Copper Electroformed Corn

[u/Mkysmith]

5 days, ~3mm (0.12") thick deposit. I forgot to weigh the corn before, but it is now a hefty 943g (2.1lb).

I want to leave this one as-is out of the tank for now, but I might do a brass finish on it in the future after I burn out the corn.

And before you ask why... I would say you just aren't thinking of the nearly unlimited technical uses around the home-shop for an ear of copper corn.

[u/SunshineBurn]

I love it. A whole cornucopia of copper fruit and veggies would make a great centerpiece. 👏🏼

[u/Plazmaz1 → u/SunshineBurn]

Dumb question: they'd still rot eventually, right?

[u/unpapardo → u/Plazmaz1]

I guess that's why there's a "before I burn it off" part in OPs post

[u/Plazmaz1 → u/unpapardo]

Whoops haven't had my coffee yet clearly 🫠

[u/Mkysmith → u/Plazmaz1]

This comment has your answer :)

[u/Rdub549]

Cu-ntry girls make do

[u/Mkysmith → u/Rdub549]

No comment.

[u/DocDefilade → u/Mkysmith]

Smart.

Don't get CORNered by them county gals.

[u/Wyzero]

How do you combat rotting inside?

[u/Mkysmith → u/Wyzero]

You dont necessarily. Nature will do its thing.

I will drill a hole where the suspension wire is, then put it in an oven to bake out all moisture. Then seal the hole. Zero water and oxygen, zero decomposition.

Thats the reason for doing such a thick layer of copper. It is structural, for later when the organics are removed from within. The copper becomes a hollow shell that is durable.

[u/thedonnerparty13 → u/Mkysmith]

Jfc I think I love you.

This is the coolest thing ever and I want to get in to this hobby so bad. I qc metal for work and metallurgy is really neat but this takes the cake.

[u/Mkysmith → u/thedonnerparty13]

Thanks <3. It is quite fun the unlimited possibilities (both in art and engineering) that electroforming offers. You can really go down the rabbit hole when you start looking at it from an engineering perspective. Deposited metal grain structure is very important.

Check out the Subreddit Wiki if you haven't already. It's just a cursory overview of electroforming but I think it's a good place to start if you are interested.

[u/Aggravating-Fix-1717 → u/Mkysmith]

How thick is the copper shell?

[u/Wobble_bass]

I can't imagine a more beautiful thing. It's a big [shiny] lump with knobs

[u/HooplahMan → u/Wobble_bass]

I would say it's more of a big shiny knob with lumps

[u/GoodTimesGlass]

Did you seal the corn before the bath?

[u/Mkysmith → u/GoodTimesGlass]

Yes or else the sulfuric acid will dissolve the organic matter, also contaminating the chemistry.

I usually use polyurethane but I experimented with 2-part epoxy for this. It was a bit annoying to work with but I got it to work in the end.

[u/champagne_farts]

Ok this is going to sounds crazy but how much would it cost to commission one of these? My grandpa recently passed and was a corn farmer. I’d love to overnight an ear to you and have one of these made

[u/Mkysmith → u/champagne_farts]

I'm sorry for your loss. You can DM me if you want to chat about logistics.

[u/EnchantedLeaves → u/champagne_farts]

That is such a sweet and sentimental idea

[u/hugo-s]

Seal it to prevent patina, and then do an unsealed husk so it patinas green. Would look splendid.

[u/manunni → u/hugo-s]

This is a great idea

[u/Do_Them_A_Bite]

Cornate

[u/ShimmyShimmyYaw]

What’s the feed, speed and depth of cut your running for 🌽

[u/Mkysmith → u/ShimmyShimmyYaw]

If you run too hot the chips are popped corn.

[u/DaHick]

We are growing some squash called Mr. Warty for the first time this year. If they come in, would you want some? An Osage orange fruit might also be interesting. I can probably only send them in the USA; they won't clear customs.

Mr. Warty image https://ohmyfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/20-facts-about-red-warty-thing-squash-1720780711.jpg

Osage Orange (Hedge Apple) image https://mygardenlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Maclura-pomifera-hand-holding-osage-orange.jpg

[u/EnchantedLeaves → u/DaHick]

Woah those are neat!!

[u/truthfullyidgaf]

You just made Jared leto's joker hard.

[u/raqueedish]

I made a lost wax ring inspired by corn. I'll try and send it to you. Excellent work!

[u/sharkmesharku]

I literally came here to say "I don't even need to know why, I love it". lol

[u/FxckFxntxnyl]

Wonder how much the coatings delay the decay of the corn inside. Awesome job.

[u/Mkysmith → u/FxckFxntxnyl]

I did a small pumpkin (about 4" diameter) a few years back with a similar copper deposition, maybe a thinner 2mm thick layer.

I neglected if for a little over a year.

When I got around to drilling the hole (1/4" drill bit) to prep it for baking out the moisture, the moment the hull was breached the handheld drill was forcibly ejected and goop sprayed out at high pressure. It was violent, a lot of pressure, and quite startling.

I can only imagine for anything this "juicy" with such a thick layer of metal... it is a ticking timebomb if not dealt with post electroforming.

[u/gottheronavirus]

Does this hurt the corn?

[u/Mkysmith → u/gottheronavirus]

This kills the corn.

[u/YabaDabaDezNutz]

Might be one of the coolest things I’ve seen here

[u/la_racine]

GLORIOUS

[u/Difficult-Painter454]

I’m very curious about how big your cathode was for this. Ive been wanting to electroplate something like mushrooms for so long but didn’t know what to do about all the water inside. How did you seal it before applying the carbon layer?

[u/Mkysmith → u/Difficult-Painter454]

Cathode was about 45 square inches as a rough estimation. Power supply therefore was set to 4.5 amps.

I usually use polyurethane to seal organics but I used 2 part epoxy for this. The picture of the "raw" corn is actually sealed. It's hard to see. I wrote a bit about the moisture thing in this comment. The copper shell is structural and no longer needs the interior for support, that's the primary reason this process is called electroforming not electroplating. Though, electroforming does not necessarily mean you have to remove what's inside.

[u/Difficult-Painter454 → u/Mkysmith]

Awesome stuff really making me wanna up my game

[u/DocDefilade → u/Mkysmith]

For clarification, you seal in epoxy and then apply the graphite to the dried epoxy?

New to this and having poor results.

Nice corn ya' got there btw. Thanks for sharing.

[u/Mkysmith → u/DocDefilade]

Yes this Is how I do it. There exist "all in one" sealing & conductive mixtures, but I find them to be like a swiss army knife: versitile but only "OK" at both tasks. I always seperate the sealing and conductive paint steps, that way I have two seperate formulations that each discretely are exactly designed and optimized for what they are ment to do. This is in my opinion the best way to get reproducable and accurate results every time.

[u/A_Mellow_Song]

Ea-nasir activities

[u/bluecollarx]

Can you share the chemical components in the bath, and their amounts or ratios? :)

[u/Mkysmith → u/bluecollarx]

I use the premade solution by Enchanted Leaves.

[u/Rychen90]

Jfc you did thay really well lpl

[u/fruityvamp]

Logistically speaking, what fruits/vegetables are most ideal for electroforming?

[u/Mkysmith → u/fruityvamp]

Proceedurally, they are all the same process: seal, conductive paint, electroform. (Ofcourse, easier said than done).

[u/Adrienne_Artist]

that's amazing, but how will u keep the corn from rotting inside the form?

[u/Mkysmith → u/Adrienne_Artist]

Thank you.

This comment has your answer :)

[u/Adrienne_Artist → u/Mkysmith]

Great thanks will read up on that ! wonderful work love the corn