The football has openings. So? The insulation abilities of EVA foam includes heat and thermal insulation.The can resist temperature from minus 30 degree centigrade to 80 degree centigrade. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. is a wonderful tool to make smooth edges, textures and details on your foam. This means, that it’s easy to work on it with glue, paint and everything you can throw its way. HEALTH HAZARD A hair dryer wouldn’t work to seal EVA foam as it requires the much higher temperatures that heat guns are able to achieve. Required fields are marked *. Alone or combined with thermoplastics, it will address your needs.Foams that … What is EVA foam? DUAL-TEMPERATURE HEAT GUN FOR CRAFTS - 2 heat speed settings make working with your EVA foam or craft projects a breeze. How to use EVA foam? Ever worked with Worbla or EVA foam for your cosplay? Remember not to put the business end of your heat gun on or near materials that are flammable or may deform from the heat, or otherwise result in a hazardous condition, such as near gas or power cables. Floor mat foam; TNT Cosplay foam; Foam rubber tubing; Cutting mats; Barge Cement; Barge in tube; Dermel 200 tool; Knife -Box-cutter; X-ACTO Knife; Metal ruler; Flexible ruler; Blade Sharpener Heat Gun; Wood burner; Propane Torch; Belt Sander; 3M 77 spray glue; Glue Pot Modge Podge; Kwik seal; Weldwood cement, great for sealing foam… Send in your questions using the Contact link at the top of the Blog. There are two commonly used methods. After you've finished shaping/grinding the piece, go back over the shaped areas with the heat gun. The roller will be heated to a required temperature, then foam material can be inserted through the roller. But what is heat-sealing, and why should you do it? By applying heat to the surface of the foam, we can essentially “melt” the top layer of cells. Shop the top 25 most popular 1 at the best prices! Dust/fumes generated during thermal forming or slicing may cause eye and/or respiratory irritation. – Masking Tape (To adjust your parts BEFORE glueing). For example, an old football with holes in it would let air and liquids through. You’ve just sealed your EVA foam! Both densities can be supplied in a natural, gray and black color in rolls starting at … – An X-Acto Knife (AND/OR any specialized blades you can think of for special cuts for example) AND/OR a hot blade of some sort … While hair-dryers max out at temperatures around 60 degrees Celsius, heat guns can reach 600 degrees Celsius with ease. There isn’t much there, and all of the holes and nooks and crannies are perfect hidey-holes for liquids such as water. Before adding the embellishments to your foam helmet, it’s a good idea to bend the foam cut-outs so they take on the shape of the helmet. Your email address will not be published. Article written from informations taken on the Schenz Theatrical Supply website. Keep it out of reach of kids and pets. EVA foam is a thermoplastic material, which means it’s thicker and denser than a regular paper sheet but much smoother and mouldable when subjected to high temperature. Discover over 129 of our best selection of 1 on AliExpress.com with top-selling 1 brands. If you have other questions regarding EVA Foam and the way to work with it … We would be more than happy to update this post for you. Thermal Forming You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. You can think of these cells as little microscopic footballs. The problem is they have a thermal … We … After reading a good bit about using eva foam for various cosplay costumes, I went out and got a few sheets of the puzzle piece EVA from home depot and a heat gun. EVA Foam is not compatible with: Gasoline, Cyclohexane, Ether, Ketone, Paraffin, Xylene and combustion conditions may release fumes hydrogen bormide and/or other toxic vapors. Required fields are marked *. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. These closed cells do not let air or liquids pass. Might want to consider using a mask to avoid inhaling dust from the foam. Heat sealing collapses the cells on the foam's surface, making it smooth and uniform. This is incredibly easy to do – all you need is a pair of heat-resistant gloves and a heat gun. *** Putting complex bends and curves in EVA Foam armor can be tricky, since the foam is very elastic and flexible. A definite upgrade to any mini heat gun. – A mask (For protection) … Might consider some sort of Protection Goggles as well … Thick or thin, foam will adapt to your different projects. – A Heat Gun (For thermal forming) (This is more true for the more cheaply produced EVA foam with lower densities, which have larger cells with more air in them; and less pronounced on higher-density, higher-quality foam.). Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. The fundamentals of creating something out of those crafting materials primarily consist of heating the piece and holding it in place until it cools down to retain the shape that you want. Most glues are sometimes cured with heat to make the bonds they create stronger, but this depends on the type and brand you get. For production, EVA foam materials need to go through vulcanization procedure where they are formed with a cross-linked also closed cell molecular structures. Shape the EVA foam pieces with a heat gun. If this happens in a cell, we call this an open cell. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. The heat gun allows you to heat up any of these materials to the activation point, then form them into the desired shape or melt them together before they cool. Note: These pieces are made from two layers of foam that are glued together. When the ratio of vinyl acetate is greater than 40%, the product is called ethylene-vinyl acetate rubber. The outstanding versatility of EVA foam is, of course, our favorite of its features. On a microscopic level, the material is made up of numerous tiny closed cells. SHRINK WRAP GUN - Use the low heat setting for shrink wrapping. Because EVA Foam is used for so many purposes besides costumes, it can be sourced from a lot of convenient places in slightly different forms. (A little side note, you can also iron the foam to seal the surface without coating it in glue!) These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. 2020 popular 1 trends in Automobiles & Motorcycles, Home Improvement, Education & Office Supplies, Home & Garden with Heat Resistant Foam Tape and 1. And if you’re using quality (read: pricey) paints, the resulting cost savings can be equally significant. Congratulations! It has multiple uses, easy to cut, paint and glue, it fits perfectly in scrap crafts. WHAT YOU CAN MAKE WITH EVA FOAM. There is something else to consider, however, and that is that even closed-cell materials may still be porous, and may still have some open cells. When out shopping for glue, you will find many types of glues that you could use on EVA foam. Learn how your comment data is processed. This provides the perfect base to prime and paint, increasing the foams durability You’re about to use EVA Foam for your next project? – A can of Contact Glue, Optional Now for the Dork part …, REACTIVITY DATA Traditional large “gun-style” heat guns get too heavy and awkward to handle for extended periods. 2. You can also use thicker foams, such as what yoga mats or garage flooring are made of which is often called EVA foam, or L200 foam which is commonly used in theater and stage work. Parts don't always like to hold their shapes, and the prevalent method (from my experience reading costume forums like therpf) for shaping foam armor parts is to use a heat gun. If you were to put a lot of paint on top of a sponge, it’d almost certainly start coming out the the other end very rapidly. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Your email address will not be published. This gives you a much smoother surface when you get to painting the armor. These cookies do not store any personal information. Work in a well ventilated area when thermal forming or sanding/cutting the EVA Foam. Once the first pass is finished, you may do a second pass if you feel it’s necessary. Your email address will not be published. I personally love my heat gun, but you can also use a stove top burner, a hair dryer on high heat, or you can iron the foam. The first is using a heat gun, and the second is a butane torch. After passing through mandrel, the embossed foam sheet or roll can be finally made. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. 37453 Static Dissipative Foam, 1/4 in x 12-5/8 in x 22-3/4 in, Black 37453-6942 MFG #: 37453 Available to Order - 0 on Hand REACTIVITY DATA Avoid fire and temperature above 329°C (625°F). As long as the air is hot enough, it really doesn’t take much. Here's one of the many techniques I use to form those odd shapes on my projects. The key is the combination of lower fan speed and higher heat will give you the hottest output temperature. I might consider making a post with possible things that can be done with a Dremel tool (Maybe using my scrap foam parts after my Futuristic Armor Project). Our sturdy low cost, dual temperature (572 degrees/1112 degrees) 1500W heat gun is an essential tool for foamworking. EVA foam is considered a closed-cell foam. To explain this, we need to talk about open-cell and closed-cell foams. I hope this article was informative and helpful! My hot glue gun made a poop while I wasn’t looking. This will tighten & seal the foam texture. Poor-quality heat guns are both a fire hazard & an … The fine point sharpie is used to write stuff on them or mark references (Like where to cut a hole later on). It is powerfully built to heat quickly, with temperatures rising up to over 600 degrees Celsius, operating at 1,800 watts. Thanks for reading! It can be thermoformed to your specific design, and is available in sheet … Safety informations taken from Foam Order, You will need some tools to work on that baby so grab a piece of paper, a pen and take notes …, TOOLS NEEDED Just did a search on generic EVA foam material properties and from a few different sources the service temperatures that EVA foam can operate in are -70C/+60C without losing expected properties. If your heat gun came with a storage case, don’t put it back in immediately. With the gloves on and the heat gun on its … MISCELLANEOUS TIPS & TRICKS I prefer to move at a rate of approximately 10 centimeters per second. Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Use the utra-fine point sharpie to trace your pieces on the Foam. Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. – A Fine Point Sharpie and an Ultra-Fine Point Sharpie (Or the cheap brands) The football is closed off from those things. Similarly, a football that isn’t broken and has no holes, would not let air and liquid through. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! You might want to have a surface to help you bend your foam. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. – A cutting surface (If you don’t want your wife to kill you for hacking through the kitchen table) A Dremel (Not making a shameless plug here, use whatever equivalent tool you want!) Choose from our selection of adhesive-back foam, including over 1,900 products in a wide range of styles and sizes. Heat embossing can be used on a broad range of foam materials, such as EVA foam and cross-linked polyethylene foam. 99 We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Avoid fire and temperature above 329°C (625°F). Whether you are looking to melt tough wax in hard to reach areas or just removing a stubborn bumper sticker, you can trust this heat gun to get the job done fast and easy. In order to get it to keep a rounded shape, you have to heat it. As a general rule of thumb, if at least half the cells are open as opposed to closed, a material is referred to as open-celled. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Dremel The FURNO 300 dual temperature heat gun is The FURNO 300 dual temperature heat gun is ideal for countless household projects such as removing paint and flooring, bending PVC, thawing frozen pipes, shrink wrapping and more. 3. It features 2 temperature settings (1100°F on high and 750°F on low) to adjust for specific … In stock and ready to ship. To use a heat gun to seal EVA foam, simply let it heat for a few seconds, and then blow hot air onto your foam from a distance of about 20 centimeters. This causes the cells to deform slightly and sink into the bottom layers through any gaps that may exist, or any open cells that may happen to be there: You literally seal the gaps with heat, thus the name.  Because this process closes the same gaps in the foam that the paint in our previous example was able to seep through, applying paint after heat-sealing takes far less material: That’s a remarkable difference! Since EVA does not absorb water, consider using it to shock your pieces once bent. It’s actually possible to burn your foam by keeping it focused on a single area for too long, so keep it moving! As such, you could put water on top of EVA foam, and it would not seep in through the material to the extent it would in an open foam material. PRECAUTION FOR SAFE HANDLING AND USE When using the Heat Gun to form your EVA Foam, make sure you heat your surface evenly. Style AG-4911 EVA (Ethylene Vinyl Acetate) closed cell foam is a 4# density material and is also offered in a 2# density (AG-2011). Or use it as a heat gun for candles. Please consider the following before doing so …, Like Wil already said in his Work In Progress: Wil’s Futuristic Armor post, EVA stands for Ethylene Vinyl Acetate. Shaping craft foam is quite easy, as well. This dense, closed cell foam is not only environmentally safe but it’s somehow weather and chemical resistant and has a low water absorption level. If you haven’t used a heat gun before, it’s essentially a super-powered hair dryer. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. For the sandwich and backing methods many people use foam sheets you find in craft stores – usually called fun foam, craft foam or foamies. EVA foam. Beside the evidence (Like swallowing might make you choke) the only health hazard is regarding inhalation of the EVA. While hair-dryers max out at temperatures around 60 degrees Celsius, heat guns can reach 600 degrees Celsius with ease. Sharpie With technology that allows it to heat up in seconds, the heat gun can instantly reach up to 200°C/390°F in temperature. A hair dryer wouldn’t work to seal EVA foam as it requires the much higher temperatures that heat guns are able to achieve. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. EVA Foam - 1/2" thick 2' x 2' square -48 Square Feet ... Heat Gun - Black & Decker HG1300 Dual Temperature Heat Gun; Dremel Tool - We prefer the corded variable speed Dremel, not the battery powered variety. For simplicity’s sake, the types of foam most commonly used are craft foam (also known as eva foam, foamies, fun foam), anti-stress floor matting (that comes either as a roll, or in ‘puzzle pieces’ for children’s playrooms), expanding foam (a canned foam that is sprayed into general shape and expands and then cures … Because the vast majority of the cells are open, you can put water in on one side of the sponge, and squish it out from the other side. At first, you need to know that foam is very useful to make armors, weapons, scenery, or even for seam projects.Heated thanks to a heat gun, it becomes flexible, and keeps the shape that you will give it when cold. Avid Power Heat Gun, Heavy Duty Hot Air Gun 1800W with Dual Temperature Settings (716℉/1205℉), 4-pc Nozzle Attachments for Crafts, Shrinking PVC, Stripping Paint 4.6 out of 5 stars 748 $21.99 $ 21 . The same method applies to heating a synthetic wig that can take heat. Consider the following example of EVA foam: Notice that there are tiny gaps between the cells (which, for the purpose of this explanation, I have exaggerated).  If you were to apply paint or primer to this foam as-is, then the liquid would inevitably crawl into these gaps between the cells (and through any cell that may accidentally be open, which can happen as a consequence of the production process).  Because your paint would seep through, even in small amounts, you’d need to apply more to be able to get a sufficiently smooth application on the top layer: We can work around this issue with a process called heat-sealing. Chandler Tool saves the day with the perfect balance of compact size, light weight & low-noise to minimize fatigue on even the longest jobs; UL-CERTIFIED - Be careful! Offered in a wide range of densities and hardness, EVA foam excels, among other things, in shock absorption and protection. Enjoy a hands-free operation for your epoxy resin glitter tumbler making. Each type of glue is unique in a different way (spray, gel, paste, etc). – A Dremel tool or its equivalent with sanding discs or bands My big concern though is with the actual heat gun itself, in all the videos, people are bringing it near their hands and touching the foam as they heat it. Otherwise, it’s considered a closed-cell material. The softening point (good for forming) average is ~65C which is heat gun territory when fanning over with the gun as … So how does one heat-seal foam? Safety Tip:  Once you’re done, it’s important remember that the business end of your heat gun will remain hot for quite a while. Kitchen sponges are a great example of an object made out of an open cell foam. – A Large Transparent ruler (The kind with a grid printed on it) EVA foam is usually glued with … This is the most flexible and versatile formulation. I am planning to build an armor out of EVA foam and I need a heat gun to mold the foam to certain shapes, are there any alternatives to a heat gun for this kind of stuff? If you have a fan, consider using it to help cool off your heat gun more rapidly. The tiny cells that the foam materials are made out of can be open or closed. Wonderflex, Worbla, Thibra, EVA foam, styrene, ABS, Friendly Plastic and many other synthetic crafting materials require heat activation or heat setting. EVA foam is an open celled foam. You can just barely see the seam … EVA Foam is not compatible with: Gasoline, Cyclohexane, Ether, Ketone, Paraffin, Xylene and combustion conditions may release fumes … We’d call that a closed cell. The process is similar for both, but we’ll focus on the heat gun here, as it is the safer of the two choices. Place your heat gun somewhere where it can cool off and not be knocked over. I didn't have a heat gun… WITH BUILT-IN STAINLESS-STEEL STAND - This heat gun for resin can make crafting even easier with its retractable stainless stand. It’s customary to heat-seal EVA foam before applying primer and beginning to paint.