Scales.. unusual materials.

FrenchBlade

FrenchBlade

Messages
2,124
Location
South of France
I went into the hobby shop today in search for plexiglass/perspex (which the didn't have)

I did think about a few other things I could use..

Has anyone tried using Fimo, I know once "cooked" you can work it with a dremel etc..
Could make some nice stuff with it.. When I have an oven I might buy a packet just to see..

Other idea.. maybe very stupid idea, but it would look aweome if I pull it off..

  • Glass[/list:u]

    With a proper cutter you should be able to cut the right shape, probably need a tiny rubber/plastic washer on the pivot, and use those mini bolts for pinning.
    Also need to bevel the edges somehow, but should be doable.

    What do you guys think? doable or madness?

    Just throwing some ideas out there.. :D

    Max
 
Fimo or polymer clay, can be worked well and after priming in the oven it can be sanded etc. I never got a great polish with it though; for that I ended up having to use a varnish. But it's not too brittle. I've seen some amazing things done with it.

FimoSculpture37WEB.jpg
 
wspiral said:
Fimo or polymer clay, can be worked well and after priming in the oven it can be sanded etc. I never got a great polish with it though; for that I ended up having to use a varnish. But it's not too brittle. I've seen some amazing things done with it.
Click to expand...

Thanks Charlotte!

I think I'll give this a try, it's cheap enough, does it shrink a lot when you cook it? I'd probably sand it and then varnish it.

Max
 
Very little shrinkage that I noticed but I've never made anything that required that close a precision. The biggest attention needed is when you bake it, placing it in such a way that you don't get flattened areas on anything curved or round. I found that hanging it from the bars in the oven was a good way to avoid that. Also you need to be sure you don't overcook it. It also needs plenty of kneading to soften it before working.

Hope it works okay; if it does, you'll be able to make some amazing patterned pieces.
 
I imagine glass is doable I've drilled it before but IMHO it would be a poor choice as there are plenty of hard things in the bathroom for it to knock against and chip or break
 
Jeltz said:
I imagine glass is doable I've drilled it before but IMHO it would be a poor choice as there are plenty of hard things in the bathroom for it to knock against and chip or break
Click to expand...
Yeah, i'd be more worried about buggering up the edge though, so I'm already super careful. If you break the glass scales, I think you really aren't careful with your straight...

Max
 
Found the wapi thread here (hope it's okay to link to another forum, if not sorry).

This is the sort of thing I would have loved doing before nappies came along. But it definately looks and sounds very do-able. Even using just two polymer clays he's produced gorgeous scales. Not so sure about glow-in-the-dark shaving though, it looks like something that might appear on Most Haunted :lol:

Can't wait to see what you come up with Max!
 
wspiral said:
Found the wapi thread here (hope it's okay to link to another forum, if not sorry).

This is the sort of thing I would have loved doing before nappies came along. But it definately looks and sounds very do-able. Even using just two polymer clays he's produced gorgeous scales. Not so sure about glow-in-the-dark shaving though, it looks like something that might appear on Most Haunted :lol:

Can't wait to see what you come up with Max!
Click to expand...

That's it, after reading that, I'm going to have to experiment with this! I'll buy some Fimo and play with it between xmas/new year on my holidays, and will see what I get done.
I saw some see-through fimo on the website, so I might get some of that if I can. :D

Max
 
So Ollie got in first with the oosik this time then. :roll:

There seems to be a lot of potential in homemade "micarta" (loads of articles on the knifemakers' forums), but it could get expensive and very time consuming.
 
Arrowhead said:
Actually, here is something really very impressive. This idea crossed my mind fleetingly a while ago, but I rejected it immediately as impracticable: shows what I know.
Click to expand...

That is very impressive. Amazing some of the talent that people have.
 
the problem with both of the materials that you have suggested using is that neither of them flexes.

A proper material for straight razor scales must flex -- If you look at a typical straight razor, the width of the tang is very commonly the width of the spine, if you do not have a wedge/spacer that is thinner than the width of the tang, then, the razor would simply fall right through the scales. In the situations where the tang is tapered, and the tang is in fact thinner than the spine, the tang will be tapered in the opposite direction from what you need to create perfectly flat scales.. and even if you did somehow get it to work, when you open and close the razor, you will be creating stress on the scales, with the potential to break... It will also feel incredibly unnatural to open the scales.

The next problem with glass is that its extremely heavy.

The only thing you could do is use a 3rd pin on these, and allow the razor to set on the 3rd pin. It would make for a pretty ugly set of scales though, with the tang-wide gap between the scales for the entire length of the razor. the other thing you could do is stack washers on the sides of the tang in order to provide the angle you need to create a thinner wedge -- and then you've got an ugly set of scales again!

Wedge end spacers are wedges for a reason..and scales need to flex for a reason!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom