for this project, i’m going to show youhow to make a cool 3d handgun, out of styrofoam. that you can use for props, cosplay, or evenbackyard metal casting. to get started, we’ll first need to whipout the hot-wire “styro-slicer†we made in a previous video. and watch this. simply unbuckle the latch on the side, andyou can have the whole thing set up and ready to slice foam, in under 10 seconds. and like most of my other styrofoam creations,this pistol all starts, with dollar-store foam-board. i like these sheets of foam because they’reall about the same thickness, and once the paper layers are peeled off the front, andthe back, they’re really easy to work with.
if you want to make the same gun i used inmy “styrofoam to aluminum†video, then you’ll just need to print off 2 copies ofthis template i made in photoshop i based this template, around a design i foundon youtube, for an “m9 rubber band handgunâ€, by rbguns. and i’ve put links in the descriptionto where you can find them for free. go ahead and cut out all the shapes, and laythem on the table. and you should end up with 11 tracing templates, which are basicallyall just mirror images of each other. these pistol parts are designed to stack together,to form a really cool looking 3d prop. but we need to carve the custom parts outof the foam first, so let’s get to work making that happen next. smear the surface of the paper templates witha glue-stick, and focus on getting good coverage
around the edges, so you can transfer thepaper to the foam, and stick them firmly in place. alright, the time has come to power up thestyro-slicer, and the first thing i like to do, is chop the board into smaller pieces,to make the templates a bit more manageable to work with. from here, it’s pretty easy to glide aroundthe edges, of the individual shapes, and trace them out with an impressively, professionalfinish. it always amazes me how the wire slices throughthe foam so easily, but not through the paper templates themselves. but that’s exactly,why this works. now, when you’re preparing to cut aroundthe trigger guard, it’s not as difficult as it might seem. the “styro-slicer†actually has a coollittle feature, that’ll make it quick and easy for you.
just poke a descent sized hole, in an areayou don’t need, then turn off the power and give the wire, a couple seconds to cooldown. you can simply unhook the spring from theeye-bolt at the top, thread the wire through the hole in the trigger guard, and re-hookthe spring back onto the eye-bolt. as easy as that, you’ve got the abilityto make detailed inside cuts, in some of the hardest to reach places. alright, we’ve got all the components manufactured,and we’re just about ready to assemble the foam weapon. all that’s left to do is removethe paper, and glue it together. slowly and carefully peel the templates offthe foam, the same way you did with the board in the beginning. and if you’re carefulenough, you’ll be able to reuse them again.
now to assemble this foam firearm, simplylay the pieces out, so you can better visualize how they’re going to stack together. andjust for planning purposes, each half of your handgun, needs to look like this. if you’re ready to commit to this design,then go ahead and apply a generous amount of glue to the backs of the foam components,and carefully set the pieces in place. the slide assembly, and the pistol grip goon last, and should line up with some of the obvious features on the base. and the last little piece is just for decoration.so push it into the little gap, in the middle. this completes one half of the gun. and we’llneed to assemble the other side the same way, but make sure this other side, is pointingthe opposite direction. that’s important.
with the two sides complete, you should havetwin “half-pistolsâ€, that are mirror-images of each other. so if you do, then let’smake the two, become one. smear a generous amount of glue on each ofthe bottoms, then slowly and carefully line up the two halves, and gently press them together. double-check the edges match up on every side,and give it a few minutes for the glue to start setting. and with that, your styrofoamsidearm, is pretty much done. now to polish it up a bit, try using a 220grit sanding sponge, to smooth out any imperfections. the foam is pretty soft, so by lightly sandingit, you can get your gun to clean up really nice. with the handgun sanded, the very last step,is to add the small circle to the tip, completing the barrel.
and that’s it. you’ve just made yourselfa really cool looking, 3d foam pistol, that you can use for props, or cosplay. of course if you want to take it to the nextlevel, you could always transform it into solid aluminum as well. if you adjust the cutting arm of your “styro-slicerâ€to roughly match the base of the gun, you can easily make a custom foam riser that willglue to the handle. this is the setup i used, for burying my pistol,nose down into a bucket of sand. and to turn it into solid metal, all you haveto do is dump in a crucible full, of hot liquid aluminum. the scorching, molten metal, vaporizes thefoam instantly, and somehow rushes in to fill
all the spaces, as it does. of course your styrofoam creation gets completelydestroyed in the process, but you’ll get a solid metal casting, in return. by the way, if you want to make anything elseout of foam, your imagination is the only limitation. i designed and built a whole squadron of 3d,foam fighter jets, that are actually puzzles you can take apart, and put back together. so if you want to try making them next, lookfor these foam fighters, in another project video.
do 3d printed guns work,well now you know how to use dollar storefoam-board, and your homemade “styro-slicerâ€, to make a realistic, and three dimensional,“saturday night specialâ€.
well that’s it for now. if you liked thisproject, perhaps you’ll like some of my others. check them out at www.thekingofrandom.com
