dentures

[goriddle]

does anyone know any cheap methods for dentures? (NOT FANGS). I have this 2 part plastic stuff I was going to use, but I might also make the gums out of latex and and imbed resin teeth. Either way I think I have most of the supplies that I need. I am just a little unclear on procedure and I am having trouble finding instructions on the web.

[Mommy's Little Monster]

I will give you the method i use, you can replacem the acrylic with the plastic. First, you will need to cast the persons teeth. I use a dental try and alginate. You can use anything you can get you hands on as a tray, if you ask nicely the dentists office might give you a disposable foam one. Once you have this tooth mold you will need to make a positive outta ultra cal or plaster (preferably ultra cal though, as plaster is brittle and will cause problems down the road). To do this just fill the mold till over flowing and let the material get thick, but not dry. Then vaseline a flat surface and put a dolop of you casting material down. Flip your mold over and imbed it into the dolop. as it thickens more you can clean it up by cutting away excess cement with a pallet knife. Once it's dry remove the tray and you have a perfect reproduction of your teeth, it should like a little something like this (excuse the poor image quality) img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/little_monster/Picture376.jpg

Next, all you have to do is sculpt in the desired tooth style. If the teeth a long, like fangs, use the curve of your tumb to give them a gentle, natural curve. You can also sculpt in gums. The on e rule you want to bear in mind though is the back of the teeth should have as little material on them as possible, If there is too much it will cause your actor to speak with a lisp, it's not a problem though if they have a while to learn how to speak with these teeth on, but if they are a last minute detail, you have to take this into account.

To mold them, just get yourself a small container, big enough to fit the teeth in. Mix up some alginate and pour it in the container. slowly push the teeth in. The alginate MUST cover everything that you have sculpted. hold the cast there until the alginate sets up enough that it will stay on it's own. Once the alginate is completely dry remove the teeth. This is where you have to work quickly, alginate begins to shrink after 5-10 mintues or so. If you think it will be a while till you can get to it fill the mold with water to keep it hydrated. This is the point where i would normally use acrylic, but you can use the 2-part plastic. Vaseline the tooth cast really well, anywhere where your casting material will touch it. Once all this is done, pour you casting material into the mold and place the teeth back in. Let it set up and voila, you have custom fit teeth (minus some clean up on them that you will have to do and some colouring). Despite the vaseline, the teeth will stick a little you your cast because of the perfect fit. use a sp**n sculpting tool to pry it off, but only pry where there is excess material so that you don't ruin the teeth. Here are some peenywise type teeth i made for myself (again excuse the poor image quality) img.photobucket.com/albums/v338/little_monster/Picture378.jpg

All tolled this should cost you a whopping $20. The alginate may be a little expenive but you will only use a small amount so you will have tons left over to do with as you please, and, as i'm sure you know, it's always handy to have some lying around.

Things to note: Acrylic dries much faster than plastic does, your mold might shrink before the plastic is dry, try mix it up a little ahead of time so it kicks faster in the mold. also weather you are using acrylic or plastic, don't leave it on the mold to long, just enough time so that they retain their shape, then let it air dry. If you leave it in too long the alginate will shrink and the teeth won't fit well, or at all, anymore. And finally, the teeth are good for two years, after that your tooth structure tends to change slightly and the teeth will not fit perfectly anymore, not a problem if you made 'em for fun, but if you are, say, making a sequel, you will have to redo the teeth, you can't use the same teeth or tooth cast.

Sorry for the late reply, i was off the board for a while working on a few movies, i'm sure you have done the teeth already, but this is a good future reference for you or anyone who needs to make teeth.