I moved on to phase 2 of the project this morning. It's time to pour some resin!
First I deconstructed the mold box and removed the now cured molds. Then of course, removed the masters from the mold. All pretty simple and straight forward.
That's it. The molds are ready to use. The material I use doesn't require a release agent or anything. So it's ready to go. This is the resin that I use. It's a very fast curing urethane. Mix it 1:1 and be ready to pour right away! It only lasts about 5 minutes before it starts to kick off.
Here it is right after the pour. It's a translucent brownish color when first mixed. It starts to turn the off white/tan color as it kicks off. You can see it in the picture. This is about 30 seconds after I poured it in the mold. It's fast! And by the way, it gets really HOT! It cures through chemical reaction, so there's lots of heat. Be careful not burn your hands.
This is about 15 minutes after pouring. You can leave them in for as long as you want. I like to pull them out when they're still a little warm so the urethane is a little pliable. That way, I can trim any flash off and remove any material I need to for fitment. it's much easier to cut on when it's soft. Once it cures completely, it's hard as a rock. Plus, with the parts a little pliable, I can put them in place on the gun, and they will conform to the shape for perfect fitment.
And here's a couple shots of the grips in place. They're just sitting on the gun at this point. But all that is needed is to sand the center block down for perfect fit, then just use Super Glue to put them together. After that, you remove them just like any other one piece Colt grip.
I think they look pretty good. At least as good as some I've seen for sale for upwards of $100 on places like eBay and GB. And I have the satisfaction of saying I made them myself.
This was the first set out of the mold, and they have a few small voids at the bottom corner at the tip of the grip, and the edge of the left grip, visible in the above photo. I got in a hurry this morning and didn't "burp" the mold. You need to tap lightly around the edge with the liquid in the mold, to help get any air bubbles out. I neglected to do that, and the air settled in the corner and around the edge. I won't forget anymore.
Once fully cured, you can do a lot with this material. You can sand it to make it fit perfectly. You can even polish it. So you could sand with fine paper to remove any imperfections and then polish them. Or you can carve on them, or dye them. It's endless. I'm probably going to make some that look like stag. It will be fairly easy to carve out some sections and then stain it. I also want to try and carve on the grips like Colt offered. Something like the Mexican eagle or a bar room nude. We'll see how that goes.
I hope you enjoyed my little project!
