Armature Wire

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Jaybo

Jaybo

A Fixture
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
893
Location
Grand Rapids, MI
Hello,
Can anyone please tell what they use (and where one buys it) for the armature wire in their sculpting efforts? Many thanks in advance.
Jaybo
 
Hey Jaybo,

There is not any rigging wire sold as such that I know of , it runs the gamut from paperclips, to copper wire, florists aluminum, to solder.

Myself, i'm accustomed to using solder or aluminum wire for my rigging. It allows me to saw through it for engineering.

I normally twist the wire for two reasons:

a) The putty bites better (not having it slide around)

b) I can unravel it or twist it more to lengthen and shorten it for tuning

Hope that helps!

-gordy
 
Jaybo,
For myself I use brass wire almost exclusively because it is readily available and easy to use. To help with bending I always anneal the wire before use. My solution to kept the putty from slipping around on the wire is to put a thin layer of A+B putty on before attempting any anatomical sculpting. This initial layer of putty gives a good surface for subsequent layers to adhere to. An older method (older for me and almost never used now) is to serrate the wire with the serrated jaws of pliers before the first layer of putty is applied. Simply squeeze the softened (annealed) wire in the jaws of the pliers and the result will be a nicely textured surface.

If you're going to do very much sculpting at all I would recommend that you purchase your wire in rolls. I got mine, about 100ft, for something like $14. Though not a lifetimes supply 100ft of wire will make a lot of armatures in the smaller scales. I don't recall who I got mine from, but the attached link will give you an idea of what's available, though the prices are somewhat higher than what I paid three or four years ago. I see also that Amazon has brass wire listed at reasonable prices.


http://www.mcmaster.com/#brass-wire/=4y51r8

Hope this is of some use.

Ray
 
I guess all depends on the scale you are sculpting. copper wire, florists aluminum, tv cable and solder are good stuff for 1:32 - 1:16 figure. And they are easy enough to cut through when you need separate your figure in to several parts for casting.

You might wan to thick solder wire for larger scales.

Happy sculpting
 
Hi Jaybo,

I use Galvanized mild steel wire this can be soldered fairly easily. I get it from Alec Tiranti, heres the link...

www.tiranti.co.uk

You should also find some other interesting stuff on there. They sell various bits and pieces from books to tools, stands, turn tables, various clay's and sculpting mediums etc
all for the sculptor.

I hope this helps a little

Carl
 
I've been using aluminum wire, because I have a spool of it on hand. But while it's rigid enough not to bend when I don't want it to, I've found that it's a little too rigid to adjust easily.

I got a tip recently to use florist's wire, which is a little softer than the aluminum wire, and so it's a little easier for me to work with.

Prost!
Brad
 
For all scales up to about 90mm, I use copper wire. I get this in a spool from Radio Shack. It comes in a bag with three spools of wire in different thicknesses. The thickest i use for the main armature. I find that the thinner gauges are good for doing fingers when I am sculpting hands. You can always find a use for the different gauges of wire.

This stuff is easy to get and consistent. It is a bit too flimsy for larger scales though.

For that I use the aluminum armature wire that is available from art supply stores who sell clay and clay sculpting supplies. The aluminum is supple enough to be roughly manipulated, yet surprisingly sturdy once your position has been achieved.

Cheers!!

Mike
 

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