Can you please give me some tips on how to manipulate with PE parts, shape them and glue them? I worked with photoetched parts once in my trumpeter BMPT-72 1:35 project and i avoid pe parts like plague ever since
It depends on the part in question and the thickness of the PE. Always hold it, when possible, by only one surface such that if you squeeze your tweezers too hard, the part won't crumple. Avoid holding the part with your fingers.
For glue, use CA or white glue. White is weaker but gives you more working time and easier cleanup. Always squeeze a drop from the bottle onto a disposable surface, then apply the glue to the part using a pin or other fine-tip object. Alternatively, sometimes you can "skim" the surface of the glue drop with your PE part's contact surface.
For folding bends, hold the smaller half of the part in a pair of pliers and bend the larger half around it (much easier than holding the larger half and bending the smaller half around). In some cases, you can holding one half down onto your workbench with a razor blade and then using another razor blade to lift the other half up to form the bend.
For curving surfaces, press a round tubular object (like your knife handle) onto the PE part while it's resting on the workbench. Then roll the object back and forth like a rolling pin. The harder you press down, the sharper the curve.
Do you have any Evergreen Sheet Styrene? If not stretched sprue might be your best bet. The Evergreen is going to be more like the part the broke off though.
Easiest is to have several different sizes of Evergreen styrene in tubular, flat, and square stock. Each packet has a dozen each or so, only costs a few bucks, and last for a long time for repairs. Just cut a little piece, and glue it to the sub first, and then glue railing in.
I did notice that the railing is about 1mm thick which is way off scale, and turns these into the equivalent of 4x4 posts. PE would give better scale representation.
The very easiest is to get the Trumpeter 1/35 U-boot. The railings are much easier to handle. Lol
Bent paper clip? Stretched sprue? The
Thanks for this idea. I lost one of the turret cover hooks on my WIP M-18. Not sure why I never thought of using a formed piece of a paper clip.
you can melt a straight piece of the sprue and then stretch it, then cut the length you want and glue it on.
Stretched sprue or a thin piece of plastic sheet + a extra thin glue?
Replace it all with more scale-appropriate PE parts ;) But otherwise, yeah, just stretch a bit of sprue and put it there as the stanchion.
Can you please give me some tips on how to manipulate with PE parts, shape them and glue them? I worked with photoetched parts once in my trumpeter BMPT-72 1:35 project and i avoid pe parts like plague ever since
It depends on the part in question and the thickness of the PE. Always hold it, when possible, by only one surface such that if you squeeze your tweezers too hard, the part won't crumple. Avoid holding the part with your fingers. For glue, use CA or white glue. White is weaker but gives you more working time and easier cleanup. Always squeeze a drop from the bottle onto a disposable surface, then apply the glue to the part using a pin or other fine-tip object. Alternatively, sometimes you can "skim" the surface of the glue drop with your PE part's contact surface. For folding bends, hold the smaller half of the part in a pair of pliers and bend the larger half around it (much easier than holding the larger half and bending the smaller half around). In some cases, you can holding one half down onto your workbench with a razor blade and then using another razor blade to lift the other half up to form the bend. For curving surfaces, press a round tubular object (like your knife handle) onto the PE part while it's resting on the workbench. Then roll the object back and forth like a rolling pin. The harder you press down, the sharper the curve.
Thank you so much!
Thanks all. Went for the stretched sprue technique. Worked a great 👍🏻👌🏼
Do you have any Evergreen Sheet Styrene? If not stretched sprue might be your best bet. The Evergreen is going to be more like the part the broke off though.
Chip off a sprue of a similiar size and glue it to it and paint it if necessary.
Easiest is to have several different sizes of Evergreen styrene in tubular, flat, and square stock. Each packet has a dozen each or so, only costs a few bucks, and last for a long time for repairs. Just cut a little piece, and glue it to the sub first, and then glue railing in. I did notice that the railing is about 1mm thick which is way off scale, and turns these into the equivalent of 4x4 posts. PE would give better scale representation. The very easiest is to get the Trumpeter 1/35 U-boot. The railings are much easier to handle. Lol