I used up the last of my USGS Ultracal 30 years ago and haven’t done any casting since then because the supplier I used closed up shop. I’ve always cast my Hirst Arts molds with Ultracal 30 because it’s a superbly hard, quick setting, low shrinkage gypsum plaster.
Asking amongst my hobbyist friends a while ago, Kim recommended New Zealand Ceiling and Drywall Supplies who I’ve finally got around to trying. Their price for 22 kg bag of Ultracal 30 is a little more than my previous supplier, but they deliver to your door for free, and they’ll happily deliver even a single bag, which surprised me. Their delivery is super prompt too, I ordered on Monday and a bag of Ultracal 30 was on my doorstep by Wednesday lunchtime.
That’s great service, but beware they’re delivery naked paper sacks of plaster so you probably want to order during summer rather than winter because you don’t want them getting wet. However because of the price and service, I’ll definitely be using NZCDS again when I need more good casting plaster.
So now I have Ultracal 30 back in the garage I’ve gone on something of a casting spree. The photo shows the last four 1′ x 1′ tiles I’ve cast up, assembled and dry brushed this past week for my Mordheim table. These four tiles mean I now have enough to cover a standard 4′ x 4′ play area. Unfortunately it also means I have another 4 square feet of table that needs to be covered with ruined Mordheim buildings. So I’ve dug out a couple of medium to large Hirst Arts projects and am just considering how I’m going to finish them off…