Concrete casting moulds

[ynneb]

My current bussiness is casting concrete garden ornaments.
At present the moulds are made out of fibreglass as the outer shell and latex rubber for the inner defining skin.

One of the things I am hoping to do with my cnc machine is make original work that I can then make moulds out of.

Because I have no sculpturing artistic ability, I am caught in the trap of having to make moulds out of other peoples work. This is frustrating because it really is breaking copyright ( catch me if you can he he). I have many ideas that I would like to do but just dont have the artistic hands to make them. I am hoping that my computer and machine will set me free with creating my ideas.

I will keep you posted with my progress. It may be a while because I havnt even finished my cnc machine yet.

[lsfoils]

Hello ynneb,

Just like most of us here, the cnc is a means to an end. It seems easy to get caught up and focused only on cnc. Like ninewgt, I want to make foam patterns and cast molds on them for marine apps. But also, like most, I am building my first so it can cut out the second.

What kind of modeling software will you be using for your patterns? Will they be wood, foam or other? Are you using "live rubber" or a synthetic? (Seems like you would have to cook the natural stuff to make it durable. I have played with the natural stuff a long time ago but now there isn't a local supplier.) How large will the patterns be? Do you have pics of your cnc?

Good luck with your endevor! Keep us posted.

Doug

[Mr.Chips]

Knowing what you want to make on your CNC is half the battle. This lets you fine tune the design for the intended use. It will save a lot of changes in the building process.
There's a lot of highly skilled people on this site, that if you give them the working parameters they can steer you in a good direction.
Good luck, on your CNC and Ausi forum.
Hager

[Aalina]

i like your business of concrete garden ornaments.these are long lasting .. i like this.

[davidmb]

Hi ynneb,

Here's what I have been getting up to.

Original design was created in the free version of Daz3D, exported as an STL file and then gcode produced by MeshCAM. I am quite pleased with the finished product although it is taking quite a long time to polish. You could use the same approach to make molds for garden ornaments.