Materials Sculpting Material comparrison/shootout in progress

I'm kinda like Tim "The toolman" Taylor when it comes to sculpting materials and tools so I decided over the next few months to use as many materials as I can to sculpt a series of Quasi anime pinup girls.I'm also working on a BJD but it's not part of this experiment.
I'm keeping track of everything in Word and will probably post individual reviews as well as the comparison on my FB art page when finished.

So far I'm using the most popular brand of each TYPE of medium, later I may break it down to compare brands. I'm also comparing cost by volume since weight can be misleading. Some materials that are costly sometimes work out to be the most economical in the long run though.

What I'm looking for is to know if this would be of interest to anyone here and if so, I'm collecting a list of "qualities" to observe and will take suggestions for additional materials as well.

So Far the materials involved are:
Sculpey...White
Super Sculpey
Apoxie Sculpt
Paperclay
LaDoll
Hearty Clay
Chavant Y2klay
Chavant Medium NSP
Azbro Wax
bondo auto filler
Model magic....yes the kids stuff by Crayola!
LaDoll Primier
DAS
Sculpey Ultra Light
Sculpt-it by Sargent Arts
Amaco Craft Porcelain air dry clay

Qualities I'm paying attention to so far are:
Amount of prep needed to use product
Shelf life
method of reconditioning...if any
Feathering ability between layers
ability to be carved cured/uncured
Required equipment
ease of spreading/working
working time
Sticks well to armature
sticks to itself...initially and also adding new to cured
Strength uncured/cured
acceptance of detail cured/uncured
tool ability cured/uncured
cure time
effectiveness of smoothing mediums (alcohol, water etc..)
acceptance of textures
method of curing
permanence ...as in likelihood of surviving the molding process
Finish ability ....for finished product vs molding/casting
Steps needed before creating a mold ...sealing etc.

Most of the armatures are made and some are already filling out. They are all relatively the same size...8"-9"...(I want my girls to have differing heights and slightly different body types.).

I welcome your thoughts and input....this ought to be interesting.

 

Thanks for the sugggestions

Creative Paperclay is on the list already.
Is DAS similar to another clay on the list? This first round is an attempt at comparing materials that are different "types" ...later I may go for brand comparisons within types.
Brand choice seems to be very subjective as to personal taste.
What my goal is with this shootout is to find each materials strengths and possible best roles.
I started with the materials that have been asked about here and on other sculpture related sites.

I did wind up with some similarities though...such as Hearty and Model Magic & paperclay and LaDoll.

I'm already realizing that some of the materials will not be able to hold the detail required for a finished piece...they will need to be skinned with one of the other competitors.
I am photo documenting each materials progress though.

 

is...

...living doll a pmc?
If so then I'll later compare it to the other pmc's.
The only reason I have both Sculpey and SuperSculpey is that their consistency is so different.

Honestly I'm not liking the papercclay or LaDoll much so far....and without the pieces being labeled....I would not be able to tell them apart while working with them wet or once cured.

BTW I'm gonna take a look at DAS and possibly add it to the list.
I also caught wind of an air dry non-firing porcelain clay which I may add also.

Fwiw Bondo is on the list because many Japanese figure sculptors use it entirely to prototype anime figma (figures).

 

air dry porcelain

...I'll take a look for it and perhaps include it in the shootout

 

model magic

Yeah....the inclusion of this stuff may seem odd, but I have my reasons...the first is to challenge my abilities to see how far I can push its limits. People oftentimes look to find that perfect medium as if somehow the right material will magically make them a better sculptor. Secondly....since model magic stays flexible once dried, I'm experimenting with a double push mold with armature wire inside to make a flexible poseable manequin to use as a core . Then coat with Apoxie Sculpt to firm and detail out VS starting from scratch each time. This is also the plan with the Bondo except with Bondo the area around the joints must be void of material completely.

 

Additional clays added to the list as suggested

I have added the following clays:

LaDoll Primier at first glance it seems very similar to Hearty clay
DAS
Sculpey Ultra Light
Sculpt-it by Sargent Arts
Amaco Craft Porcelain air dry clay

Thanks for the suggestions...I have some work to do now....In the meantime while I'm compiling all of the data if anyone has questions about any of the clays, feel free to ask since I have all of them sitting in front of me now.

 

Microcrystaline Wax

I have included Azbro Wax in with the Shootout
(I do not know if it is a microcrystalline wax though as it's literature does not state this.).

I have another wax sitting here that seems very similar to Azbro but it is green in color. I have no clue what it is.

I will not be collecting MSDS sheets for any of the materials. I will include links to each manufacturer though so anyone interested can get them direct if they choose.

 

Thank you for the support

I showed the unidentified wax I have to a Chavant Rep who immediately said that it is an older batch of their Castilene wax...good to know.


FWIW just in case anyone was wondering...don't mix LaDoll premier with original sculpey! LOL The results are fabulously disastrous!

 

Cost breakdown

The materials have different weights, comparing cost per ounce doesn't help as one ounce of a product may yield twice as much sculpture as one ounce of another material.

I decided to figure cost per cubic inch so that you KNOW each value represents the same amount of sculpture/material.

Sculpting Clay Price Comparison by Volume (Cubic Inch)

Price per Cubic Inch

Hearty clay $0.50
Creative Paperclay $0.37
LaDoll $0.57
Sculpey $0.40
Super Sculpey $0.48
Kneadalite Blue/Yellow $1.22
Apoxie Sculpt $0.42
Crayola Model magic $0.33
DAS $0.29
Sculpey Ultra Light $0.34
Amaco AirDry Porcelain $0.55
Sculpt-It $0.03
AzBro Wax $0.50
Chavant y2klay $0.19 *
Bondo $0.20
Chavant NSP $0.25 *

*Chavant products were calculated by minimum order from Chavant...in each case 35# and 40#'s were minimum orders. Y2Klay= $183.75 for 35#. NSP=$157.60 for 40#.

 

Shootout update

Here goes...I've come across a few surprises.

The biggest surprise for me has been the Amaco Porcelain clay... I really enjoy sculpting with it and it hardens nicely.

LaDoll has been disappointing though. as I gradually work on each figure I tend to grudgingly continue the LaDoll girl.

Sculpt-it is really nice to sculpt, unfortunately it dries horribly. There must be constant repair as the piece progresses.

Model Magic.....the kids stuff by Crayola is turning out to be a viable medium.

I'm not sure what to make of Sculpey Ultra Light....like Sculpt-It, I enjoy sculpting with it but when I boil it for the second time...disaster!

I have not even started yet with Azbro or NSP Medium yet.

 

Both actually

I consider myself an additive sculptor AND a carver. The reason I do not consider myself subtractive SCULPTOR is a matter of semantics, but here goes:

Sculpting with soft materials can be additive, putting more material where needed...or subtractive, taking material down from a block or rough.

I rarely remove material until the piece is cured and which point we are no longer dealing with a malleable material so technically it's carving at that point.

Subtractive Sculpting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-y6bfrJZDoo
Carving: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=455gySK3eUs

ANYWAY...lol...Yes a big part of the shootout is to determine which material is best suited for sculpting/carving etc. and what level of detail each cah accomodate in the cured/uncured state.

While I'm doing all of this feel free to ask me anything about the materials...you don't have to wait until everything is published and you may just prompt me to try something I hadn't thought of yet...

Thanks!

 

Materials update

This is just an FYI of sorts.

Out of all of the materials being tested it is apparent that Azbro Wax and Y2Klay are the most versatile and over time the most economical.

Both can be;

Poured into molds
Push molded
worked additively OR subtractively
Reusable
Never dries out
Infinite shelf life
Milled
Tooled
Worked by hand
Sanded
polished
Silicone molded without fear of inhibiting the silicone cure
Allow cold joints*
Used from start (bulk-out) to finish (detail)
Used without armatures
Carved
Very light weight
Very durable when cold

The Azbro does need some equipment though. You MUST have a way to heat and either a alcohol lamp and wax tools or a hot wax pen.

The Y2Klay very much benefits from these tools also but it CAN be worked completely without any heat. I've done it completely by hand with the Buffalo bottle topper...but it's quite a workout, let me tell you.

The Y2Klay is much cheaper per cubic inch than Azbro, and the least expensive out of ALL the materials by far. The caveat is that unless you can find someone to split an order with, you're going to have to invest $183.75 plus shipping.
It lasts forever and it's worth it! When I get my site up next year I'll look at possibly offering it to the masses in smaller quantities...maybe.

 

Material update

The material Sculp-It is cracking far too much when dry to continue with...the figure that has been started with Sculpt-It will be finished out with another material... I haven't decided which one yet though...

 

Breakability tests?

No breakability tests per se' ...I will be reporting on durability as far as how each material handles normal handling. I have no way to do shore testing...besides the only reason to know this is if you were looking to sculpt the end product completely and not mold/cast it.
...In that case, the only material I would consider would be Apoxie sculpt!

TCS has individual ingots for sale? SWEET! Thanks for that info...it brings the price per Cubic Inch up to about $0.31...still pretty low on the list, cost wise.

The Porcelain clay is becoming one of my favorites....Not that it matters for the shootout but my fav's at this point in order are; Apoxy Sculpt/Y2Klay tied for first place, Amaco Porcelain clay second, closely followed by Hearty and LaDoll Premier...then Sculpey...then Super Sculpey.

I can't believe I like the white Sculpey more than the Super either....It sculpts super fast, boils nicely without cracking (Super cracks) and once cured it carves like a very dense sign foam....cured carving can produce nice details. Bottom of the list so far are; LaDoll, Sculpey Ultra Light and Sculpt-It. The Ultra Light can only be boiled once, subsequent layers crumble off....Sculpt-T is nasty...I like sculpting with it but it cracks beyond viability as a medium when dry. Ultra Light is cool to sculpt with but doesn't suit my style of sculpting...Both pieces will be finished out with Apoxie since it is the only material I'm confident in putting over the cores of Ultra Light and Sculpt-It.

 

Thanks Pati

It keeps me going knowing that it is helpful to you guys! It's quite an experience sculpting with 16 different compounds...constantly having to switch techniques...technically 13 materials since I've yet to start with Azbro, Bondo and Medium NSP.

It's very disappointing to have to finish out some of the figures with another medium. I'm still concerned about their final outcome though so they must be finished nicely.

Sculpt-It is just a total waste of money
Sculpey Ultra Light is good if you can do a piece in one shot then bake/boil...no intermittent boiling...FWIW I have NOT tried to bake it twice yet...that MAY work.
I have strong/HOT hands, so if the material is soft or easily softened by heat then I need to be able to let it set in stages, otherwise I squish it or it melts in the holding hand.

If you do not have HOT hands this may not be a problem for you.
A note about Porcelain clay:

It has varied properties while working that, at first, may annoy but can be used to your advantage once learned. It can be very sticky, dry and slippery at times. I like the dry stage to place over detail then wet it to a very slippery state to mute the detail or polish to a satin sheen. Dry it a bit with a cloth when in the slippery stage and it is VERY gooey/tacky which at first is not cool...later as I learned this stage is great for pushing the clay around to move lumps/high spots or to feather into previous layers. The best part is that until it is left to harden you can put it in and out of each of these stages at will with simply wetting your fingers or tools. It has very minimal cracking if any when dry. It dries to a semi translucent state...one caveat is that it does tend to balloon a bit as it dries. Visualize sculpting a cube with perfectly straight sides...when dry the sides will bulge out slightly...nice for sculpting females though as it tends to add in just enough cushion to make it more realistic... lol

 

Materials Update

So far I've found certain materials have similar qualities as far as workability..Here's how I'd group them by "feel" so far:



Group 1 Hearty, Sculpey UL, LaDoll premier and Model Magic feel very similar when sculpting and carving This group has the biggest disparity as far as "feel" goes though.

Group 2 Sculpey (white), porcelain Clay, Sculpt-It, Apoxie Sculpt and Kneadatite Blue/yellow feel very similar when sculpting But Apoxie, porcelain and kneadatite are much harder than S Sculpey when cured.

Group 3 DAS, Paperclay and LaDoll feel very similar when sculpting and carving
FWIW I finally hit a groove with LaDoll and am beginning to like it.

Believe it or not I do think that with patience, model Magic is a viable medium...It is the most challenging material so far so why bother when there are so many better choices? ...Um, Just to PROVE I can do it at this point I guess...to show that the material doesn't make the sculptor.

Now that I'm at a stage where some carving is needed I'm really starting to see where group 3 shines Interestingly enough, white Sculpey carves like the Group 3 clays but sculpts like Group 2 clays.

The Cleanest Material so far is Y2Klay you could take this stuff anywhere and sculpt for a bit, no set up, no mess, no chemicals or equipment required....provided you've planned ahead and chopped up little jelly bean sized chunks into a baggy so you can work them soft....you will NOT be able to pinch off a chunk like most of the materials.

The messiest so far are Apoxie, DAS and LaDoll...lots of water to work each and lots of towels to clean your work surface and hands after. WARNING! Apoxie will NOT wash out of fabric! Not washing out of fabric might be good to know for certain applications...

I have noticed also that when I sculpt with Apoxie...stuff around the house tends to get fixed too...lol.

 

Yes, I've seen that site before...it compares the polymer clays....what I'm doing is comparing a whole mess (literally) of different materials to find their strengths and weaknesses for sculpting in general. not just for BJD's. I really only consider casting to get an end product, but that's a personal thing. I fI were to do a BJD and NOT cast it I would only consider one of the epoxies such as Apoxie due to it's high strength...no PMC can touch it for strength.

 

LaDoll

FWIW LaDoll has really been winning me over lately....I LOVE carving and sanding it. I've also learned how to sculpt better with with too... Funny thing is that I really didn't like it when I first started this project. Even though this project isn't about MY preferences...I'm trying to stay neutral for the finished work, I've shared here my personal notes about the materials.

Model Magic may be hitting it's limits soon...
Sculpt-It has already fallen out.

 

UPDATE! Since I dropped Sculpt-It and Sculpey Ultra Light out of the shootout due to curing issues I replaced them with Aves Critter Clay and Clay Shay. I haven't used the Clay Shay yet but the Critter clay is AMAZING to sculpt with. I don't know if there will be any curing or layering issues yet though... I'll keep you informed.