Early on in the re-build I decided I'd see if there was an alternative to the moulded teeth that were an integral part of the vinyl kit. I had seen some other people had had some luck with replacing the teeth, so I figured I'd have a go. I managed to find some individual 'Halloween' resin teeth on eBay and so set about cutting the teeth off the vinyl kit.
Vinyl becomes very soft when heated up (submerge it in warm water to see how malleable it can become) which has its advantages (it can be re-shaped if distorted) and pitfalls (easily distorts if exposed to too much heat). I heated up the jaw and skull and then used a scalpel to carefully cut away the teeth. Once they had cooled down I then used a combination of small files and fine sandpaper to smooth off the rough edges.
Finally, after some research, I came to the conclusion that 'Milliput' would be the best option for me to use to fill in the gap that had been created, and to set the teeth in to position. Using Milliput is a two-part process; there are two sticks of a plasticine-like material which need to be combined together to create a usable product. You slice off an equal amount from each stick and then roll-them together in your hands for a few minutes. The soft substance is then easily pushed into the gaps, and you can then carefully push into position each of the teeth to create the indent for them to sit. After a few minutes, before the Milliput completely hardens, the teeth are removed from position. Additionally, once the Milliput is starting to harden, you can smooth off the finish with a slightly wetted finger. Once the Milliput had completely hardened I was able to sand it to a very clean finish with fine sandpaper.
I actually repeated the above process with a small amount of Milliput to fill in some small gaps (visible on the below pictures, which were taken before I did this final bit of work).
Vinyl becomes very soft when heated up (submerge it in warm water to see how malleable it can become) which has its advantages (it can be re-shaped if distorted) and pitfalls (easily distorts if exposed to too much heat). I heated up the jaw and skull and then used a scalpel to carefully cut away the teeth. Once they had cooled down I then used a combination of small files and fine sandpaper to smooth off the rough edges.
Finally, after some research, I came to the conclusion that 'Milliput' would be the best option for me to use to fill in the gap that had been created, and to set the teeth in to position. Using Milliput is a two-part process; there are two sticks of a plasticine-like material which need to be combined together to create a usable product. You slice off an equal amount from each stick and then roll-them together in your hands for a few minutes. The soft substance is then easily pushed into the gaps, and you can then carefully push into position each of the teeth to create the indent for them to sit. After a few minutes, before the Milliput completely hardens, the teeth are removed from position. Additionally, once the Milliput is starting to harden, you can smooth off the finish with a slightly wetted finger. Once the Milliput had completely hardened I was able to sand it to a very clean finish with fine sandpaper.
I actually repeated the above process with a small amount of Milliput to fill in some small gaps (visible on the below pictures, which were taken before I did this final bit of work).
'Halloween' resin teeth bought to replace the moulded vinyl teeth
The moulded vinyl teeth after I'd cut them free from the skull
Milliput was used to fill in the gaps I had made, and allowed for indents to be added for the teeth to sit in
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