What Do You Use For Sculpting Models

Over here we call hippy craft stores panduro, it's were old nann's buy their polymer clays to make "peeing troll on pet rock nr 3001" that's later given away at bingohalls along with empty beer bottles beaded beer bottle cozies as prizes.
The problem is getting the GS into the EU without it being produced here as epoxy in it self is quite toxic.
there's a mile of red tape to eat through thats usually more than enough to brake the incentive for any store not really interested in it.
We have our share of gaming stores both storefront and online for the stuff.
Being a blacksmith and a big nerd reconquering the possible fun I could have had as a kid
I cast my own when necessity strikes so I'm fine

Svenn wrote:

Anyone tried sculpting with something like Super Sculpey ( http://bit.ly/6sUJ1O )? How does it work?

Sculpy needs to be baked in the oven. I don't think it takes fine detail as well as greenstuff but i have not tried. I have a pack of it sitting in a drawer but the whole oven thing just deters me from wanting to practice with it...

Greenstuff is the best for detail sculpting, and i have used a package as old as 5 years without much trouble.

I have some milliput superfine white, but it tends to dissolve and make a mess when you wet it (needs water to soften). It is good for sculpting bases, terrain, or anything that does not need to look too precise.

I have never tried to sculpt a full model, so armatures are beyond my area of expertise.

Super sculpey is a brand name of polymer clay. (basicly a polymorphic PVC derivative)

Theres nothing wrong with it for details just be patient and let it warm in your hands first stretching and pulling and generally soften it up.
the genious part of it is that you can make much finer details with it, let it bake (under 5min in a 130C or 266-isch F for non metric users) let it cool for a sec and you can continue without risking going butterfingers all up in it or having to wait a couple of days to be on the safe side just to realize its gone all rubbery.
(you know that really cool thing you did yesterday
and then when you did the other side your thumb squished it?
yeah that wont happen no more)

leaving the much more expensive GS for gapping and minor filling and skinning.
and its just as work friendly as hardened GS in terms of post production like reshaping and sanding and separating. I've got both my first test guar finished soon and at least half the zombified beastman chieftan ready (nothings ready in my shop but anyway...) so I'll get a picky up some time today.

What scares people away and what I've been moaning about for like two weeks is that no one tries it
(including me until I was without GS for 2 days and had a bad sculpting itch.)
because its usually used by people without any real experience to lump different colours together to look like a proxy kitten in a flowerpot or a round blob on a hair pin.
Sort of what anyones first attempt at making a mini looks like


EDIT: it's also a great way to cheat sculpting heads and faces (and armour and tendonds and arteries and...):
Take your favourite hero a sheet of aluminium foil and a piece of polymer clay and soften it up good
make a decent storable shape about half an inch deep and then squish his/her face vertically into the putty and remove.
lift the whole sheet without distorting the putty and stick it in the preheated oven.
wait five minutes and now you have your mold, now take your favourite putty and lubricate the mold properly
and et voilà! you have a dozen emote-a-hero!

You have to go with green stuff. If you can get it in the 2 cylenders, instead of the strip. It costs $20 instead of $10, but you get so much more and you don't have to worry about them touching and drying-out.

I have used it on 5 or 6 different units and I've used less then a fifth of it.

You pinch-off 2 equal sized bits and then you mix them together and you are good to go. It is like night and day how much better my modeling is. There is nothing like looking at a model seeing the crack and covering it with green stuff and making it look seemless.

Yay! my Xmas presents have finaly come plus some extra bits because i didnt get the first lot that was sent out anyway what do you think. Ooh and she brought it for about £50 of of ebay.

Stuff Ordered
Clippers
Pin Vice
Tweezers
Files
Sculpting Tools

Extra
6 Mantic Games Elf Scouts
Lord of the rings Sprue

Doc