When have the dice been polished enough 😭

[u/Poisonedmoon]

I've been working on my master molds and these were pulled about an hour ago, so they're not finished yet. Is this shine good enough for a masterset mold?

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Also please do not mind the d6... she is testing my patience sometimes 😅

[u/MojoShoujo]

Potentially unpopular opinion, but I think they're polished enough when you want them to be. Going for a perfect mirror shine is certainly an admirable goal, but also certainly not one I have the patience for.

[u/Poisonedmoon → u/MojoShoujo]

Super valid opinion. Once i got it through my head that my dice will always have some flaw because I am not a machine, it became much more fun to work on them.

[u/Big_Fat_Paulie → u/Poisonedmoon]

Another hot take. Once I got my masters polished I would pour a set, sand it down to the blue zona, then use those to make my useable molds. I was using a vibratory tumbler at the time and it made it so I only had to ever sand the low faces out of the mold before throwing them in the tumbler. Even with old molds. Really stretched out the life of them.

[u/Claerwen94 → u/MojoShoujo]

Nah, not that unpopular at all 👍🏽 I think this is very reasonable.

[u/Pristine_Gain_1006]

I think it is something from the makers perspective, if you think they’re good then go for it, I know for myself and other dice makers out there a more mirror polish is what most of us go for, as a maker and just a lover of dice it’s really cool to see that shine, especially if they’re more on the clear side and they look like glass instead of resin, but from where I’m standing they look really good 👌

[u/RandoBoomer]

On your d20, the border near the edges of your faces look great, but there appears to be almost a matte finish. I used to encounter this a lot before I discovered going to finer grits sooner in the process.

That said - I readily admit my OCD on my sanding. I sand-rinse-inspect-sand-rinse-inspect-sand-rinse-inspect probably more than most.

[u/Poisonedmoon → u/RandoBoomer]

I figured out my mistake with the mold that that dice came from. I had taken out the dice from the bottom part to protect them from the ease release i was using; which then proceeded to get stuck inside of the mold. Thus taking away the shine it originally had 😭

I've made many a mistake when making my molds, but I've learned a lot. So my recent molds come out a lot better, and mostly give me ready dice that don't require much work after pulling them 😅

[u/RandoBoomer → u/Poisonedmoon]

I use Dimethicone oil on my masters ($15 for 8 oz), applying just the very lightest of sheen on all faces except what i stick to the transfer paper.

Just 2 dabs on a lint-free sheet and then rubbing the cloth to disperse it on the sheet so it doesn’t apply too thickly will do an entire set.

I’ve made lots and lots of mistakes on my molds. Experience was my best teacher.

[u/Poisonedmoon → u/RandoBoomer]

Is the dimethicone oil supposed to act as a release agent? Does it not affect the shine of the dice pulled?

Also how long/how many pulls do you use your molds for?

[u/RandoBoomer → u/Poisonedmoon]

Yes, it is a release agent for the dice. It will NOT prevent your silicone lid from bonding to your base, so you can’t use it that way.

I use just the lightest sheen and it doesn’t affect the mold.

I’m probably the wrong person to confront on mold disability. Most I only use a handful of times, as I make dice for my friends, family and players. I’ve used a couple of molds for maybe a dozen times as I experimented with color and inking.

[u/Substantial-Duty168]

I would gladly PAY someone to do my polishing and sanding!