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Panel lines scribing question


Charles H

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Hi everyone

 

I worry this has been discussed at length in previous threads, which I have (typically; I'm hopeless at searching) not been able to find, sorry. Anyway, I've read somewhere to use old-fashioned Dymo embossing tape (powerful sticking, dependable straight edge to cut against), to put on plastic scale models, as a guide, to re-scribe panel lines, over areas where I've filled gaps etc with Tamiya putty (basic type). It is a task I've never attempted before, but it is an obvious improvement to my newbie 1:72 scale aircraft modeling.

 

BUT... if I put the Dymo tape over areas I've filled, when I pull the tape off, won't it lift up areas of carefully applied and serially sanded filler, creating hopeless craters? Or is it OK, if only applied briefly, for the actual panel surgery?

 

Please, can anyone offer advice?

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Shouldn't pull up the filler.  I bought some Dymo tape and in my experience it wasn't all that "sticky", maybe I got a bad batch or something.  You could always detack some Tamiya tape and put that down first then put the Dymo tape down if you're worried.

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I think your bigger problem might be trying to scribe basic putty. Using a scriber, this has a tendency to crumble and not leave the clean line you want. A scribing saw might give a better result

 

Putty crumbling is the reason I use either 'gloop' (homemade polystyrene - i.e left over sprue - and Tamiya thin cement) or superglue for filling. Gloop hardens to the same consistency as the kit making scribing much more consistent. Superglue works well too, and is much faster drying - I use this for small touch ups.

 

Cheers

 

Colin

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5 hours ago, ckw said:

I think your bigger problem might be trying to scribe basic putty. Using a scriber, this has a tendency to crumble and not leave the clean line you want. A scribing saw might give a better result

 

Putty crumbling is the reason I use either 'gloop' (homemade polystyrene - i.e left over sprue - and Tamiya thin cement) or superglue for filling. Gloop hardens to the same consistency as the kit making scribing much more consistent. Superglue works well too, and is much faster drying - I use this for small touch ups.

 

Cheers

 

Colin

Very much this! I haven't found a better filler for areas that need to be rescribed. The only downside is that it takes a while to cure, but I'd rather be patient than have ragged panel lines.

 

These days I use 3M vinyl tape (the 3mm wide blue one) to use as a guide when scribing. It goes round curves much better, though you do have to be gentle with the scribing tool.

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Thank you everyone, for your replies!

 

RobL - great idea of yours to try, covering the putty adjacent to where I want to re-scribe a panel line, before applying Dymo or 3M tape, depending on results I get with scrap.

 

But, Colin/ckw and lasermonkey - you clearly have identified a problem with scribing into putty I hadn't even thought of! I'll try on some scrap styrene covered with a layer of Tamiya grey putty, and if the result is what you likely predict, I will have to learn to make "gloop" or use superglue/CA.

 

I've read elsewhere to make sure the superglue is not allowed to get REALLY hard before sanding, and understand about "gloop" being more the same consistency as the kit. How do you spread superglue evenly, or is it not as difficult as I imagine? I thought superglue didn't dry until it was excluded from air, in a tight crack/gap... this is simply ordinary cheap superglue, is it?

 

Finally, to make "gloop", is this Tamiya thin cement #87038? Says it dries in about 40 seconds(?) so do you shave some bits of scrap sprue into a bottle cap or similar, and quickly add the cement, and have to spread it on the kit very quickly? Please can you give an idea what relative amounts of styrene and cement to mix up?

 

Thanks again!

 

Charles

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Re superglue - I don't really use it where spreading is required, mostly point or fine seam repairs.

 

My method (using cheapo pound shop stuff)

 

1 - squirt a pool of glue into a plastic tray - I use the lids of plastic boxes that cotton buds come in. The glue doesn't bond to this plastic, and stays viable for some time

2- use a toothpick to transfer glue to afflicted area

3 - immediatly sprinkle with talcum powder. This dries off the glue instantly and makes it more sandable. But do the sanding ASAP - the glue gets harder over time

 

Gloop

 

I usually use a half bottle of tamiya extra thin and then just add 'some' cut up sections of sprue. Shake well and leave overnight. Exact proportion is trial and error ... start with a little - you can always add more. It can be useful to have different consistencies. I have a couple of jars always on the go and just top up with glue or sprue as required. You want it liquid enough so that it doesn't go 'stringy' when you try to apply, but not so thin that it runs out of the area you're filling.

 

Cheers

 

Colin

 

 

Adding the plastic to the glue slows drying time considerably, you'll have plenty of time. For all but very thin layers I tend to leave it overnight to cure. 

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Colin/ckw - thanks, makes sense not trying to spread superglue over any significantly wide areas.

 

About "gloop" - makes sense, too, now you've explained how it works! I had visions of trying to quickly mix up the glue/styrene brew and apply it in a mad rush, which I would NOT cope well with. Also YES, about being patient with drying, just like I have been with my Tamiya grey putty use on my 1:72 Italieri Tornado.

 

Now, a possibly dumb (and certainly rather circular) question - the famous gloop is of course styrene dissolved in a glue which we use on plastic models very sparingly and carefully, BECAUSE it works by melting the styrene parts together. So, if you spread it over any significant area (see below), don't you risk a rather unpredictable "pool" of gloop, settling into the kit's plastic, as it melts itself in, if that makes sense?

 

My main obsession is getting ill-fitting upper and lower fuselage halves to mate precisely, as has been well documented as a notorious problem with this kit. I've actually, I think, got much better at filling narrow gaps where the two surfaces are level. It's when there is a "step" involved at the problem seam. You can scrape or sand the "proud" surface down, or build up the "low" surface with putty/gloop, etc... or make a compromise, which I have attempted. I reason, FWIW, that causes the best originally faithful cross-section to be preserved, rather than a slightly bloated profile if you only fill the low edges, or slightly narrow if you sand/scrape back the proud edges. Sorry if I am writing a treatise when I should be much more succinct!

 

IF I'm not happy with the fit after I've put a couple of coats of enamel primer on the kit, I do wish to try your gloop, instead of more putty. I also suspect gloop won't shrink as much as putty(?) - it must be good to use, with practice... otherwise you would not use it!  😀

 

I should just get ON with it more, and write less... but cheers and thanks for your help!

 

Charles

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The active nature of gloop is a strength and risk. Yes there is some action on the target surface, which makes the bond strong. If you piled on a lot I guess distortion is a risk, but I wouldn't apply a lot in one go ... a thick layer takes longer to cure anyway.

 

You speak of applying later on top of enamel and/or putty. I would strip the paint off first. Also I'm not sure how well gloop will work over normal putties - I've never tried that, but I suspect it may defeat the purpose of using gloop in the first place as you are building in a surface which can crumble when scribed.

 

Cheers

 

Colin

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Hey Colin

 

OK, an obvious warning, thanks. A lot in one go is not a good thing in modeling, for anything; I realise that caking anything on like teenage Maybelline is never going to work. It will be a new thing to try, NEXT 1:72 model.

 

I think what you would maybe agree with, is that I just need to get on with it! I hadn't even thought of the other-obvious which you point out, about complicating matters by putting one type of filler over another, anyway! Indeed, defeating the purpose. I over-theorise too much!

 

Plus, I need to learn (absolutely from the FAQ resources) about posting photos.

 

Thanks for all replies...

 

Cheers, from the first fireside session of autumn here!

 

Charles

Edited by Charles H
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