How to make a fiberglass sculpture?

There is a certain market demand for fiberglass sculptures, but it is not easy to make a good
fiberglass sculpture. There have also been some regrettable works among fiberglass
sculptures, which have affected the reputation of fiberglass sculptures to a certain extent. To
complete fiberglass sculptures with high quality, all aspects of sculpture production must be
organically combined. The following is the production process of fiberglass sculptures:

1. Design and molding

Excellent sculptures require a good design foundation. The design of fiberglass sculptures
should take into account the characteristics of its materials and processes. FRP technology is
easy to form beautiful streamlined products, which can highlight the modernity and period
feel of the work. Arc shapes and streamlined shapes can be given priority in design. In addition,
because fiberglass has the advantages of light weight and high strength, it can produce works
with strong dynamic and small support area. Sometimes fiberglass sculptures need to be
coated with a gelcoat surface. Since the gelcoat has self-leveling properties, and the gelcoat
layer has a certain leveling effect under the action of surface tension during curing, it is not
suitable to express delicate textures in this case. These should be considered during design.

The original mold of the fiberglass sculpture can be shaped with clay, and the molding is
generally completed by professionals. After the sculpture work is completed, after natural
drying and a certain strength, the fiberglass sculpture mold can be made.

2. FRP production

FRP is manufactured using hand lay-up molding methods. Before production, the mold can
be combined into several units and reproduced based on the shape characteristics of the
sculpture and from the perspective of facilitating molding and demoulding. The unit products
are formed in sequence and then assembled into a whole. Finally, the product is processed
and painted as a whole, and part of the fiberglass sculpture is completed.

3. Mold manufacturing

Mold manufacturing Mold manufacturing is the key to FRP molding. Gypsum is often used in
FRP sculpture mold manufacturing. There is a better way to make fiberglass sculpture molds,
which is to use silicone rubber and fiberglass materials to make molds. The specific mold
manufacturing method is: apply the prepared silicone rubber on the original mold several
times. The silicone rubber layer should be more than 1mm. After the silicone rubber is cross-
linked, a glass fiber reinforced plastic layer with a thickness of about 3mm is formed on the
silicone rubber. After the FRP is solidified, cut the entire mold along the divided unit blocks.
When cutting, pay attention to cutting the FRP layer and the silicone rubber layer at the same
time. Make connecting ribs between unit blocks, and slots should be set at the connecting
ribs to ensure that the unit block molds are combined into a whole through the connecting
ribs. After the above work is completed, demould the FRP unit block, then take off the silicone
rubber layer, and immediately put the removed silicone rubber block back into the FRP unit
mold. Original mold dust removal → silicone rubber preparation → silicone rubber layer
manufacturing → FRP layer manufacturing → mold segmentation → connecting rib
manufacturing → demoulding and mold assembly.

4. Molding and manufacturing

Fiberglass sculptures are manufactured using hand lay-up molding methods, and the
molding circuit should be designed before manufacturing. Starting from one end of the
sculpture, assemble a part of the mold and paste the product. After the previous part has
solidified, assemble the mold and continue to paste the product. Assemble as many mold
unit blocks at one time as is convenient for the molding operation. Repeat this until a single
unit block is left, which is pre-formed and then glued to the overall sculpture. Parts of
fiberglass sculptures, such as the horns, legs, and tails of animals that are difficult to make
using the above methods, can be made into rough shapes with corresponding metal materials,
and then the fiberglass is formed on the metal materials and trimmed by grinding. An
important issue in the molding of fiberglass sculptures is structural reinforcement. The
reinforced materials generally use metal profiles, which are welded into the inner skeleton of
the sculpture. During molding and manufacturing, the metal skeleton is gradually buried in
the sculpture. In this way, the stiffness and strength of the fiberglass sculpture is improved,
and its service life is extended. Finally, the fiberglass sculpture assembly mold is installed
through the metal skeleton → filling the surface putty → laying chopped strand mat → laying
checkered cloth → burying the skeleton → demoulding the final product. Sculpture shapes
are generally complex and should be treated with special care in the craft lamination. Where
the fiberglass mat is difficult to lay, it should be filled with resin containing short fibers first,
and then the fiberglass chopped strand mat and square cloth should be laid. The length of
the glass fiber in the resin putty for the surface of the sculpture is preferably 10mm. The
proportion of the resin putty used for the surface of the sculpture is polyester resin, glass fiber,
CaCO3 filler, pigment, cobalt methyl ethyl ketone naphthoate peroxide, and the dosage is
1002010022-40.5-4.

5. Post-processing

Post-processing Post-processing of fiberglass sculptures is to repair some defects of the

product after demoulding, and more importantly, to create surface effects. The commonly
used appearance effects are imitation copper and imitation bronze. The key is to prepare the
color paste. Among them, the amount of molybdenum chromium red phthalocyanine blue
phthalocyanine green dibutyl ester copper and gold powder is 550.30.7240200, and the
amount of chromium yellow phthalocyanine blue molybdenum chromium red dibutyl ester
copper and gold powder is 620.351803003. Using fiberglass technology, clay sculptures can
be quickly reproduced and preserved. Therefore, fiberglass sculptures have become
landmarks in squares and residential areas, but fiberglass sculptures are not a simple matter
and require certain production techniques and processes.