[Squall67584]

I'm thinking about getting a resin model but since I've never worked with resin before, I was wondering a few things about it. I've seen that some models may have slight imperfections from the casting and have seen references to putty being used. Can Bondo spot putty (either the red or white variety) be used on resin? Also, what type of glue works best? And finally, can resin be painted with any type of paint (laquer, acrylic, enamel) or can it only be painted with a particular one?

 

[PhilipMarlowe]

Bondo is great for filling seams and pin holes, after you apply the Bondo, a few swipes with a Q-tip dipped in fingernail polish will remove any excess and greatly cut down on sanding time.

CA (superglue) is the glue of choice for most, the slow curing types are more forgiving, and a spray accelerator will set it instantly when everythings lined up just right.

You can use any type of paint as long as you apply a primer coat first, I like lacquer-based primers because they dry quick, some enamel primers are slow to dry on resin. You can get lacquer based primer at Walmart or auto supply stores, Duplicolor is a good brand that comes in several colors. Make sure you wash resin parts real well before priming, the mold releases will keep the paint from adhering right.

A good well-produced resin kit is no harder to complete than a styrene kit.

 

[Griffworks]

To add to what Scott has already said here, the major problem with most resins is that you need to clean the kit thoroughly before assembly and especially before putting down the primer. The nature of some of the resins can be such that even CA won't adhese the parts together, occasionally. A lot of times it's just the mold release product used to make the resin part pop out of the mold easier w/o destroying the mold, but sometimes it's the resin itself that can cause problems. That's especially true on the funky "GRP" resin that some companies such as Warp Models use.

You can easily clean the resin with a strong dish washing detergent. I tend to use Scrubbing Bubbles and a tooth brush to get the resin as clean as I possibly can, letting the model parts soak in the stuff for a little bit so that it works itself in to all the nooks and crannys of the model. Thoroughly rinse w/warm water and allow to completely air dry and you should be good to go.

 

[Cougar184]

another thing to do to your resin kits after washing and drying is getting a bottle of self etching primer. the primer will actully do an acid etch into your model and your primer will stick a lot better. Dont worry it will not reck your model.

 

[kylwell]

I've started using Mr. Resin Primer on my resin kits. Thinned with Mr. Color Leveling Thinner it lays down nice and flat (and will even cut through small amounts of leftover mold release).

Once primed you can paint with anything.

Used to be Epoxy was the glue of choice for resin kits. Then CA (particularly thick CA). Now I use Wave Black CA exclusively on my resin kits. Costs a bit more but man whatta glue.

Pin holes and other imprefections? I'm sure glazing putty would work, not sure how well it'd stick (been a while since I used it). I use the black CA to build up lost detail (chiped edges), and Mr. Surfacer 500 for the pinholes.

No, I'm not a shill for the Gunze company, just like thier stuff.

 

[Squall67584]

Ah, thanks for all the insight. Hopefully soon I can get to work on some resin models.

 

[jwrjr]

I got good results wiping down resin parts using Polly-S Plastic Prep.

 

[John P]

Heck,sometimes I even wipe small parts off with laquer thinner.

In fact, that last resin kit I did - the XP-67? I realized while I was painting the final coats I realized that I completely forgot to wash it! Oddly enough, the paint's still on it.