We each made attempts at creating molds for silicone inflatables. We printed these molds and attempted to cast silicone in them.
We also attempted to create a mold by hand from plasticine and cardboard. All of the molds seemed to have issues with holes, the plasticine mold due to shoddy assembly and the printed molds because the prints partially failed and we missed some holes while attempting to patch them. We were able to remove the silicone cast from the plasticine mold, although we ended up with just a large block of silicone that had collected in the cup we put the plasticine mold in. The silicone in the printed molds made its way into the gaps between the layers and we were completely unable to remove these casts from their molds as a result.
Next Steps
- Print the second model we have at a smaller scale in more parts. This could use either the School of Design’s printers or use ideate printers, while we wait for more PLA, which could solve this printer’s issues, to arrive for Sebastians printer.
- Work on the silcone to lego connector