Gluing tiny strips and parts without excessive residue

[Dukat, S.G.]

All,

Years ago, I detailed an Adversary Set BoP to the hilt with strip styrene bits. The bits themselves were entirely too thick and tall, but in person, the model looks OK. Some friends have had positive things to say about it. Here's a decent shot of her:

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1094/512 ... 3184_b.jpg

I'm working on a similar project, albeit in a somewhat smaller scale (and with a MUCH greater eye for proper scale and craftsmanship ... I want to make that Adv. Set Bird look like something a five-year-old threw together).

Since I'm dealing with extremely fine styrene strips, gluing them to the model's surface is ... tough. I apply a thin line of glue with the tip of a toothpick, then gently ease the part onto that area. I take the dull end of an Xacto blade, press down on the strip at various points, then take another, clean toothpick to try and draw up the excess glue.

The process is hit or miss. Most of the time, getting rid of the extra goo requires sanding and careful scraping with a blade. Even then, it's never perfect.

Am I going about this in the most ridiculously inefficient way possible? I'd love it if I could get vinyl thin enough to do the job, but I've tried that multiple times with no success. And for what it's worth, I've tried applying minimal amounts of glue to the strip itself, but as you can imagine, placing the strip as needed's all but impossible; there's always some amount of correction needed.

Thanks.

[Kylwell]

Some times, you just have to do it the hard way.

A precision applicator like the Touch-n-Flow or a ruling bow pen can help but sometimes, you'll just get a wee bit too much glue down and totally melt the sliver of plastic.

There are a few people here (I canna remember who) that will cut self-stick vinyl for you which can look perfect and get sealed with a coat of good primer. Or you could buy some yourself and carefully cut slivers.

You may also what to try CA for small pieces of styrene. The CA doesn't melt the plastic so your chances of destroying the detail is slim but you've got to be very careful about the amount as a little goes a long way.

[Ziz]

What kind of glue are you using - tube or liquid? From your descriptions of scraping up goop, it sounds like you're using the tube glue.

I use Testors Liquid Cement. When I need to put tiny bits on, I use a new X-acto blade to "stab" the part (you don't need a lot of pressure for those tiny bits) and just "paint" the glue onto the back of the part, then just touch the part to the model and it will come loose from the tip of the blade.

[Dukat, S.G.]

Gents,

I'm using CA. Since I'm attaching these little bits to resin, I never considered Tenax or the like. Would that even work?

I'll look into finer applicators, but as you said, K, sometimes there's no way 'round the hard way.

[Kylwell]

No, Tenax or other styrene glues wouldn't help.

Depending on the work, rubber impregnated CA or super thin CA would be my choice. The rubber impregnated allows for jiggling into position where the super thin tends to set pretty instantly but with less residue.

[Dukat, S.G.]

No, Tenax or other styrene glues wouldn't help.

Depending on the work, rubber impregnated CA or super thin CA would be my choice. The rubber impregnated allows for jiggling into position where the super thin tends to set pretty instantly but with less residue.

That's a darned good thought, K. I'd never even considered the black rubber superglue

[Kylwell]

Gorilla also makes one, but it's clear not black.

The rubber impregnated CA is also easier to clean up, as you can carve it when cured.

[kenlilly106]

Future floor wax...Seriously...

I've used it for thin PE parts that will be very visible locations so no glue squeeze-out is a must.

It's got a slow drying time so you can move the parts as needed to fit before it sets.

Once you have an area done the way you like it I'd brush on another coat to seal the parts for sure, the only caveat I have is that if you plan to mask over the strips they may or may not hold depending on how well they're sealed.

Ken

[Mr. Badwrench]

There is another method entirely that might work. Since the detail you want to add is so thin and delicate, you may be able to add it with paint. Mask off the areas where you want to have raised panels and details, then paint on two or three coats of Mr. Surfacer. The paint will create a raised area about .005" thick, just enough to show up under a wash. I've never tried this, but I've seen others do it really well. Might be worth a shot.

Barring that, you may be able to make raised panels out of sticky mailing labels. Just cut them out and apply where needed. Seal the whole thing with Future or Mr. Surfacer before painting.

[robiwon]

For attaching really small detail parts like PE and the like, sometimes I will use clear Tamiya acrylic paint or Future. The Future is a lot thinner than the clear Tamiya though.

By the way, that BOP still looks very, very nice!

[Dukat, S.G.]

Thanks, Robiwon! I got lazy several weeks into the project, but I won't make the same mistake with this Gizmotron Bird, which is a real beaut. The main body and baffles are fully painted and begging to have wings attached to them.

Moving on:

Future as ersatz glue?

Fascinating. I never considered that! But what a great idea -- seriously.

The only downfall I can see to that's how I was gonna "glue" these little bits onto a tiny BoP wing, then airbrush the basecoat ...

... which is a mix of MM enamel paints I don't know how well that might go over the Future. I've done enamels over Future before but I don't want to take any chances.

Mr. Badwrench: I've not tried that method with this model, but I'll consider giving it a go. When I've tried that in the past, I couldn't get nice, straight panel lines; one way or another, something was always crooked.

I'll probably play around with a variety of methods on scrap material this afternoon. I really like the idea about adding detail with vinyl, but it seems every time I cut it into very thin strips (we're talking .5mm or less), I can never get the sticky side to stay down. And this is pretty good vinyl, at that -- scrap parts from Aztec Dummy's D7 plating sheets.

One thing is for sure: rather than apply whatever to bare resin, I gave both wings a nice primer coat of Mr. Surfacer 1200 first. This way, if I screw up, I can remove the paint and start over easily.

[TER-OR]

The paint should be no problem for Future as long as it has a chance to cure before painting.

All these methods are something you should test on a scrap part before your model...

There's also contact cement if you can get it thin enough. It's fairly inert until you press it. IIRC the foil cement for metallic finishes is contact cement.

[TREKKRIFFIC]

If you're using CA you can use CA Remover to clean up any excess.
I've done this with a microbrush and it works great. You can also use rubbing alcohol to remove CA. Easee-peesie.
Now if you're doing this over paint, it will probably remove the paint unless you are veeeeery careful.

[Mr. Badwrench]

I use MM enamel over Future all the time, I haven't had any problems yet. Oddly enough, I do have trouble getting MM enamels to stick to Mr. Surfacer 1200. I've heard lots of theories as to why, I don't know which is right. But by putting down a barrier coat of Future over the Mr. Surfacer, the adhesion problems went away.

[Dukat, S.G.]

Thanks, all.

I tried applying very, very thin vinyl strips from a scrap Aztek Dummy set, and here's what I have:

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5008/537 ... 5c94_b.jpg

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5241/537 ... 6c63_b.jpg

I did my best to work my little camera This paint's a little glossy, but I think you can make out the strips.

Here's what the main hull looks like. I've about finished it. I might add some black window decals to a few areas where the paint filled in the model's teensy port holes. (Remember, this thing is just shy of 3.25" long.)

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5210/537 ... f0b4_b.jpg

I'd post more, but I'll save that for when I finish the whole shebang. I only thought to include it to show what I did with strip styrene, as well as give you some idea of how my weathering methods will tone down and yellow that green base coat

[AbsoluteSciFi]

Parts that small I dip in alcohol, and then touch a "dot" of CA on a push pin and place it on the area that I intend the piece to go, then place the piece there. Things that small have to be placed by stabbing them with a very sharp knife. Another method is to squirt a dot onto a smooth work surface then touch the piece to the dot, and then "touch off" the excess before placing the piece to the model. Timing is essential, if the CA dries before you get it down, then you have to scrap the piece clean before attempting it again.