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                        Different kinds of plastic?

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                        6 replies
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                        Lufbery
                        • Member since
                          December 2002
                        • From: Harrisburg, PA
                        Different kinds of plastic?
                        Posted by Lufbery on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 9:28 AM
                        Hi all,

                        I'm working on a Glencoe 1/74 scale Martin MB-2 bomber. I'm just now at the beginning stages and I'm doing a lot of cleaning up of the wings.

                        I've noticed that the plastic on this kit is harder than the plastic of the last kit I built. As a result, it is more difficult to clean up the parts than I expected.

                        Has anyone else noticed that softer plastic tend to be easier to use? It sounds obvious when I put it that way, but this is the first time I've experienced this problem first-hand.

                        Does anyone have any tips for working with harder plastic? I realize I'll need more elbow grease. Wink [;)]

                        Thanks,

                        -Drew

                        P.S. If you're wondering about this kit, check out the following link:
                        http://www.crossandcockade.com/WNW/MB2.htm

                        -Drew

                        Build what you like; like what you build.

                        Report Abuse
                        MusicCity
                        • Member since
                          January 2004
                        • From: USA
                        Posted by MusicCity on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 12:06 PM
                        QUOTE: Originally posted by Lufbery


                        I've noticed that the plastic on this kit is harder than the plastic of the last kit I built.

                        I thought it was just my imagination. The Trumpeter F-105 I'm working on now is the opposite, the plastic is so soft you can look at it and it will almost sand itself (don't I wish!).

                        I had never really though about it but I suppose there are different "Grades" of styrene. Or maybe there isn't any real concern over the exact mixture as long as it's within a wide range. The last Trumpeter kit I built was nowhere near this soft.

                        As to working with the harder stuff, I have no real tricks other than using a file or Dremel to knock down the worst and then go at it with the sandpaper. Sorry, wish I could help.
                        Scott Craig -- Nashville, TN -- My Website -- My Models Page
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                        albert_sy2
                        • Member since
                          May 2004
                        • From: Singapore
                        Posted by albert_sy2 on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 10:53 PM
                        Also, I've noticed Hasegawa plastic and Academy plastic are different. Hasegawa plastic is smoother and harder to paint.
                        Groovy baby
                        Report Abuse
                        djmodels1999
                        • Member since
                          December 2002
                        • From: United Kingdom / Belgium
                        Posted by djmodels1999 on Wednesday, May 19, 2004 4:59 AM
                        Some of the earlier Trumpeter kits were in a plastic that did not even react to liquid poly type of glue...

                        Report Abuse
                        Anonymous
                        • Member since
                          November 2005
                        Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, May 20, 2004 7:43 AM
                        QUOTE: Has anyone else noticed that softer plastic tend to be easier to use?


                        Soft plastic, the bane of my existence! A little while back i was getting to feel a litle down as i hadn't finished a kit in a while so i dusted off Italeri's prototype-stealth kit (f19?), with the intention of a quick box-stock build. Imagine my horror as great chunks of plastic lept from the fuselage as my hobby knife brushed against it! I've still not finished it as the extra work i'm going to have to do anyway makes me more inclined to accurize it a little too. (any tips on that front would be great btw!).

                        Guess it all comes down to preference. All i cab say is set aside more preparation time, as long as you don't rush, the techniques are all the same.

                        Rob
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                        djmodels1999
                        • Member since
                          December 2002
                        • From: United Kingdom / Belgium
                        Posted by djmodels1999 on Thursday, May 20, 2004 7:52 AM
                        Rob,

                        to make that kit look better, I'd suggest you have a good look around the F-117, and also contemporary real aircraft such as the F-16... Difficult to accurize something that never was... Imagination (not too much!) and informed guesses...
                        Report Abuse
                        Lufbery
                        • Member since
                          December 2002
                        • From: Harrisburg, PA
                        Posted by Lufbery on Thursday, May 20, 2004 9:39 AM
                        So, we want plastic that's not too soft and not too hard, but just right. Call me Goldielocks. :D

                        I've had some luck carving off the offending ejector pin marks (raised) and mold flaws with a sharp #11 blade and then carefully sanding the residue off.

                        Most of the parts are pretty clean, but the wings need a fair amount of work.

                        Regards,

                        -Drew

                        Build what you like; like what you build.

                        Report Abuse
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