lost wax hand bottle opener.

Have wanted to cast my own bottle opener for quite some time. I don't really trust zinc because of how brittle it is to make the mechanical aspect of the opener so I have decided to coat an existing bottle opener with the casting.

Built this around a free moosehead bottle opener with wax. Sprued and vented as shown to the left. coated in plaster and burned out in a wood fire. I poured zinc heated in the same fire in a soup can into the mold. this is the first time I have had gotten good wax burnout and pour. Cut sprues with dremel metal cutting blades. May or may not go on to patina it.

Little wax animals

Got a confidence boost from the successful casting of the lost wax hand bottle opener and I want to do mere with wax even though I have had trouble with burn out in the past. Here are a few quick sketches of a wax bull and horse.

lost wax casting a bust of jp2. my first attempt at lost wax.

This process is described in detail in the figure sculpture in plaster and wax, The needed supplies are, plaster of paris,Microcrystaline Wax , a can, Zinc ingot (available online for 2.40/lb from Rotometals) various tools for carving wax and pliers for moving the can.

Good safety gear is a must. Goggles that can handle the heat, welding gloves, respirator.... the main risks are fumes and flying molten metal so dress appropriate. This is not a safe process and i don't recommend you do it!

1. The bust built in wax. note the vent from the chin and the large reservoir to get a mass of metal pushing in.

2. nails are put in to make blind vents.

3. Plaster is painted over the entire piece and then the nails are pulled.

4. after pulling the nails it is wrapped in rags soaked in plaster. and a small can is attached to make an easy spot to pour.

5. the can is cut to allow for the wax to flow out and the can is put in the boiling water.

6. a coffee can holds the heat on the mold. The wax that flows out needs to be constantly removed to stop it from exploding with steam under a continuous surface of wax.

7. The wax burned out a little longer over the fire

8. video of the pour. The zinc from Rotometals is heated in a normal can that food comes in. it is bent with pliers to make a nice spout. As you can see the burnout was inadequate and lead to a metal volcano.

9. after the pour some wax was not burned out and caused steam to prevent full filling of the mold.

Making a copy in wax of a small sculpture

I am about to cast a wax sculpture that took a long time to make. because of my fear that it will not turn out I duplicated the head in wax.
Here is the original

Wrapping the head in Amazing mold putty. I only did the head because this stuff is not cheap. It is a very easy way to make copies of just about anything though. It is like two tubes of silly putty like substances that you mix. After it sets i cut the back of the mold with a razor.


Here is the mold being filled with wax. I melted microcrystaline wax in a can sitting in boiling water. The back of the mold is held shut by the can.


The completed head not a perfect replica (lost an ear). but enough that i can work from if I need to.

Lost wax Lenin bust.

Not sure yet what i am going to do with it yet. maybe a bookend.

Jesus on crucifix in wax

to get scale i am working from a photo. above are the original photo. the printout i am using and the first draft of the wax.

Working thorugh Richard Mcdermott Miller Figure Sculpture in Wax and Plaster. 4: sketching a small figure in wax

Gonna go through this whole book. But here is where I started.
My first figure sketch in wax.

Richard Mcdermott Miller Figure Sculpture in Wax and Plaster review by me.

Figure Sculpture in Wax and Plaster $11.96 new on Amazon.

Richard McDermott Miller. Figure Sculpture In Wax and Plaster. Book review.

Armed with a borders gift card from xmas, thanks Singhs, got this book that I had my eye on. Old book (1971) but is new to me. Great review of basic techniques in sculpting wax and lost wax casting. The book is aimed toward at home hobby sculpting and casting. The biggest highlight for me is the emphasis on material selection and handling. Especially for plaster. High density of quality photos showing each step of the process.
Figure Sculpture in Wax and Plaster $11.96 new on Amazon.

Quickly found a few things that will improve my process.

• steam burnout of the wax.
• using nails for blind vents (as shown on right)
  
• better process for mixing plaster

Highly recommend this book. As far as i can tell is the best book for beginning to work with wax sculpture and lost wax casting. A good buy for DIY lost wax casters.

The results of my attempts to follow this book