About Dice Craft Lab
The story behind Dice Craft Lab and why this site exists.
Contents
My gateway drug was Warhammer Fantasy. I was fourteen, painting Skaven clanrats with acrylics from a hardware store, rolling cheap Chessex dice on a kitchen table covered in newspaper. Later it was Shadowrun, then a long Pathfinder campaign that lasted most of my twenties. Somewhere in there I picked up Gloomhaven and realized I cared more about the physical components than the game itself.
The first set of dice I poured looked like frozen milk. Paper cup, eyeballed ratio, no pressure pot, January garage. Two days later: cloudy, soft on three faces, bubbles the size of rice grains. Straight into the trash.
That was 2021. I spent the next six months making every possible mistake — wrong ratios, cold cures, torched molds, a d20 I sanded so unevenly it rolled like an egg. Each failure taught me something that no YouTube video had explained properly.
What You’ll Find Here
Dice Craft Lab is the site I wish existed when I started. Every guide comes from bench time — resin on my hands, failed pours in the trash, and the occasional set that came out clean enough to make all the wasted silicone worth it.
We cover the full path: your first pour, the equipment that actually matters, techniques like petri and liquid core, finishing to a mirror polish, and troubleshooting for when things go wrong. They will.
When I recommend a product, it’s because I’ve used it. When I say something doesn’t work, I usually learned that the expensive way.
About Me
I’m Marcus. Software engineer by day, dice maker by night. The hobby started as a way to do something with my hands that wasn’t typing — and turned into a quiet obsession with resin chemistry, silicone tear strength, and what makes a d20 actually fair.
I work out of a converted hallway closet that my wife generously calls “the workshop.” The dog won’t go near it because of the hardener smell. My Skaven army is still unpainted in a box somewhere.
Why This Site
Most dice-making knowledge lives in Reddit threads, Discord servers, and YouTube comments. Scattered, contradictory, impossible to search. I wanted one place where the information is organized, tested, and honest — including the parts where I admit I still mess things up regularly.
Say Hello
Questions, corrections, or just want to show off a pour: marcus@dicecraftlab.com