After the two halves of the mold are made, the foam core was reused as plates that press the silicon halves together and evenly distribute the pressure from the rubber bands keeping them together. The approximate amount of resin needed was determined by estimating the volume of a bounding box around the handle. A pink dye was used in the first cast. However, I did not realized that the ratio for the two parts of resin by weight was different from the ratio by volume. The first cast was weaker than expected (fractured two ways when I was trying to clean it) and has a slimy, shiny film on one half. It was cured in the pressurized paint sprayer, and positioned upright because the pour spout was on the face of a vertical end of the handle.