mold and casts action figures

I recently got a casting kit, my first time working with this kinda stuff, it took 2 trys to get a decent head, haven't thot of replicating torsos or such but it is a possibility, however it will prob take a few trys to get the molds just right and to pour the plastic without air bubbles and such, then you gotta worry about the mold lines...its a long process but worth it in the end if you really want the end product, I wouldn't recommend selling them on ebay but if everyone wanted a Taskmaster head (for example) I don't see anything wrong with making a short run and selling (at cost) to a few guys on the realm who u r friends with, aka ppl who won't turn you in, lol

Yes, you can Its abit Timing Consumeing But With alittle luck You can get a full base figure to use for future Customs! You should Check out Alumilite.com or Reynoldsam.com for More Info On Resins Plastics, And Silicone Rubber to help with what your trying!
They Have alsorts of use stuff That help me with My Base figure molds, Though I did Marvel Legends Shield Agnet base But the DCU are close!

Yeah, they are pretty great , you will never catch me smack talking them.
I'm making a fog for buddy of mine who is a pa wrestler in SWO!
actually he just had a bad ass match witha local hero insane Sam. Who is safely taking a hiatus
Due to bone cancer. But it was an awesome going away match.
But yeah most(company's ) don't care about casting heads.

I know the jakks figs aren't that great on articulation but EVERYONE HERE USES THEM, then talks crap about them, lol, SO many ppl here use "wrestling figures" as a base that it isn't even funny to me anymore,

I use jakks RA because I make actual Wrestlers, so they fit in line with the other wrestling figures, independent local wrestlers and/or wrestling legends wwe hasn't or will never make. although they did a huge line of Classic Superstars.

I have been interested in casting heads for these figures so I could get a few more without having to go through the trouble of finding them at local flea markets, since most of the bodies are the same with a casted head you could easily make another "jeff hardy" figure using the body of another wrestler that you could just do a repaint on. but aslong as you don't go around selling figures in abundance or talking a lot about it or advertising "casted head" I'm sure no one will care, just like the guy down the road who makes meth in his garage.

yeah I have two figs I won't do anything with till I get another one. like them to much :]

Of course, I never planned on making some sort of mini line of bootlegs or anything, I just want to avoid spending $200 on a figure I'm ultimately going to crack down the middle, like you said countpichula. I made the mistake when I was young and I'm not making it anymore. I'm looking into the molding method simply to make another addition to my collection, a figure that was never made in a line that won't be produced anymore.

yeah, in the end it makes more sense for them to let it happen as long as no one takes about the Phenix chase marvel legend and copies each part including the base and sells it as a
" marvel lady kit". then its a issue of copyright and corporate theft. But if you say copy just the head and sell it as "Marvel lady", as long as you don't rack in a mint, they seem to not care. figure sales have been steadily declining and will probably continue to do so in relation to the " Kids Getting Older Younger"phenomenon. as well as the turns in the last 5-10 years in the economy. As well as Oil ( being a key component to Plastics ) also with the fact that Plastics can only be recycled down I think depending on their grade , 3 times. So when the latest HASBRO MARVEL Legends two pack comes out with cr@ppy articulation and based on characters Most Children have NO IDEA who they are for 39.99 in some places....their pretty happy we run out and buy them for the accessories. Now, I forget if it was Jin satomie or someone else but I agree with his sentiments of NOT buying those two packs form places like toys R us being they are ludicrously over priced. But I also understand what that means which is A: toys R us will stop ordering them, B: Hasbro will stop making them, and C: collectable shops will charge even more. So it's kind of a catch 22. but in summation on that...as long as we don't over step cretin lines and respect their work. they will continue to turne that blinde eye and even in some cases support it.


As for the definition between mod and custom. its a thin line and thats my opinion. I have figs I have that I love and won't cannibalize but was never satisfied with their articulation or accessories. to me ( and I think most) a mod is a small tweek of joints parts or accessories. a custom is much more invasive.
I'm using a tried and true recipe on this site to turn a sabertooth into a venom. thats a modd. put revoltech joints in a Ml , amazing spidey venom head ECT.

as for How much to change the figure? thats really how comfortable you are taking a risk. I took a Ryu Hyubasa body and haven't modded it to much and I'm making it into a sneak eyes whit a custom head? but I mean....theirs NO hiding its a Hyubasa body.

as for TOY FAIR I wrote they were defunct cause they recently closed their doors( as for the paper mag). they still have an on-line version of the magazine. I was saddened, I used
to subscribe to them and their doors closing is a Canary in the mine shaft of the figure industry which I was dissuaded from getting into by a person who has been in for years saying. in 20-40 years it will all be out of country if none existant in america. Right now the few jobs in the actual conceptual and production jobs left in america are coveted and not going to be vacated. so its sad and again harkens back to the first paragraph's point. We face a odd conundrum by purchasing a lot of our figures second hand. it's like saying you love the food at a small restaurant but refuse to go eat their? eventually the bottom line will suffer , then the food, then the service and eventually they will either be sold or go under. Sadly I have no good answer cause I sure as hell am not paying 40 bucks for a two pack of figs I'm gonna rip to pieces anyway.

on a side not if you get into casting get in touch with me. I am trying to get started as well.

@mega_star_andro
Those Jakks WWE figures suck! But I really enjoy using them for customs lol. I'm interested in those NY $2 Jakks.

@countpichula
I was in Booksamillion yesterday looking for the toyfare mag and I couldn't find it. Thanks for the info, but that $uCK$!
It would be my intention to heavily mod or customize the figure. Also, thanks for setting me straight with the mod/customize confusion. I didn't know that and it makes sense. I respect companies decision to allow or not allow customs. But I honestly feel that customizers have created a HUGE increase in the interests and sales in the action figure industry. I do believe that lines should be drawn to protect the companies, but mainly for the selling of reproduction of their figures. I suppose I should heavily customize whatever figure I intend to use as a base to avoid any familiarity, or maybe just stick to the old game. Either way, I'm glad they do turn the "blind eye."

@timone317 I bet it's still copyrighted.

to copy and sell? dude don't play that game. just realize they LET US get away with this. They could come in at any time and just shut a place like this down. ( not the web site but take anyone who posted a modded fig for sale. so if its a figure and you are gonna duplicate it, and then sell it...without modding it or making a hole custom figure out of it...be careful. thats all I can say I have never had issues when I worked with gundams? but, I remember what it was like when fig modding customizing was first getting noted in mags like toy fait. their were law suits. Im sure these days they like this cause people like us run out and buy toys....but...can't be to safe.

I'm glad the topic was brought up actually. Even though the word "newbie" is under my name, I've made custom figures since 2002, and I've always wondered how toy companies view customs figures.

Let's say the torso is from a discontinued line made by a company that no longer holds the license for the product. Is it fair game or is there reason to be cautious?

also to add, Even copying a say, Hyubasa ninja head to use as a base for a ninja figure.(which I'm doing) Is icy. It will probably never happen BUT, IF not modded HEAVILY they could say you are doing lotsa' stuff they can get involved with. but don't worry. it always starts with a "cease and desist " letter which is a written warning. but you do not want to start copying and selling say, a Hal Jorden Wal mart exclusive parts to build you own. That would be bad. As long as it doesn't to strongly resemble what the old fig looks like , if you plan on selling it. It seems they don't get to heavily involved. their are better people to weigh in on that like shinobatron or one of the many others who sale their customs. Also modding and customizing I thing are to vastly different categories? modding being small articulation paint and item changes were as customizing is like part swaps scratch made parts ect.
But be careful. remember custom figure making was almost struck down by toy companies. I think it was iron Cow productions? he made a space ghost out of a batman the animated fig for The now defunct Toy fair magazine. and eventually others did the same and went to sell them on Ebay and they got sued. The companies not only turn a blind eye but some like HAsbro ( g.I. joe lines And TF lines) kind of endorse it by having customizers toys as prizes at things like Canada con and others. So just have respect ( not that you don't now, don't take that the wrong way) for them letting us getaway with all this;]

It's cool, I figured I'd ask that in case anyone does know if there's anywhere I can send out the torso to get a mold. I'm in the same boat as you, I've got two customs I want to work on that require the same torso. I have the torso, but to get an extra figure with the same figure would cost me up to $200 due to price gougers on eBay, when I just need a simple two piece torso.

I've kinda wondered about that for my collection also, I mean there are only so many jakks wrestling figures around, however I have seen videos on youtube were a guy makes reviews of bootleg toys, and he has shown a few wwe jakks ripoffs but he says that they have really good detail and only cost $2! but he said they were in New York City, wish I could get a case of those guys, lol

Thanks for the info guys! I should have been a little more clear. I have molded and resin casted before.

I hear ya DarthThomas and no I'm not planning on selling casts. I'm not really a commissioned type customizer. The commissions I do take are original characters. I don't mess with that copyright stuff.

countpichula got it right. It's mainly a dry up kind of thing for my own collection.

My intentions are to alter a figure to become a base to work on. That way I can build onto the same kinda figure each time I create something. So instead of searching for the right kind of base to work on; I can easily cast it and build onto it. Plus I wouldn't have to worry about starting from scratch and worrying about armatures, wires and junk.

What you guys think?

timone317 I'm sure there are people out there who would do that for you. I don't know any though.

I was going to post a thread asking this same question but I'll just ask my question in this thread, hope you don't mind OneUpMario.

I'm also looking to make some molds for a custom I'm working on. I have the torso I need, but I don't want to use the torso on just one custom. I tried wrapping it in sculpey first, as I figured epoxy putty could break the plastic if it hardened all over the torso. I boiled the sculpey and inserted epoxy into the sculpey mold, but it was obviously a terrible transfer. I may try putting epoxy around it anyway but I've also heard something about resin casting, but since others are saying it may cost a lot to get the supplies I need to do this, I may not try it myself. But is there anywhere I can send the torso pieces to get a cast of it? Or is there anyone who takes commissions for molds? Articulation isn't a problem because I've practiced sculpting new joint bearings, I just need a way to get a mold.

Just to point out, if you're planning on making money from the stuff you cast, you could be in for a shock. Pretty sure it would count as both copyright infringement and reverse engineering. However if you're just doing it for your own collection they can't touch you.

yeah, I have thought about this cause since we use these figs they will eventually dry up...I thought about starting a preservation society...craking them making molds of both sides. But...to complicated. but I am gonna at some point use some to make a BLANK base fig to use and reproduce for different sizes. but yeah its crazy spensive

Yes it's possible. Depending on how skilled the caster is, you can expect to spend anywhere from 30-60 for the material to make the molds. Some molding techniques are more efficient than others, so it depends.

The plastic to make the pieces from the molds would be about 10-12, if you get a flawless cast the first try.

So yes it's possible, not really cost effective..but possible.

I'm sure it is possible, but the expense and time of doing so would be more then buying a new figure. Check Youtube for vids on casting.