Best Of
Articulated robotic rhino sculpture
I just finished this guy, he's 56" long and weighs somewhere north of 125 lbs. The left side is mostly naturalistic and the right side is more obviously mechanical because I'm indecisive and as Fon Davis pointed out in his sci-fi helmet video, you never see both sides of an object at the same time (except when it's next to a mirror)
Here's a stop motion animation of him charging
https://youtu.be/Vhhit2xHSpQ
Here's a stop motion animation of him charging
https://youtu.be/Vhhit2xHSpQ
Dennis Ombie - stop motion puppet
I purchased the SWSoCA DVDs for stop motion hosted by the Chiodo Brothers as a Christmas gift to myself last year. In February 2016 animator Anthony Scott of stopmotionanimation dot com decided to host a stop motion jam. Participants would need to submit a 20 second film with "Spring" as the theme and all skill levels were invited to participate. I decided that it would be the perfect time to try stop motion so I built a puppet and set following the instructions on my dvds.
My finished result is Dennis Ombie who is so happy the snow is gone and flowers are blooming that he decides to dance and jump around.
The stop motion jam had over 50 animators and Anthony Scott has a final cut complete and music is currently being written for it before it will be posted. My 20 second clip was called Spring Fever and here are a few shots and stills from the clip.
My finished result is Dennis Ombie who is so happy the snow is gone and flowers are blooming that he decides to dance and jump around.
The stop motion jam had over 50 animators and Anthony Scott has a final cut complete and music is currently being written for it before it will be posted. My 20 second clip was called Spring Fever and here are a few shots and stills from the clip.
Re: Sculptures with Animatronics
I don't know of any locations where animatronics are being worked on, but there are some great maker spaces in LA where folks are often working with 3d printers, laser cutters, arduinos, etc.
My biggest advice would be to work modularly, and try and avoid ever gluing or permanently attaching anything. This way you can easily swap out prototype components for more polished versions, make upgrades, make repairs, or evolve the design to include new functionality. I try and have everything bolt together where possible.
I'd start with a basic list of requirements for your character. List off everything you want it to do, what features move, what range of motion those movements should have, how fast you want them to move. Then determine your character's design requirements like scale, general profile, so you can determine how much space you'll have inside to house your components. This is also a good time to see if you want to have some components external (usually linked with cables) if that works for your project.
A lot of folks use an outside-in process for building animatronic characters. Starting with the sculpt, then casting the skin, making the fiberglass/vacuum formed underskull, then building the internal mechanisms, supports, etc.
/Chris
My biggest advice would be to work modularly, and try and avoid ever gluing or permanently attaching anything. This way you can easily swap out prototype components for more polished versions, make upgrades, make repairs, or evolve the design to include new functionality. I try and have everything bolt together where possible.
I'd start with a basic list of requirements for your character. List off everything you want it to do, what features move, what range of motion those movements should have, how fast you want them to move. Then determine your character's design requirements like scale, general profile, so you can determine how much space you'll have inside to house your components. This is also a good time to see if you want to have some components external (usually linked with cables) if that works for your project.
A lot of folks use an outside-in process for building animatronic characters. Starting with the sculpt, then casting the skin, making the fiberglass/vacuum formed underskull, then building the internal mechanisms, supports, etc.
/Chris
Re: Choosing an epoxy for a glowing knife
For an amber or orange colored blade that needs to be flexible and able to be lit from within, I would go with something like PMC-746 from Smooth-On. It's a urethane rubber, about Shore A 60. You could design whatever is holding the LEDs to reinforce the rubber to keep it from being floppy while leaving the majority of the blade user friendly (think about a smaller version of the blade as the reinforcement). Incorporate this core, including the LEDs into the mold design. It's not necessary but, I would pressure cast it to remove any bubbles (make sure whatever mold you are using is also pressure cast or it will be ruined when casting the blade). Painting might be an issue but, you could add metallic powder pigments to the mix when casting. This will affect transparency so, I would be sparing in how much I added. You could also "paint" the interior of the mold with metallic powder pigments to bind them to the blades surface. Again, be conservative or you lose transparency.
It may work out for you to omit the metal paint and just go with the rubber. It's semi-transparent but, might look cool.
Another idea would be to have the light come from the handle and cut a blade core from acrylic sheet plastic and overmold that acrylic sheet with clear rubber or silicone. Look up images of "edge lit acrylic" for what I'm meaning. it may help to "frost" or sand the acrylic sheet so the light is universal up the blade. You could also add an extra layer of cool by inscribing sigils or something on the surface of the acrylic which will catch the light even more. No need for an LED strip up the blade, the acrylic will diffuse the light.
Cool design, by the way.
It may work out for you to omit the metal paint and just go with the rubber. It's semi-transparent but, might look cool.
Another idea would be to have the light come from the handle and cut a blade core from acrylic sheet plastic and overmold that acrylic sheet with clear rubber or silicone. Look up images of "edge lit acrylic" for what I'm meaning. it may help to "frost" or sand the acrylic sheet so the light is universal up the blade. You could also add an extra layer of cool by inscribing sigils or something on the surface of the acrylic which will catch the light even more. No need for an LED strip up the blade, the acrylic will diffuse the light.
Cool design, by the way.
Micah J.
1
Re: Tear away mask (double layer mask) advice
The slime is usually used when the tear-away mask is made to reveal a torn-away face or skull. Not sure if that would translate to stage.
Magnets should work well for what you are after. Just make sure they are all facing the right way! haha
For a stage mask important factors would be visibility and breathability for safety, and a solid harness/strap for both comfort and to keep things in place (if it's a half-mask) so the performer does not have to fidget with or worry about the mask while performing.
Inside the mask you can think of things like fabric lining, foam padding, or moleskin for comfort and to make sure nothing rubs the performer.
All depends on the design style, size, and weight of the mask.
/Chris
Magnets should work well for what you are after. Just make sure they are all facing the right way! haha
For a stage mask important factors would be visibility and breathability for safety, and a solid harness/strap for both comfort and to keep things in place (if it's a half-mask) so the performer does not have to fidget with or worry about the mask while performing.
Inside the mask you can think of things like fabric lining, foam padding, or moleskin for comfort and to make sure nothing rubs the performer.
All depends on the design style, size, and weight of the mask.
/Chris
How to glue dissimilar materials? The answer lies within!
One challenge in fabrication is getting two objects to stick to each-other with a bond that is not going to fail when you least expect it. Picking the right glue for the right job can be a real challenge. Some materials either react poorly to certain glues and solvents, or just refuse to bond.
The solution (other than trial and error) is this amazing website: http://www.thistothat.com/
You pick the two materials you wish to glue [Rubber] to [Fabric] and it tells you that you want to use Barge or 3M 77 spray if you don't want the glue to show. Each adhesive it suggests has a link to a page that details its various properties like toxicity, time to adhere, where to find it, and other similar adhesives.
And it's always a great idea to test a new adhesive on scrap material before applying it to your project!
/Chris
The solution (other than trial and error) is this amazing website: http://www.thistothat.com/
You pick the two materials you wish to glue [Rubber] to [Fabric] and it tells you that you want to use Barge or 3M 77 spray if you don't want the glue to show. Each adhesive it suggests has a link to a page that details its various properties like toxicity, time to adhere, where to find it, and other similar adhesives.
And it's always a great idea to test a new adhesive on scrap material before applying it to your project!
/Chris
Re: How to clean PAX paint/latex paint from an airbrush?
The first tip is to never let the paint in the airbrush dry prior to cleaning. I normally just clean my brush with 99% isopropyl alcohol between colors or if I'm going to let the brush sit for a bit. For that, I just have a gooseneck squirt bottle of 99% isopropyl alcohol and I run a bit through the brush into an airbrush cleaning pot that has a nice filter on it, so you don't get fumes. I also make sure I'm in a well-ventilated space and wear a respirator when needed.
Then after I'm done for the day I use the 99% isopropyl and a pipe cleaner to gently clean out the internals, and then I take the airbrush apart and put it in a heated ultrasonic cleaner with a little airbrush cleaning fluid.
There are some airbrush cleaners out there marketed specifically for use with PAX paint. I know MEL Products has one. While I have not tried their cleaner, MEL Products makes good stuff.
I also like to use my external mix Paasche H rather than an internal mix airbrush when I know I'm going to be spraying things that might be harder to clean. It's a single-action airbrush, but for general purpose stuff, it's great. I have multiple airbrushes that cost 10x as much and have way more features, but the trusty Paasche H is so easy to clean that I use it 90% of the time.
Does anyone else have airbrush cleaning tips for PAX?
/Chris
Then after I'm done for the day I use the 99% isopropyl and a pipe cleaner to gently clean out the internals, and then I take the airbrush apart and put it in a heated ultrasonic cleaner with a little airbrush cleaning fluid.
There are some airbrush cleaners out there marketed specifically for use with PAX paint. I know MEL Products has one. While I have not tried their cleaner, MEL Products makes good stuff.
I also like to use my external mix Paasche H rather than an internal mix airbrush when I know I'm going to be spraying things that might be harder to clean. It's a single-action airbrush, but for general purpose stuff, it's great. I have multiple airbrushes that cost 10x as much and have way more features, but the trusty Paasche H is so easy to clean that I use it 90% of the time.
Does anyone else have airbrush cleaning tips for PAX?
/Chris
Re: Sea Creature.
Thank you very much for your kind words Wren Wilcox. Unfortunately my model has psoriasis, therefore I was not able to blend the colour fully into the hairline. I take your words on board. Thank you very much 
Re: Sea Creature.
This is neat. My attention is immediately drawn to the eyes, they're beautiful but a little haunting, and then those teeth! The only thing I would fix are the bits that draw attention to it being a make-up, the hairline and the inside of the lower lashes.
Re: Now On-Demand: How To Build An Animatronic Head - Part 1
The goal should be to create a rigid outer mold that represents the outside of the skin, and a rigid inner mold that represents the inside of the skin. The space between them is where your silicone/foam material is cast.
The core is normally created by laying clay inside the outer mold. The thickness of the clay represents how thick the skin will be in that area. Then you can either cast a core and make a mold of it later so you can cast a light/hollow core, or lay-up fiberglass and resin directly on the clay to make a light/hollow core.
The core and outer mold would then be bolted together so that the core is held in place by the outer mold. Keys created on the outer mold and core help them line up so the spacing is perfect.
/Chris
The core is normally created by laying clay inside the outer mold. The thickness of the clay represents how thick the skin will be in that area. Then you can either cast a core and make a mold of it later so you can cast a light/hollow core, or lay-up fiberglass and resin directly on the clay to make a light/hollow core.
The core and outer mold would then be bolted together so that the core is held in place by the outer mold. Keys created on the outer mold and core help them line up so the spacing is perfect.
/Chris