In this part of the tutorial we cast the actual rubber mold. This is page two of the tutorial on how to cast a two part miniature rubber mold. If you came to this page directly from a search engine you can start at the beginning of this tutorial here.

All that is remaining in this part now is to mix up the rubber and pour it into the mold. And we do this twice. One time for each half of the mold. Once all of this is done and it has dried I will be showing you the final part which is the actual casting of the miniature.

If you don't have the rubber mix for this I do have a couple of recommendations you can buy. This is the exact material that I use and you can find it at the bottom of this page or on my Casting Minis Supplies Page

Let's begin

Gently mix the two components of the rubber by pouring out equal parts in separate containers then pouring them into a third container. In the picture you can see I have pinched the third container into a football shape. This way I will be able to easily pour out of it and into the mold.

Pour it thin and slowly so it forms as few bubbles as possible. Once it is all poured then mix it with your stirring stick. Go slowly and gently, again so you cause minimum bubbling.

The rubber mix I use is a 50/50 mix. Of course you should follow the instructions for the rubber mix that you are using. Typically it is a 50/50 mix.

Now pour the rubber mix into the mold. Keep the container up high so you have a long thin stream and only pour into one corner of the mold - and stay in that corner. Allow the rubber to slowly creep around the whole miniature. This will give you the best mold with the fewest imperfections.

Fill the mold right up to the top if you have enough rubber.

Once the rubber is poured you should gently tap on the sides of the cardboard to release air bubbles. You will see them come to the surface and pop.

Okay, now just let it set. It could take as long as six hours. Just follow the manufacturers guidelines for wait time.

Continue with tutorial - Let's create the other half of the rubber mold

RESOURCES AND MATERIALS

Smooth-On Oomoo 30 Silicone - 2.8 lbs, Oomoo 30 Silicone

This is the stuff that you mix together and pour. It forms the rubber mold. I use this material in this tutorial on how to cast a miniature

Smooth-On Smooth-Cast 300 - Smooth-Cast 300

This is the plastic you cast into the rubber mold.

This company also sells a complete kit that gives you the rubber mix, the plastic mix and other things.

Moldmaking & Casting Pourable Starter Kit- Mold rubber can be used to capture exact detail from any model. This starter kit will allow you to make a rubber mold of a small, simple 2 or 3 dimensional model using silicone rubber. Then pour our fast cast plastic to make one or more reproductions of the original. If you are an absolute beginner to casting then you might want to consider getting this kit. It has everything you need to get started including the casting materials and mold making materials. I have this kit and I use it for some of my tutorials. It actually will save you money because it gives you reasonable quantities of the varous needed things. You would pay more if you try to buy things separately. It also comes with a DVD that shows you exactly how to do everything.