100% RTV Silicone Rubber comes in grease gun cartridges at the hardware store. It is a pasty synthetic material that hardens into flexible rubber after losing acetic acid fumes to the air. The odor is sharp, but if you don't get your nose too close to it, you are OK. Use adequate ventilation.
I believe that Silicone rubber has been an overlooked material with a lot of potential for a long time. I would be surprised if I was the first person to think of using it in sculpture, but I'm sure I wasn't the only kid to tickle that sample dab of silicone they used to stick on the display cards and wonder what else it might be good for.
It can be used to make biological and architectural models, art and craft projects, jewelry and other things. Since it also has survival value for things like stopping leaks, and repairing things at home, it is a good material to become familiar with.
I believe that Silicone rubber has been an overlooked material with a lot of potential for a long time. I would be surprised if I was the first person to think of using it in sculpture, but I'm sure I wasn't the only kid to tickle that sample dab of silicone they used to stick on the display cards and wonder what else it might be good for.
It can be used to make biological and architectural models, art and craft projects, jewelry and other things. Since it also has survival value for things like stopping leaks, and repairing things at home, it is a good material to become familiar with.
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The silicone usually comes with an aluminum foil seal inside the cartridge that you have to break with a stiff wire after cutting the tip of the cartridge.
100% RTV silicone rubber comes in a few basic colors, such as clear, white, black, bronze, and aluminum. You can make your own colors by mixing powdered pigments with clear silicone. Mix the ingredients on a palette with a palette knife. Transfer silicone to plastic tipped hypodermic syringes (pet store) for precise extrusions and fine details. Dick Blick Art Supplies is a good place to get fancy colors online: http://www.dickblick.com/search/?q=powder+pigments&x=26&y=9&sp_cs=UTF-8 Cheaper pigments by the pound can be found in hardware stores. They are normally used for colorizing cement.
You can build forms up like a clay coil pot, extruding lines upon lines to build up walls of silicone. Work on a wire armature to build figurines, etc. Spread it on a non-stick flat surface to make sheets of the material. Polyethylene plastic makes a good non-stick surface. I have a polyethylene plastic kitchen cutting board that is my favorite work surface.
Save your empty cartridges, clean them out, and use them for other things, such as maracas, or for artist's acrylic paint dispensers.
100% RTV silicone rubber comes in a few basic colors, such as clear, white, black, bronze, and aluminum. You can make your own colors by mixing powdered pigments with clear silicone. Mix the ingredients on a palette with a palette knife. Transfer silicone to plastic tipped hypodermic syringes (pet store) for precise extrusions and fine details. Dick Blick Art Supplies is a good place to get fancy colors online: http://www.dickblick.com/search/?q=powder+pigments&x=26&y=9&sp_cs=UTF-8 Cheaper pigments by the pound can be found in hardware stores. They are normally used for colorizing cement.
You can build forms up like a clay coil pot, extruding lines upon lines to build up walls of silicone. Work on a wire armature to build figurines, etc. Spread it on a non-stick flat surface to make sheets of the material. Polyethylene plastic makes a good non-stick surface. I have a polyethylene plastic kitchen cutting board that is my favorite work surface.
Save your empty cartridges, clean them out, and use them for other things, such as maracas, or for artist's acrylic paint dispensers.
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ilpug
says:
Dec 19, 2012. 2:06 PMReplyHow does this not have tons of views and comments?! it's amazing!
100
Thinkenstein (author)
in reply to Dec 19, 2012. 6:22 PMReplyPossibly because it didn't get featured. Maybe it didn't get featured because it's not a single project, but rather an overview.
37
ilpug
in reply to Dec 19, 2012. 6:42 PMReplyMeh, it doesn't have to get featured to be popular... this is just amazing!
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