Green Stuff alternative

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by chakacha

Is green stuff pliable/flexible when it dries? Got this brown stuff for 5 bucks. 3 tubes of epoxy putty. And it dries HARD. I was wondering if Green Stuff dried as hard, and also if any1 knows if it's possible to soften up this putty.

by Greyryder

Dunno about the stuff you got, but Green Stuff does cure with a bit of flexibility. My first custom has bangs that hang down, and a ribboned off lock of hair. They all bend out of the way, without any trouble. As do a few other thin protruding details. There is a limit to how far it will bend. Unless you've made it really super thin, trying to fold it will cause it to break. You're also supposed to be able to adjust how stiff it is, when it cures, by changing the amount of blue and yellow parts you mix together.

by JBYRDD

I have heard of Flexible Sculpy, i dunno how bendy it is when it's cured though. :-/

by Doc Rob

JBYRDD wrote:I have heard of Flexible Sculpy, i dunno how bendy it is when it's cured though. :-/



Not very, I'm afraid. If you make it thin, yes, you could get some good bending, otherwise it's about on par with Green Stuff in terms how far it'll go before it tears. I've used both to make hair but frankly prefer Green Stuff because it's stiffer and easier to mold details into it than Sculpey Flex (which is a lot like working with very soft clay and tends to flop around).

by pluv

Doc Rob wrote:
JBYRDD wrote:I have heard of Flexible Sculpy, i dunno how bendy it is when it's cured though. :-/



Not very, I'm afraid. If you make it thin, yes, you could get some good bending, otherwise it's about on par with Green Stuff in terms how far it'll go before it tears. I've used both to make hair but frankly prefer Green Stuff because it's stiffer and easier to mold details into it than Sculpey Flex (which is a lot like working with very soft clay and tends to flop around).
I agree with Doc rob on thsi assessment. Bendable sculpy is a pin to work with because it gets very soft the mor eyou work with it. Plus the "bendable" part of its name is very misleading. It really isn't. It has a little give to it more than regular sculpy. Almost like a hard pvc rubber. But it isn't bendable like you would think.

by MacGyver

Yes, the "bend" part of the sculpey is definitely misleading. I tried hair with it and found it brittle and hard to work with. I've heard nothing but great things about the green stuff and plan to get some in the future to supplement the Apoxie I sculpt with for details that need a little give. Apoxie dries with no give, like the putty you describe, but I love working with it over 2-part putties you find in most stores, and is very durable. I haven't messed with different mixture ratios to see if that affects it's hardness or not.

by Doc Rob

Heck, since we're on the topic of Green Stuff, a few small tips I've been using (a couple will apply to most putties):

1. If you're using Green Stuff and don't want it to stick permanently to a surface (such as molding on long hair that flows over a figure's back, but you want the head to still be movable) coat the surface with a LIGHT layer of vegetable oil (I use a Q-tip to apply it.) The Green Stuff will still adhere some, but it'll lift over much more easily than trying to get it off a dry surface. I recommend letting the Green Stuff cure for an hour or so, then gently prying it up using a flat blade (putty tool or Xacto) and you should have no problems. I've used this method twice in the past week and both times it worked great (better yet, the Green Stuff absorbs the oil into it, so there's not much mess to clean up.) If oil (or Vaseline) isn't your thing, or the surface is already painted, put plastic wrap (or a latex glove) over it and then mold the Green Stuff; once it starts to cure you can peel the plastic off very easily.

2. Additionally, if you want a very smooth, shiny surface to your Green Stuff, use the vegetable oil--again, a light coat--instead of water to smooth it. Discovered that one by accident.

3. One last tip: if you've had your Green Stuff for a while it tends to be a bit stiff while kneading it; dip it for a few seconds in some water and then knead. The Green Stuff with absorb the water and become more pliant and easier to work with.

by joemichaels70

Doc Rob wrote:...

2. Additionally, if you want a very smooth, shiny surface to your Green Stuff, use the vegetable oil--again, a light coat--instead of water to smooth it. Discovered that one by accident. .


Rob, how well does it take paint, specifically acrylics, after using oil on it?

does this help with the dreaded "fingerprint" issue?

by Doc Rob

joemichaels70 wrote:
Doc Rob wrote:...

2. Additionally, if you want a very smooth, shiny surface to your Green Stuff, use the vegetable oil--again, a light coat--instead of water to smooth it. Discovered that one by accident. .


Rob, how well does it take paint, specifically acrylics, after using oil on it?


Surprisingly well, on par really with the part that wasn't oiled. I can rub my finger over it and the paint (plain old Apple Barrel acrylic) doesn't come off. When I painted it up this morning I didn't expect it to take, but it seems to be having no problems; now that I think on it, neither did the other part I used the oil on (long hair in both cases.)

does this help with the dreaded "fingerprint" issue?


I don't see why not; can't speak for either piece I've done, as both were pressed firmly against an already smooth surface (a figure's back). But the oil should work as well as water, maybe better; I've noticed with water you need a bit of rubbing to get the fingerprints smoothed out. Going to have to test that theory further though before I can 100% confirm if it works better, worse or about the same for fingerprints. I'll post results here when I know (a few hours, to give the test piece time to cure).

EDIT: I want to add, the whole idea of using vegetable oil isn't mine, Narceron suggested it to me a good while back but only just now did I get around to using it.

by Doc Rob

Okay, been a couple of hours since I tried my test piece:


Fingerprint wise, I can still see very faint traces of worls in it when I hold it up to the light; however it looks to me smoother than when I use water to do the same thing, and it took less overall rubbing. And the Green Stuff really does absorb the oil; after a couple hours it's almost dry to the touch. Definitely a bright, smooth sheen to it.

by MacGyver

Does the oil absorbing affect it's flexibility or curing?

Something I love about Apoxie is that it has that you can get a smooth fingerprintless surface before it's finally cured and I've gotten decent enough with it that I haven't had to sand any of the sculpting I've done on the last 3 figures I used it for. I've even gone back almost 2 hours later and smoothed fingerprints I've missed. My initial order came with a bottle of Apoxie Safety Solvent (for clean up, tooling and smoothing) and I love it, tho you can use just water, too.

by Doc Rob

MacGyver wrote:Does the oil absorbing affect it's flexibility or curing?


Nope. The piece I initially used the oil on is a waist-length pony tail, which retains the usual flex, and seems to have cured in about the same amount of time as normal. The test piece I did up last night I can't text the flex (it's wrapped around an old Lady Jaye torso) but the curing is definitely on track for Green Stuff. :-)

Something I love about Apoxie is that it has that you can get a smooth fingerprintless surface before it's finally cured and I've gotten decent enough with it that I haven't had to sand any of the sculpting I've done on the last 3 figures I used it for. I've even gone back almost 2 hours later and smoothed fingerprints I've missed. My initial order came with a bottle of Apoxie Safety Solvent (for clean up, tooling and smoothing) and I love it, tho you can use just water, too.


I really have to get some of that--how strong is the smell? I can't use normal epoxies (like you buy in the tubes at Wal-mart) because the smell irritates my lungs, but something like Green Stuff is fine, with its corn chip smell (well, used to have it...now I can't smell anything from it). If Apoxie is about on par I'd like to add some to my tool chest--I still make use of Sculpey III and Sculpey Flex from time to time, sometimes one thing just works a bit better than another, I've found, so I like to keep a variety handy. :-)

by gijoey

My fav right now is a 2 part epoxy product called Prosculpt. I've used it for everything from removable helmets for SW aliens with weird head shapes to full body armor.
It holds impressions perfectly and is not to sticky. It dyes great, holds on to any paint I've tried and the best part is NO SMELL.

by MacGyver

Apoxie has a mild corn chip smell to it and the solvent doesn't have any smell that I can detect. ;)

by SNAKE

where do you guys get your green stuff? I have had a problem finding it in the past few years.

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