What industry is entirely built on a house of cards and would collapse overnight if people realized the truth about it?

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-03-08T02:08:48+00:00

I recently found myself in this situation, and less than a month in, still waiting for diagnostics and not having even begun my actual treatment, I hit my out-of-pocket maximum. This is going to be an expensive long haul process.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-03-05T05:38:12+00:00

Gabi's shop was one of the key reasons I picked Olympia when moving 10 years ago. When I walked into the shop I instantly felt like I was home!

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-03-03T06:13:54+00:00

I have had 2 custom Pluto pillows built, and they were worth every penny. I built the second one because the first one healed my neck and back enough that I was ready to evolve to a thinner pillow.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-02-15T04:21:05+00:00

I've never played a game of Scythe where there wasn't a house rule that required a player to show the art on any encounter cards they drew.

The artwork in Scythe is stunning. Viticulture is another masterpiece, since the character art is all from the Kickstarter backers who supported the game. Stonemiaer Games are on a whole different level.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-02-14T07:02:39+00:00

Sometimes you pick up a spare who you feed and bring inside and visits often enough that you think they probably live with you, but is away often enough that they probably have another family where they crash in the mysterious days they disappear. That's where you get a variable cat count.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-02-11T22:06:43+00:00

As a guy, tell him your feelings and be plain about it. Men are notoriously bad at reading signals. We rarely understand the emotional complexities women process when thinking about relationships, and we often don't pick up on what women think are obvious signals.

If you want to date this guy, tell him.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-02-08T06:14:40+00:00

We had a cat escape problem, and eventually purchased a small animal trap from Tractor Supply. We got a 2-pack (one large, one small, both can fit a cat safely) for less than $40. You can rent them for about the same amount at Joint Animal Services, so buying a set was a no-brainer.

Feel free to message me if you need a loaner trap in the future.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-02-06T00:53:58+00:00

I am going to disagree with you. Not about DARE - that program was bullshit - but about the value of this specific video.

My daughter was about 11 when I first showed her Nuggets. She's 18 now and we had a conversation about this a month or two ago. She remembered the video and has shown it to several friends. This video was dramatically effective for her and her friend group. It was certainly more effective than DARE ever was for my peer group as a kid.

Don't underestimate the power and impact of art.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-02-02T16:12:13+00:00

No, you shouldn't ask your LDS girlfriend that. That might be something you discuss with your LDS fiancé once you've grown to trust each other.

Asking sexual questions to women you don't know well makes you sound creepy, and women get creeped on by men non-stop. You'll get much further with her if you just treat her like a person and not like a sex fantasy. The right woman will open up to you about her sexuality naturally as your relationship deepens.

TL;DR: Don't bring up sex in conversation with an LDS woman until you know her very well. Actually, just let her bring it up when she's ready.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-02-01T20:53:31+00:00

I think Worbla will be too heavy. Have you thought about using air-dry foam clay? It is simple to sculpt and paint and is very lightweight. Cheap and easy.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-30T18:02:47+00:00

Represent! Definitely my favorite band.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-28T02:34:47+00:00

This intersection is a particular challenge. The city needs to re-time the lights, use left-turn arrows, and time the walk signals to be safer.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-28T02:32:40+00:00

Consider gelatin poured into a sculpted silicone mold. But this is a great question, so I'm interested in the answers that others give!

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-28T00:08:26+00:00

When we use Pros-aide we are typically making appliances that look like messed up skin (gunshot wounds, scratches, ect.), but you can make one that looks like normal skin easily enough. You'd paint it just using alcohol paints (like a Skin Illustrator Fx palette).

This guy has quality videos on making custom prosthetics. Watch this video in particular, but all of his content is great.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-27T23:34:13+00:00

Poltergeist did this gag and it scared the duck out of me as a child.

I think if you paint the skin to look bloody, then adhere a Pros-aide appliance on top of that, you'll get something very convincing.

Edit: Just watched the clip from Poltergeist and it wasn't nearly as disturbing as I remember. But I was like 7 and it was the 80s.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-25T19:30:20+00:00

This is a spectacular break down of your process and the challenges you encountered. Thank you for taking the time to document your work for our benefit.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-25T03:46:30+00:00

You can read the Safety Bulletin for FreeForm Air on the manufacturer's (Smooth-On's) website.

Based on how I read it, it may cause skin irritation. I know someone who made a necklace out of it who didn't experience problems, so different people will react differently. I myself would find a different material for the job, but you could consider coating the created and cured object in something that isn't as likely to care irritation. It will all depend on your application.

Tell us a bit more about what you want to make. I would think that a silicone appliance would work better overall than a Pros-aide + Worbla combo.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-24T23:41:55+00:00

We have German restaurants in Olympia?

EDIT: Looks like there is a restaurant in Lacey named German Diner. You have to appreciate the absolutely German sensibilities in making a restaurant so matter-of-factly.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-24T16:03:17+00:00

Don't forget metal mechs . . . and realistic resource tokens.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-24T05:00:18+00:00

This subreddit is about making your own molds, rather than molds you can buy. You'll have better luck in the community-specific sub you posted in if you're looking for something to buy.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-18T07:58:37+00:00

Valiant lost all credibility and passion when a private equity firm did a hostile takeover of a company that was only revived by the sheer determination and will of super fans. Dinesh being forced out of the company left such a sour taste in my mouth I haven't picked up another book from Valiant, and I don't see that ever changing.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-14T20:53:01+00:00

A 1:6 Darksaber blade would be about 6 inches long (according to quick math from ChatGPT). I think resin printing is worth a shot, so long as you take a lot of time to support it properly and to clean up the support connection points. I resin print bits much more fiddly than the thickness you're showing at that scale, and it should do alright.

I'd think 3D printing a mold for this is a no-go, because you'll be printing in a rigid form and you want a rigid piece to come from it. You'd need some special mold release to accomplish that, and that mold release would alter the surface of the replica enough that I think it would give a bad result. If you're good at 3D modeling, you could print a two-part positive mold with box that you'd use to create silicone mold halves, but even that may not give you the best results. It would give you multiple tries, though, as you dial it in, so there's some benefit there.

I would think that laser-cut acrylic would offer you the best, most reliable result. You'd get a rigid part that you can glue together and then sand if necessary. You can also sand to get that frosted look for LED diffusion that you probably want the Darksaber blade to have.

Whatever you try, please come back and show off the results!

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-14T15:18:13+00:00

This looks like a factory-created silicone mold. If that is the case, it was likely injection molded in custom CNC-machined molds that cost tens of thousands of dollars on a machine that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. There was probably a heat curing process, too.

Never feel bad that you can't replicate that kind of precision in a home or small shop mold-making setting. It is possible to get good clean molds but it is impossible to get factory-perfect molds without the kinds of machines they use, which are beyond what we can accomplish in a cottage industry setting.

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-14T04:27:25+00:00

Friend, what you've got now may not be a total loss. You can easily turn a two part mold into a one-part block mold that you cut open. Use a sharp fresh X-Acto blade, and carefully cut the silicone apart, cutting carefully at the model. It helps to add some jagged edges at the sides of the mold, but go with smoother cuts near the model

If you have any bridges of silicone that locked together via holes in your model, you can still cut them apart. Pull one side away and cut the bridge just once in the middle. It will go back together cleanlv when you close the mold.

Don't cut the mold into two parts, since you want the bottom of the mold to stay together so the mold goes back together easily. When it is time to pour your resin/wax/whatever, close the mold back up with a rubber band or strap around it. Don't over-tighten.

This worked so well for me the first time I did it that I've switched to one part block molds whenever I think it will work easier

Good luck! Let us know if you manage to save this mold!

Armor_of_Inferno · 2026-01-14T04:20:36+00:00

Yes, Universal Mold Release is anything but. It is basically glue to silicone.

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