Vacuum Forming Parts

Depends on the part.  For some parts the carving of the master can be a pain if there are not more identical parts left.  And Murphy's law says the last one you attempt to put on will be the one you lose.  At other times, with a part you can easily carve a master for, or where you have more identical parts, it can be a great answer.  Note that the vacuformed part will be slightly larger than the original, and this is most noticable when the original is a small part.  But of course, the small parts are the ones that you lose.

For small jobs, try plunge molding. It works pretty well.

Don Eisenhart

Nothing frustrates me more then having a small part, one really needed for detail like gun sight, fly off the tweezers into never never land. 

I am thinking about investing in a vacuum forming machine, and duplicating these parts ahead of time. 

How practical would this be?

Thanks, 

Don

 

GM,

Are you talking about the re-usable heat and pour mold material from Micro-Mark?

 

Don, 

Got that one right!  Because of SNAFU's I am the proud owner of FOUR Spitfire kits from the same company, but one ONE completed Spitfire! 

 

This is why copying one, and making a bunch in resin may be more economical.  It also makes more sense. If you have more than one kit - this would save having to buy them for just one part! If you have that many you should invest in buying some silicone rubber, and polyurethhane resin casting supplies. If you have all the parts necessary to build at least one full kit - copy the needed part(s) so that you can either build the rest of them, or sell them to someone who has casting experience, and can make this part in multiples so that they can build them, or sell them with a resin copy of that part. Vaccum forming is usually for big parts like fuselage forms, engine covers and hollow things - not tiny parts.

 

~ Cobra Chris

Resin casting can be expensive, and often not a good way to save money unless you are doing a lot of parts.  Both the resin and the RTV mold material have limited shelf lives.  My stuff is out of date, and it will cost seventy bucks to get new resin and RTV for a project I am working on- I may hold that project till I have another project that I will need resin casting for.

Cobra, 

 

But then you get into copyright issues. 

Don, 

Yes, I have discovered that as well.  

This is why we need a swap meet forum.  

 

Don Stauffer

Resin casting can be expensive, and often not a good way to save money unless you are doing a lot of parts.  Both the resin and the RTV mold material have limited shelf lives. 

 

Not true - I only spent around $48.00 with shipping for the stuff that I bought, but that's because I'm remaking my own version of the 1/48th scale X-wing fighter. This is like the ILM models of of the original movie, only smaller. I had to redo all the detail that was missing on the MPC, and fine molds, and it will also feature detail that isn't available on even the new Bandai kits. I have to finish the wing detail, and a few other parts before I throw the rest of this into silicone rubber. You can get casting supplies for about $20.00 depending on who you buy from.

Don Eisenhart

Cobra, 

 

But then you get into copyright issues. 

 

I'm afraid that you don't understand copyright law. This only applies to written form - music, literature, and poetry. LICENSING is what you're thinking, and this ONLY applies to making reproductions available to the general public in mass quantity! if you're only making one part per model - this is what these casting kits are intended for. Nothing illegal about it unless you plan to recast somone elses' work, and pass it off as your own. This would also apply to vacuum forming. Haven't you ever lost one tire, or wheel on something wishing that you could have it back? That's what products like silicone rubber moulds, and resins were intended to do along with products like Alclad, and Spaztix to replicate chrome, polished aluminum, dull plated surfaces with a bright reflective appearance without mirroring things around it, as well as other types of metallic surfaces.

What's next? suing someone for replicating steel, aluminum, copper, gold, and all the other metals sold by manufacturers? There HAS to be some type of stopping all these greedy lawyers, and punative frivilous law suits. Somewhere you have to know where to draw the line, and know not to go over it.

 

~ Cobra Chris

Cobra 427

 

 

Don Stauffer

Resin casting can be expensive, and often not a good way to save money unless you are doing a lot of parts.  Both the resin and the RTV mold material have limited shelf lives. 

 

 

 

 

Not true - I only spent around $48.00 with shipping for the stuff that I bought, but that's because I'm remaking my own version of the 1/48th scale X-wing fighter. This is like the ILM models of of the original movie, only smaller. I had to redo all the detail that was missing on the MPC, and fine molds, and it will also feature detail that isn't available on even the new Bandai kits. I have to finish the wing detail, and a few other parts before I throw the rest of this into silicone rubber. You can get casting supplies for about $20.00 depending on who you buy from.

 

 

 

Don Eisenhart

Cobra, 

 

But then you get into copyright issues. 

 

 

 

 

I'm afraid that you don't understand copyright law. This only applies to written form - music, literature, and poetry. LICENSING is what you're thinking, and this ONLY applies to making reproductions available to the general public in mass quantity! if you're only making one part per model - this is what these casting kits are intended for. Nothing illegal about it unless you plan to recast somone elses' work, and pass it off as your own. This would also apply to vacuum forming. Haven't you ever lost one tire, or wheel on something wishing that you could have it back? That's what products like silicone rubber moulds, and resins were intended to do along with products like Alclad, and Spaztix to replicate chrome, polished aluminum, dull plated surfaces with a bright reflective appearance without mirroring things around it, as well as other types of metallic surfaces.

 

What's next? suing someone for replicating steel, aluminum, copper, gold, and all the other metals sold by manufacturers? There HAS to be some type of stopping all these greedy lawyers, and punative frivilous law suits. Somewhere you have to know where to draw the line, and know not to go over it.

 

~ Cobra Chris

 

 

Cobra, 

I was a portrait photographer at one time, and I have seen how nasty issue like this can become.  

If I need a part cast, or if someone else needs one cast becuase of the inevibible SNAFU, I will do that.  

But copying and selling someone else's work for profit?  That does not sit well with me personnaly.  

Cobra 427

 

Don Stauffer

Resin casting can be expensive, and often not a good way to save money unless you are doing a lot of parts.  Both the resin and the RTV mold material have limited shelf lives. 

 

 

 

 

Not true - I only spent around $48.00 with shipping for the stuff that I bought, but that's because I'm remaking my own version of the 1/48th scale X-wing fighter. This is like the ILM models of of the original movie, only smaller. I had to redo all the detail that was missing on the MPC, and fine molds, and it will also feature detail that isn't available on even the new Bandai kits. I have to finish the wing detail, and a few other parts before I throw the rest of this into silicone rubber. You can get casting supplies for about $20.00 depending on who you buy from.

 

 

 

Don Eisenhart

Cobra, 

 

But then you get into copyright issues. 

 

 

 

 

I'm afraid that you don't understand copyright law. This only applies to written form - music, literature, and poetry. LICENSING is what you're thinking, and this ONLY applies to making reproductions available to the general public in mass quantity! if you're only making one part per model - this is what these casting kits are intended for. Nothing illegal about it unless you plan to recast somone elses' work, and pass it off as your own. This would also apply to vacuum forming. Haven't you ever lost one tire, or wheel on something wishing that you could have it back? That's what products like silicone rubber moulds, and resins were intended to do along with products like Alclad, and Spaztix to replicate chrome, polished aluminum, dull plated surfaces with a bright reflective appearance without mirroring things around it, as well as other types of metallic surfaces.

 

What's next? suing someone for replicating steel, aluminum, copper, gold, and all the other metals sold by manufacturers? There HAS to be some type of stopping all these greedy lawyers, and punative frivilous law suits. Somewhere you have to know where to draw the line, and know not to go over it. 

~ Cobra Chris

Ed, 

Well said. 

That may also be why Basement Shop's that offer resin kits don't stay around very long. 

Don 

EdGrune

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not exactly.  You may calim copyright on a physical item.    Have you ever seen the copyright info molded into a Revell kit.    Copyright also covers intellectual property (software)  and design information.    I invite you to look at this blog at Shapeways,  follow the links.    It discusses copyright in light of 3D printing,  but the concepts are true for most of what we do.

 

 

 

But consider,   you have this nice Eduard ejection seat which you paid dearly for.  You need another one.   If you make a copy of the seat,  even for personal use,  you are depriving Eduard of the profits of the sale of the second item.     You make a copy and give it awayto your friend.  You are depriving Eduard of the profits from the sale.

You may not make a copy and call it Eduard.  Doubly bad - you are taking their product and the good will assocoiated with their name.

 

 

I am not a lawyer,  but I stayed in a Holiday Inn.   

 

 

 

No, Sir - that's not what I meant! You can only copyright your name - this is what Revell, and Monogram, and so many others did this for. It's to show that this product is trademarked, and the brand name is copyrighted to ensure that the buyers of the model won't' infringe upon it without knowing that it's illegal. This is done for legal reasons. I don't suggest recasting an entire known product of someone elses' to make a profit unless it's no longer in production and there's a high demand for it. However I was only suggesting recasting a small part so that you can have a full kit. If you have one seat missing, and you need another - this is why casting kits, or at least part of the reason why they are so popular is that you can replace something that's missing. Say you have a piece of jewelry that's missing a part - you can replace it with a resin cast version that you can either use, or take to a jeweler to have them fabricate a new one without having to remove another part from it to make a copy. My statement wasn't intended to be misconstrued as a legal, or moral debate.

 

~ Cobra Chris