Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

I don't know what it will be called in the US, but in the UK we have PVC Pipe Weld (various brands). It's for sticking PVC guttering and drainage pipes together. It's hot enough to work with ABS (and styrene for that matter), but use sparingly as it can completely dissolve the ABD part.

Water will do. A few drops of white glue (PVA) can help it stick better. I've used this to get the scale effect on the SeaQuest DSV model and have used it on WWII aircraft around engines and crew access hatches. Military modellers use "chalk mud" a lot for weathering vehicles.

Because CA is activated by moisture, there's enough in your breath to be a reasonable accelerator. Not as messy and not as stinky (halitosis notwithstanding).

I usually pour out a small amount of CA and then use a pin or needle to apply small amounts. Much more control than trying to use the nozzle. On large mating surfaces I'll glop it on with the nozzle and then spread with a piece of scrap plastic. If you need a drop more CA than the point of a needle...

No, Citadel primers are acrylic. You can use enamels as a top coat. A word of advice - Citadel don't actually sell the paint as a primer anymore (at least not in Europe), what you'd be looking for are Chaos Black, Mechanicus Standard Grey and Corax White sprays.

Scalecoat 1 is designed for application direct to metal or wood with no primer (if so desired). Scalecoat 2 is designed for use on plastics. They are usually gloss and the range is pretty much restricted to North American railroad and weathering colors. All colors are available in both ranges. The m...

Although I mostly use Halfords primers (available only in the UK), I would second the Citadel Miniatures Primers. They stick to styrene, ABS and metal and will even stick to vinyl and polypropylene!

Try trawling through Arduino sketches. A very quick search turned up the following (although this is just the charger, not the switch you want)

https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/projec ... y-charger/

OK, sense of humour-failure there on my part.

White Did you actually read earlier posts??? TazMan2000 was just about spot on with his description. Just a few bits I can add... A few of the off-white panels were faintly outlined with pencil (using a fine technical pencil). The off-white panels were of a number of shades, light greys, light tan/...

Availability only. I believe that Future is known in the US as something different - if it's available t all. It was known as Klear in the UK and what is now known as Klear is quite different and perfectly useless for modelling. I know it had a different name in Australia, but I understand it hasn't...

Alclad II Aqua Gloss Klear Kote Varnish (ALC600) is chemically almost identical to Future. I've not tried hand-painting this on, but it coats well enough with a cheap spray-gun until you replace your airbrush. It goes on Alclad finishes without destroying the metallic look.

Also consider what paint you're spraying with. Although any airborne particles can turn explosive, this is much more important with lacquers and solvent-based paints. One spark from the coil of a fan could be bad news. If you're spraying a lot of solvent-based paint, you may want to look at explosio...

When I mask and remove the tape once the second color paint has dried the acrylic paint comes off along with the masking tape. I should have explained better. There really should be no reason why acrylic primers should come away from styrene (or ABS) so easily. That should be doubly so for acrylic ...

Many thanks - I'll give those a look.

The place I used to go to has folded, so I need a new source for ink jet decal paper in the UK only please. I will need clear and white and I'd like to have a go at rub-down.

I'd really rather not have the stuff intended for ceramics - it's too thick and is almost rubbery when wet.

Thanks.

I'm relatively unfamiliar with "water based primers".I'd think that most water based primers would be 'too heavy" and cover up finer details than a solvent based primer would,but maybe I'm wrong? I wouldn't necessarily say so. The "heaviness" would depend entirely on the gr...

Could you use this to add panes to the open frames Bandai include in their Star Wars kits? It tends to stretch and sag too much over gaps and is really rather flexible when in place. If the windows are small enough (I'm not familiar with the Bandai SW kits) you may be able to use Humbrol ClearFix o...

Although I haven't used SMDs yet, I'm researching them myself for a future project. I found this site explained sizes and intensities...

https://www.flexfireleds.com/pages/Comp ... -LEDs.html

To get detail spraying with a single action brush, you really need internal mix, which means that cleanup isn't quite as easy as with an external mix spay gun like the Badger 250. Having said that, the Bagder 200 series ( http://www.badgerairbrush.com/BADGER_200.asp ) are very easy to strip down and...

I've had a Badger IL-150 (double action) for years. It's bottom fed, so you can use either a cup or syphon. Although the syphon works OK it seems that getting the paint thinning absolutely right is much more critical. However, the main reason I don't bother with the syphon is that it adds weight to ...

It should be fine as long as you're not making it too strong. I'm not even sure if you could make Comet caustic enough to do any damage. However, Comet powder contains mild abrasives which could damage the surface of styrene. A little bit of dish detergent in warm water is fine for removing the mold...

Personally, I've had no problem using IPA (isopropyl alcohol) on acrylic painted surfaces as long as the paint has had a few days to cure.

I just apply it sparingly with a soft cloth or (in fiddly areas) a Q-tip and rub gently. I keep a fairly damp cloth nearby to wash away the IPA when done.

All good suggestions, but don't forget needle files and riffler files.

Lichen (available from model railroad stockists) is about the only think I can think of for tumbleweed.

As for cracked-earth, you can get crackle paint from art stores - just paint over in the color you want.

nanook177 wrote:Would the Simple Green and/or the Windex be enough to disintegrate the seals and gaskets?

Only if the seals & gaskets were getting old in the first place.

In the auto industry, "Monza Red" is a car maker's interpretation of the red used by Ferrari without actually using the name.

IMO Testor's Insignia Red or Humbrol's Signal Red would be closest. Tamiya's is a shade too dark.

Yes, hot water (as hot as you can handle) will work, especially if you soak the part for a while. This lets the heat get right into the vinyl. I keep a mug of really hot water by the side and occasionally dip the blade in it to keep the temperature up. As soon as it starts to get hard to cut, stop a...

I've never had any problems with Humbrol decalfix and Tamiya paints, though I prefer Microset/sol.