Future Curing Time?

Remember that "Haste makes Waste"!

Putting the kit in a cardboard box with a 60 watt light might be better, but better still is taking a deep breath and let time work for you. I thought I could hasten the drying time on a frame for a 1969 Barracuda kit and it worked very well. After a mere 30 minutes in the sun I ended up with a twisted and melted, but perfectly dried, frame.

Why rush it , risking the likely possibility of ruining a good or excellent paint job?  Its best to let the Future sit for at least 24 hours before applying any decals, this way the Future will fully dry, just not partially as done with a hair dryer or not allowing enough time for evaporation.

According to Triarius, who may have something to add, acrylics dry from the outside in.  And I believe he also wrote that warmth will accelerate the process.  But you wouldn't want to overdo it.  I sat a small model out in the sun in a stainless steel bowl.  As the day progressed, the bowl acted like a magnifying glass and made a nice big dimple in it.  I figure that paint isn't dry until you can't smell it.  Future seems to take a couple of days to reach that point.

Don

It's not simply a matter of drying. An acrylic cures by a chemical reaction which alters the substrate at a molecular level. This takes time. Evaporation of the solvent will certainly be accelerated by the application of heat and, to an extent, so will the polymerisation of the acrylic base, but we are still talking in the order of several hours.

You may notice with Tamiya acrylics that in the first few hours after application, even though "touch dry". they are still "soft" and easily scratched. You can make a clean scratch very easily inside the first  4-6 hours. After 24 hours or so, it is much more scratch resistant and if you do manage to penetrate the paint layer, the scratch will often take a jagged form as the paint will literally shatter and flake off.

Thanks for the replies guys.  I guess I probably knew the answer before I posted the question, but I was hoping I could increase the productivity of the given time I have for modeling.  I especially liked the "haste makes waste" reminder.  Such simple logic, but so true.

Well, that's me. Simple!