My technique is water-putty poured into a mold. The mold is window-caulk silicone spread over an old globe light bulb (painted first!, silicone loves to stick to glass). An alternative would be to simply push the light bulb into a big block of Sculpey... I'm going to experiment with this later. After pouring the putty (not too much) into the mold, slosh it around so it makes a super thin coat. Let it set 20 minutes and then repeat twice. After three thin layers have built up and 60 minutes have passed, mix up some more putty and pour it in, then add small strips of either cheesecloth or, as I prefer, plastic window-screen. This provides the tensile strength needed to remove the sphere from your mold. After 60 more minutes, gently remove your hemisphere. You can reinforce it further if you wish, at your leisure. I use my planets as mixing bowls when I'm whipping up some putty for other projects. Eliminates wastage! You can also use this technique to make domed roofs and igloo-type buildings.
Those planets look great, and I'm glad I could inspire one of your gaming projects!
ReplyDeleteWould you mind sharing how you made the rings for that one planet?
No problem... the rings were made from a single piece of scrap polystyrene (clear food packaging). I cut the half-ring shape, leaving it attached at the base (imagine a round letter "D"). I made the planet as detailed in the post, but with small notches in the sides. I slipped the ring into the slots, then filled the planet surface in with putty and sanded. I put plenty of putty in the interior of the planet to bond the ring to hemi-sphere. Hope that makes sense; I will post instructions with pictures when I return from my business trip.
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