Sculpey's Biatches: the Mike Mignola sculpting club

[gary bolt]

Just you wait. When you see what I'm planning next, you'll put away your clay and quit sculpting.

Well, what I want to know is how long do we have to wait? :)

[Ming]

Happy To Inform Everybody That Im Going To Get A Digital Camera This Weekend And Yes I'm Yelling!!so No Waiting Any More :D

[Gene Poonyo]

The bell looks much bigger than 2" in the picture. Very nice.

The talent on this thread is truly formidable.

[Johann]

Congrats Ming! good to hear you'll get a digital camera. And about now, i'm sitting back wondering how is it that this board is filled with such talent. Fantastic work John, and I can't wait to see what else you turn out.


... This is just too great a thread.

[JohnThompson]

Happy To Inform Everybody That Im Going To Get A Digital Camera This Weekend And Yes I'm Yelling!!so No Waiting Any More :D
So where is this camera, Moses? :D

[Ming]

the reason i haven t posted anything yet is cause my pc crashed this weekend so i took that to be repaired but my business dsl is up and running today....thanks for your patience peeps.

[DannyBoy7783]

so some of you guys probably recall my second Hellboy bust (http://forums.comicbookresources.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=12000)

Everyone says they like my first one more but I don't and the more I look at this second one the more I think the paint job is hurting him. I used acrylic paint but I want to get it off of him. Is there a way, short of sanding and scraping, to get the paint off? I don't want to damage the sculpt and I don't want to paint over him. The red paint would require a lot of other coats to cover it up. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Also, I don't want to leave him as bare sculpey and at this point he's probably been stained by the paint. Any suggestions for what color to paint him in? I could do bronze perhaps? I want him to look finished if he is a boring flat color he'll just look kind of bland or primed.

[tomasej]

Danny, the bust looks great. I've always thought a Hellboy bust that looked like granite would be cool. of course I have no idea how difficult that would be to paint.

[JohncSculptor]

Hello everyone I am brand new to the forum. My name is John Cleary. I used tyo draw comic books. I drew Book for Todd McFarlane, Deadly Duo for Erik Larsen, Satans Six, HellSpawn for Topps and a bunch of other stuff.

Anyway I am a sculptor now and I started a new Hellboy movie sculpt tonight and I though you would enjoying seeing it. I hope you all like it. It is a work in progress.

Thanks,

John

Hiya gang! I have started a new wip tonight. I want to start practicing cool movie characters and likenesses and I've always wanted to sculpt Hellboy from the movie. So here it is, the beginning of it. It will have a cool base it sits on. This will be a mega bust as you can see from the size of it in my hand. I think it will be a sweet portfolio piece when complete. I'm using castilene.

Well I hope you enjoy it.


http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/hell-01.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/hell-02.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/hell-03.jpg

[JohncSculptor]

http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/hell-04.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/hell-05.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/hell-06.jpg

[JohnThompson]

Welcome, John! You're doing a new Spider-man statue for Bowen, aren't you? Excellent start on the Hellboy, you've already got a great likeness going in the face! Could you explain a little about the working process with Castiline for those here who are unfamiliar with it?

[DannyBoy7783]

Thanks for stealing my thunder johncSculptor! I'll never get an answer now :) The face looks awesome, great start.

[JohncSculptor]

Thanks guys glad you like him so far. I'm super excited about this sculpt!

Yes I did the Spiderman for Bowen and I'm also doing some other stuff for BD but I cant talk about them now. Randy will post the info when its availiable.

Anyway Castilene is a type of wax. Basically you have to heat it and use an alchohol lamp to heat your tools as you sculpt and carve on it. Its not like clay where you can push and use your fingers to sculpt. This is more like a heating and carving medium. Castilene is widely used in the action figure industry and it comes in three grades, soft, medium and hard. Hard is the best one to use. Soft is almost like working with super sculpey but a little harder. You should use an armature with soft. You dont need any armatures on the hard grade.

Castilene has a learning curve and you need to sand it to smooth it down, this is best done from a combination of techniques such as using heated 3m sanding pads and a small butane torch.

The advantage to working with castilene is you can get super detailed and handle your sculpt and not mess it up. It can still get damaged and break if it falls though but its very hard. Disadvantage is it is slower to sculpt with and some people have trouble getting sculpts very smooth but with practice it gets alot easier.

Hope that helps and as I progress with my Hellboy I'll post more pics! I just found out about this forum and thread so I havent looked at it much yet but it looks very cool so far!

Thanks!

John

[JohnThompson]

Thanks for stealing my thunder johncSculptor! I'll never get an answer now :)
Hey Danny, I'm not sure what kind of acrylic you used to paint your bust, but I'm pretty sure its not hurting the clay, if thats what you meant. If isopropyl alcohol doesn't work to strip off the paint, almost any other paint stripping methods I know of will damage the Sculpey in some way.

Try soaking it in a cup of rubbing alcohol for a few hours, then gently scrub it with a toothbrush. If that doesn't help, I would suggest priming over your paintjob (use a fast-drying, sandable primer) and repainting it.

Many pro sculptors like to prime their sculpts to check for imperfections in the surface, and to better highlight the forms which can become overshadowed once a multi-colored paint scheme has been applied.

[DannyBoy7783]

I just used your basic craft store paint. Thanks for the suggestion I'll try that out when I get a chance.

[Ming]

hello-hello :D hey john i thought you were gonna bring it!!so where is it!

i see john c is here oooooooooooooooo :D ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

hey danny i'd leave it painted- i love what you did to the base and if you do change it i'll find ya - i have ways-but if you want to repaint it i'd do what JT suggested , try it with hot(not boiling) water first and a toothbrush and gently go over it

a friend of mine suggested to me once painting my sculpts in oils-something to keep in mind if you want to go crazy.......

:eek:

[DannyBoy7783]

good point...but oils are a pain in the arse! I'd probably keep his base as it is
because I like it

I usually don't even have him on it though. It puts HB higher than the rest and it isn't too stable. Hmm, thought I was just thinking right now that I could drill a hole in the base and the bust and put a piece of stiff wire in there. that would help reduce the "knocked over" factor

I should just finish it and make it the right hand of doom and have it be its own piece...

oh well, if I do do anything I'll have pics. Why? Because I am Sculpey's biatch. :)

[JohncSculptor]

Here is a small update on Hellboy. This is a fun bust to sculpt I tell ya! I repostioned the arm as you can see and added a stump base. The final base will be cool, this is just holding him up.

http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/HBx-01.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/HBx-02.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/HBx-03.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/HBx-04.jpg

[JohncSculptor]

http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/HBx-06.jpg
http://home.insightbb.com/~john-cleary/HBx-07.jpg

[Ming]

i started to sculpt a mummy head the other day but the got crazy and started sculpting other "types" of heads **caution if you don t like gore look away-you were warned!!! i'll take better pics tonight---

http://www.geocities.com/mochiindesigns/dedheds1.jpg

this is what happens when you start reading frank miller's hard boiled again...

http://www.geocities.com/mochiindesigns/dedhed4.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/mochiindesigns/dedheds3.jpg

more mummies and dead heads to come...

[JohnThompson]

Those heads are great! The paint work is excellent too, very nice blood effects! You've got a sick mind, but I love it! Keep 'em coming. :D

[DannyBoy7783]

Shame on you all for letting this thread get bumped to page 2.

For shame! :p

[Ivar_L]

What the h**l are you all doing there? Why aren't you sculpting something?

[DannyBoy7783]

Speaking of Ivar, how are those casts coming along man? I am sooo dying to get one. Pretty please? It's so beautiful....

[DannyBoy7783]

By the way John, your rubbing alcohol suggestion is working perfectly. I'm in the process right now and it is working quite well. Thanks! Now I just have to decide what finish to use. Someone suggested granite which would be cool. I know that there are those textured spray paints but I'm afraid I'd need a thicker coat on him than I'd like to get that effect and it would be harder to get off I think.

[JohnThompson]

What the h**l are you all doing there? Why aren't you sculpting something?
Well, I'm sculpting plenty of things. Just nothing "on topic" with Mignola's work, so its not posted here.
By the way John, your rubbing alcohol suggestion is working perfectly. I'm in the process right now and it is working quite well. Thanks! Now I just have to decide what finish to use. Someone suggested granite which would be cool. I know that there are those textured spray paints but I'm afraid I'd need a thicker coat on him than I'd like to get that effect and it would be harder to get off I think.
I'm glad the alcohol trick is working for you. Once baked, its also helpful to sand the clay with steel wool or wet/dry sandpaper. After sanding, brush the clay down with a wask of acetone for a really smooth finish.

Please don't use the "granite" spray paints, unless you want a heavy, pebbly texture covering your entire sculpture, and smothering any fine detail. :eek:

[DannyBoy7783]

that is what I figured would happen. Since no one is posting anything lately, please show us what you've been working on John

[Ivar_L]

John -
it's always interesting to see what you and other sculptors here are up to. It reminds me - I still haven't seen close-up of Al Swearengen's head and a couple of promising Hellboys as finished sculpts from this thread...

DannyBoy -
Im working on my Marv (need to find a right size real life chain to use on it) and on one commissioned original character. When I finish this one, I just NEED to find and to buy some resin to make 4-6 copies. I hope to get enough for a couple of additional Marvs and Hellboys. But it will take some time as this 1:6 standing girl is a priority at the moment.
It just takes too much time to sculpt something to the final state I'm happy with...

By the way - as inspiration, I'd like to recommend any Claire Wendling books. Got one artbook from Paris and ordered 2 more from amazon.fr. Fantastic stuff! (She made a couple of Hellboy covers (http://www.guiadelcomic.com/autores/wendling.htm) for France too.)

[DannyBoy7783]

No wonder it takes you so long Ivar, even your molds are a work of art ;)

[Ming]

HEY ITS ON THE SECOND PAGE AGAIN!!!! :eek:

[JohnThompson]

HEY ITS ON THE SECOND PAGE AGAIN!!!! :eek:
Well, then get off yer arse and DO something about it, clay boy!

For now, how's this? Technically not Mignola, but Guy Davis' Marquis, 1/8 scale.

http://indeestudios.com/sculpture/head_angles.jpg

[Ming]

well posting old pics won t help..... :p

[Ming]

well i did post some pics about a week ago and that didn t raise an eyebrow here...so no more hellboy sculpting for me :(

[JohnThompson]

well i did post some pics about a week ago and that didn t raise an eyebrow here...so no more hellboy sculpting for me :(
Huh... I thought I made a comment about them. I guess I'm mistaken. :rolleyes:

[Ming]

yeah well-i think i need my paxil fix again see what i sculpt next...been feelin a bit uninspired lately-that marquis looks great!! :eek:

[Petersen]

WOW John!!!! I had a marquis on my sculpture list (most of which I won't get to for years)

Glad to see someone is getting to it before I would
again...wow

[JohnThompson]

Thanks for the comments on the Marquis head. I'm making this for Guy, working from a design he did. This is being done in scale to the Bowen line of busts.

[Maija]

Holy crap, John! You are the man. You are the man who kicks the asses of the other mans. This is going to be so freaking cool, I can tell already. Your work always excites me. *fans self with hand*

Is this just a private commission for Guy or is this going to be something us reg'lar schmucks can buy a cast of some day?

I'm particularly excited because I'm FINALLY getting my hands on The Marquis 1 & 2. I'm still short on cash, but I turned some Airmiles into Chapters gift cards and ordered a bunch of books that should be here some time this week. I've long admired Guy's work and finally I'll get to read those darned books. Your sculpt is just a reminder to me that they might be in my hands as soon as today!

[JohnThompson]

Your work always excites me. *fans self with hand*
Some guys play guitar to attract babes, some guys sculpt.:rolleyes: I'm glad you like it so far, I only hope I can live up to the energy and dramatic presense that Guy puts into his drawings.
Is this just a private commission for Guy or is this going to be something us reg'lar schmucks can buy a cast of some day?
This is just for Guy, but it would be cool to see it produced someday, too. That's a loooong way off. First I need to finish it, the other stuff is up to Guy.

You're going to love the Marquis books, by the way! I love how elegant the character looks, combined with the ruthless way he works. Its amazing too, how much emotion Guy can convey in the static mask, just by altering the lighting and point-of-view of the drawings.

The demons are some of the most horrific creations I've ever seen. You've seen a mere glimpse of Guy's monster drawing ability in BPRD, but in the Marquis books he really cuts loose!

[Xequals10]

Well, then get off yer arse and DO something about it, clay boy!

For now, how's this? Technically not Mignola, but Guy Davis' Marquis, 1/8 scale.

http://indeestudios.com/sculpture/head_angles.jpg

Wow John, that is beautiful. I keep trying to get Mezco to go for the Marquis and Amazing Screw On Head licenses (if they exist). The Marquis is one of the BEST original series I have read in a long time. Guy's demons in the series are quite disturbing (I mean that in a good way). Can't wait for the new graphic novel this spring!

[Monty Props]

I can't tell you how excited I was to see this. The Marquis sculpt looks brilliant! I really hope a Marquis statue/mini-bust will be made available some day. I know it is a long way off (if it is even a possibility), but I am certainly hoping and praying.

[JohnThompson]

Wow John, that is beautiful. I keep trying to get Mezco to go for the Marquis and Amazing Screw On Head licenses (if they exist).
That would be an amazing line of toys! Guy's demons would put any of McToys' "twisted" monsters to shame!
I can't tell you how excited I was to see this. The Marquis sculpt looks brilliant! I really hope a Marquis statue/mini-bust will be made available some day. I know it is a long way off (if it is even a possibility), but I am certainly hoping and praying.
Thanks, Monty! Keep your fingers crossed, and I may have news on that front down the road... ;)

[Ming]

Hey JT quit dilly dalling with sponge bob and taking your dog for walks and lets see some more in progress pics!!! :p

[Monty Props]

Thanks, Monty! Keep your fingers crossed, and I may have news on that front down the road... ;)

If I cross my fingers any tighter, I'm probably going to break my knuckles. I am sure production would depend on market interest, etc. (I know I would order a bunch), but I am sure there would be an audience. This is certainly a character that deserves to be seen in 3-D. Keep us posted John.

[Johann]

Great Marquis John! i can't wait to see what the rest looks like. Out of the sketches, which design are you going with?

And Ming- you're gory little heads are beautiful. :) keep it up.

[Monty Props]

Great Marquis John! i can't wait to see what the rest looks like. Out of the sketches, which design are you going with?

I was wondering the same thing. I really like the Marquis "M" on the base and the crossed guns over the chest. But even if the guns didn't work out for whatever reason, just the Marquis on the "M" base is brilliant (kind of like the cover of "Danse Macarbe"). Then again, no one asked me what I thought so perhaps I should just pipe down. What can I say? Just the thought of a Marquis sculpt has got me foaming at the mouth.

[JohnThompson]

I am doing the arms crossed holding guns version, with the cloak draped over the base. The "M" logo will be raised slightly off the surface. The whole thing will be painted black, with the logo in red and maybe white eyes.

I'm really looking forward to getting more work done on it, since I've been dying to see the Marquis sculpted also. Sometimes you just gotta do things yourself! :D

[TheCableGuy001]

I am doing the arms crossed holding guns version, with the cloak draped over the base. The "M" logo will be raised slightly off the surface. The whole thing will be painted black, with the logo in red and maybe white eyes.

I'm really looking forward to getting more work done on it, since I've been dying to see the Marquis sculpted also. Sometimes you just gotta do things yourself! :D

Sounds great. I can't wait to see more progress on it.

[Morbidious]

Some of you guys really sculpt extremely well! I hope to be so good some day....... I have been on a sculpting hiatus for....~counts~.... almost 2 years now! I want to start back up again, but I'm in this kind of........ depressive funk (if you will) right now and I'm trying to get up out of it and get back to turning out some sculpts. I guess it helps if you have like-minded friends to actually hang out with, but since my daughter was born, it's been kinda hard to hang out anywhere except for home and work and thats pretty much where I've been...... not that I need to be blabbing about all this to you all right now........anyhoo, here's a link to some of my work... Rob's Monstrositys (http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/morbidious/album?.dir=f080&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.done=http%3a//pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/morbidious/my_photos)

Like I said, I've not sculpted anything in a long while, so I may need some brushing up again to get back into my groove..... but I'd like to hear any comments about what I do have so far. Thanks, and go easy, huh?!

[gary bolt]

Hi Rob, welcome to the Hellboard. I like your sculpts, especially Spidey. Is he actually wall mounted? That is a cool way of presenting him. When do we get to see a Hellboy sculpt? ;)

[Morbidious]

Thanks. Yes, I origionally designed the spidey sculpt to mount on a brick wall diorama type back-drop, heh, but I just never got around to finishing the back-drop. As for a Hellboy sculpt, well that explains why everybody was displaying their Hellboy sculpts earlier on the board, huh? I'll have to whip one up I guess.

[Ming]

any progress pic john? :D

[Ivar_L]

Hi all,
tried some colouring today/yesterday. It looks like I have found a new problem - I think I need stronger or different primer... But, anyway, here is one photo (really not a very good one) some of you might like to see...
:)

http://img334.imageshack.us/img334/7601/hellboycolor018up.jpg

[tomasej]

ivar! You are the man! Everytime you post new pictures that thing looks better and better.

[mrsmonster]

awesome!!!

[JohnThompson]

Damn, Ivar! You beat me to it! I just got pictures of my painted bust up on the web tonight. :)


http://indeestudios.com/hellboyweb/bust/bust_paint_turn.jpg

[Jakob Westman]

Wow, they're both REALLY beautiful.
Great job you guys!!

/ Jakob

[Ivar_L]

John, how many different reds you used? I used 4 plus black (I painted Hellboy black and then started with reds). I will fix the details and try to take some better photos... Like your stone base, both color and textures.

I'm thinking that maybe my bust could look better when painted with metallic bronze paint... Hair and beard are maybe a little too prominent and steppy and I don't really know how to paint the borders - black or red... Also, I really don't like painting the eyes - it looks like paint always sticks to wrong places...

Also, I'm thinking of making a new mold... Too many bubbles there and I'd like to get better castings. Maybe I will change some details before it?... By the way, this one is made from Smooth Cast 305...
;)

[D'ohboy]

Awesome job John & Ivar.

I would buy both of these in a heartbeat.

[DannyBoy7783]

Ivar, why do you tease us with your masterpiece!

[Ming]

WOW JT and IVAR :eek: :eek:

here my take on hellboy cicra-2099 or 3099 :evilsmile

http://www.geocities.com/mochiindesigns/dedhb3099.jpg

[JohnThompson]

Wow yourself, Moses! I thought you were just going to try a Hellboy skull, not give it the full-on corpse/zombie treatment! I love the hollow of the broken horn. Once again, you've managed to creep me out! :D

[DannyBoy7783]

Awesome! I still would love to see an actual skull though too.

On another note, John, is it possible to do a mold of your emperor zombie or no because it is a paper material?

[Ming]

thanks! i was thinking of doing a full body"they finally got to the right hand"peic- spears, arrows burnt up flesh really nasty :evilsmile

[JohnThompson]

On another note, John, is it possible to do a mold of your emperor zombie or no because it is a paper material?
It may be possible, if the surface of the paperclay was sealed with a coat of lacquer. I'll never know for sure, because the Emperor Zombie sculpt is a one-of-a-kind gift for ruta.
thanks! i was thinking of doing a full body"they finally got to the right hand"peic- spears, arrows burnt up flesh really nasty :evilsmile
There is a panel in Conqueror Worm of Hellboy's and Hecate's skeletons together, during the epilogue where Hecate is talking to Rasputin about the end of mankind/beginning of the next race of humanity. Hellboy's skeleton is clearly missing the right hand. Anyway, it would be cool to see a relief sculpt of their two skeletons side by side. :)
John, how many different reds you used?
I used only one: Vermillion 20 cel vinyl from Cartoon Colour Co. After priming in grey, I coated the bust in the red, and applied a wash of dark oil paint (burnt umber, alizarin crimson, tiny bit of black) to catch in the recessed areas. I wiped the oil wash off of the high areas and was done.

The base was done in a similar way, dark grey oil wash over the primer coat (Krylon sandable primer is the greatest stuff!)

I was so pleased with the finished results I decided to snap some pictures. I still need to spray some clear dulling lacquer over the bust to cut some of the shine the oil glaze left.

[Mike Cross]

You knwo JT, from the very beginning of that Hb bust, that's how I pictured it..it looks Fabulous!

[Petersen]

Impressive work from both of you. JT, I'm dyin to see Ruta's Emp. Zombie gift.....when-oh-when?

[DannyBoy7783]

It may be possible, if the surface of the paperclay was sealed with a coat of lacquer. I'll never know for sure, because the Emperor Zombie sculpt is a one-of-a-kind gift for ruta.


That's a bummer...well not for ruta I guess :)

[elhuevosupremo]

hey guys just realized i shoulda posted in here....but tell me what you think of the goon bust i made...its only my 3rd piece so I want some feedback.

[elhuevosupremo]

http://www.kmartjesus.com/images/peter/GOONbust%20011.jpg\

[Johann]

Fantastic! Ivar 'n John, you guys are amazing!!

[Johann]

Almost forgot, Ming- creepy.....cool.

[JohnThompson]

Hey Peter, nice start on the Goon! Glad to see you've caught the sculpting bug--its fun, isn't it? Even when the results aren't what you were aiming for, its still one of the most satisfying activities I've ever engaged in.

As for the Goon, I think he needs some more height to the top of his head, and also more mass to the back of his skull. Approximately half of the head's depth is behind the jaw.

[Maija]

Hey Peter, that Goon is great! I agree with John though that his brain-pan needs to be enlarged a bit. Give the zombies something to lust after.

JT and Ivar, it's cool to see the busts painted!

Ivar, the one thing that bothers me is the green ivy leaves. All attention should go to Hellboy and maybe the logo, but the ivy leaves are a bit distracting. Maybe if the green was just made more dusty in a Dave Stewart way. Perhaps it's also the green background of the photograph that is emphasizing the leaves. Neutral backgrounds are best for photographing artwork as a coloured background shifts colours in the work.

Ming: nice, er, juicy Hellboy head. Eeewwww!

[Ivar_L]

Ivar, the one thing that bothers me is the green ivy leaves.I agree. It's not so colorful in real life, I will fix some details and take a new and better photo with grey background. The green I used looks more like **this**. As John said, it's very hard to photograph red object, most of the dry-brush red-orange texture is lost on my photo...

[VonDoom]

Ivar.. just wanted to say thanks for that great tutorial. Also I honestly think that the mold you made is nearly as beautiful as the sculpt itself. I actually believe you should refine the mold even a little more and sell the entire thing as a set. I see the entire thing as one big work of art.

I also like the sculpt itself in white better than painted. I think you should make molds for every piece of it and maybe cast every piece of it in porcelain(if possible) or the material you cast the sculpt in.

Also, do you have any plans to make a page with all the steps you showed here in a permanent tutorial? Or are you going to wait till you refine your process even more?

[KWAK!]

JT - I want to eat your brain so I might possess all your talent....that painted bust makes me weak in the knees.

just thought you'd like to know :)

-K.

[JohnThompson]

JT - I want to eat your brain so I might possess all your talent....that painted bust makes me weak in the knees.

just thought you'd like to know :)

-K.
As a kid, my mom often told me "If you had a brain, you'd be dangerous". Trust me, you don't want to live in here! Thanks for the sentiment, though, ghoulish as it is! :D

[Ivar_L]

Ivar.. just wanted to say thanks for that great tutorial.Thanks! And welcome to the forum!

I also like the sculpt itself in white better than painted.White looks nice and I really like how I can see all the different textures and details. Painted version has it's charm too, as this base tries to imitate stone. If I could, I'd like to have bronze version of it... I think if I could find a casting company here it can't be a very complicated process, as I have the mold and I can make a wax copy.

Also, do you have any plans to make a page with all the steps you showed here in a permanent tutorial? Or are you going to wait till you refine your process even more?I posted it on www.conceptart.org forum -
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=47324
It's surprisingly popular there. I'm planning to add some new photos and also additional text and drawings about what I did wrong.

By the way, I'm seriously planning to make a new mold for my Hellboy. I think I will not take any more copies from this mold, the less I spend my resin for those not-so-perfect copies the better. I'd like to have a mold with lot less bubbles in critical areas (logo etc) , so I'm planning to destroy this one and to use it as a filler in a new mold. Totally new matrix mold, new silicone, new plaster...

[JohnThompson]

By the way, I'm seriously planning to make a new mold for my Hellboy. I think I will not take any more copies from this mold, the less I spend my resin for those not-so-perfect copies the better. I'd like to have a mold with lot less bubbles in critical areas (logo etc) , so I'm planning to destroy this one and to use it as a filler in a new mold. Totally new matrix mold, new silicone, new plaster...
Ivar, I strongly urge you not to take the time and expense of remaking this mold unless you have a way to de-gas the silicone or pressure cast the resin. Without this equipment you will always have air bubbles in some part of the mold and casts.

If you have the money to buy silicone and resin yourself, for a slight extra fee you can have a studio with professional equipment create your molds/casts, and they will turn out perfect the first time. Plus, certain studios like "Earthbound" doing your casts will be an extra selling point to buyers in the garage kit field.

Just my thoughts, feel free to ignore...

[Ming]

Just my thoughts, feel free to ignore...

i always ignore your comments JT! :p ;)

[Ivar_L]

Ivar, I strongly urge you not to take the time and expense of remaking this mold...Yes, I understand that I can't make totally perfect molds here at home. On the same time, I'm already used with the thought that I will use all the silicone I got at first for Hellboy - I have some 600 grams left (The new 3 kilos I got is different kind). It's the learning process anyway and I want to try a couple of more things - brushing the first layer of silicone to the sculpt (to reduce the bubbles in the most important part of the mold), making better fixing connections between silicone and plaster molds and making a little bit better separating plane between the mold's sides.

Another new mold I will make for my Marv will be much simplier - bust and base are separate sculpts. For this I will try Smooth-On silicone.

About using professionals for mold making and casting - don't forget I'm living in the other end of the planet. It's not only Estonia, I think people all over Europe, especially Scandinavia have problems of finding silicone and other materials. There is a long thread on concept art forum. So, unless some decent company buys my sculpts, I will make my own molds.
:)
By the way, tomorrow I will go and see if I can find some Fimo, looks like there is a shop selling it here. I have an idea for another quick bust I want to try, it will be ideal to experiment with another clay.

[tomasej]

Ivar, I strongly urge you not to take the time and expense of remaking this mold unless you have a way to de-gas the silicone or pressure cast the resin. Without this equipment you will always have air bubbles in some part of the mold and casts.

If you have the money to buy silicone and resin yourself, for a slight extra fee you can have a studio with professional equipment create your molds/casts, and they will turn out perfect the first time. Plus, certain studios like "Earthbound" doing your casts will be an extra selling point to buyers in the garage kit field.

Just my thoughts, feel free to ignore...


Hey, John. Can you explain pressure casting? And roto casting, if you know what that is?

Thanks.

[JohnThompson]

Hey, John. Can you explain pressure casting? And roto casting, if you know what that is?

Thanks.
Sure thing.

Vacuum degassing: placing the mixed volume of liquid silicone into a vacuum chamber to draw the air out of the rubber, helps prevent air bubbles in the mold.

Pressure casting: immediately after pouring resin into the mold, placing the mold into a pressurized chamber to force excess air in the resin towards the center of the cast, prevents air bubbles on the surface of the resin.

Roto casting: pouring liquid resin (or vinyl in the case of Mezco's 18" Hellboy) into the mold, and then rotating the mold so that a thin layer of the liquid material coats the walls of the mold. This uses much less material than a solid cast, saving materials costs, as well as shipping due to the lighter weight. Most 1:1 head casts and larger garage kits are cast hollow like this, and are filled after the resin cures with an expanding foam, to give support to the thin resin "skin".

[Ivar_L]

Pressure casting:
I think air bubbles will be smaller thanks to the pressure.

[VonDoom]

I am surprised painting the inside of the mold before pouring doesn't take care of the bubble problem. How do bubbles form if you do this?

[tomasej]

So, will roto casting reduce bubbles? doesn't seem like it would be too hard to accomplish in the garage. Unless it has to be rotated really fast something like a rotisary roaster set up might work (just don't turn on the heating element). And then could it be filled with more resin?

[tomasej]

Hey, John.

I was just checking out your gallery-- Man! THAT LOBSTER IS FABULOUS!!! Someone should mass produce that puppy (and sell it of course!).

[Ivar_L]

I am surprised painting the inside of the mold before pouring doesn't take care of the bubble problem. How do bubbles form if you do this?I don't think it's possible paint the whole mold, only some more problematic areas which are not too close to the zone where two mold's sides touch each other. Also, there are 2 different bubble problems - mold material bubbles and casting material bubbles...

Also, painting with resin or not, bubbles will move up before it's hard and will touch te surface. I haven't tried to let the painted resin harden and the pour the rest of it, maybe it's a good idea...

[Ivar_L]

Here's a moving gif with my painted Hellboy bust:
(Sorry this file is big - 971KB - but it's 16 frames and I wanted it to be as detailed as possible.)

http://img285.imageshack.us/img285/1563/hellboyrotating43xt.gif

[tomasej]

**drool** :D

[Adrammalech]

Really, really, really really good sculpts in here!

I'd love to sculpt something based on Mignola's art, but I've come across two problems.

1.) I'm running out of money, since I cant stop buying the Hellboy comics and I'm also hoping to get the first series of comic figures (Well, maybe I'll get those for christmas!)

ans 2.) I dont think they sell Sculpey in the UK!! :( I've got DAS Clay, which I use to make custom Stikfa figures, but it isnt too easy to sculpt in and it cant be baked in the oven. Its air drying....

So, am I allowed to show you guys a sculpture (when I make one!) which is made from DAS Clay instead?

[Ivar_L]

So, am I allowed to show you guys a sculpture (when I make one!) which is made from DAS Clay instead?You can use whatever materials you like! Like me - I've never even seen Sculpey with my own eyes... :) There are other polymer clays - Cernit, Fimo...

[Adrammalech]

You can use whatever materials you like! Like me - I've never even seen Sculpey with my own eyes... :) There are other polymer clays - Cernit, Fimo...

Awesome, thanks alot for the info! I may get started next weekend if I have time. Now the big question remains; Just WHAT do I sculpt? :rolleyes:

[JohnThompson]

Can you order from the internet? This stuff is getting rave reviews from pro sculptors: Grey Sculpting Compound from Midwest Clay: http://www.midwestclay.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=18

It is manufactured for Midwest Clay by the Polyform company (makers of Sculpey and Premo clays). It is an opaque grey polymer clay that is firmer and holds detail better than Super Sculpey, and when it is baked is stronger and less brittle than S. Sculpey.

[Adrammalech]

Hmmm, sounds really good. Then yeah, if I manage to get some money I may be able to get this stuff instead. If not now....then probably for Christmas. Could I really wait that long? :(

Well, I guess I would, since this stuff sounds really great!

Oh, and I've thought of what I was going to make; Mignola's take on Adrammalech! :D

[Conundrum]

...here's my first real attempt at sculpting Hellboy. I'm making a Hellboy costume for Halloween and this is the beginning stages of the mask.

I started out with a cast of my head (which I just happened to have) and then I sculpted HB's features over mine with some seriously hi-tech sculpting materials: foil, hot glue, poster board, masking tape and 2 styrofoam discs for the horn stumps. That's in the first 2 pics.

http://www.hedbonstudios.com/images/hbmask1.jpg

http://www.hedbonstudios.com/images/hbmask2.jpg

The next two pics are what it looks like with a layer of papier-mache. My goal is to make the jaw hinged so that the mouth moves when I talk. We'll see how it goes.

http://www.hedbonstudios.com/images/hbmask3.jpg

http://www.hedbonstudios.com/images/hbmask4.jpg

I'm dressing as adult HB and Aurora is going to be Pamcakes HB. So I have to make RHODs for both of us (hopefully with moveable fingers) and that's going to be sculpted from upholstery foam among other things. I'll post pics of that too. Let me know what you think so far.

[Tad]

Looks like a great start. Smart using the Bowen museum bust as a guide. I wouldn't sweat the movable fingers on the RHoD. To get it working without some expensive cables and robotics, the fingers would have to be way out of proportion to the hand.

Make a cool, non-movable finger hand and spend the time on everything else.

Good luck!

[Conundrum]

Thanks, Tad.

Time is the thing. I think I've figured out a pretty simple way to do it but if it doesn't work I don't know if I'll have time to re-think it. I'm going to use plastic tubing with small triangular "nicks" on the underside where the joints would be. Then I'll run bike cables or strong twine up through and attach key ring loops to the end for my fingers. That will all be attached to a light wooden frame. It should work just like one of those kids' grabber hands and be hidden inside the foam shell. We'll see.

[Petersen]

Good luck Beau! The maks looks great so far. I think you might run in to trouble with the RHOD if you are thinking of covering it...foam tends to get in the way of working parts.

[Adrammalech]

Woah! That mask looks great! Im sure the rest of the costume once finished will look just as awesome.

Good luck on the RHOD!

[Ming]

this work in progress is currently in roma clay-to be molded then cast in wax to work out the details ;)

http://www.geocities.com/mochiindesigns/hellboywip.jpg











thanks for looking-Enjoy ;)

[ADamUnRama]

Moses that is so sick. HOOK IT UP BROTHER

[Adrammalech]

Niiiice! :D

[Ivar_L]

Nice!
Can you show us the profile? It's hard to see and understand the legs...

[Ming]

must resize pic i'll be back

[Ming]

http://mochiindesigns.com/hjkkkkkkkkkkkkkk.jpg






Enjoy :D

[Adrammalech]

Ahhh, now I understand it alot more! Thats even better than I thought it was! :D

[Ivar_L]

I can't say I like this bust but another new Hellboy sculpt here (http://www.statueforum.com/showthread.php?t=17104)

[DannyBoy7783]

I've been following Dan Perez for a few years now. He did a good job on the bust technically speaking though I don't like the style. I wish the mouth and eyes fit the artwork better that he posted later on down the page. His bust looks a little off.

It's also weird that he just updated his site because I was there yesterday. I haven't been there since the summer...

[Ivar_L]

Strange things are happening in Internet... :)
Somebody from Brazil named Marcio Ramos claims that he made my Hellboy bust and sold it to me for $600...
I posted my mold making pictures to Concept Art forum. His friend got my contacts from there and asked about it. I sent a couple of work in progress pictures (small web versions) to him and it looks like he believes me more than this person...
Because "Hmm he are a crazy guy.."
:)
Funny story. But it makes me a little bit paranoid with all the re-casters out there and stuff... At the moment I'm still the only one who has castings of my sculpts.

[Petersen]

That sucks Ivar. I hate liars. It doesn't really matter in the long run, but it certainly can irk you.

[Maija]

That's creepy. And maybe another good reason to take "in-progress" pictures, besides just for the interest of seeing the process.

Although what the guy hopes to get by claiming he made the piece and sold it to you I don't know. The admiration of his friends, I suppose, but it looks like he couldn't even get that! :rolleyes:

[morna]

eeeeu I hate that kind of s*#t! Glad to hear you've cleared it up though!

I guess you could always post a link to this thread where we all watched these pieces come to life!

[Ivar_L]

Thanks! Support from all you talented people means much to me!
:)

I don't know what he wanted to achieve, but I think you are right, Ruta. Sad thing is, he's probably some kind of student or sculptor...

But I have the bust, mold and castings and all the original 4 megapixel photograps, so it will be quite hard anyone to prove me wrong... :)

Here are those 3 e-mails:
***
Good afternoon,

My name is Leandro.. someone here in Brazil.. are saying he create the Hellboy bust and sell to u.. this is true?
do you know someone called Marcio Ramos?

Regards

Leandro
***
Hey Ivar ,

yes.. he show thats images.. thanks for tell me that....i think he are lying about create this

By the way... wonderfull work :)
***
Yeap hehe... he said sold for USD 600,00 ^^

Hmm he are a crazy guy.. i will send your email for my friends see he dont create this piece of art ^^..
because everybody are very excited with this work :)

LD
***

[VonDoom]

Ivar, I don't think there can be any greater compliment than people lying and saying they sculpted your sculpt. :D

[Ivar_L]

Hi all,
less than an hour ago I started my new Hellboy sculpt.
If Hellboy is something like 2 meters high and this one will be 25 cm, then this will be 1:8 sculpt. The first photo is here:

http://img496.imageshack.us/img496/2424/hb20014505gy.jpg

The main reason to try it is one sentence I read in Internet about Hellboy... It gave me a very interesting and visual idea about moving Hellboy, so I will try to make a pose here I've actually never seen. At the moment I just try to get the proportions right and will add some foil and wire to flesh it out some more before posing it and adding the first layer of clay. This time it won't be in Mignola's style. If it will look like the sketches I have, then, sadly, it will be in my style... :)

I can't say how interesting it will be to see all those work in progress pictures I will take, but I think I will post some in my art thread. Maybe there is someone who wants to see them?... :)

In fact, this first picture is very misleading, the final pose will look nothing like this. Helllboy won't be standing...

[gary bolt]

I'd be interested in seeing your process images, for sure, especially the early stages with the tin foil and the armature.

[tomasej]

Please post pics, Ivar. I really enjoyed your progress pics before and look forward to watching this one unfold. Probably as close as I'll ever come to creating art myself is watching someone else create it.

[Ivar_L]

Ok, I will keep posting!...
:)

After some hours with it, watching tv with one eye, here is the progress for now. Got some cheap Russian polymer clay today (ca 1kg=$10) and used it for armature.
Now when the most interesting part is over, I don't know when I will continue it... But I'll try!

http://img496.imageshack.us/img496/292/hb20024505fd.jpg

http://img496.imageshack.us/img496/7753/hb20036001qv.jpg

http://img496.imageshack.us/img496/1645/hb20046008zn.jpg

[Neil Hill]

That's a great start, Ivar! Looking forward to seeing the progress of the piece.

[elhuevosupremo]

once you are finished sculpting, what will use to make a mold of it?

[plut]

just a thought

the perfect x-mas present? a sculpt of: http://hellboyanimated.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/bloghellboy_3.jpg

i know nothing of sculpting tho. and i know it's hard with only one frontal shot

[nanoRi]

Hi All.

I'm a newcomer to this site. I have to say it's great! Ivar, your work is inspirational. I have made my own HB bust based on the works of some folks on this site (namely Ivar, JohnThompson, and the bust from the Bowen museum Which I first saw here in one of Conundrum's posts).

I see that there hasn't been a post for nearly a month. This thread isn'tdead is it?

I will post pics of my bust once I can get them off my ancient camera (ancient in Digital years that is) and onto this computer. I'm afraid there are no work in progress photos, but I will be sure to include those on my next project.

I made the bust as a Christmas present for a friend. I'm going to present it in a custom wooden box. My question for the experts is how would you "customize" the box? Sculpey is a very versitile material. I intend to embelish the box in a manor fitting Mignola's work (naturally my bust is an attempt to represent his style 3D - that's why I'm here - you guys seem to be dedicated to the same goal) I am open for any suggestions. Once I get my pics posted, I promise to give you folks the in-progress shots of the box (and the base for the bust which is something else I'll take any advice offered).

I have worked with polymer clays for years (at least 12) and I know all sorts of tricks and techniques I can share (so don't think I'm here just to leach ideas from you folks) - although it doesn't appear any of you need any tips.

Any way look forward to future posts.

Later

[nanoRi]

Here are the pics I promised. Sorry, very low quality (I have an old camera, bad lighting, and no photography skills). Hopefully you can see him well enough to get the basic Idea.

[nanoRi]

Here are those pics I promised. Sorry for the low quality. My camera is so low res, and the lighting was bad too. Hey, I'm not a photographer. Hopefully the basic idea gets across.HB1

[DannyBoy7783]

Looks great! Kind of a cartoony caricature and a bowen museum style mix

[JohnThompson]

Welcome, nanoRi! Hell no, this thread ain't dead, we were just politely waiting for you to finish up your sculpt. Great work on the bust; I can't speak for Bowen or Ivar, but I don't think you could go wrong with using my work as inspiration! :D

I hope we get to see more of your work in the future. As for input into the box you're making to put the bust in, have you thought about doing your own replica of St. Dunstan's box from the story "Box Full of Evil"? check out Grim Tim's excellent prop work for his take on it: http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=999&gid=544990&uid=452919

[nanoRi]

That's a great Idea! Thanks! I know the picture quality is poor, and it doesn't do justice to some of the finer details (I'm working on getting a better camera).

But I think I can nail St. Dunstan's box - thanks for the idea.

Man I'm glad you guys are still at it. After following this thread for the last several weeks I feel like I'm conversing with celebrities! John, I've been to your portfollio site and your work is brilliant!

Thanks again forthe response. I'll try to get some better pics posted, and will keep you updated with the box!

Thanks!

[Tad]

That's a great interpretation of Hellboy! Thank you for posting. I think the Box full of Evil idea is a great way to go or use a wood burning tool to burn any Mignola design in a box and age the wood with Iron sulphate (liquid fertilizer). It's a trick told me by the designer of Big Thunder Railroad at Disneyland.

[nanoRi]

Thanks for the encouragement folks. Here are some better (clearer) photos. The lighting is still off, but you get a better idea.
http://forums.comicbookresources.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=22335&stc=1
HB1.jpg

[Petersen]

nice work!!

[gary bolt]

That's a great Hellboy bust nanoRi! The proportions are excellent. My only minor criticism would be that he is too shiny. Maybe a more matt paint or overcoat of some sort (Sorry I don't have knowledge of paints and can't make a recommendation).

You mentioned that you have been working with polymer clays for years. Any chance of seeing some of your other creations? This is the Sculpey club, after all!

[tomasej]

Very nice. I, too, prefer flatter finishes on paint, but that is really more of a taste or style issue.

[nanoRi]

The lighting is exaggerating the sheen on the bust, but I agree it is too shiny. Beleive it or not, I used a matte varnish as a top coat over flat acrylics, but maybe rubbing it down with a baking soda solution will knock some of the shininess off (has anybody tried this?). Thanks for the comments everybody. As I said, the bust is a gift for a freind who is a big Mignola fan, and a stickler for detail. Do you think it is a good representation of his style? This is my biggest fear. I won't get my feelings hurt if people tell me it's off (there's still time to redo it before Xmas). Thanks again...

[hellboyone]

I think the shinier finish separates it a bit from the Bowen bust, which is more of a matte finish. Nice work.

R.

[Conundrum]

I think you've really captured Mike's style. The only minor inconsistancy I can see is the straight on shot of the nose and I can't say what it is that seems off to me so don't change a thing. Great work!

[Ivar_L]

I like this sculpt!
I can see some familiar details there. :) Someone should do a morphing animation over all the Hellboy figures and sculpts, it could be pretty interesting.

It's not easy to take photographs, so I was thinking that all this shining may be from flashlight. My own drybrushed bust isn't shiny at all except on photos...

I think the point of this thread is - not only show what you did, but also be an inspiration and a pushing force for other people. That's how it works for me. :)

I'd like to see your other sculpts and drawings. If you feel this Mignola themed thread is not the best place for them, you should start your own art thread. You can post anything there, not only Hellboy stuff.

[nanoRi]

Thanks Ivar - I think the flash absolutely made it look shiny[er]. But the response from everybody made me look at it more closely and there was definatley room for improvement. I totally agree with what you said about inspiration. This thread was both a source of info for me and an inspiration. I hope that in some small way I can inspire even just one other person to give sculpting a try.

Like I mentioned, I have been working polymer clays (primarily sculpey) for many years. Unfortunately I am the kind of person that starts a thousand projects but finishes very few, and the ones I do finish I sell or give away without taking any pics before hand (short sighted I know). I have several boxes filled with literally hundreds of sculpted heads and body parts and unfinished works (I am thinking of glueing everyone of them to a large canvas creating some huge crazy
3D abstract mozaic (I'll post a pic of that if I do it) that way all the hundreds of hours of work don't go to waste (I know, it was all experience).

That's another benefit of this thread, it helped me with my first attempt at emulating another person's style, and I have pictures to document it (not to mention one of about only a half dozen finished projects).

I'm also a big Hellboy fan as a result! I bought a couple of the graphic novels as research material and I'm hooked I knew Mignola's art was great, but the stories and characters were just as great.

Anyways - thanks everyone for the motivation and support. I am still working on getting a better camera, at which point I plan to do a full HB sculpt complete with progress photos. I'll definately work on sharper angles and better proportions.

[JohnThompson]

The lighting is exaggerating the sheen on the bust, but I agree it is too shiny. Beleive it or not, I used a matte varnish as a top coat over flat acrylics, but maybe rubbing it down with a baking soda solution will knock some of the shininess off (has anybody tried this?).
I've never tried the baking soda trick you mention, so I have no idea how that works.

My advice is to buy a can of Testor's Dull Cote, a dead-flat clear laquer spray that will give some protection to your paint job, as well as knock down the shine. Since it is a laquer, it dries through evaporation and will not react with the paint or clay like some enamels will.

Be sure to go back and gloss coat the eyes and teeth after the dulling spray to give the bust a little more "life".

Oh yeah, and show us some more of your sculpts, too!

[Mike Cross]

JT, did you say you used acrylic paint on your hellboy bust? I plan to use acrylics on mine when it arrives, but not sure if you said they work or not..

[JohnThompson]

JT, did you say you used acrylic paint on your hellboy bust? I plan to use acrylics on mine when it arrives, but not sure if you said they work or not..
Cripes! You haven't received it yet?? :eek: :confused:

I'll have to send you out a replacement then. Please PM me with your address. As a bonus, I should have some casts of Mohlomi's bell done soon, so I'll send you one of those, too!

As for your question: Yes, acrylics work perfectly on resin! They are the preferred medium of most modelers. :)

[Mike Cross]

Ok awesome, pm sent..

Side note, i use a colour called Fire Red when i do any kind of Hellboy painting, like the painting from the Fitz pic i did a while back that looks really cool. What kind of red did you use?

[JohnThompson]

I used probably a similar bright red (mine was a "Vermillion 20" Cel Vinyl paint from Cartoon Colour Co.) http://www.cartooncolour.com

This got shaded down a bit after I applied the dark wash.

[Maija]

Note that delays at the border c/o Canada Customs are not uncommon since new securtiy measures were brought in and they get worse at this time of year because of the seasonal parcel traffic (which begins early because of people trying to beat this stupid delay). Your parcel may not be lost. I've had stuff take over a month to get to me. And yet other items have arrived in a week. :p

[Ming]

heres some pics.....

















thanks for looking :D

[ADamUnRama]

Uhhhh Ming?

[Ming]

got some more....














thanks again!! :D

[ADamUnRama]

Uhhh, Ming?

[Ming]

Uhhh, Ming?

thanks for commenting :D

[ADamUnRama]

No, nevermind, my puter wasnt loading them at first. I got'cha now. Hey, how lond did it take the head on Johan to dry?

[Ming]

16 hrs to cure.....give or take ;)

[Petersen]

I'm still not seeing anything nor am I seeing code to insert a picture

[Maija]

There's nothing to see. Moses is being a wiseguy and Adam is playing straight man. :rolleyes:

Get postin' with the real, non-imaginary sculpts, Moses!

[Petersen]

Oh! In that case here is my diorama depicting the famous Baseball Team that Bud and Lou talk about


















.

[ADamUnRama]

Guy's, and girl(s?), listen. I dont want to sound, how should I put this, esoteric, and let me know if the question is tetric. But, would it be feasible to do a sculpt of the cover to the Island #01?

[Ming]

There's nothing to see. Moses is being a wiseguy and Adam is playing straight man. :rolleyes:

Get postin' with the real, non-imaginary sculpts, Moses!


for that i foresee a PM and something in the mail for ya!!! as i write there is a baked piece of clay waiting to be molded and sanded with- i will get to posting something-its been a while but i won t disappoint!! ;)-on a side note heres a pic of me with the Chupacabra with her husband Bigfoot!Enjoy!
















thanks for looking!! ;)

[Ming]

its feasible but not right now for me-maybe JT or Ivar-can do that-speaking of which hey JT how ya doing with dat marquis???!?!?

[ADamUnRama]

This is me, well I'd rather not say where (is this too innapropriate?)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/AmericanZer0/gayparade.jpg

[Tad]

[QUOTE=Petersen]Oh! In that case here is my diorama depicting the famous Baseball Team that Bud and Lou talk about

No, no, no. WHAT'S on second, I Don't Know's on third.

Nice detail though.

[Ming]

This is me, well I'd rather not say where (is this too innapropriate?)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/AmericanZer0/gayparade.jpg

nice of you to come out of the closet in a hellboy sculpting thread!! :D

[ADamUnRama]

Yea my wife was the one taking the photo. But seriously, my friend did that on photo shop. Sorry I shoulda gone to the OT thread. POST SOMETHING MING.

[Ming]

too late for disclaimers!!! :evilsmile :D :D

[Maija]

as i write there is a baked piece of clay waiting to be molded and sanded with- i will get to posting something-its been a while but i won t disappoint!! ;) :eek: I'm sure it won't.

And Ms. Chupacabra photographs better than I would have expected. :p

[Ming]

heres another pic.....

http://mochiindesigns.com/joann.jpg

sanded and ready for molding......the saga continues. :D

[Ming]

size compare....


http://www.geocities.com/mjsstudios/hbanj.jpg

[ADamUnRama]

I think it looks good Ming.

[JohnThompson]

Sweet Johann, Moses!

I really like the contrast between the smoothness of the sculpture and the rough chipped edges. How did you get the collar to look so machined and symmetrical, you bastage?!

Quick, give this guy a silicone bath! Drown him in rubber, man! :D

[Ming]

Quick, give this guy a silicone bath! Drown him in rubber, man! :D

"OOOOOOOOO Guy like!"

http://www.sharpesrus.com/images/ledouche.jpg

[Ming]

How did you get the collar to look so machined and symmetrical, you bastage?!

sculpey/cernit mix give ye ez detail! other than that eye balling it mostly-the sanding really helped too...

[JohnThompson]

sculpey/cernit mix give ye ez detail! other than that eye balling it mostly-the sanding really helped too...
You have better eyeballs than me, then! I have been whipped, sir! I feel like one of Kenny Blankenship's "most painful eliminations"! :eek:

[Tad]

Sweet Johann, Moses!


This must become my new exclamation of choice. I can't wait until I'm shocked by something so I can shout it.

[Ming]

wow thanks for your comments guys.

[Maija]

Whoa! I love the marble smooth/rough look you achieved. If I put the character of Johann out of my mind, it becomes a really intriguing abstract object.

[Ming]

Thanks Ruta!! that effect happens when you don t mix the sculpey right-guess my forearms aren t what they used be.... :(

[Johann]

ok.. so it's a real sculpture...I've been confused at first i didn't see any pics and apparently niether did some of you...so then i read the newer comments and i just think everybody is joking, saying how good this sculpture looks...being Johann, i believe its like that old joke about a polar bear in a snow storm.

anyway...great sculpture Ming! good to see something new...have you ever finished any of the older ones? ie: early HB or Krigaffre???

.................
oh yeah, good news, I just got a digital camera, it's old but i should now be able to show my sculpture works.

[Ming]

.anyway...great sculpture Ming! good to see something new...have you ever finished any of the older ones? ie: early HB or Krigaffre???

the Hb got killed by my cat she chewed it up and got sick-roma clay doesn t go down that good i guess-gonna sculpt a new Krigaffre-i didn t have alot of ref for the original -now that kong books are comig out and also i made a trip to the natural history museum i have tons of ref to go by-so be on the look out for that-but i do have a pending sculpt that i gotta finish up some peeps know wat im talking aboot.....and the shadow knows too. :D

[ADamUnRama]

Ming quit hinting at the "blank blank" and get it done already. And cast me one, I'll give ya $50.00 fer it. And the walking dead guy, I gotta have me one of those http://mochiindesigns.com/walkooooo.jpg

[Johann]

oooo, nasty.

[Ivar_L]

Another "Custom Justice League/Bruce Timm style Hellboy figure" from Ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Custom-Justice-League-Bruce-Timm-style-Hellboy-figure_W0QQitemZ6020302659QQcategoryZ348QQrdZ1QQcm dZViewItem

[Johann]

allright, i got some sculpts. Bad photography but at least the camera works.
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/HB2.jpg
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/HB1.jpg
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/HB_fullsideR.jpg
and a sneak peak at a little something:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/LoJo-fiction.jpg

[Johann]

The Hb is the one i made for last years Holiday art exchange, unfortunately the receiver never accepted it and i got it back, i then proceeded to re-do the head, the original is somewhere around here.

[deep_set]

Hello everyone, i'm new. (to this forum, not to the world).

Some great stuff here. I finally got my arse in gear and have started my first bust, which just happens to be the red man. What a fine rapper.

Pics coming soon.

:D

[Adrammalech]

Lookin forward to it!
And great stuff there, Johann! I'm curious as to what that sneak preview is...hmmmm :)

[deep_set]

Ello again, here's some early early (early) bust progress.

This is my first ever figureative model, and my second ever model in total.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d196/deep_set/hellboyprog4.jpg

having quite a bit of trouble getting the picture to display, let me know if its working. yes, i'm stupid.

[DannyBoy7783]

No pictures...?

[Tad]

It's working for me. At first glance I thought those clay balls were feet and you were doing a little shrimp Hellboy. Looks like you're having fun.

[DannyBoy7783]

Pictures work now.

[deep_set]

Ha, shrimp hellboy. I'm so indecisive, i'm not sure whether to bake it and then add to it, or to keep subtracting. I think i want to make his face thinner, and his head maybe a bit smaller. Not sure if you've noticed, but I've fixed him to a cd-spool, so i can take him places (with the 'lid' on) without him getting knocked about. You're going to tell me this idea isn't a new one aren't you...:O(

[nanoRi]

Actually the cd spool is pretty clever. With the built-in shock protective dust cover - brilliant! This is really good for only your second sculpt. Looking forward to the progress shots!

Tell me, are you using super sculpey? Just curious. I suggest not baking until you have to. Get as much detail in as you can then bake when you have to for structural considerations or when existing details are in jeopardy of being distorted by further work. If you add material after baking, I would rough up or gouge the surface first (or the best thing is a drop of liquid sculpey or similar. It produces a "super glue" like bond between old and new). I have learned the hard way that no matter how "seamless" the addition, add ons are a weak point especially fine details.

A Von Klempt bust would look especially interesting in a cd spool (did I say bust?) :o

[deep_set]

Thank you! I am now revelling in the glee of my apparent cd spool dual-purpose invention. I'll be crying later when I forget to detatch it and put it in my oven.

Yes, super sculpey it be. Dirty super sculpey at that. As i'm taking it all over the place, my hands are never near to a sink, and hense, dirty. The underlying armature is a bit rubbish, so i'm working with what i've got. (I'd like his head to be small and thinner). I'll keep the liquid sculpey idea in mind.

Thanks again

Chris

[hellboyone]

It's working for me. At first glance I thought those clay balls were feet and you were doing a little shrimp Hellboy. Looks like you're having fun.

I thought they were boobs. :)

Lookin' good! Great idea with the cd spool, too. I use the big clear plastic covers as planters.

R.

[deep_set]

well, technically, they ARE boobs. Just...awaiting 'placement'.

[Johann]

LOJO!!!
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/LoJo-SG.jpg
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/LoJo-F2G.jpg
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/LoJo-FG.jpg

-oh and Rick i'm watching G4 at the moment and just saw a commercial with you as a ninja...i really got to see this.

[Johann]

Really sorry i don't have progress pics...these are old sculpts done before i got the digital camera.

Also, I'm liking your sculpt deep_set, glad to see something not Mignola. I can't seem to make anything stylized.

[deep_set]

Thanks Johaan. I've always been a real sucker for realism, especially in my drawings. Only recently am I starting to break my own mould (sculpting! mould! ha! i'm a funny one!) and branch out into something different. I'm finding it so new and amazing having 3 dimensions to use. Sometimes i'm turning him (hellboy) round and round, adding slight pressure here and there, totally changing his look, and i think to myself "wow". Not needing to take lighting into consideration is such a change. I hope to improve, with the help of such gods as you guys of course.

Johaan - loving LOJO! He looks really nimble but estute and badboy! Keep it up.

chris :eek:

[Ming]

beginings of a broody kreigaffe(sp?).....


http://www.geocities.com/mjsstudios/kergaffeee.jpg

[ADamUnRama]

Im gonna say yes Ming. Yes. So far I'll give ya got 50% of my vote. Thats cause there's not plug thingies sticking out of him. Hmmm Plug thingies. Ming, CAST NO SHADOW, but go ahead and cast a Johann

[Ming]

...sorry to bring down the thread with my crappy sculptures. :o

[ADamUnRama]

YA SHOULD BE SORRY. Just kidding. I know once its all up it'll be just as good as all your others. Im just flinging you crap for the 'Dark Colored' Flame. And Johann. Man that was a great Johann

[Petersen]

what happened to your old kreigaffe Ming???

[Ming]

what happened to your old kreigaffe Ming???


never liked the pose and the anatomy was a bit off-so i took a few trips to the natural history museum and gatheres some more ref pics -never enuff ref i always say :o

[JohnThompson]

Moses, old pal, I'm loving the damn, dirty ape! More, I tells ya! You really should post more pictures of your sculptures.

You complete me, Mr. LaDouche! Now, get back to work!

[DannyBoy7783]

You complete me, Mr. LaDouche! Now, get back to work!

That needs to go in someone's signature. Seriously.

[Ming]

http://www.geocities.com/mjsstudios/gog12.jpg

[Ming]

gonna post more pics later today gonna finish up the hair in the back.

[Ming]

also got these....from left to right-resin cast first one out of the mold,next is the clear resin plastic one-excuse the crude paint job but had to paint it up for quick photo shoot-then the heart breaker the original sculpt destroyed when the molding was done-RIP :(

http://www.geocities.com/mjsstudios/DSC02242.JPG.jpg

http://www.geocities.com/mjsstudios/DSC02246.JPG.jpg

[Tad]

No apologies, everything looks great!

[ADamUnRama]

Ming another great bust, the Kreigaffe, will it be a bust or the whole enchalada? And also I want a Johann, I'll message you for shipping and payment info.

[gary bolt]

Too bad the original is lost but it sure looks like you have a good mold. Johann looks fantastic cast in clear resin plastic! You've been very busy lately.

[Ming]

Ming another great bust, the Kreigaffe, will it be a bust or the whole enchalada?


the whole grilled steak enchalada w/cheese and side of beans and tomato salad!!mmmmmmmm :D if anyone here ever in manhattan Taco Express on 7th between of 23rd and 24th st-good eats! in other words a full figure KREI-GAAAAAAAAAFE! JT said to pronounce it like you're pissed off ....hooooooogan!

[Ming]

Too bad the original is lost but it sure looks like you have a good mold. Johann looks fantastic cast in clear resin plastic! You've been very busy lately.

more in store fer youes folks :D

[ADamUnRama]

No wait, I mean I want to buy a Johann, I want to buy a Johanna. Yes, because it a female bust, get it bust?

http://www.geocities.com/mjsstudios/DSC02246.JPG.jpg

[Tad]

Why is it a female bust? Forgive me if this is a dumb question but are you thinking Johann, (yo-hahn) is female? (joe-anne)

[ADamUnRama]

No, Im thinking that for copy right purposes. I know Johann is a male. It was more of a joke between me and Ming. I told him he'll get in trouble if I buy one, so we had to change the name.

[Tad]

Ah. Stupid me, didn't see the name change.

[JohnThompson]

Holey Moses, uh,... Moses!

I love the work you did on the ape, and the Johann cast in clear looks FAN-DAMN-TASTIC!!

Sorry about the damage to your original, I've been down that road too several times. Looking at poor Johann's head stuck on a wire is really making me want to see your take on a Screw-On Head sculpt, though. Is that wrong?

And hey, put me down for one of those Johanna casts!

[Ming]

which virgen??...i mean version ;)

[ADamUnRama]

Sorry about the damage to your original, I've been down that road too several times. Looking at poor Johann's head stuck on a wire is really making me want to see your take on a Screw-On Head sculpt, though. Is that wrong?

I too would like An 'Astonishing' Screw on Head

[Ming]

I too would like An 'Astonishing' Screw on Head

i saw a movie on that once- it had nothing to do with the MM story but it had a lot of girls and a guy with a "screw on head"


DON'T GET ELIMINATED!!!

[Ming]

http://www.geocities.com/mjsstudios/ape.gif

[ADamUnRama]

ITS NOT KREIGAFFE, ITS Crygaffe

[elhuevosupremo]

where do you guys get the resin from to cast and what do you paint it with?

[Ming]

i get most of the casting and molding materials from- smooth-on.com- theres a local sculpture store here that carries their stuff over here in nyc-but i do know that some art stores carry it too-you can order from them direct-for casting try the 305(i forget the full name but it gives you a 30min curing time) and the omoo 30 for molding-i get back to you on the clear resin forgot the name but its also from smooth-on :)

[Neil Hill]

Nice head-sculpt Ming! Looking forward to seeing the finished piece.

[morna]

nice kriegaffe head Ming! I love how it emerges from the blob - very kool!

likin' the johann too

[Grim Tim]

Damn, there's some great shiznits being created here! LOVE the Johann, Ming - looks awesome in the clear resin... very inspired idea!

So I just finished painting my JT Hellboy bust:

http://pic12.picturetrail.com/VOL440/452919/544990/122359070.jpg

It was an absolute joy to paint :) The sculpt... 10/10 - what a great 3-D interpretation of Mike's art. Love it! The casting... 5-6/10 - a minor disappointment. Some simple, basic things could have been done to avoid bubbles in the casting as well as the mold. Overall, not too bad though. Definitely a great addition to the collection...

[hellboyone]

Gorgeous paint, Tim! You guys make a great team. Nice to see you posting again..

R.

[petriacce]

So I just finished painting my JT Hellboy bust:

It was an absolute joy to paint :) The sculpt... 10/10 - what a great 3-D interpretation of Mike's art. Love it! The casting... 5-6/10 - a minor disappointment. Some simple, basic things could have been done to avoid bubbles in the casting as well as the mold. Overall, not too bad though. Definitely a great addition to the collection...Great job on painting your JT Hellboy bust. I'm anxious to get mine. Of course I'm not so confident in my painting skills. I need to check out some step by step tutorial on the web in how to paint these things OR I could just enjoy the nice white-grey of my cast and be done with it. I have a Hellboy kit to put together though so I'll probably go with the tutorial idea.

[Grim Tim]

Thanks guys :) I'm sorry I haven't been around much, lately...

Patrick - all I did was a basic drybrush paintjob. I primed both pieces with black spray primer... for the pedestal I went over it with a dark grey, and then lightened that a bit and went over it again. It was a tad too contrasty though, so I gave it a light dusting with the black primer again to knock it back down. Then I based out the Hellboy plaque with Rustoleum Dark Bronze and drybrushed it with a little bit of copper and then a lighter bronze. Then I gave it an overall wash of black and burnt umber oil paint thinned with turpenoid - I wanted to keep the pedestal pretty dark, so the focus would be on Hellboy.

For Hellboy, I started with a coat of brown and then added layer after layer of red mixed with brown, making each successive coat more red - I must have gone over it 5 or 6 times, with the last coat being straight red - which I tried to keep primarily on the prominent raised areas. Then I detailed the hair and did the eyes, and then sealed it with a couple coats of Krylon matte.

[Jakob Westman]

Ooo... that's pretty!!

/ Jakob

[Ivar_L]

Found from Ebay -

http://i8.ebayimg.com/02/i/05/be/f0/f8_12.JPG

link (http://cgi.ebay.com/HELLBOY-SD-SCULPTURE-ORIGINAL-FREE-SHIPPING_W0QQitemZ5453557767QQcategoryZ553QQrdZ1QQ cmdZViewItem)

[petriacce]

Patrick - all I did was a basic drybrush paintjob. I primed both pieces with black spray primer... for the pedestal I went over it with a dark grey, and then lightened that a bit and went over it again. It was a tad too contrasty though, so I gave it a light dusting with the black primer again to knock it back down. Then I based out the Hellboy plaque with Rustoleum Dark Bronze and drybrushed it with a little bit of copper and then a lighter bronze. Then I gave it an overall wash of black and burnt umber oil paint thinned with turpenoid - I wanted to keep the pedestal pretty dark, so the focus would be on Hellboy.

For Hellboy, I started with a coat of brown and then added layer after layer of red mixed with brown, making each successive coat more red - I must have gone over it 5 or 6 times, with the last coat being straight red - which I tried to keep primarily on the prominent raised areas. Then I detailed the hair and did the eyes, and then sealed it with a couple coats of Krylon matte.Hey Tim, I appreciate the mini tutorial. It might help mine look a bit more like Hellboy was touched by the fires of Hell and not like he got a bucket of red paint dumped on his head.

Just in case, is there something fantastic that will strip off all of the paint I've applied if it's just looking like crap? I mean that more in the I know about paint striper but I'm thinking something that won't eat my cast? Cheers.

[Grim Tim]

Well, I can't say that I've ever used any kind of paint stripper... I use Tamiya acrylics, and I'm not sure what you'd use to try and remove 'em - soak it in alcohol, perhaps? No idea...

The thing with drybrushing is that technically you're applying very little paint, so if you don't like the way things are going, you could start over without having to remove what you've done... in theory... :o

Sorry I can't be more helpful than that...

[JohnThompson]

Tim, that paint job looks amazing! Thank you for posting this, along with your review of the bust and your painting tips. I have made a mold from my sculpt of Mohlomi's bell, (and plan to offer free resin casts for the board members), but I am sending you the original as a way of saying thanks for the inspiration I've gotton from your prop work. Also, I figured if anyone I knew would be interested or able to make an actual metal cast of the bell, it would be you (hint-hint). No pressure, though.
...is there something fantastic that will strip off all of the paint I've applied if it's just looking like crap? I mean that more in the I know about paint striper but I'm thinking something that won't eat my cast? Cheers.
Hey Patrick-- many kit builders will strip old paint from a model in a couple of ways. One is to place your resin parts in a large plastic zipper bag (turkey roasting bags) or trash bag: spray all painted surfaces with Easy Off oven cleaning foam, and seal the bag. After giving the cleaner some time to work, open the bag, remove parts wearing rubber gloves, and scrub old paint off with a toothbrush. I have personally never tried this, so I don't have any idea how long to leave the resin parts to soak-- it would be best to check often.

The other method is to soak parts in brake fluid. Again, I've never done this, so you would want to check the parts often.

Both methods are the most common ways to remove old paint from models, and have been used and tested by many modelers. The resin should not be damaged by either method, but just in case you can apply a small amount of the chemicals to the bottom of the base to test for any reaction with the resin.

By the way Patrick, I will send your bust out today: I held off on shipping it because I thought I would have the bells cast by now, but I will have to ship that separately. Jakob too, I am finally sending your package out today as well, delayed again because I wanted to send you the bell also. You have been superhumanly patient with me. Your bell will also arrive later.

[DannyBoy7783]

I recently removed factory paint from a Star Wars figure using nail polish remover. I don't know if that helps at all though.....

[Grim Tim]

Tim, that paint job looks amazing! Thank you for posting this, along with your review of the bust and your painting tips.
Thanks, John - it was an awesome piece to paint :) It actually looks better in person, where you can see more of the subtleties of the paint. Also, those pics make the red look a bit more orange that it actually is - I think I might re-photograph it and play with the white balance on my camera, to see if I can correct that.

I have made a mold from my sculpt of Mohlomi's bell, (and plan to offer free resin casts for the board members), but I am sending you the original as a way of saying thanks for the inspiration I've gotton from your prop work. Also, I figured if anyone I knew would be interested or able to make an actual metal cast of the bell, it would be you (hint-hint). No pressure, though.
Can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to receiving that - many thanks in advance :) And we'll see about a metal casting...

[petriacce]

Hey Patrick-- many kit builders will strip old paint from a model in a couple of ways. One is to place your resin parts in a large plastic zipper bag (turkey roasting bags) or trash bag: spray all painted surfaces with Easy Off oven cleaning foam, and seal the bag. After giving the cleaner some time to work, open the bag, remove parts wearing rubber gloves, and scrub old paint off with a toothbrush. I have personally never tried this, so I don't have any idea how long to leave the resin parts to soak-- it would be best to check often.

The other method is to soak parts in brake fluid. Again, I've never done this, so you would want to check the parts often.

Both methods are the most common ways to remove old paint from models, and have been used and tested by many modelers. The resin should not be damaged by either method, but just in case you can apply a small amount of the chemicals to the bottom of the base to test for any reaction with the resin.

By the way Patrick, I will send your bust out today: I held off on shipping it because I thought I would have the bells cast by now, but I will have to ship that separately. Jakob too, I am finally sending your package out today as well, delayed again because I wanted to send you the bell also. You have been superhumanly patient with me. Your bell will also arrive later.Hey JT, no worries. I appreciate the ideas about striping paint should it be necessary. And a BIG THANKS for the bell also. That is an awesome gift. Cheers and I'll be sure to post pictures of my paint job too.

[DannyBoy7783]

I have made a mold from my sculpt of Mohlomi's bell, (and plan to offer free resin casts for the board members)

That bell is awesome! I loved it.

[morna]

(bell? ...!)

[rhboyd]

Bell?!?!?

METAL?!?!?!

oy vey...

sorry the moulding on JT's bust wasn't better. We encountered... problems, plus I guess our own inexperience was showing through. ( Any tips would be most appreciated GT )

In the end though... the price was pretty good.

-r!

[Mike Cross]

Ok, so we got awesome "pro" looking paint jobs by GT and JT, when i receive mine, you'll see a version of the "amateur" paint job...ie, i was just gonna do one coat of red and black...that just sounds silly now though...

[Grim Tim]

sorry the moulding on JT's bust wasn't better. We encountered... problems, plus I guess our own inexperience was showing through. ( Any tips would be most appreciated GT )

In the end though... the price was pretty good.
The price was very good - and it is actually a nice piece, Ron. Believe me, I've seen MUCH worse.

The main problem area that I encountered was the Hellboy plaque on the pedestal - the sharp points of the letters had bubbles from the casting process, and the recessed center areas of the letters had "nodules" (shiny, spherical balls) which were a result of bubbles in the molding process.

So, a couple quick tips...

Ideally, after mixing silicone, the air that is introduced into it should be evacuated by placing the container in a vacuum chamber for several minutes. Yes, I realize that not everyone has access to such a contraption... however, it's not *completely* necessary.

Here's what you *can* do though... when pouring silicone, put the mold box on the floor (preferrably something like a garage floor, which you don't have to worry about spilling on - although you still may want to throw down some newspaper). Stand over the mold box on the floor, and while holding your container of silicone at around waist to chest height, slowly start to pour a very thin stream of silicone into it - something a bit less than the diameter of a pencil, but larger than a strand of spaghetti. The key is to keep the stream thin and to pour slowly - this should prevent any air bubbles in the rubber from clinging to the object that you are molding. Also, don't pour the silicone directly onto the object - pour it into the mold box next to the object and let the rubber flow around it as the box fills.

Another thing you can do is apply a thin brush coat first - mix a small amount of silicone and brush a thin layer over the object, making sure that the rubber has gotten down into all of the nooks and crannies. Let that cure and then you can pour the remainder of the mold (and you don't have to worry about pouring it as slowly as the other method that I just mentioned).

As far as pouring resin and making castings goes... talcum powder is your friend :) Dust the inside of your molds with talc - it helps to reduce the formation of air bubbles that cling to the walls of the mold, which means less than perfect castings.

Shake a fair amount of talc into your mold (relative to the mold's size) and roll the mold around, while you slap and smack it, to evenly distribute the talc and make sure that all the surfaces are covered. Then turn the mold upside down and dump out the excess talc (preferrably into a trash can), and smack it some more. Then you need to gently blow the mold out - if you don't have an air compressor, a can of Dust-Off works just as well. It's imperative that there isn't any talc trapped or clumped in any tight little recesses that the mold might have - thoroughly inspect the mold to make sure that this hasn't happened. The idea is to have a very thin film of talc coating the inside of the mold - this creates a capillary action when you pour the resin in and helps draw it into all of the little nooks and crannies.

Also, if in the process of casting parts you find an area of your mold that continually traps air bubbles, you can give that spot a little extra attention after you pour the resin in - you can gently poke at the area with a blunted toothpick or a disposable brush. In addition, depending upon what type of resin you use (particularly the types that are very transparent and look like root beer) you can sometimes see where there are bubbles clinging to the mold after you've done a pour. The stuff I generally use is opaque though, so that requires a bit of guess work and some blind jabbing :o

There's also pressure-potting, but I won't go into that, since much like vacuum chambers, not everyone is so equipped...

[Ivar_L]

Thanks for the mold making tips, Grim Tim! I'm finishing my Marv's molds and brushing the first layer of silicone is what I was planning to do. I had the similar problems in my Hellboy's mold in logo area as JT ("nodules" mentioned in message #993). I hope my second silicone matrix mold will be better.

Also with resin - it looks like the main reason for bubbles is the thicker component which has bubbles in it even before mixing it with another one... as I need to shake the containers before mixing - I was reading that if components A and B are not shaked before pouring out from containers, some chemicals in them will be not evenly distributed. I was thinking about measuring the components and then, before mixing, pouring them slowly to another glass...

I was drybrushing my Hellboy bust too. I like the process, except it's hard to brushes... I don't have compressor, so this will be my way for colouring for some time.

Was trying to sculpt some today. After I got tired trying to get the face right (started it yesterday), I added some temporary clay to make quick hair and collar so I could see, will it look remotly like my sketch... I will remove them when I will continue to fix the face. Here's the sneak peek with Bowen's Abe bust:

http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/6333/liz032xs.jpghttp://img385.imageshack.us/img385/3249/liz048hl.jpg

[Johann]

some mignola influenced sculptures:
vampire heads-
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a180/throktar/album%202/VHeads.jpg
sammael-
http://i11.photobucket