Paint removal and kit restoration

[flyjoe180]

Hi all. I have been building my first return to modelling kit in a long time, and have been looking at a few of my older completed aircraft 1:72 kits I built many moons ago. Many have survived in good shape with all their aerials, wheels etc attached, and those that have been damaged over time, have their parts, or canibalised parts, handy to restore them. I know they can be done up to a much better standard and are salvageable.

So with the thought of restoring a few of them to new glory, with new paint, decals and weathering, I have a few questions I hope you guys can help me with.

1. How does one remove old paint? They were finished in matt enamels, with no gloss or matt coats applied. Will decals come off cleanly using a paint removal technique?

2. Are there any proven and effective techniques for removing paint from clear parts (i.e. canopies)?

3. Any other ideas or techniques you can think of which will help me would be much appreciated.

Thanks for your time.

[HAWKERHUNTER]

I shall watch this thread with interest Joe because I have a 1/32 phantom that I have been thinking would be good for a revamp. Rather than risk damage by getting the old paint off I was considering just rescribing the panel lines to bring back the detail and then just respray it but it is a lot larger than your 1/72 scale models. As regards the paint on canopy problem. I did once see someone getting paint off that had dried on a canopy by using a wooden cocktail stick to rub it off. If you try this method make sure you support the canopy well by seating it in some bluetac to stop it flexing too much.

Steve

[Guest]

I recently removed what I think was acrylic paint from a model by soaking it in Sainsburys all purpose cleaner for 24 hours.

Worked a treat, but I don't know if enamel paint would be shifted so easily.

Cheers

Patrick

[flyjoe180]

I have received advice from a mate who reckons oven cleaner is the trick for removing enamel paints from plastic models. It strips the paint, even multiple layers of the stuff, but does not harm the plastic. It will also eat/dissolve any decals which sit on the enamel paint.

The instructions are to use oven cleaner spray, and liberally coat the kit which is placed in a plastic bag. Then the sealed bag is left overnight for the oven cleaner to do its thing. The next day the kit is removed, the plastic remnants are washed and scrubbed under cold water with detergent, and apparently that is all there is to it.

Before anyone tries this, I will personally sacrifice a beyond-help old kit in due course and see how it goes. In particular, I will be interested to see how it affects the clear plastic parts and parts filled with putty fillers. I will take pictures of the procedure for you and report back.

[aaron]

Oven cleaner will have it cleaned up in minutes and won't hurt the plastic. Not sure about the tracks though. Just about all my refurbs have started with oven cleaner, just clean it with a tooth brush, gently rubbing the paint off under the tap. Make sure small parts won't come off and make sure you use gloves (trust me) and spray the stuff on the tank outside. You need plenty of air as its deadly, but won't hurt you if you're out side. Don't lean over the stuff while its on the tank.It is extremely toxic n' may damage resin. You can often use other stuff in order to strip paint. If it's painted with acrylic it's just a matter och sprayin' window cleaner on it n' then rinse it off.

[flyjoe180]

Thanks for the tips aaron. I have used oven cleaner before, ironically on the oven and learned my lesson about not touching the stuff. Wore gloves, no problems until I decided to wipe sweat from my brow. Ouch. Are model tank tracks made of rubber or resin? I'm hoping the clear plastic will come out untarnished when I try this technique.

[flyjoe180]

I'm using this technique today on an old Airfix Hurricane. I am going in, as they say. If not back in a day, send help! Will report back in a day or two.

[aaron]

Hey Joe, No idea how clear plastic will react, let me kno lol. Should be fine.

[flyjoe180]

Strip Results

Here is the result of an old kit being stripped using oven cleaner.

The subject aeroplane is an old Airfix 1:72 Hurricane. The paint on this model must be at least 18 years old, and it is Humbrol enamel.

[ATTACH]44726.vB[/ATTACH]

The kit was taken apart enough to allow the stripper to get into the desired gaps. Further dis-assembly followed the above picture. The contents were then placed in an old ice cream container.

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I used Mr Muscle Oven Cleaner, a common cleaner easily obtained from any supermarket or corner dairy/shop. I sprayed the cleaner into the open ended container liberally, turning the parts to ensure they all got good coverage. Make sure you do this in a well ventilated place and wear gloves. All the warnings on the can should be adhered to.

[ATTACH]44728.vB[/ATTACH]

The container was sealed with a lid and the contents left to soak overnight. The next day they were removed and run under cold tap water. Using an old toothbrush the paint was removed from the various parts. The washed parts were placed on a paper towel to air dry.

The clear parts were a mystery, I had no idea how they would react. I didn't think they would melt, but I thought they may discolour or fog. But the result was a stripped and perfectly reusable canopy.

[ATTACH]44729.vB[/ATTACH]

Here are all the parts after drying. The missing parts are not as a result of this strip technique. The pilot is completely clean of paint and glue. For some reason the green (Humbrol 30 Dark Green) is extremely resistant to the stripper, even after 18 years. The brown (Humbrol 29 Dark Earth) and cockpit green colours came off almost by themselves under the tap water. But the green has been stripped/thinned back enough to allow a light sand if required.

[ATTACH]44730.vB[/ATTACH][ATTACH]44731.vB[/ATTACH]

So there you have it. Easy enough to do, just remember to follow the safety instructions for the oven cleaner if you try this technique.

I would happily use this technique if I screwed up a canopy paint job, or even wanted to just start again. My one word of caution though, is that I did not have a varnish coat on this model. I am unsure how the stripper will react to the varnish, although I think it should be okay.

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[HAWKERHUNTER]

Hi Joe. Thanks for doing that. Its been very helpful and Im glad that you stil have a Hurrican to work on.

Steve

[Guest]

Hi Joe,

clear straightforward advice there, gonna try it out myself on the 1/24 spitfire i cocked up on when trying to spray a varnish on which went all white. got despondent over the outcome and just put on a shelf to collect dust, but what the heck, cant do any more damage than done already can I, and even if it dont work, could try to use it in a crashed spit dio lol

ROb

[flyjoe180]

Steve, no problem. Yes, I am glad the Hurricane survived too. It was an old dog but it has some sentimental value.

Rob, glad you can put this experiment to use. It is a very easy procedure, and you should have pretty much a blank canvas to restart from. Let us know how the oven cleaner reacts with the varnish. I think it will just come off under the tap water along with the decals and the paint. I'm sure your Spit will have new life in it yet!

After I restore my Hurricane I will be using this technique on other past models.

Cheers.

[Guest]

Joe,

just to go 1 better so to speak and so every query is covered there is 1 coat of plastic primer,1 coat of brushed on enamel paint, 1 coat of varnish then another coat of plastic primer, sprayed the oven cleaner on about 20 mins ago and will keep you informed. so if it clears that lot then we're all onto a winner. I also oversprayed and it went on the rubber tyres so we'll see what happens there lol.

Rob

[HAWKERHUNTER]

There is a slightly more potent cleaner available Rob. In the UK its called oven pride. This is a thick gell and realy packs a punch. If you find the Mr Muscle is not getting through that lot try the oven pride. I must stress that I havent tried it on a model so be careful.

[Guest]

will do, but gonna leave it overnight to see if it works first, only been sprayed about an hour so far though and may spray again after.