I need to make some transparent bits for a couple of the miniatures I'm working on at the moment.
I've tried P.V.A. glue but it dries too cloudy and varnish doesn't work very well either. Resin seems to be the only way left to go, but I have no experience with it whatsoever, so I was wondering if anyone had any advice and/or knew any good websites for buying resin.
Any recommendations, chaps?
I get all of mine from ebay.... The stuff I use, when correctly mixed, doesn't quite come out crystal-clear (it actually comes out a slightly yellow/brown translucent colour). But I'm sure that if you looked around enough you'd find something that sets transparent.
I've also used hot glue in some of my projects, notably my Epic Scale monoliths (for the swirly portal) and my Inquisitor Scale tech priestess Victoria Murae (who has a glowing plasma blade, where the glowing blade itself is made of hot glue.) Hot glue doesn't set completely transparent (again, it's slightly translucent) but if you intend to have light shining through it, it's not a big deal. (in fact, the slight opaqueness actually helps in this instance, because it stops the light simply going through it, and makes the object glow.)
If it's a rod-shaped part you're looking for, a flying base stem might work.... Similarly, a flying base might be suitable for most flat, planar shapes, if you can be bothered cutting it up....
If your looking for a clear resin I use Alumilite resins for my casting needs. Here's a link to their product.
http://www.alumilite.com/ProdDetail.cfm?Category=Casting%20Resins&Name=Alumilite%20Clear (http://www.alumilite.com/ProdDetail.cfm?Category=Casting%20Resins&Name=Alumilite%20Clear)
Hope this helps. :)
Thanks, fellas!
@ Quickdraw; this is pretty much exactly the kind of thing I wanted, ta very much.
@ Ynek; slightly translucent might be O.K. for the Jellyfish creature I'm attempting, so I'll give hot glue a go for that, thanks.