Removing overspray from FM TIE clear cockpit cover

[Dukat, S.G.]

Gents,

I dipped my TIE's cockpit cover in Future, gently wicked off the excess and wound up with a beautifully glossy piece.

After that dried for a couple of days, I cut out and applied the masks included with the kit and lightly airbrushed it with medium gray (enamel -- believe me, I know. But I've never had problems with very light coats of enamels over fully-cured Future).

Now that the masks have finally come off, I notice I have ever-so-slight overspray in a few areas. I'd like to remove it, but I'd like to keep the piece's clear portions nice and clean-looking.

Input would be most welcome.

[Dukat, S.G.]

My thoughts:

*take a small brush. Dip in MM airbrush thinner. Carefully wipe excess particles away.

Pro: it'd definitely get rid of the Medium Gray enamel.

Con: it'd probably smear and screw up the Future and clear plastic underneath.

*instead of wiping away the enamel, go after the undercoat: gently brush offending areas with Windex or isopropyl, thus removing the Future undercoat. Reapply Future as needed once the excess is gone.

Pro: I doubt this will hurt the part's plastic.

Con: will it nix the enamel particles?


I favor the second option, but I'm really in a gray area here. Anyone familiar with lots of clear cockpit canopy work -- please gimme a shout.

[Zen-Builder]

You can try what I often do.

Take a toothpick and gently scrap the paint off. If you make a minor scratch another tip in future should hide it.

HTH.

[Dukat, S.G.]

You can try what I often do.

Take a toothpick and gently scrap the paint off. If you make a minor scratch another tip in future should hide it.

HTH.

I'll try it, Zen-Builder. I'll let you know what happens.

Danke!

[TER-OR]

Buff it out. Seriously, any solvent which removes the acrylic paint will remove the Future. A bit of toothpaste and a fine cloth - linen works well - might be the best trick. You can use a fine buffing pad too. WET SAND, though.

[Dukat, S.G.]

Buff it out. Seriously, any solvent which removes the acrylic paint will remove the Future. A bit of toothpaste and a fine cloth - linen works well - might be the best trick. You can use a fine buffing pad too. WET SAND, though.

Darn good idea, Terry. I'll give that a shot first thing in the morning.

[TER-OR]

I've never ever had to remove overspray or strip a canopy and re-paint. Nope, never. Nor have I repainted the same canopy three times...nope.

[Lt. Z0mBe]

Here'e what I would (and do) do.

Get thee to Wal-Mart and purchase one of the $1.25 nail buffing kits. Strip the piece of Future in a Windex dip. Buff away the remaining paint in in the sequence specified by the buffing kit's package except for one little detail: wet buff it. Dip the buffing stick in water as you go.

Re-Future and repaint. The whole process shouldn't take too long and you'll have a hella shiny piece and learn a new technique. I use a nail buffing kit on all clear parts now and have been doing so for years. Works like a charm.

I hope this helps.

Kenny.

[Dukat, S.G.]

Status report:

My good Lieutenant, I wound up doing just that. I used Windex to strip the Future and gray enamel with one fell swoop. After redipping in Future, the part was as pretty as ever.

Unfortunately, when I came back to the part yesterday, I noticed a large crack that spanned the part's radius. Someone apparently dropped something on my WIP :-\

That's OK: I have another canopy, and I gave it the treatment y'all recommended: sanding, toothpaste polishing and Future-dipping. That part is near crystal-clear now ... I had to polish it and redip, but that should do the trick.

My dilemma now is how to paint the gray framework of the thing. No matter how well I mask the clear sections, I get bleedthrough when I airbrush. I'm tempted to handpaint it with a #0 brush and watercolors ... I've spent so much on model supplies these past two months, I've got to cut back on the expenses.

[rpauly]

One you apply the masks, run some future through your airbrush and spray it down. It'll seal the masks and you won't get any underspray. Should help with bleed through, too. Dunno if dipping it again would result in too thick a coat of future that might come up when you lift the mask...

[Dukat, S.G.]

One you apply the masks, run some future through your airbrush and spray it down. It'll seal the masks and you won't get any underspray. Should help with bleed through, too. Dunno if dipping it again would result in too thick a coat of future that might come up when you lift the mask...

Another good idea. I need to let my "dipping" Future coat cure another day or so before I mask it; as it is, I think I still need to do a little polishing*.

*The part I sanded, polished and Future-dipped is coming along very nicely ... except there are ever-so-slightly "foggy"-looking areas a mm or so around the periphery of each frame. I'm not surprised by that, seeing as how it was so blasted hard to sand in all those tight corners.

I'm not sure how to proceed other than to keep polishing and re-dipping, though.

[Dukat, S.G.]

Please disregard my last post. The canopy piece -- my third and last -- is ruined.

*The first one was killed by the metal polish I used. Turned the part pink and made it as brittle as dried-out bread.

*The second is ... entirely my fault. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

*The third was a family member's mistake. God bless 'em, but they're not the most model friendly folk *forces a weak smile*

Does anyone have a spare? I'm having a lot of trouble getting my customer ID # and such from HLJ; what's worse, getting a replacement part from them might take 2-3 months. I'd hoped to have this TIE finished and good-to-go in time for someone's birthday. That's 2 weeks from now :-\

Any help will be handsomely rewarded. But even if no one's got the parts, thanks for all the good advice in this thread. Like Z0mBe said, I learned a new trick

[Dukat, S.G.]

Anybody?

I figure that part's at least worth $10 U.S. to me.

[Lt. Z0mBe]

Forgive me for being dense, but is this the FM kit, the Monogram, or the AMT Ertl kit? I'm assuming FM, but wanted to be sure. I'll check the SSR based on your advice.

Also, on the second go, you mentioned the periphjery being foggy, but you didn't mention the nail buffing kit specifically. DId you manage to get one?

Here's why I ask: It's a series of polishing films (not grits) on a double ended tool. Each film is, in turn, backed by a cushion. As such, the film elevated above the stick about a 16th of an inch. What that means to us hamfists is we can maneuver the film right up to a canopy's framework with no problem, unlike with a file or sandpaper oftentimes.

Also, on your first one that was cracked laterally, try cementing it with thickened Future. Seriously. Sit some out in a mixing palette (the well type) znd let it sit overnight till it's about the thickness of the old tube-style model cement and apply it liberally to the fracture. Hold the other half in place until they set up. Then, apply more of the thick Future in a thin bead along the seam. Let it dry out and buff it away with a Windex-soaked cotton swab (this will take a looooong while). IT will NOT be the strongest canopy, but it is a last resort. I made an entire canopy out of thickened Future once, and pieced together pieces of another one to it during the first Box of Crap challenge. I couldn't believe it, but, it worked.

I [gulp] hope this helps, brother.

Kenny

[TER-OR]

As long as you haven't snapped it, dipping in Future a few times may well solve the crack. May....