Main > Main Forum
Ideas or pointers for a pourable but dries malleable gel?
drventure:
Ok, it's a bit off the wall, but here's the rub
Basically, I've got a 1" dia clear vinyl hose that various cabling is going to be run through including some elwire to light it up from the inside.
I'd like to seal one end, fill it with +something+ that I can pour in but that dries to a silly putty like consistency, is clear or tintable, and that stays flexible and clear once it's dried. the idea is to make the hose look like it's filled with liquid.
I've used handsoap in small scale tests and it works and looks great, but obviously it doesn't "dry" solid, so both ends of the hose have to be sealed +completely+ or I'll end up with a big mess on my hands. I considered clear silcone caulking, but experiments show it dries a little too opaque and too stiff for what I'm needing.
Anyone out there worked with anything like that or have any pointers?
bkenobi:
Stretch used corn starch, but he wasn't supposed to dry out.
HaRuMaN:
Hair gel?
drventure:
--- Quote ---corn starch
--- End quote ---
Yeah, just about any food product I'd rule out cause I don't want any possibilities of it going rancid or worse :(
Hair gel is a possibility. my fear there is that if I don't get things sealed completely, it'll end up drying out and shriveling up. I used hand soap in a glass tube that I could seal easily with epoxy and it still looks great after a year, but sealing vinyl tubing completely might be a bit trickier.
I also found this model railroad scenery stuff that replicates water. You pour it on, sculpt it as it gels and, theoretically is stays pliable once it's set, but I'm thinking it might be too hard too. Might have to buy a small batch just to try it out though.
Encryptor:
dr,
Check this place out. This is where I get my urethane from for making restrictors. They have all kinds of different stuff for doing special effects and the like. You might find something there you can use.
http://www.smooth-on.com/
Encryptor