Pew-pew, pewter.
So… this week I’m going to explore the world of pewter-casting, for the first time… we’ll get to that in a second, but first I want to briefly talk about the Kickstarter campaign again.
Here is the link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wolfybank/space-jack-pilot-episode-out-past-the-known
As things stand, we’ve got 7 people interested… out of about 200 visits to the page. Most of that interest came in the first few days… and that’s not enough.
Here is what I think I’m up against:
Limited exposure.
Conflicted audience.
Let me briefly explain.
Limited exposed – There is no getting around it, I’m kind of reclusive by nature. It’s not that I don’t like people… it’s just that when I build a connection or come in contact with someone… I want that relationship to be authentic and genuine… and the reality is… those kinds of relationships don’t just happen by default. They take time.
Conflicted audience – so week one, I was kinda putting my exposure efforts on artistic people that like animation… and I think that backfired… because I’m using AI to help build this… some of the artistic community jumped to the default position of calling it… soulless, AI slop… that kind of feedback really stings… and it’s actually ironic, especially considering how much of my time and soul I’ve poured into this thing… Fragmented thoughts.
The truth is… I’m going through some of the hardest stuff I’ve ever had to handle… I don’t want to get into it… but it is brutal. Making/working on Space Jack, is one of my only forms of relief… occupy myself… and try not to stress about things beyond my control. Honestly, it kind of sucks… but that’s where we are at.
I’ve come up with a soft strategy to combat these two very real challenges… first… I need to open up my exposure… I need to get out there… mingle… both digitally, and in the real world. I’m kicking a few ideas around. We’ll see where it takes me. Second, I need to switch audiences… I think the artistic/animation crowd is going to be too… harsh. Not sure who to focus on yet… but I’ll figure it out.
I need to adjust my timeline, and realize things don’t come together overnight. Anything of worth, always takes time…
Anyways… let’s not dwell on that junk. Let’s talk about pewter casting.
I’ve never done any metal casting before… It’s something I’ve always want to try. I’ve done slip casting, and resin casting… mold making/whatever, from a few years when the Wolfy Bank’s kiln was still firing… Here are some pictures:
There is a lot of steps and considerations that go into making molds… undercuts, parting lines, shrinkage, ventilation, mass distribution/self-support… it’s a lot. The original Wolfy Bank, was slip cast, in a 5 piece, plaster mold, which probably weighted close to 50 lbs. when wet. Pouring that thing… was a real challenge, because you had to flip it… drain it… keep an eye on it… because it reacted differently depending on the time of year… with moisture/humidity considerations… and ambient temperature… it required a lot of time and attention… and I was limited to only being able to make one a day, because of the nature of the process. A lot of the hard stuff… took a while to figure out, but I eventually got it… mostly.
With pewter casting… it’s a different challenge… the size is going to be much smaller… so that’s a plus… and moisture considerations are kinda gone… more so replaced with heat considerations. At the stage… I honestly don’t know what hurdles I’m going to face, but I’ve been reading up as much as I can… Right now I feel confident.
Last week/over the weekend I sculpted CLW inside of Zbrush… I was debating on going with a chibi/bobble head style… but because I am casting in pewter… ultimately I just went with a traditional figurine style. So far… I’m happy with the results.
I printed the model out… (several times) on my old filament printer, and finally got something workable… but… had to clean it up for casting.
Ordered the silicone. Waiting on it to be delivered. Will make the mold soon.
More to come in the next post.
If you are wondering WHY I’m attempting to cast in pewter… it’s because it’s one of the rewards for backing the project… Hopefully.