Pre-paint surface preparation

There are lots of things you can use as an alternative to the "off the shelf" hobby shop products.

Starting under the kitchen sink, thee's plain old dishwashing liquid just a little in some warm water will do the job. Next up, Windex. Rinse well after using either of these.

Moving up a little, you can use denatured alcohol or isopropyl alcohol, just a quick wipe down with a clean cloth moistened with either type and the job's done. Note that alcohols may affect filler/primer products like Mr Surfacer and Tamiya Liquid Surface Primer. 

Phil_H wrote:

There are lots of things you can use as an alternative to the "off the shelf" hobby shop products. Starting under the kitchen sink, thee's plain old dishwashing liquid just a little in some warm water will do the job. Next up, Windex. Rinse well after using either of these.

I tried washing-up liquid, using a toothbrush to clean off shavings and dust from sanding etc. The model attracted a bit of dust while drying, so I suspect the brushing might have induced static electricity. Any suggestions how to handle that?

Doc

Brushing a bare model when dry may well induce a static charge, but it's not likely (but not impossible) with a toothbrush. If the model was wet when you brushed it with the toothbrush, it's even less likely.

You can wash your model and then cover it with a suitably sized Tupperware container (or even just a plain old carboard box) leaving one corner elevated to allow some air circulation to let it dry.

Hey Doc,

Here's the steps I take with every kit:

• Open box, put all parts in small bucket of warm (degreasing dish soap) soapy water.
• Lightly rub large pieces with cloth or sponge, use soft brush on smaller pieces.
• Rinse well then let air dry.
• Right before working with the pieces, wipe down with isopropyl alcohol, let dry.
• If it's dusty or has anything on the parts I either use a soft brush or usually a tack cloth.
• Paint right away and then store the parts in an airtight kitchen plastic container till dry.

For the most part my finished kits (auto's) come out dust free.

Hope that might help some.

I personally use any dishwashing liquid I have at home, with medium warm water and gently brush the model with a basic toothbrush. Then I put the model under the tap water to clean it up, and dry it with a basic hairdryer.  When dry, I leave it under a clean shoes box until it gets painted.

I think the 3 keys for having a dust free model are:

• Clean workbench
• Gentle brushing
• Hairdryer

Hope this helps!