Radio From Hell

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Reece,

I won't be able to take any new pictures for a while, as I fell in my front yard, and crushed our digital camera, as it was in my pocket. It won't power up as it is now, and the lcd is clearly broken. I'm hoping to at least get it powered up again....

As for the method of casting, it is simple enough that pictures probably won't be necessary. Just take play-doh right out of the can, flatten it out on a hard surface, and level the top side with a piece of glass or something smooth. You should now have a slab of clay that is of a consistent thickness. Let's pretend you are going to replicate a Zenith "Z" knob-just stick the knob Z face down into the clay (Play-doh contains silicone, so it will help to release your piece from the mold). To get a good mold, put it in as squarely as possible. Pull the knob, and your mold is already ready! This yields a very nice impression, and I'm sure experimenting with other materials you could cast in a wide variety of ways. Anyway, mix up your epoxy in the prescribed 1:1 for a solid knob, or add a little more catalyst than resin to create a rubbery material, this is very hit or miss, but add about 25% more. To fill the mold, pour in a bit at a time, and use a small spatula to spread the epoxy into the nooks and crannies, to help minimize air bubbles. When it is full, set it aside for at least 12 hours. For something as thick as a knob, maybe longer. Once it has sufficiently cured, you can remove it from the mold. The clay mold is a one shot deal, so just yank off the clay in chunks, and scrub the rest off under the sink with a soft brush. With that, VIOLA! You have your casting! For shaping, even 400 grit sandpaper will rapidly take down this stuff, so I use that and a set of needle files. To fill in holes and gaps, I use wood filler putty, and sand it level. For the finished piece, I spray it down with grey primer spraypaint. Hope that helps, if not, ask questions! This is cheap, and encourages experimentation. Good luck.