Posted by Steve | Posted in Mold Making | Posted on 02-06-2010
Tags: ceramics, clay, durukulilounge, essential guide mold making slip casting, mold making slip casting, molding, slip+casting

I wish to make a mold of a my table lamp with molding plaster. How?
The lamp is beautiful that I wish to duplicate by making a mold and then cast more of the same but with special touchups and additions. I hope to make the mold from molding plaster then use slip, or some other medium to cast. Before firing I wish to trim the figures up a bit, for sharper relief. OR, is there another medium that’s carveable and possibly baked in a home oven? I really want to make the lamp as unbreakable as possible. Thanks for any and all inputs.
how much experience do you have in such projects? And how complex is the lamp? What is it made out of?
You can only use plaster molds if there are no undercuts as undercuts will lock your mold and your cast in (example: http://www.danperezstudios.com/images/workshop/molding_casting/undercut.gif).
The only possible sturdy material I can think of is using a resin. But then you either need to place the electric cord while using the resin or make a core to make sure the lamp is hollow. For resin casting I wouldn’t really use a plaster mold as it’s too porous (you might use shellack to seal it, but I am not sure how that works with resin). Resin definitely works with a silicon rubber mold, the flexibility of which also allows you some undercuts. But the silicon I am familiar with releases acetic acid while it sets, so if your lamp is made from metal it may discolor the metal (if you use plaster the water in plaster could rust it).
Take a class in mold making if you really want to do this project. Otherwise you will have at least to post an image of the object you want to cast. Best procedures in mold making depend heavily on the size, shape and detail of the object.
Moulding Shop
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