Page 147 - Casting of Angels- Dave Parvin
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Forton MG FMG is odorless, non toxic, and
water soluble. And unlike any other
casting material, FMG neither
Demystified, expands nor shrinks making it ideal
for accurate life castings.
Considering its advantages, I
Part 1 consider FMG to be bargain.
There are some FMG copycats
available, five that I can think of. I
By David E. Parvin, A.L.I. have personally tested them all and
the truth is that they are pretty much
Recently I have become aware This was my first application of Forton MG. the same as FMG with three things.
that there are people who are I was amazed with how much it looked like Four of the five come with the three
reluctant to use Forton MG (FMG) real bronze. solid ingredients pre blended. (See
because they have the impression below.) The fifth consists of two
that it is complicated and expensive. liquids which are mixed together for
I would like to dispel both of these activation. Pre blending may at first
concerns and encourage people to seem like a significant convenience,
take advantage of one of the most however, as I will explain, blending
useful materials available for is a piece of cake and pre blending
sculptors. comes with a penalty, a higher price.
While FMG does cost somewhat In some cases, the copycats are
more than just plaster, hydrocal, multi-times more expensive.
hydrostone, or any other gypsum The ingredients for plain FMG
product alone, all are inferior to are an acrylic based liquid, VF-812,
FMG which was developed for and three powders: FGR-95
outdoor applications and is far more Hydrocal, a resin, and a hardener.
durable especially when exposed to For at least the first ten years I used
weather. FMG can be blended with FMG, I keep the ingredients separate
metal powders to make amazingly Hands of newlyweds and using a table I had made,
credible cold cast metal pieces. FMG weighed out the ingredients for
will bond to itself even when whatever size batch I needed. I had
completely cured allowing for repairs done this so long that it was second
and alterations. FMG is far stronger nature. However, I saw that people in
and allows for thinner, lighter life my workshops often found the
casts, bas reliefs, mother molds, etc. weighing of the ingredients to be
FMG really should be compared to confusing. Hiram Ball of Ball
resins or metal, both of which are far Consulting which makes FMG kept
more expensive. And unlike resins, telling me to blend batches of the
solids for the various mixes I was
likely to use. Then to mix, one would
only have to pour out whatever
amount of VF-812 one thinks she/he
would need and then scoop out twice
that volume of solids. In other, no
weighing, just for each scoop of VF-
812, add two scoops of the blended
Life cast torso titled "Built Like..." in Forton solids. This is true whether using
MG with a brick colored dye plain FMG or with additives such as
metal powders.
I purchase FMG in the five
gallon kit size which consists of five
gallons of VF-812, ten pounds of
resin, and six ounces of hardener.
The FGR-95 is purchased separately
in either fifty or one hundred pound
bags. If one had a container large
enough and a mixer powerful
Hands 16 feet across in Forton MG with enough, you could mix a hundred
metal power. This has been in place for pound bag of FGR-95 and the ten
about seven years and looks the same as I made a pair of these for a seafood pounds of resin and the six ounces of
when installed. restaurant. The fish is about two feet across
