Reducing Panel Line Depth?

[colin]

23 minutes ago, Mark Harmsworth said:

I'll join this again if I may.

 

From my experience (and I've done this a lot) IPA is perfect for removing excess Mr Surfacer from seams etc without damaging any of the detail as @colin has said. Simply add a few drops to a cotton bud and scrub away.

 

However:

- it will also remove any paint or primer

- I believe it will be very difficult to easily achieve a uniform depth over of filler over a whole model

 

If you are very patient then go for it but be prepared for frustration. I'd still try un-thinned primer.

Mark

Problem with a cotton bud is it will also remove Mr Surface from inside the line as being soft it conforms into the line as well. Best way is with a cotton clothe and across the line to remove excess

[Mark Harmsworth]

OK fair point, but if we are talking about reducing the panel line depth and not removing it completely - a cotton bud may be ok for that?

[dr_gn]

Thought I'd make a start on the Spitfire, and record the results here.

A reminder of what we're dealing with:

 

 

I'm using Mr.Surfacer 1000, painted locally into the surface detail:

 

 

 

I tried 99.9% IPA as a solvent, and it does work (not that I'm questiong folks here!), but it seems to form a granular suspension rather than a solution. This may be just some dried Surfacer that got removed from around the brush. Still, it cleaned the brush eventually, so all good:

 

 

And it does remove the excess fairly easily. As a test around the radio compartment, I used a Tamiya cotton bud - the type that is pretty hard, so as not to remove the Surfacer from the line itself:

 

 

It's going to take at least 4 application before any real impression is made, so a time consuming process.

 

I can keep updating this thread if anyone's interested, but it will probably take me a few weeks to get any meaningful results at my rate of work.

[John Laidlaw]

It would be interesting to see, certainly!

[dr_gn]

So after two coats and rubbing back with IPA, I can already see the inevitable inconsistency in line filling:

 

 

Extrapolating this to the next couple of coats, I can see that I'll be left with morse code panel lines - some flush with the skin, some softly recessed. I'm after something more perfect than that...It may be that this particular Airfix turd can't be polished.

 

Must admit I bought this same kit in about 2009, on a whim from Duxford as a souvenir, and on opening it when I got home, threw it straight in the bin, and got the Tamiya version. With this one, I wanted a Spitfire with a 2-bladed propeller, and this was the only one I could find (plus it was dirt cheap). I was hoping there had been some magical way of improving the trenches in the intervening 13 years.

 

I'll persevere, but I have low expectations of this working to the degree I'm looking for.

 

 

[dr_gn]

I did another session of Surfacer, and decided to leave it at that for now. After cleaning the excess with a cotton bud, I coated the whole thing in IPA in the hope of at least partially levelling what I'd done:

 

 

After that, I saned the whole surface to remove any residue, and to hopefully take some of the radii off the line corners:

 

 

Then wet sanded to smooth it more, and hopefully wash out any residue form the lines:

 

 

Once dry you can see just how ridiculous the panel line widths are here..and that's with some filling:

 

 

This is after 2 coats of Tamiya Fine Surface Primer:

 

 

There are some pores that need filling, and maybe another coat of surfacer on selected lines, but it might look OK. I doublt it will take a decent wash though.

Edited February 4, 2023 by dr_gn

[dr_gn]

Made a start on the upper wings:

 

[Yes_Man]

A few years back I was determined to find the "best" solution when I did an Airfix Spitfire Mk.I. It is still the most dimensionally accurate early Spitfire in 1/72 on the market so it's a problem worth solving in my opinion. I think I tried just about every method that I could think of as well as a whole bunch I read online.

 

The most foolproof, consistent and quick method I found was the correction fluid method; specifically with a Pentel Micro as it has a tiny nib that you can fit into the panel line. The fluid is thin and flows straight into the gap and usually globs out on top. This is handy though as, for cleanup, you attack it with a cotton bud and some IPA. Keep the cotton bud at a low angle and perpendicular to the panel line then swipe until the puddle recedes into leaving the white only in the panel line and then stop. You can do the whole kit like this in just under an hour as the fluid dries very quickly. After the kit has been built and is ready for priming just use your normal primer (in my case Mr Surfacer 1500 Black which also fills them slightly) and hopefully you'll have neat consistent panel lines.

 

It is still frustrating to have to do this but, until Eduard scale down their fantastic 1/48 Spits, it's the best we have for Mark.I Spitfire in 1/72.

 

With the aid of the helpfully blue-moulded kit here's how it should look after you're finished:

Spoiler

 

Edited February 12, 2023 by Yes_Man

[Tomas Enerdal]

If one wants to make trenches not only shallower in depth but also narrower in width, the Mr Surfacer method can be developed.

After the filler has been applied, let it dry for an hour or so, so that the filler is dry but not yet fully hard. Then draw along the panel line with a scalpel. This will result in narrow and sharp grove. Best blade to use is a rounded blade, no.15 or no.15, they center themselves best in the grove. The filler will be pushed to each side of the blade, making small ridges.

Let fully dry and then sand carefully with wet'n'dry.

 

By allowing variations in the drying time the width of the grove can be adjusted to ones needs.  IMHO a slight variation over the model is of benefit, real a/c often show a slight variation, it gives life to a model.

[ckw]

One caution on the Mr Surfacer techniques - if at the painting stage you get things wrong and need to strip the paint, you will also likely strip all your line filling work. Speaking from bitter experience. ( and stupidity).

 

Cheers

 

Colin

[dr_gn]

So just over a year since I asked about dealing with deep panel lines, I finished the Spitfire. RFI is here:

 

 

I used the Surfacer method. It was a long slog, but I think it looks better than if I'd not done it. WIP thread is here, which outlines what I did:

 

 

Thanks for the advice everyone.