{"id":36331,"date":"2020-06-11T09:00:59","date_gmt":"2020-06-11T16:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/?p=36331"},"modified":"2020-06-04T10:03:35","modified_gmt":"2020-06-04T17:03:35","slug":"quick-molding-with-sugru","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/quick-molding-with-sugru\/","title":{"rendered":"Quick Molding with Sugru"},"content":{"rendered":"

See the piece below on my Father\u2019s Day tips drawing.\u00a0Send me some<\/a>\u00a0\u201ctips my dad says.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quick Molding with Sugru<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Making

Making a good impression.<\/p><\/div>\n

The always-informative and resourceful,\u00a0Bob Knetzger<\/strong>, wrote in to share a quick n\u2019 dirty molding and casting tip:<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a trick I\u2019ve used to duplicate small parts, especially things like injection molded game pieces or other detailed shapes.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve had good results using\u00a0Sugru<\/a>\u00a0as quick \u201copen\u201d cast mold making material. Usually it\u2019s used to repair things as it grips firmly onto other materials, but if you carefully spray your original form with a mold release (like PAM cooking spray), you can make a nice mold. Knead together some Sugru as usual. (I put the Sugru in a small wood mold base cavity here). Then press the shape to be duplicated into the soft Sugru.Let it set overnight, then peel out the form.\u00a0You\u2019ll have a perfect mold and the semi-flexible Sugru will even allow for some mold undercuts. I\u2019ve used this to cast low-temp metal to make small charms.<\/p>\n

Instead of metal, I\u2019ve also made polyethylene-like plastic parts using\u00a0polycaprolactone<\/a>\u00a0(was called U Mold plastic back in Radio Shack days). Melt these colored-plastic pellets in HOT water, then press a blob of it into a mold (or just freeform it with your hands). When cool, you\u2019ll have a tough plastic part that you can drill or trim. You can even find it in integral colors.<\/p>\n

\"Quick

Quick ‘n dirty molding and casting with Sugru and low-melt casting metal.<\/p><\/div>\n

Making a Rag-in-a-Can Oiler<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A

A simple lubrication applicator you can use for years.<\/p><\/div>\n

By way of woodworker Paul Sellers comes\u00a0this handy tip<\/a>\u00a0for creating a can oiler for lubricating flat surfaces like machine tables, saw blades, etc. Basically, you just stuff rags tightly into a small can (or plastic spray can lid) and then soak the rag with your favorite shop lubricant.<\/p>\n

Working with Foam Clay<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A

A foam you can sculpt, mold, sand, cut, etc. Cool.<\/p><\/div>\n

I bumped into\u00a0this video<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0Punished Props\u00a0<\/em>from last year on using\u00a0Foam Clay<\/a>, a type of sculpting foam that looks pretty impressive, versatile and easy to work with.<\/p>\n

Toys!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"I

I want!<\/p><\/div>\n

File this one under \u201cI want!\u201d\u00a0Jimmy DiResta<\/strong>\u00a0has been cranking out the products for sale of late, from his highly-recommended\u00a0ice pick<\/a>\u00a0(I use mine almost daily) to leather-bound and\u00a0letterpress project notebooks<\/a>. But his latest and greatest is his\u00a0giant utility blade<\/a>\u00a0($40). It\u2019s a tool! It\u2019s a piece of art! It\u2019s a maker status symbol! Not sure I would use it a lot, but I want one anyone.<\/div>\n

A Tour of Sophy Wong’s Studio<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Check

Check out Sophy’s well-organized shop.<\/p><\/div>\n

I love seeing other people\u2019s workspaces. For\u00a0Virtually Maker Faire<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>a few weeks ago,\u00a0Sophy Wong<\/strong>\u00a0gave\u00a0a tour\u00a0<\/a>of her shop where she makes wearables, cosplay outfits, and other wonderful things. It was nice to see a shared couple\u2019s makerspace and to pick up some organizing tips, like these wonderful (and cheap!)\u00a0Ikea utility carts<\/a>.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\"Binder

Binder clips. 1001 uses.<\/p><\/div>\n

My friend, DC-area artist and musician,\u00a0Bud Wilkinson<\/strong>, posted this image on\u00a0Facebook<\/em>\u00a0several years ago and and commented: \u201cSaw this in the studio of artist,\u00a0Sarah Bentley<\/strong>, today. Brilliant use of\u00a0binder clips<\/a>!\u201d Agreed. Using binder clips is a great way to hang things on pegboards when the thing you wish to hang has no hole in it. [Photo by Bud Wilkinson.]<\/p>\n

Tips My Dad Says<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Words

Words o’ wisdom from pops.<\/p><\/div>\n

Years ago on\u00a0Make:<\/em>, we ran a Father\u2019s Day contest where folks sent in words of maker wisdom from their fathers and grandfathers for a chance to win a Leatherman tool. Many of the submissions were wonderful, so much so that we decided to print them as the above cards you could hang in your shop. This year, I would like to do a similar contest here.\u00a0Send me a tip<\/a>\u00a0you learned from your father or grandfather and I will post the best of them the week of Father\u2019s Day. I will also pick someone at random and send them an autographed copy of\u00a0my book<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Shop Talk<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"DIY

DIY “Chore Coat”<\/p><\/div>\n

In response to our \u201cmaker sartorial\u201d discussion, reader\u00a0Elliott \u201cEeyore\u201d Evans<\/strong>\u00a0writes:<\/p>\n

After seeing a garment similar to this one being sold by Chris Schwarz out of his woodworking blog\u2019s store, I decided to make\u00a0a chore coat<\/a>\u00a0for myself.<\/p>\n

This has been a great investment of time and materials. I was wearing a polarfleece jacket to stay warm in an unheated shop, but polyester fleece sucks in sawdust. Cotton duck is smoother and vacuum-cleans much easier. When it\u2019s really cold in the shop, I wear a sweatshirt underneath this.<\/p>\n

After catching one of the pockets on a tool handle and nearly tearing it off, I\u2019ve since added rivets to the top corners.<\/p>\n

For footwear, I\u2019m a big fan of\u00a0Keen hard toe work shoes<\/a>. I had a pair of Keen hiking boots, and they were super comfortable. The next time I needed hard toe shoes, I went Keen and have never regretted it. I own two different styles, and both are as comfortable as the hiking boots. Affordable, and not boring.<\/p>\n

\"Pruning

Pruning sheers at 20 paces.<\/p><\/div>\n

Karen McBride<\/strong>\u00a0from\u00a0Woodkilton Studio\u00a0<\/a>writes. These are the best tool belts ever.\u00a0Wheeler Munroe<\/a>\u00a0made me a custom belt for furniture making with holders for squares and pencils added to the basic belt.\u00a0I just love her stuff.\u00a0She\u2019s a graduate of the College of the Redwoods furniture design program and made her first belt for herself. Her business took off from there.<\/p>\n

<\/div><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gareth’s Tips, Tools, and Shop Tales – Issue #49<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13684,"featured_media":36341,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[2371],"tags":[2372],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36331"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13684"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36331"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36331\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36342,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36331\/revisions\/36342"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}