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Attaching PE railings?


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Hi all,

 

I bought the Eduard PE railings and hatches for the King George V and I'm having a huge amount of trouble attaching them, mainly the curved ones. I'm finding it near-impossible to get the right curvature as the brass will always unfold significantly, which I guess is to be expected. Straight railings, no problems there as the have the proper folds, but the curved ones are just becoming a headache. 

 

Is there a way to get the right curvature, perhaps by heating slightly, and in addition is there a particular glue anyone can recommend? I'm using Army Painter superglue which has been fine up until now, but it's almost like it knows when I want to attach a curved rail and it's like "nah, I'm not going to work".

 

Thanks all

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I usually find that spot gluing works well. I start at one end and apply a tiny dot of medium CA glue with my acupuncture needle. I hold position until it has tacked then apply another spot about an inch along the railing, then rinse, repeat. Once it's tacked into position its whole length I infill glue between the tacks. Either more CA or PVA glue works well for this.

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11 minutes ago, Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies said:

I usually find that spot gluing works well. I start at one end and apply a tiny dot of medium CA glue with my acupuncture needle. I hold position until it has tacked then apply another spot about an inch along the railing, then rinse, repeat. Once it's tacked into position its whole length I infill glue between the tacks. Either more CA or PVA glue works well for this.

 

Yeah I tried that but the tension in the brass simply pulls it apart, even after a significant amount of drying time. I'm hesitant to use too much glue as it starts building up and ruining it. 

 

The piece in question I'm having trouble with is approx 1.5" long, bends into a semicircle. There are others in the kit even smaller that need gluing into a complete circle, but the tension of the brass just prevents it working. 

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I forgot this was Eduard - their etched metals aren't that easy to use compared to some others in the model ship world.

 

You can try annealing the part. You'll need a good open flame, and you hold the part in the flame until it glows cherry red. Then place it somewhere not hugely heat conductive and allow it to cool naturally. The metal will be softer once cooled.

 

Also, have you tried rolling the part? For circular railings I fold a paper kitchen roll / towel into 3 or 4 times to make a cushion, place the railing on it, then roll a paint brush or round Xacto knife handle or needle file handle - whatever works basically - along it and it'll bend nicely.

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40 minutes ago, Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies said:

I forgot this was Eduard - their etched metals aren't that easy to use compared to some others in the model ship world.

 

You can try annealing the part. You'll need a good open flame, and you hold the part in the flame until it glows cherry red. Then place it somewhere not hugely heat conductive and allow it to cool naturally. The metal will be softer once cooled.

 

Also, have you tried rolling the part? For circular railings I fold a paper kitchen roll / towel into 3 or 4 times to make a cushion, place the railing on it, then roll a paint brush or round Xacto knife handle or needle file handle - whatever works basically - along it and it'll bend nicely.

 

I was thinking that heat might work, and that paper tube idea is pretty clever, thanks for the tips. 

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Mastering the 'overbend' is helpful.

Bend the part past where it needs to  go and see how it springs back to where it should be.

Some practice at this will familiarize you with the properties of the metal used for the p/e , as most of it is different from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Also once you anneal , you will not be able to regain the inherent springiness or stiffness to the metal.

Practice these methods on p/e runner metal before trying on the parts.

Its about familiarizing yourself with the metal.

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I use a spongy mouse mat and roll a cylinder shaped object while gently exerting pressure. For right angles you can simply press down with a blade or the edge of a ruler.  

 

For glue I use PVA and apply a chain of small dots/streaks using a toothpick along the area where the part will be placed. The PVA will give you time to accurately position the parts, and is quite discreet when dried.

 

Regards,

Ross.

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51 minutes ago, krow113 said:

 

Also once you anneal , you will not be able to regain the inherent springiness or stiffness to the metal.

 

 

You mostly can. Reheat the part to cherry red again but this time quench it in cold water.

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8 hours ago, Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies said:

 

You mostly can. Reheat the part to cherry red again but this time quench it in cold water.

For a railing?

lol

Just bend it past , let it spring back.

Good practice shaping parts.

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3 hours ago, krow113 said:

For a railing?

lol

Just bend it past , let it spring back.

Good practice shaping parts.

 

Anealing and hardening are perfectly useful techniques. Not all etched metals are equal. Eduard's nickel steels are not great to work with, for example. The only reason I even mentioned quenching is because you told the user they couldn't regain the springiness of the metal. They can, with a lighter and a glass of water, if they want to or feel they need to.

 

There is no harm in knowing something useful even if it's seldom needed.

 

 

 

 

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Not neede

7 hours ago, Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies said:

 

Anealing and hardening are perfectly useful techniques. Not all etched metals are equal. Eduard's nickel steels are not great to work with, for example. The only reason I even mentioned quenching is because you told the user they couldn't regain the springiness of the metal. They can, with a lighter and a glass of water, if they want to or feel they need to.

 

There is no harm in knowing something useful even if it's seldom needed.

 

 

 

 

Annealing was brought into it by you. I mention using the runners as test pieces, the best advice here.

 

By the time the railing has gone through an annealing process and quenching , which will restore SOME of the tension into the metal, it may be useful as an old cargo net!

lol

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  • 2 months later...

Likewise, I haven't needed to anneal much, but it has been useful a small handful of times.  For the most part, I do the rolling technique for curves, and it works perfectly.  It doesn't take too many tries to get the process down to a useable skill, regardless of the metal thickness or springiness.

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