Thread: Help with new project

Hi, I'm new to this but am looking to make a cool set of first scales and could use a bit of advice. I know, it's probably a bit ambitious, but what the heck - I'm looking to model the scales off the mask of Rorshach in Watchmen; for those who aren't familiar with it, in the book it was composed of two layers of transparant material with two immiscible liquids, one black, and one white, sandwitched between them, creating an ever-changing pattern for the mask. Does anyone know of two such liquids, preferably relatively easy to obtain and having slightly different densities, or the best transparant material to use for the casing? I'm currently looking at polycarbonate, but am very open to suggestions.

Thanks,
Mitchell

Cool concept. You might just do oil and water. Not sure how you'd do those handles though. They'd have to be pretty thick.
This isn't your concept, but might work out:
Mold some scales (I'd use RTV rubber). Mix up some clear plastic resin. Take 1/3 of that batch and dye it black. Put it in a syringe/squeeze bottle. Draw your Rorschach patterns on the inside of the mold. Then carefully back it up with the clear- trying not to disturb your pattern. Let em cure up and buff em.
You won't get the movement you're thinking of, but you could still get the patterns and have a lot better control over the shape of the spots.
Either way, if you pull it off, be sure to post some pics. It's a cool idea.

Thanks for the advice. I still would like to have the liquids move inside it, but failing that, I will give that method a try.

Just had another thought.
You could take a set of scales and dremel out a groove on the inside to create the hole for your liquid. Be sure to clean it up really well on that inside because it's a lot easier to polish it now than it will be when it's clear. Mold it, cast it in clear, then mount it to a thin piece of clear plexi with some epoxy.

Don't suppose you have easy access to a CNC or Stereolithography machine do you? That'd make your life a lot easier.

From the one experience I have doing something like this, the real pain is going to come from making it watertight without making big messy globs of epoxy everywhere.

Good luck!

Nah, no CNC or Stereolithography machine, just basic shop tools