Working with resin tips?

[Valander]

I somehow have managed to avoid resin models for a long time, but that has finally come to an end with some of the Soda Pop Relic Knights models. Anyway, I'm not too familiar with working with this material, so was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for good tools/techniques for cleaning mould lines and flash and so on.

I know that resin dust is particularly nasty, and that a dust mask should be worn while working with it. I mainly used my scalpels and other blades to try to do as much shaving as possible, but this didn't flow quite as well as it typically does for me on plastics. I also tried some emery board sanding, while keeping the parts a bit wet to minimize dust, but this felt sloppy, too.

So, for any of you who have more experience with resins, what methods do you find best?

 

[DarkStar]

I use the same technique pretty much with no problems. Exacto blade or the back of the blade to scrape down mold lines and trim flash away, then hit with some files to smooth any rough spots down. I use these sanding sticks I get at a local store here to get in and take care of mold lines on resin. They're plasticard strips, thin, with different grades of fine sandpaper glued on each side. I can get in and take care of most of the cleanup using those tools just fine.

I sand down large smooth areas using various grades of sandpaper, I use a plastic sheet kind sold by Testor's for use in plastic model kits, you can pick those up at any Michaels, they're nice for resin since you can wet sand with them.

Let's see. Patching pinholes, I use Magic Sculpt to fill those and smooth them with water. I have a big container of the stuff that will never run out. Really easy to work with, you can use any putty for the purpose that's compatible. Tamiya Mr. Surfacer is common although I don't use it. Milliput works, green stuff works, Vallejo makes a plastic putty you can use. Again I don't need anything than my Magic Sculpt to the job, it's perfect as a filler for me. Workable for 30 minutes or so (it's hot here, longer cure time in cooler environs) easy to smooth out with just water, clean up with water, sets harder than the resin with no shrinkage, just all around no complaints with the stuff and it's cheap when bought in bulk compared to the specialty stuff.

What else, cleaning it before priming with a good scrub down with a toothbrush and some Dawn dish soap (cuts the mold release with no soaking or anything like that). Bent parts can be taken care of by heating some water up and putting the part in a bowl with the hot water until the resin softens (should be right away). Remove the part then straighten it and let it harden back to shape. I like to remove anything too thin and resculpt it myself, things like banner poles, thin wispy arms that are going to break etc...I'll replace that stuff with brass rod, steel pins and sculpt them back in place with magic sculpt if I feel it's needed, to avoid any headaches down the road.

Just some words on my personal approach with the stuff.

 

[Einion]

I somehow have managed to avoid resin models for a long time, but that has finally come to an end with some of the Soda Pop Relic Knights models. Anyway, I'm not too familiar with working with this material, so was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for good tools/techniques for cleaning mould lines and flash and so on.

Nothing special really (except if you had to deal with bubbles). If you've done anything much in plastic I wouldn't have thought you'd find a lot with resin that would worry you - in some respects resin can be easier to work with, carving really nicely and smoothing out very well with fine abrasive papers but this does vary with the type and quality of the resin.

One thing I would say is that files IME don't work as well on resin, but this varies with the file and the resin type.

I know that resin dust is particularly nasty...

Actually, according to one source it's not. I still wouldn't want to inhale it obviously but it's probably safer than metal dust all things said - the primary risk from resin is for the caster because they're exposed to high levels of VOCs.

Einion

 

[Alexandra]

As well said before, the problem with the resin is mostly for the caster, do to the vapors of it when it's still liquid... but if you do have problems with dust ( plastics, metal, etc... ) I would recommend you a Wurth mask with fine dust filter ( these you buy separated, according to your needs ).

Cheers!

 

[Shawn R. L.]

Wash it with soap and water to get rid of any release material and other stuff. When priming resin, go slow. Spray it with a very light coat, wait for it to dry and lightly spray it again. This helps avoid 'fish eye' effect if the primer is put on too fast. I've found it helpful to warm up the piece to be painted - warm, not hot. Seems to help it dry fast enough to minimize the fish eye effect.

 

[Valander]

Nothing special really (except if you had to deal with bubbles). If you've done anything much in plastic I wouldn't have thought you'd find a lot with resin that would worry you - in some respects resin can be easier to work with, carving really nicely and smoothing out very well with fine abrasive papers but this does vary with the type and quality of the resin.

One thing I would say is that files IME don't work as well on resin, but this varies with the file and the resin type.
Einion

I have worked with plastics a lot, mostly polystyrene. Working on these few Relic Knights models that had resin parts though, I found it to behave a bit differently than the plastics I was used to; it seemed more brittle, and definitely took carving more easily (which was a problem at first because I was wanting to cut like it was plastic, and removing a lot more than intended). It's probably just going to take a little more experience with the material to get the proper feel for it.

Thanks for the tips so far!