Prototype 2: A New Box, A New Process, A Not-So-Great Mold

After completing our first prototype test, it was time to move on to the next phase: creating the Mighty Multiplier.

At this point we had poured silicone a couple of times and had a good feel for the process, so we decided to switch things around and try some new techniques. We should have heeded the words of the Galaxy’s most infamous smuggler, Han Solo: “Great, kid! Don’t get cocky.“

Working with acrylic for the first mold box proved to be difficult due to the thickness that we had purchased, so we decided to see how cardboard would hold up to the process. We just grabbed a box we had lying around, formed a wall with some clay to size it correctly, and then poured our silicone. We lined the box prior to pouring with plastic wrap. It was a good thing too, because silicone doesn’t release from cardboard cleanly, apparently. However, the plastic wrap also demolished any kind of aesthetic beauty and clean, rigid lines that the mold might have had.

After releasing from the box, we had a pretty rough looking mold on our hands. Anywhere the silicone had come into contact with the cardboard, it peeled part of the box away with it. And trying to get cardboard fibers off of silicone that it has bonded to is, well, not fun. We don’t recommend it.

This was also our first attempt at creating external connectors for MightyMolds. We were still free-handing our connectors, so we didn’t expect them to actually match perfectly, but we did want to test the process during this pour as well. They came out well, but we did learn several key lessons, like not putting connectors directly over the casting subject.

Once we began to demold the layers from each other, we saw just how off we were in our original calculations. We hadn’t accounted for the added depth of the multiplier, and so the middle casting subject layers were too thin. They actually ripped in a few placed, rendering the mold completely unusable. So, while this attempt may have ultimately been a failure, we learned more than we would have if it had succeeded, for sure. We’ll take these lessons forwards with us, and continue to refine the process until we have truly Mighty Molds!