I have some Epo-Grip water base hide adhesive I intended to use in mounting a fox (tanned). My question is, will this adhesive work over plastalina oil clay? I have some around the eyes and mouth of the manikin. Also, I have used potters clay to smooth out some of the dings in my manikin. It has cracked. Will this adhesive pull it away from the foam, or actually help hold it in place? As a beginner, can you tell me if I should have used something else to fill in the dings? Should I be using something other than a water base adhesive on what I have, or should I scrape the potters clay off and start over?
Thanks for your help, I'm having fun.
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There is a good chance that oil based clay will seep through skin and stain. I think some may use it though. Water based clay gets hard and is more permanent. Most taxidermist use water based clay. You can also use Mache to fix dings or build up larger areas.
Tony
Hide paste will not stick to plastalina oil based clay. I have on occaision used a thin layer of Roma plastalina as mold release for rough castings. The paste may film over on top of the plastalina but it is sticking to itself more than it is sticking to the clay.
I'm assuming that you guys must sculpt your eyes, etc. out of regular water base clay and then quickly mount the hide before it dries? If it's dry you can't tuck the eyes and lips? You're working a lot fast than I am. Guess I'll start over with my manikin.
I use potter's clay for the eyes. It sounds like your setting your eyes a long time before you put the hide on the form. What I do, is get the hide completely ready, ears included, I have the antlers set, and the form prepped. Then I set the eyes in clay, put clay around the lip area if you desire, then the hidepaste, and stretch the hide on. Everything should still be nice and moist still. If you're working slow, get a spray bottle with water, and wet the clay down. Have fun.
I agree with Dan on the form prep. When we setup for the next days' work; we set eyes in the forms with potter's clay, then cover the eyes by wrapping saran wrap around the head to cover the eyes and keep them moist. We don't leave them this way for more than, say around 24 hours-any longer and I'd remove the wrap and mist with water, then re-wrap.-Susan