this post was submitted on 26 Oct 2025
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[–] chaogomu@lemmy.world 20 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

You'd pick up a lot of sand... Normally you'd use a metal like aluminum. You can sandblast that clean.

But clear means epoxy. That stuff doesn't hold up very well under sandblasting. It can be done, but expect mistakes.

[–] RheumatoidArthritis@mander.xyz 5 points 17 hours ago (1 children)

"Normally"!? I thought it was a one-time thing for that famous youtube video.

[–] chaogomu@lemmy.world 4 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

There are thousands of ant hill sculptures in the world.

The two main ways of making them are either aluminum or some sort of concrete or plaster.

Aluminum is used more often, due to the ease of extraction from the ground, and the fact that you can clean it with a garden hose or pressure washer.

Cement or plaster are used when accuracy is desired, but those sculptures need to be removed from the ground with hand trowels and brushes, and will likely need individual parts to be reinforced or braced to prevent breakage.

Both methods can be used to study the structure of and ant hill. But aluminum far more common for the more artistic versions of the sculpture.

[–] village604@adultswim.fan 1 points 10 hours ago

Aluminum is great because it has a relatively low melting point, and a casting furnace isn't all that expensive.