FREE-Z or How to make Video Game Ice Casts

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Hey Instructabrarians,

It's Video Game Month!  This. IS. AWESOME!  As a traditional Japanese Otaku, I absolutely adore any kind of electronic gaming system or platform (although my all time favorite is Nintendo, c'mon) and I have been known to spend on average a good 95% of my summer vacations relaxing on my couch playing games nonstop.   We've got a great influx of newcomers with awesome Video Game entries and I couldn't be more stoked for this. That's why from now until the end of this month, all of my next builds will be video game themed!  So, in the words of a certain Italian Plumber  "Let's-A Go!" 

Now unfortunately for my first VG Instructable for VG month, I wasn't able to make anything super complicated since I had a stupid economics midterm this Friday, so I really needed something that was fairly easy and quick. Thankfully, I realized I still had quite a bit of Mold Builder liquid latex from one of my current builds and decided to create a more fun and art based work than my regular mechanical / electrical ones. According to the box, it works on models of "metal, clay, plaster, wood, plastic or glass" but I recently discovered a 7th alternative use- Casting Papercrafts! And once I decided on Papercrafts + Liquid Latex Molds I knew this had to be an Ice Instructable.

Editor's Note: Please keep all Ice related comments to a minimum.  Sure it might sound amusing for the first couple of minutes, but after receiving dozens and dozens of them it becomes snow joking matter.

Step 1: Abstract & Special Thanks

I love tribute builds and  this video game Instructable goes out to Tetranitrate for one of my all time favorite inspirational Step-By-Steps on this site Tetris Ice Cubes.  So if you're reading this, thank you for inspiring me to create my own Video Game ice crafts and those Tetris ground beef squares are delicious!

Now, my initial plan was to simply create a tutorial on how to make a Real Mario Freezie  and I already planned out several Mario related jokes and videos I was going to use.  But after reviewing TV Tropes' entry on Slippy Slidey Ice World  I realized that Ice stages and Ice enemies are actually a staple of almost all platforming video games, and I really just wanted to just have fun with this build.  So to show the versatility of this process, I expanded it to Kirby and Legend of Zelda with Ice Kirby and Ice Rupees.

Comments

[Soda_zer0]

sorry I don't get the part with the wax paper.

I really really really don't get it. For what do I use the Wax paper in this instructable?

[SHIFT!]

Wax paper is used in order to reduce the amount of mess caused by the excessive amounts of Mold Builder one will be using. The bottom tends to become incredibly viscous and it's necessary to paint on something that frictionless to work on.

Essentially you don't need to use wax paper, per se.  Any frictionless surface such as a glass plate would work just as well.

[Soda_zer0]

Aha!
I see!
Thank you very much for your fast reply.

Was thinking the wax paper was supposed to be put sonehow on the actuall papercraft model to prefent to strong attachment from the dry latex mas.

And thank you for this instructable its pretty radical!

[the dashing hero]

totally make a ice portagon!

[bgepp1]

I want to take a tiki and use this process - I wonder if I overlayed the tiki with plastic wrap then painted on the mold builder if that would work? I love how you figured this out using the mold builder stuff! I want to do more easy mold building at home so this is perfect! thanx

[builderkidj]

How do you do stuff like the rupee with points on both sides?

[builderkidj]

Awesome but will it work with say,a paper craft with ins and outs like link from zelda?

Ps but will it blend?

[Achturn]

I love this instructable! but moreso than just the instructable itself THANK YOU FOR POINTING ME IN THE DIRECTION OF A RUBBER MOLD PRODUCT! XD

this seems so much better than the plaster molds I've been using for casting!

also in the first picture, how did you get that blue "core" to the Free-z?

again: wonderful instructable! never would have thought of making molds of papercrafts :O

[SHIFT!]

Thanks Achturn! Yeah, totally agree I absolutely LOVE mold builder. This stuff is the easiest mold caster I've ever used and the results are fantastic.  It's also incredibly inexpensive too, which means you can spend more money on the casts themselves than on the molds.  Plus, because it's brush on, you can add as much or as little as you need which makes it perfect for Papercrafts!

I made the blue core using food coloring.  It's supposed to be entirely blue, but I guess that's just the way the ice freezes.

[Browncoat]

With the stuff you made the mold of, would these be food-safe?

[SHIFT!]

Definitely. Once it's done drying, it forms a really nice silicon based mold, which is completely food-safe. Just make sure to give it at least 2 days to dry inside and out.

[ChrysN]

Cool!

[SHIFT!]

Thanks ChrysN! It's my 10th instructable ever!