January 18th, 2006
One of the hardest tasks as a beginner is to decide what clay to use but once that is set then you have to apply it to some kind of armature. Now that may sound easy but just imagine a full size vehicle, let’s say Sequoia size, the frame work had better be up to the task or you’ll have a disaster on your hands. Just imagine, up to 10,000lbs in weight of steel, wood, foam and clay.
Having said that, if you are making a scale model then it’s not as critical, you can get away with a wood base board with styrofoam glued to it or even a total styrofoam block. The main point is to reduce the amount of clay that you are going to use without compromising the design and stability of the form. If the clay is too thin then there could be a problem with clay strinkage and cracking due to the movement of the foam, if it is too thick then there becomes a weight issue, plus the more clay used the costlier the project. The idea is to shape the foam to ensure an even thickness of clay over the form. An ideal thickness for a scale model would be 30mm or 1 1/4 inches, this allows for plenty of artistic development.
January 4th, 2006
The most common question that is asked by someone who is new to the design and modeling field is, what is the best clay to use for my scale model? The answer to this depends on where you are in the world, as you can imagine different cultures have different views on what is best for them. From what I understand there are a few companies that are prevalent for the use in automotive design, Chavant, Faber and Kolb are the ones that I am familiar with.
Here in the United States it is common to use the material that is manufactured here, i.e. Chavant This material is manufactured in New Jersey and they have over 100 years of experience to pool on. There are two categories of clay, fine arts and industrial. The fine arts material is favored by free form sculptors such as special effect modelers and motion picture specialists. These clays tend to be softer than the industrial types and can normally be used at room temperature with no additional warming needed.
The industrial clays are harder and a warming oven is required to bring the clay up to a working temperature but once applied the clay is then worked with specialized tools to develop the design. These industrial clays come in various degrees of hardness, that is they still require warming but the hardness factor differs depending on the type you use.
In Europe a commonly used industrial clay is Faber. As with the Chavant clay this also needs to be heated in an oven to bring it to a workable temperature. The difference with this clay is it is sulphur free therefore has less of a smell compared to Chavant, even so chavant does manufacture a sulphur free clay.
Another product from Germany is Kolb clay. As with all industrial clays it needs to be heated in a warming oven to make it workable. Once it has cooled down it becomes hard enough to progress with your design. Each of these clays have their own merits for using them, it is normally the case of availability. Once again this is an odourless material that does not oxidize with age.
With all of these industrial clays, they are all suitable for use with modern milling equipment, such as the Tarus Clay Milling Machine, but equally, they are also at home with traditional hand tools as well.
January 1st, 2006
Welcome to Metamorphosis, here I will be talking about the transformation of a block of modeling clay into a sleek futuristic design, that is, your design. The purpose behind this blog is to provide you with the answers that will help you to successfully build your model from a sketch to a three dimensional object.
Now, using this blog as a medium for you to add your views, comment or such it should pave the way for you to gain a successful result with minimal stress. Couple this with my website Clay, Application to Refinement we should be able to accomplish a very acceptable end result, with you being the recipient of free and valuable information, that you can then take forward to a successful career in automotive design or clay modeling.
Participation is the key so don’t be shy!!!
