DONE! Back to Base(ics) for the Sideshow Mosasaur

[paintingdinos]

Starting a new thread so you can go on this journey with me. Laughs, tears, and all associated emotions.

A few years ago I bought the Sideshow Mosasaur from fellow forum member @Halichoeres (thank you again). Said user's love for ancient aquatic critters is well known, so keeping the base for the excellent display of prehistoric sea life was totally understandable!

But what doesn't "stand" (at least on its own) is this beautiful statue.



A few nerves might have been touched on when I posted this picture, which showed the poor thing on a shelf laying on its side.


"Oh dear..."

While I maintain that the model was safe and was laying on a soft foam packing material (hard to see due to the exposure of the pic), I decided to remove it from the shelf and return it to its packaging until I was finally able to make it a worthy base.

You know how it goes, years pass, and in its box it would remain until.... today!

I'm going into this with only a rough idea of how I want things to go. Mostly, I'm interested in ensuing the base is structurally sound. I'm willing to live with whatever it takes to get to that point, though of course the goal is to make it as attractive as possible.

Since this is a heavy statute, I decided the best thing to do was give it a very sturdy bottom that I build up from. My first thought was to start with air clay, since it is fairly heavy. I made a large irregular oval to start with, but I didn't really love the end result. It was heavy, but brittle. I decided to keep the clay for the very most bottom portion, but use a pour resin to actually build it out.

With that in mind, I fashioned this obnoxious setup:



Basically I took the clay oval and superglued a foil ring around it. The PLAN was that the foil would make a nice, irregular rock-like texture similar to the base on the original model. I also affixed some popsicle sticks into the clay base that would provide structure to the top portion whenever I get around to it.



For the resin, I used a fast curing 2-part pour resin. This one, for those interested.

I ultimately didn't take a picture of this step because I decided to have a little tantrum about how it went and didn't want a record of it. Essentially it worked, but I shot myself in the foot with the foil. The resin seeped between the folds in the foil, and of course hardened into place like that. So I had multiple layers of resin and foil vs just one solid block or resin. A smarter (more experienced) person perhaps would have considered this, but I am not that person.

I spent a couple of hours trying to pick away the outer layers of resin and foil, but decide it wasn't worth the effort. Fortunately, this is just the bottom part of a base that is ultimately going to look like a craggy, rocky bit... and we have plenty of mod podge to make the ouchies go away.

The mixture is 1 part mod podge to however many parts black acrylic paint it takes to make the mixture a very dark gray. This goes on in two coats, waiting until the first coat is fully dry before starting the next one.

The end result is this:

1st pass.


2nd pass.

Looks like a nightmare. BUT you'll never know there's a bunch of bits of foil mixed up into that resin, and it dries hard enough that unless you really go poking around the shape will hold on the foil bits.

The next step will be molding the top portion of the base where the statue will sit. Updates soon 

[paintingdinos]

Construction on the top portion has begun. I'm using DAS airdry clay because its inexpensive and easy to get. I mixed in a bunch small rocks to give it texture, but clearly that didn't work out exactly like I'd planned. Not a big deal, this portion is strictly about building up the main support structure. Getting the indention where the model is going to sit right is the most important part, other details can be added later.

But I did go ahead and get the 3D printed corral and the Safari fossils affixed. Right now it looks like a creepy blob, but once it dries I'll go back in with another clay or epoxy putty and clean it up. 





This will take several days (maybe weeks) to fully dry. Within a couple of days it will at least be hard enough that I can test the fit of the model.

[Halichoeres]

Aha, so that's what you had in mind for the Ancient Fossils Toob! Really looking forward to seeing the mosasaur's new digs.

[paintingdinos]

Fit testing today, the base is structurally sound and holding the model!



It still needs several more days to dry (interior still soft) but we're headed in the right direction.

[Loon]

Wow, your base is just defying gravity there. That mosasaur is such a stunning model (one of the few Dinosauria pieces I've ever coveted) and I'm sure your base will compliment it so well. I'm loving the rundown of your process here; looking forward to reading more.

[paintingdinos]

Wow, your base is just defying gravity there. That mosasaur is such a stunning model (one of the few Dinosauria pieces I've ever coveted) and I'm sure your base will compliment it so well. I'm loving the rundown of your process here; looking forward to reading more.

Thanks! They did a good job designing the model, balancing it was easier than I thought it would be. I was worried I might have to use a rod and drill into the statue, which I was willing to do but really, really didn't want to. Lucky me!

The exterior is dry now, so I started adding some details with milliput.



Rocks and terrain made from leftover bits from other projects. For the most part I want it to look rough and rocky, with the top portions having more of a sandy texture. I'm using a hard bristle brush to dab the clay/milliput while its still wet to get a nice irregular texture.

Interior still needs time to dry, but we're chugging along!

[paintingdinos]

Its taken over a week for the air clay to finally dry, but at long last, its completely solid.





Black primer first, then white for a zenithal highlight. I left the bottom portion mostly black because I want it to be darker, but I may change my mind when I actually start to paint it. I like the separation of light vs dark on the original Sideshow base, but it may be easier to just keep things all a similar color. 

[paintingdinos]

Its finally done 

It perhaps could have been a bit more colorful, but overall I'm happy with how it turned out. Most of all, I'm happy it actually HOLDS the model and is stable!






With the Mosa:



Other shots in different lighting + some other underwater buddies:

[Ludodactylus]

Outstanding! Re: it being more colorful, I think less is more here. It looks very natural and provides a splash of color without distracting from the Mosasaur as the star of the show.

[Dusty Wren]

Congrats, @paintingdinos! The base turned out fantastic. I love all the little details, especially the fossils in the back. It's a throne worthy of the Sideshow Mosasaur for sure.

How was working with DAS clay? I've been looking at some different brands of air dry clays for a project I have in mind, and DAS seems to be the most readily available.

[ceratopsian]

I think the base is better for not being too multicoloured. I'm astonished at how the mosasaur balances!

[Joliezac]

This is incredible! Truly a gorgeous base for this mosasaur!

[Loon]

I knew it was going to turn out, but this is something else. This feels even more gravity-defying than the original base; I think the lack of that shark sticking out the mosasaur's side helps. The fossils, or just plain, at this point I guess, are my favorite touch. I think the coloration is perfect; it stands out obviously, but doesn't distract from the mosasaur as the centerpiece.

[paintingdinos]

Thank you all very kindly for the nice words. I've been dreaming of finishing this project for years but just couldn't motivate myself to get it done. It feels very good to finally, finally, finally check it off the list.

How was working with DAS clay? I've been looking at some different brands of air dry clays for a project I have in mind, and DAS seems to be the most readily available.

Its fine for stuff like this, where you're mostly just making a "shape" and not planning to work with the clay too much. I've made a coupe of bases with it and they've turned out pretty good, so if you just need something to fill out space its great for that. I wouldn't waste too much time trying to get fine details in it. It dries brittle, just painting over it may scrape something away if you aren't careful (its why I went back over and added details with milliput vs more DAS).

[Dusty Wren]

That's good to know! I need something that can hold some level of detail, so maybe I'll try out some other brands.

[Halichoeres]

Excellent work! It looks almost impossible that it should balance, but sure enough!

[JohannesB]

It almost looks like a magic trick  Wonderful work!

[Pliosaurking]

Fantastic job on that base, it looks great!