Washing resin parts

Hi :

  You've been given good advice here .Now , that said I would like to add this . In doing the resin parts to correct the U.S.S.ALABAMA I did this .Whe washing the small parts , or for that matter ALL of them , use a toothbrush made for small children . It is softer and less likely to damage delicate parts . Then Like DON said RINSE , RINSE , RINSE ! ! The prep of resin isn't real hard and the results of proper prep can be outstandingly rewarding .    Enjoy !    Tanker-builder

Thanks for the help. The small size of some of these parts has me a little bit uneasy but we'll see how it goes.

The only problem with dish soap, or virtually any form of soap, is thorough rinsing, since any soap film left can affect paint adhesion, especially of oils and enamels.  I wipe the parts with lacquer thinner as a last step after the soap rinse.  I put a little thinner on a paper towel and wipe.  Do NOT soak parts in thinner, just a quick wipedown.

I agree with washing using dish soap. Even hand soap works. Just soak then use a fine toothbrush on the parts just making sure you dont be too rough especially on small parts. rinse then make sure it dries thoroughly.

I recently used my first resin kit and had no problems painting using this preparation.

-Theo

This info is useful to me too, thanks!

You ALWAYS start with the mildest solution/solvent you can, and work up. I've never used anything stronger than dish soap and have never had any problems with my 1/700 models.

That's good to know, Chuck.  I've always used simple dish soap, and now I see no reason to change.  Thanks for the tip.

I have found that warm water with dish soap works fine. I soak the parts in the soapy water for an hour or so, then take them out, brush them thoroughly with a soft toothbrush, rinse them well, and let them air dry.

Others use alcohol, or brake fluid, or whitewall tire cleaner. I don't that's necessary.  I used whitewall tire cleaner once, and was never able to get any kind of paint to cure on the resin, even after waiting weeks after washing the parts.  Tried enamel, lacquer, acrylics, nothing would dry on the surface of that figure, even after weeks of waiting for the paint to cure.  I finally had to throw the model away- I could find no way to fix the problem.