easy to make universal pen mold

[Russianwolf]

Here is a vid of a mold i started making a couple weeks ago using silicone mold putty available at michaels for $20 or less.



Making a Universal pen blank mold.wmv - YouTube

 

[GoodTurns]

c'mon...let the dogs in...they want to help!

 

[Russianwolf]

They were in , Jon, and laying all around me. Couple of them wanted to play at the beginning.

You know it never gets boring around here.

Going to put those molds to use tomorrow along with my resin-savers.

 

[unclefuzzy]

I have to do try doing this. I also did the other silicone mold (tube), and I just made a mess. I hope it is as easy to do as it looks. I have some ideas that might just work now. Thanks for an informative tutorial. This is why I love this place. Everybody is willing to share and teach others. I don't contribute much, but I am learning from others.

 

[OOPS]

Its an interesting video, thanks. Do you have any idea how long those molds last? Do they last as long as a resin saver, for instance?

 

[Russianwolf]

I made the first ones a couple weeks ago and have only cast in them once. tomorrow they will each get used 3-4 times.

I found the putty while looking at some jewelry vids, and some of them claim to have 100s of casts per mold with no problems.

Will they last as long as the others? time will tell.

 

[KDM]

Having made my first PR moulds square, I was sufficiently intrigued back in May 2010 to calculate just exactly how much I might save using round moulds. To some, it'll be entirely obvious. To others it may be surprising.

If you can't obtain the putty mentioned here, or find it too expensive, silicone bathroom sealer can be used instead. You can make 4 or 5 moulds from a $4 tube. I don't have photos of my process for making saver moulds, but essentially, you massage a blob of silicone under really soapy water until you feel it start to cure. The water makes it cure and the soap stops it sticking to your hands. Then, you follow Russianwolf's process for making a mould of an existing blank.

Be aware that once it's out of the soapy water, it'll start to get sticky really quickly!!

 

[KDM]

...in fact, I found the guide I (sort of) followed. Ron speaks of a horizontal mould, but the principle of getting teh curing starting and ensuring nothing sticks to you is the same.

 

[randyrls]

Mike; I particularly liked the delrin end caps you made and casting the brass tube in place. It may well be that you can cast tubes with labels, coverings, or other items this way!

Thanks for posting this video!

 

[Russianwolf]

I can report that they worked pretty much as expected. There was a small amount of bleed through past the delrin, but very little.

I'm using an epoxy resin which has a higher bond strength than PR or Alumilite, and the mold peels right off with no damage to the mold.

With the delrin, the tubes are clean. You just have to make sure that you make them a tight fit. When I pull mine out of a fresh, uncast tube, they pop. A standard I set after using Johnny's bushings.

 

[GaryMGg]

Nice video; makes it simple. Thanks.