Buster project page 2
My animation table.  The scenery is
still being worked on.  The back drop
behind the work shop was painted by
my son.  
This armature was made using
aluminum wire and brass K&S stock to
attach the limbs.  Thsi armature ready
to be cast in the Wilbur mold and has
been covered in Ballooon rubber to
help prevent the wires from showing
through the foam latex skin.  The
Brass parts were painted to preserve
the foam latex since brass will cause
the foam cell structure to prematurely
break down.
Had a revelation this week.  
Discovered that even though I have
been using aluminum wire for the
armatures, it was not the right stuff.  I
was using aluminum wire from places
like Home Depot and Lowes.  Well I
had ordered some from Burmans while
ordering some other stuff and found it
is SOOOO much more pliable.  So
word to the wise..Armature wire IS
different then normal aluminum wire!
Buster in his shop
The following photos are of a Buster puppet I have recently been working on(May 2006)
I found a source for his shirt then made the shorts myself.  He is foam latex with an
aluminum wire armature.  I flocked him and used a liquid latex and acrylic paint to color
his skin.  The bedroom set was made using foam core board for the walls and scrap
booking paper for the wallpaper.  I made the bed and night stand out of basswood
planks and the sheet is made with a foil inside of it to allow it to be animated if need
be.  The pillows I made out of coushin foam and sewed the pillow cased from the
material originally planned for his shirt.  The photos with clay over his eyes were to get
a preliminary look of how he would look sleeping or blinking.  I have since pruchased
purple Fimo' clay to make the eyelids with.    Your comments are always welcome
chris@cjandbuster.com  
Below are a few of the various Buster stop motion puppets I have made so far.
Each has their own flaws and I have learned a lot about stop motion puppet making
form these puppets.
Here are group shots of the stages of Buster-dom
(Above)
The original sculpture.
(above)
This is the first attempt
at a Buster stop motion
model.  I unknowingly
used hardware store
aluminum wire and not
proper Armature wire
for the armature.  Well
once the foam latex is
run and the character
is painted, then I
discovered why
"normal" aluminum wire
does not work.  It
breaks very easily.  
(Above)
Here is Buster fully
clothed. (he was thankful  
for that) The shirt I found
online at a doll supplier
and the shorts I made.  I
used needlepoint floss
for the shoe laces.  Here
he is in "hammer mode"
..LOL.  I was doing some
building tests prior to
grabbing him for this
photo shoot.  He moves
quite well, the only
problem I was struggling
with on this one was the
teeth.  I attempted to use
thin card stock but
getting the right curve to
fit the mouth with out it
breaking was rough.  The
next one I think i will use
Super sculpey and bake
them.  Also this version I
used flocking for the fur.  
I think I like the flocked
look better then the
painted fur look.
See Buster take a few steps in this test.  
February 2006
The following pictures are of the 2 most recent Buster
models and the couch for his living room set.  I
decided after doing the test shot that instead of
crawling into bed to watch television i wanted him to
sit down on the couch.

In the above photo, the two Busters
standing are the most recent.  The one
on the left is still needing to have his
new shorts put on, eyes painted, boots
painted and laced , and mouth painted.
(Above)
far.  The foam was nice
far.  The foam was nice
and soft with great cell
structure. He was
painted s the others with
PAX paint and washes
then flocked.  The
clothes, pupils,
shoelaces and
touch-ups will be
completed by mid
December.December.
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