PJ,
    This is the puppet foam.  The one under Pannebecker's photo.  http://www.bestwayfoam.com/stock-sizes.php#back

Julie

Hi all! Advice time!

1. Reticulated Polyfoam (What thickness and ppi?)
2. Dryfast (What thickness?)
3. The puppet foam from bestwayfoam.com F1845 (What thickness?)

Help! What do you think? I'm making some muppet style puppets with foam "skulls" and antron fleece covering them. What do you guys think I should use and what specs (thickness / ppi)?

THANK YOU!

Levi

Levi,
If you review this thread I think your answers well be revealed. There are really know hard and fast answers. Puppeteers have different preferences.  I would say if you are just starting out take a trip to your local craft or fabric store and see what they have.  As a rule the foam at these places that comes in 3/4 or 1/2 well be fine for you to start with. Also I would suggest checking your local Yellow Pages for a company that sells foam. Some cities like here in Kansas City actually have companies like Best Way Foam in them.  They may not be open to the public as a rule but if it is like Comfort Felt and Foam here in KC they happen to love both theater and puppeteers so they let us in to explore and sell to us.

No disrespect to Dr. Puppet, but there are some issues people might want to be aware of before ordering the Bestway foam (F1845).

I ordered some on the recommendation of this thread.  It's super cheap, so it's no big loss to try some out (Incidentally, I had no problem with the shipping-- $17.99)  Here are my impressions:

It seems to glue together very nicely with Barge.

First, it may be stronger than craft foam, but it's still quite weak compared to reticulated foam-- you can easily tear it apart. 

Second, it's noisy when you manipulate it.  This may not be a big deal for stage performance, but for video it's squeaky enough that I'd worry about the microphone picking up the sound.  Reticulated is virtually silent.   

Third,  I find it to be much more difficult to make proper perpendicular curved cuts.  it's almost impossible to push a new straight razor through.  I'm going to try using a hot wire and see how that fares...

I'm probably going to put this to use on prototypes and rehearsal puppets, but will shy away from using it on my production models for the time being.

I hope this helps some of you make an informed decision.

Mike   

@everyone: Advice?
@Stumbly: Thoughts?
@Lovable Puppet Pals: Dryfast vs. Reticulated vs. Bestway Puppet Foam?

I ordered 7 sheets of the Bestway 3/4 inch puppet foam. And have some concern about it. I asked them to wait on the order and I'd let them know in the next 2 days. I know it's a matter of opinion however please offer your advice!

Will 3/4" work? Do you think another type would be better? Reticulated? If so, what ppi and thickness? I also considered the dryfast foam.

I'm building 4 hand rod puppets for a local theater. The foam will be covered with Antron Fleece. I would like the puppets to be high quality.

Thank you!

While everyone is different I carry a variety of foam. I like to have 1/4", 1/2", and 1 inch regular poly foam. I keep on hand 1/2" and 1" dry fast. I don't use 3/4 inch..... if I'm working a puppet that may require 3/4 inch I just marry a sheet of 1/4" with a sheet of 1/2" using a spray upholstery adhesive. Sometimes I only need a small piece. I then keep on hand car upholstery head liner..can buy it on Ebay cheap. I order my foam from Albany foam in NY. They will cut it any way you want.

1" Eva foam foam 50 feet
http://www.albanyfoam.com/images/Page_07.pdf

I may have them cut it one piece 1/2 inch and two pieces 1/4 inch or you could get it one piece 1/4" and one piece 3/4 inch.


http://www.albanyfoam.com

While everyone is different I carry a variety of foam. I like to have 1/4", 1/2", and 1 inch regular poly foam. I keep on hand 1/2" and 1" dry fast. I don't use 3/4 inch..... if I'm working a puppet that may require 3/4 inch I just marry a sheet of 1/4" with a sheet of 1/2" using a spray upholstery adhesive. Sometimes I only need a small piece. I also keep on hand car upholstery head liner..can buy it on Ebay cheap. I order my foam from Albany foam in NY. They will cut it any way you want.

1" Eva foam foam 118"............ or ez dry
http://www.albanyfoam.com/images/Page_07.pdf

http://www.albanyfoam.com/images/Page_08.pdf

I may have them cut it one piece 1/2 inch and two pieces 1/4 inch or you could get it one piece 1/4" and one piece 3/4 inch.


http://www.albanyfoam.com

You are right it is really a matter of personal taste.   I say go for the 3/4 foam you have on stand by. I don't use the reticulated although I do often use EVA which would have some of the same qualities as reticulated, although they are very different products. I really think though that for theater poly foam is just fine.

Thanks Shawn and Billy. The 3/4 puppet foam from Bestway arrived today and I didn't know it. So I'm going to use it. I'll post pics after they're done.

I actually like the 3/4" from Bestway for most regular sized puppets.  Also, sometimes, I use 1/2" for smaller things.  I have used a kind of reticulated, and really liked that too.   However, the Bestway foam is a much cheaper price and more in my budget, so if it works fine, I just go with that.
Like everyone's said, everyone has a different opinion, depending on how and what they are building.  ;-)
Sara