need Toucans beak?

[wes]

I'm looking for material to make a smooth toucans beak with,

I thought about foam but i didn't want the foam texture
and i thought about fleace, but i really wanted a smooth beak.

not to menton, the curve of the toucan beak any suggestions?

I would greatly appericate any comments!

 

[Onath]

what about using some plasti dip it might help for the texture. Also what if you get a thicker piece of foam so you can carve it into the shape of the beak(ex gonzos nose is one piece i believe)

hope that helps

 

[Teenager's]

I think carved L-200 foam with air-brushed features would be pretty cool looking. + it's smooth....

 

[Whispers]

Smooth as in fabric or smoooth like plastic? You might want to try something like patent leather .

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Haven't tried Tool Dip on foam personally (anybody actually done that?), but another option is covering the foam with brush-on latex. If you take your time and do multiple thin coats it comes out very smooth. You could also cast a beak in latex, but that is a lot more work of course.

 

[Teenager's]

I've done the tool dip for noses, and it gives it this cool texture from air bubbles. It's like one of the things where air bubbles are a good thing......but because of that I don't know that I would use it to create a smooth surface...

Question about the brush on latex. I always look online/at Dick Blick for it and could you use the latex mold making stuff?....basically I don't know what to look for when looking for brush on latex.

 

[puppetsnthings]

Some Suggestions...

Wes,

I would suggest you consider using a product called "Sculpt or Coat" to create the smooth finish for your beak (www.sculpturalarts.com). I've used it before to create beaks with great success. It's a white cream product you rub over the foam shape - it will fill in the holes and provide a smooth finished surface. I believe it's the solution you're looking for. If you mix it half in half with joint compound, the finish will dry rock hard - you can even sand it! Finish it by painting it the color you want. If you want a shiny finish, simply apply one final coat of Sculpt or Coat over the paint and it will dry to a clear gloss shine.

As to creating the shape of the beak, there may be an easier way, but I'm happy to share what worked for me:

I started by cutting the mouth plates out of a plastic called "styrene." You can get it at local sign shops - it comes in several thicknesses. I used some a bit thicker than, say, the thickness of a CD. (The styrene won't hold the bend of the beak without some help, but it does provide a good, bendable mouthplate.)

To hold the bend, I used a product called "chloroplast." That's another sign shop product - a heavy duty version of cardboard made completely of plastic - VERY sturdy.

I cut a profile view of the shape of the bend out of the chloroplast and used epoxy to glue it to the styrene mouthplate. Of course the chloroplast was glued to the side of the mouthplate that would be out of sight, covered by foam. This process was repeated for the lower mouthplate as well. That created the permanent bend of the beak.

That puppet was built as a commission a year or two ago, and he seemed very pleased with the result. Using those two products (styrene and chloroplast) as the skeleton for the beak provided a feather-light manipulation, even though the beak was quite long.

Hope this makes sense and is helpful - good luck!

 

[ravagefrackle]

sculpt a beak out of blue foam insulation or the foam sold thru a taxidermy website for fish mounting,

cover the foam in tin foil, and then use Thermo Plastic to make your beak, youcan then cover the thermo plastic in spandex, very light wieght and durable, ive made few tucans in my day

 

[wes]

Thank you all,

Wow there alot to do thanks. I cant wait to start on them!