Cloning Sheep

This Instructable describes how to clone a willing sheep. First of all you need a volunteer sheep with good intentions, who will not mind to be cloned and reproduced multiple times. In the case of the sheep that i chose to clone, he had a secret plan for world domination.

>> Sheep cloning project website

- 1 Sheep volunteer
- 3D scanner
- 3D printer
- Mold casting material
- Plaster, gypsom or other casting materials
- Casting equipment: mold release spray, cups, sticks, newspaper....
- Good intentions

Get your sheep subject to sit still while you 3D scan them. Sheep tend to get super excited to representations of themselves and are easily distracted.
Once you have a clean 3D scan, you still might need to clean up the data, close all the holes and prepare it for printing.

From your 3D scan you can now print out the first replication of your sheep. You will need to keep your original sheep close at hand though, to make sure the 3D print bears a close resemblance.
After 3D printing the first sheep clone must undergo a horrible etching bath to remove support material. Be nice to them and reward them for undergoing this process. It is not fun.
And, as the original, also it's clones are fascinated by representations of the self and are easily distracted by them.

3D printing is not a cheap process, so in order to make multiples of your 3D printed clone sheep it is best to make a mould from it so that you can cast multiples.
Build a rig from legos and submerge half of the clone sheep in liquid polyurethane, which becomes rubbery when cured. Once one half was ready apply Vaseline to the surface and fill up the other half. This way the two halves do not stick together and you can open up the mould to safely remove clone sheep.

To make replicas of sheep you need to prepare the mold for casting. Make the hole in the mold (the result of how you mounted your sheep when casting the mold) cylindrical so that the casting material will flow in nicely and that it is big enough for air-bubbles to escape.
Use mold release to insure your casting materials will not stick to the mold. Use rubber bands to hold the two mold halves together.
Prepare your casting materials. Pour into mold. Let Cure. Remove.
The clones of your clone resemble your clone much more than your first cone resembles the original. This can lead to tensions and might require some effort on your behalf in making them all feel comfortable around each other.

Now you're all set to replicate your sheep as many times as you want. The casting process does not always run smoothly so do not worry if a few of your clones turn out different (missing parts of the body, or miss-aligned mold halves...) you should still love them and count them to your army of sheep.