast.

 

[freakinacage]

those are good tips minimaker - did you buy you putty oven or make it yourself?

 

[minimaker]

I don\'t believe putty ovens are available commercially. Everybody I know, including professionals, has a homemade one.

Here are some instructions on the one I made: putty oven

 

[UncleHex]

I use something like this.
There are plenty of others out there but this is the cheapest one I could find online. It\'s about 10\" high, 10\" long and 7\" wide, inside capacity is about 4 ltrs. Try searching for \"mini cooler warmer\" on Froogle. The great thing about it is that you can switch it between warm and cold so not only can you speed-up curing but you can slow it down if you want to take a break. I\'m considering buying another one so I don\'t have to switch it over all the time...they use a peltier system and have the same power comsumption as a 60w bulb!

 

[minimaker]

Origineel geplaatst door UncleHexthe same power comsumption as a 60w bulb!

Mine only 25W since that\'s the bulb that\'s in it. lol interesting thingy though. What temperature range does it have?

 

[UncleHex]

The one I use will go as low as 20 degrees celcius below the ambient temperature in cool mode (more than enough to slow gs cure to literally hours). In warm mode it will go upto 50 degrees above ambient temp (cures gs fully in around 15 mins without the risk of blistering or sagging that can occur using the bulb method). From what I can gather, this is pretty typical of a 45watt to 65watt device like the one in the link.
I do have one other tip on improving the cure qualities of gs...the curing process works best in a slightly humid atmosphere. Simply dipping your work in a little water before exposing it to heat will improve the consistency of the cure and eliminate the problem of tacky, warm surfaces caused using a direct heat source.

 

[minimaker]

Hi,

interesting tip. I\'ll give it a try. Is it that the water makes the heating up more gradual for the figure?

Bye, Ming-Hua

 

[freakinacage]

nice one guys - i may have to give them a try