Homebrew trail cam build along

[James Wrenn]

Marvin take a tube of silicon caulking and use it to make a mold first.Just cover an area on a tree you want to duplicate with the caulk and use a plastic bag to mash it into the bark good and smooth it out.I just leave the bag in place and trim it off the next day when I pull the silicon from the tree.After that just follow the instructions on this page for making your "bark".It is really simple.Since paint does not stick to silicon well you can spray your mold with paint just before filling it with liquid nails and your bark will come off colored.I spray mine with gray primer and just touch it up when I get it glued on.

 http://www.easy3dcamo.com/downloads/Easy3D.pdf

[Missing Impossible]

I've heard of some people having trouble with their silicon drying.  I used silicon rubber from Sherwin Williams and pulled the mold from the tree 24 hours later and it was dry.  As mentioned earlier, use at least 4 tubes and don't make it too thin as this will be a master mold that can be reused many times.

[James Wrenn]

Finished up my day only video cam today.DXG with a Bigfoot board and enough room for 8 AAs for externals if I need that many to fill the memory card.I have my mold in the picture for those interested in making one.The flash washes out a lot of the details on the bark and mold but you get the drift.

   

   

[Missing Impossible]

That came out nice.  Could you throw up a link for the videos when you get some?

[James Wrenn]

I probably won't put it out until this weekend.I built it to watch a clover food plot to see what eats there during the day when I am not around.I know there is more activity at night but I feel there is more going on in daylight than I think and I have to hunt in daylight.      :D

[Marvin M.]

OK, I guess I'm dense.  I still don't get it on the mold.

Please explain in more detail.  I went to the link Jim posted above, but still don't get it.  

Do you use silicone caulking directly on tree bark to make the mold?  Once the mold is made, do you then put liquid nails on the mold to get the "bark" to use on the camera?  

What about painting?  There's reference to the paint not sticking to the Liquid Nails.  If that is the case, can something be added to it to color it?

Help a brother out!!!!

I've got one camera and don't want to invest in more right now, but it will be going in a semi-public area.  I don't want to lose it before I even get rolling here.

[James Wrenn]

Marvin I put the silicon right on the kind of tree I am trying to match.I peel it off the next day and that is my mold.You fill it with liquid nails or whatever you want to use,smooth it out and peel out your bark when it drys.You then just glue the bark onto whatever you are camoing.I only use about a half tube of caulk to make a mold big enough to cover my small 1020 case.I also use a different adhesive than liquid nails that comes in gallon cans.I spread it with a trowl instead of using a caulking gun.Mine drys overnight enough to peel from the mold instead of the longer dry time of the stuff from the tubes but any of it will work..Paint sticks to the stuff well enough.You are just using it for camo not waterproofing. jmo

[Marvin M.]

The silicon won't stick to the tree?  Do you have to clean it after you pull it off?

Sorry Jim, I'm an accountant, not a construction expert.  

I want to get mine set up before I put it out and the season starts in ......24 days here in KY.

Thanks for your patience with this rookie.

[Missing Impossible]

Marvin, no, the silicon will not stick to the tree.  There will be some bark imbedded in the mold which you can flick out then maybe hose it off.  I used locktite PL375 construction adhesive as I've heard that regular liquid nails takes forever to dry.  The PL375 will usually be dry enough to remove from the mold in 24 hrs.  You want it somewhat pliable to wrap around the edges of the case.  Get busy cause you'll need for it to hang out a bit to get rid of the adhesive and paint smell.

[James Wrenn]

Marvin as long as you do not have it real thin around the edges it will pull off without much effort once it is dried.I guess on a real deep barked tree wetting the tree first would make it easier.No need to wash it.Any little bits stuck to the mold will just be picked up by the liquid nails and add to your camo job.

[Marvin M.]

OK, thanks.  I'll get right on it.

[leatherneck]

Jim is correct, liquid nail takes about 3 days to dry. I think I might try the 375 stuff. Marvin, you do not have to put the paint in the mold before you put the adhesive in. You can paint it after you pull it from the mold. Jim has just found a nifty shortcut.

[JimB]

Guys,just a little tip on molding with silicone caulk.If you add a few drops of water based paint like latex or acrylic and mix it in thoroughly,it will act as a catalyst and cause the silicone to set up in a few minutes.You could use the mold in about an hour.

Experiment with a small batch first.Use a color that shows up well so you can tell when it is well mixed.Don't waste time as it can set fast.I would start with about 2 drops of paint per oz of caulk and see how it goes.

When it feels set up on the outside,it will be set up all the way through.Without a catalyst,it could feel set on the outside but be sticky against the bark.

Don't sweat bark in the mold.As James said,it will imbed itself in your first cast.

Try the paint.You will be surprised.If it sets very fast,you may have to mix and apply 2 batches.Just make sure it is cured well before pulling from the tree.You can test a small piece at the edge to see if it wants to tear easily.

[James Wrenn]

Thanks Jim.I might give that a try.


Here are some videos from the day only DXG build.Waiting on parts now for a dxg IR build.  

 http://www.youtube.com/user/jwgoblin

[Missing Impossible]

That's a good video.  Is your mic outside the case?

[tradtusker]

here's a nice one from Up in the Northern territory

 

[James Wrenn]

I have no mic on this build.I got some extra ones with the order for the IR build and am going to pull this one long enough to stick a sister board and external mic in it then.Did not want to attempt too much on the first build until I saw I was going to like video.I am new to this so am taking baby steps right now.     I wanted to make sure I did not want to stick to still cams before getting too involved with the video stuff before getting too complicated.  

Great pic Tradtusker! Here are some of mine from the last couple weeks.

 http://picasaweb.google.com/jwgoblin/GameCamPictures#

[Missing Impossible]

That's a great pic Andy!  S600?

[tradtusker]

Yip thats the S600