For which country? This is an international forum.
If you want USA, NHTSA and FMVSS set federal standards which also govern in many states. Try this site: http://fmvss108.tripod.com/ .
That will get you started.
You don't say what material you're molding or how thick it is, but this might work:
Heat the finished items and look for bulges due to expansion of any gas bubbles. Also, a high intensity lamp might reveal lighter colors where any bubbles exist.
Do you plan to make just one chair, or do you want to mold them in quantity?
If you want to make just one chair (maybe for your personal use) your best source of information probably will be on websites devoted to model airplanes/rocketry or homebuilt aircraft. They build curvaceous designs...
Acrylic IS best for light covers, but it absorbs a tiny amount of moisture and must be dried in an oven at 215 degrees for a while before raising the temp or you will get steam bubbles. Drape forming is the process of heating a sheet of plastic until it sags and then draping it over a form...
This thread is almost 2 years old, but people keep it alive, so here's a little more help on building tubes. You can use Aquacore (see previous post) to make the prototype core, or you can try to find a soft, flexible foam tubing to use as a core. Think swimming pool toys like noodles, or foam...
One common method of prototyping a part or product is to build a full-scale model of it in carved foam, wood, molded clay, or plaster. Pick your poison. One of the cheapest methods is to rough out the shape in blocks of white styrofoam and then cover that with drywall finishing plaster, which...
I am building a low-volume series of custom fiberglass sports cars and would like to make bumper faces for them out of a reinforced plastic that can be chrome plated. Naturally, I need a price that would be less than having the bumpers pressed from steel and chrome-plated. Is there some way to...
