How to make a bird's beak

[Punch'n'Judy]

well, i need something rough as papier mache, but tuff as fiberglass
edit: that might work

Please don't underestimate papier mache. There are many different ways of making it, and it can be very strong. And will certainly be easier to work with, and much cheaper than fibre glass.

A number of layers of brown, parcel paper, glued over polystyrene is susprisingly strong (zippy and george from Rainbow are both made this way).

 

[Dwo shwoom]

how about i carve a beak out of puppet foam, put light brown and yellow spray paint on it, and put light wax coating on it

 

[Dwo shwoom]

i cant take this anymore, I'll try these ideas ALL out then I'll evaluate which one looks, best, must i say. but first let me get the lizard puppet done. and i dont care if its a waste, I'll make use out of the losing ones

 

[hennesprod]

My 2 cents

- paper mache - great material easy to use and strong. Depending on materials used can be inexpensive. With work and patience you can get it very smooth

- fiberglass - one of my favorites - strong but smelly and can be a bit messy to use for the first time. Also, depending on how you by it can be inexpesive or expensive

- Plastic cast - casting the beak from silicone molds- duable strong- but expensive- plus create more weight to the puppet

- 2 part epoxy putty - strong, heavy though for the puppet. Idea for prototyping small amatures

- Liquid Latex cast - also a favorite of mine. Most expensive part is purchasing the latex. But you can make several casts, so in the end worth it. Plaster or ultra cal for casting. In this case I would go with plaster for molding the beak.

-Polyfoam - looks like latex foam but no heat is required to cure it. You can get a smooth skin from it and very pliable. Again I like this stuff.
You would need a mold for it, and it can be made from plaster, ultracal, or fiberglass. This is more on the expensive side.

William

 

[Dwo shwoom]

"thank you" said shwoom happily as he jumped up and down.

FIN (japanese for "THE END")

 

[practicecactus]

Having worked with fibre glass, I wouldn't recommend it to just anyone, unless you really did your research or were with someone who knew what they were doing.
I hated the stuff.

The catalyst for the resin is pretty hazardous and you have to take into account the weather for your rezin ratio.
And once it's all hardened , sanding fibreglass should be done with a mask too, cause you don't wanna have that $#!+ in your lungs.
Plus it itches.

Maybe it was just hardcore cause it was in a factory environment, but, yeah, it's Not very fun to use. Too much of a hassle.

I'd go for it If I was making a professional Animatronic puppet, but for a hand puppet, any one of the other options suggested sounds like a better alternative.

 

[propologist]

bird beak

I would go vacumforming. What kind of bird is it? How big do you want to make it? I have a beak mold for vacumforming. I also have vacumforming machines.
Let me know if you need help.

Propologist
Mike