FIGURE CONVERSIONS:
Techniques I
by Alvan Fisher, Jr.
The third part of this series discussed the process of making silicone rubber molds to cast your own figures and parts. In this part, we'll discuss how to modify the basic casting. The philosophy used is that, while we may not have the skill to model a uniform detail exactly, the general impression often can be achieved with a little effort and patience.
Let's will start with lead foil as it is a widely used medium in toy soldier conversion.
After smoothing on a flat surface, cut the foil into strips of the desired width. The squares of plate glass described in the initial article are ideal both as a smoothing and cutting surface. A strip or two of masking tape stuck to the glass helps keep the foil from slipping while cutting. If the strips are less than a sixteenth of an inch wide, you might add tape to the back of the foil to prevent tearing during cutting. Just remember to peel off the tape before adding to the basic casting!
Strips about 1/32 of an inch in width are ideal for stripes on the trouser legs of enlisted personnel -- an officer's is usually about twice that. Place a drop of super glue at the top of the trousers and attach the stripe at this point. Use only a touch of adhesive; too much will prolong drying time and create an unsightly blob when painting later. If you inadvertently use too much glue, remove the excess by touching it with the corner of a paper towel. After a minute or so, the adhesive will set up enough to let you attach the remainder of the strip. It is best to leave a bit of overlap both at the top and bottom and trim the excess later. Strips this narrow bend easily to conform with the curve of the trouser leg. The result is a raised welt that will make painting much easier.
Foil strips also can be used to outline piping on the uniform blouse. If used along the opening of the blouse even without piping, the foil will help align buttons should you opt to include them later. Again, start at the top and work down. Thin foil strips also are ideal for outlining the design of a simple cuff; use wire for more detailed cuff loops, French or Hungarian knots, et cetera as described later. With a simple cuff, attach the foil to the inner arm first. When the glue has set, the foil can be easily bent around the arm and into the inverted vee common to British uniforms or left straight as in a Brandenburg cuff. Details such as rank markings and service stripes also should be added before attaching the arms to the torso. When making chevrons, I find it easier to emboss the design into the foil using the back of a knife point or a needle as a scribe before cutting. A straightedge or drafting curve will help keep adjacent lines parallel.
Straps for backpacks and sashes across the torso also can be made from lead foil. You will have more room to work if you add these features before attaching the arms to the casting. Sashes -- as used by officers and NCOs of many armies -- may require a slightly different approach if draped over a shoulder. The width of the sash (about 1/16th of an inch) makes it difficult to bend in a side-wise direction. Thus, you may want to fit a paper pattern around the casting before cutting the foil. Don't forget to add a bow or fringe at the end if needed. A fringe can be added to the latter with the tip of a knife. Foil epaulets or shoulder straps should be added after attaching the arms as you may need to add body filler to fill gaps and provide an even joint. The outermost edge of a shoulder strap should be smoothed with a file or emery paper to conform with the turn of the shoulder.
Some cuffs (for example, U.S. and Royal Marines) and pockets on the back of the uniform blouse have scallops along one edge. When making scallops, I prefer to use a pattern made from strip brass both to ensure consistency and let me make several simultaneously. Strip brass .010 to .016 inch thick sold at many hobby shops is ideal for this purpose. The first step in making a pattern is to bend a strip in half so that you have a closed end with two open ends of equal length. With the two open ends clamped together, file the desired pattern into the open ends of the strip with needle files. Insert several layers of foil between the open ends of the pattern such that the foil projects out the open end and clamp the pattern shut. You now have a "foil sandwich" -- several sheets of foil between the brass pattern (Figure 1). Simply file excess foil protruding from the scalloped pattern and -- presto -- you have several foil strips in the shape of the pattern! Just trim to size and fit. If scalloped pockets are to be added to the rear of a uniform, I suggest that you make them wider than required. After the super glue has dried, use needle files and emery paper to smooth the foil to match the curve of the torso around the hips. This procedure provides a good pattern for buttons and piping. Scallops also can be made from thin wire, but it's difficult to get sharp corners this way.
The addition of buttons on coats, shoulder straps, and cuffs add a nice touch. To do this, you will need some wire or styrene rod about 0.025 inch in diameter, a modeler's pin vise with appropriate twist drills, scriber, adhesive, and X-acto knife.
Mark the position of each button using the scriber and drill a hole about 1/32 of an inch deep. Cut more than enough pieces of soft wire or styrene rod, with each piece about 1/16th of an inch long. I find that I can get the buttons to fit better if the cuts are diagonal rather than at a right angle. Then pick up a piece with tweezers, touch one end in some glue, and stick it into the hole. A little planning is helpful whatever method you use; if you're going to add a strap, belt, or sash over a button, then there is no reason to add the button. To keep the buttons evenly spaced, I suggest adding them in the following order: top button, bottom button next, and middle button. Use these buttons as a guide for adding additional buttons. After letting the buttons dry overnight, use wire cutters and emery paper to reduce them to the desired height. You can count on knocking off several buttons during this process, so keep those extra pieces of styrene rod handy! Cuff buttons can be added in a similar manner.
If the lead has a low tin content, drilling holes where you want them can be very difficult. I suggest that you forget about drilling and use styrene rod for the buttons. A 1/32 inch strip of foil or thin wire from collar to hem helps keep the buttons in a straight line. Here we use two types of adhesive: super glue for bonding anf plastic cement to soften the rod. First, add a drop of super glue where you want the button. Then pick up a piece of the rod, cut as before, touch the end to be attached with styrene cement. Wait a few seconds and press the styrene into the drop of super glue. Once the adhesives have set up, brush just a dab of styrene cement over the button. Again wait a minute or two, and add a just little more the super glue. Use very little adhesive to keep everything neat. Then continue as in the previous paragraph. The procedure woks best if you add only a couple of buttons at a time. This is a tedious job, and I wouldn't even consider it didn't look so darn good!
Earlier, I mentioned that intricate designs such as loops can be made with fine wire. My source of wire is whatever I can find in the electronic junk pile at work -- thus I cannot provide specifications. After stripping off the insulation, I unbraid the strands and make new braids with two to four strands each.
Repeat as often as necessary until you have the right size braid. The braided wire can be used either this way or twisted into intricate pattern using a homemade jig. The jig, shown in Figure 2, is quite simple. Take a piece of pine or basswood and draw a straight line about 2 inches long on it. Drill a hole (#1) the size of a common pin at one end of the line and two others (#2 and #3) opposite each other about an inch down the line. Separate Holes #2 and #3 by twice the width of the wire to permit ample room to work. Drill the final hole (#4) on the center line so that it is separated from Holes #2 and #3 by two wire widths. Cut the head off three common pins and insert them firmly in the last three holes so that they extend about a quarter inch above the board. You now have a jig that can make either double or triple loops. The former appear on on the breast of cavalry and horse artillery uniforms; the latter on the cuffs of all branches.
Let's walk through the procedure starting with the double loop. Insert the end of some soft wire into the Hole #1 and bend it over in the direction of the other holes. Thread it between Holes #2 and #3, around #2, down and around #3, and back to the origin. Using the blade of a knife or sharp tweezers, gently lift the wire off the pins. If the loop is to go on a tunic, you need only to flatten the wire and cut to length. The best way to flatten the wire is to squeeze it with pliers or by gently tapping in with a hammer -- too much pressure will cut the wire.
Put a drop of super glue on the casting where you want the loop and you're done! To make a corresponding loop for the other side of the tunic, reverse the order; i.e., Pin #3 to #2.
Triple loops are made in a similar manner, except that the order around the pins is #1 to #3 to #2 and back to #1. If the triple loop is to go on the cuff, carefully bend the loose ends at right angles (one up and the other down) so that they point away from each other. Attach the loop to the sleeve with super glue and, when dry, bend the ends around the cuff, glue, and cut off the overlapping ends.
In this article, we have examined a few basic techniques for adding details to existing figures. In the next article, we will continue look at additional conversion techniques.
| Last Updates | |
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| 27 January 1997 | page first published |
| Article by Alvan Fisher, Jr. Material originally distributed to the Internet by Larry Jeselon (ljeselon@ccinet.ab.ca) | |
| Comments or corrections? | |