Yeah, I'm working on some Old Chaos Squats ... They look like they all have to "go under the knife" ... X-Acto/Scalpel ...
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| Mould line woes http://www.tacticalwargames.net/taccmd/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=21044 |
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| Author: | carlisimo109 [ Sun Jul 17, 2011 8:03 am ] |
| Post subject: | Mould line woes |
I've been meaning to start Epic for a while now... I have a bunch of minis (maybe too many to start with) and I've assembled some of them, but I've found it time consuming. Which is great, I want a full hobby, but it takes me forever to shave five infantry figures down until they're all clean before sticking them onto a stand. How far should I be going with that? I don't have as much time to dedicate as I'd like, and I haven't even gotten to the painting stage! Unlike painting (and because of it) you can't just do a sloppy construction job to get the models on the table and then go back and make it better later. Realistically my time constraints aren't that bad - I don't even have kids yet (though we do have a house) - I'm just terribly inefficient at all this and need advice. Thanks. |
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| Author: | Dobbsy [ Sun Jul 17, 2011 8:26 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Mould line woes |
If you're prepping metal models I completely understand your concerns but unfortunately there's really no option unless you want to ignore the mould lines altogether. Plastic however is a different kettle of fish in my opinion. I use a scalpel or a brand new exacto blade to scrape my minis down. Both are dead sharp so prepping is fairly quick. I don't do more than run the blade edge firmly down the mould lines and the minis are usually good to go. Sometimes they require a quick nick at either end to clear the sprue join mark but I try hard to get a good separation when I remove them from the sprue. The one thing I usually do is do all the models in a formation at once, get a production line going and drop them into a tray once they're done. That usually helps cut prep time as I know exactly what I need to do and some minis don't even need a scrape which also cuts down on time. Then I can just blu-tack them to an icy pole stick and spray undercoat ready for painting. |
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| Author: | GlynG [ Sun Jul 17, 2011 11:56 am ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Mould line woes |
I normally try listening to an audio play or online interview/discussion while doing this kind of stuff, as you pay attention to that and don't notice spending time on the boring bits so much. Try to do one formation at a time or something too, rather than sitting down with 1-2 armies (or all your epic models) at once, as it'll look too daunting. As you get models, stands and formations done you start getting more of a sense of achievement and getting there. Some people use files to clean up, some craft knife, some a mix. I'm in the knife camp myself. I face the model so the mould line of the models runs in a direction pointing towards me. I use the knife by scraping it perpendicular to the mould line, at a diagonal angle towards me, getting rid of the mould line and making the two sides match. I can take care of mould lines pretty quickly and I imagine I could clean up a single individual plastic epic trooper in 20-30 seconds or so. Are you taking that sort of time or much longer? Maybe the more you do it the more it'll come naturally and you'll speed up? |
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| Author: | WestSide [ Sun Jul 17, 2011 1:48 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Mould line woes |
I'm in the knife camp when it comes to the infantry and sometimes use a file on armor. The quality of the tools makes a difference. For a knife I use a jewelers tool called a graver. They come to a sharp, finer tip. They come in sets, all of which are useful. You can get then pre-formed and sharpened or blanks you sharpen yourself. They are designed for silver and gold and hold their edges for a long time with white metal and plastic. You can sculpt a bit with them too. |
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| Author: | Legion 4 [ Sun Jul 17, 2011 4:01 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Mould line woes |
Yeah, I'm working on some Old Chaos Squats ... They look like they all have to "go under the knife" ... X-Acto/Scalpel ...
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| Author: | carlisimo109 [ Sun Jul 17, 2011 8:31 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Mould line woes |
It's mostly infantry that's the problem. Some of the plastic sprues I have are not that great - there's a bit of flash all around the models which doesn't respond well to scraping. I'll keep at it though. Thanks for the tips! |
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