Model Forum / General / Models / June 2008

On Jun 14, 5:27 am, "Nigel Heather" <nigel@<NO_SPAM>the-
heathers.co.uk> wrote:

While I can't comment on the specific details of the Italeri kit:

Resin, in general, allows the mold maker to make much finer detail
than would be possible (or economical) to do in plastic.
 Regular model glue won't work when trying to join resin to plastic
or even resin to resin, you'll want, as you mentioned, CA or epoxy. I
use slow setting CA for my resin.
 It's always a good idea to wash the resin in soapy water prior to
painting. I've used both enamels and lacquers on resin parts with no
ill effects. IMHO, while you can still get the details brush painting,
I think to get the best (detail wise) you need to airbrush, then brush
paint the details.
 Don McIntyre
 Clarksville, TN

Resin allows VERY fine detail.  However, in order to do so, one must
have a good pattern first. So the patternmaker's skills are
important.  Also, if made in silicone molds, the parts do not need
relief angle and can then be more accurate (a box can have true square
sides, not tapered ones.

The big thing, however, is that molds for resin casting are MUCH
cheaper than the metal molds needed for die casting, and allow a kit
to be produced profitably in much smaller numbers.

For the modeler, IF the mfg employs a GOOD patternmaker and mold
maker, the resulting pieces CAN be more accurate and better detailed
than in die cast styrene, but it is not automatically so.

On Jun 14, 5:27 am, "Nigel Heather" <nigel@<NO_SPAM>the-
heathers.co.uk> wrote:

It all depends on who's resin you're getting...just like anything else,
there's good stuff, ok stuff, and bad stuff.  Really depends on how good
the pattern maker was/is.

Use CA to attach it, and make sure you join bare resin to bare plastic
and not over paint, and it'll stay stuck.  Epoxy is good for filing
holes or bubbles in a resin part, but not really for making joins, in my
experience.  CA is easier.

<snip>

To see the differences in plastic and resin, take a look here:

The first kit is a Hasegawa 1/48 F6F (in Royal Navy markings) with the
resin set from Jaguar. There was very little in the way of trimming or
cutting away of casting blocks on this one, and to me it's worth the
cost.

http://s20.photobucket.com/albums/b229/DDonSS3/Built%20Models/Hasegawa%20F6F/

The second kit, a Hasegawa 1/48 F6F-5N (still in progress by the way),
uses the kit supplied parts. The only resin in the kit is the
instrument panel and the wing radome (both provided by Hasegawa).

http://s20.photobucket.com/albums/b229/DDonSS3/Built%20Models/Hasegawa%20F6F-5N/

Comments welcome.

Don McIntyre
Clarksville, TN

FWIW, let's not forget that breathing the resin dust as you sand may be
hazardous to your lungs.  Supposedly, resin dust is a carcinogen and can really
mess you up - this might be heresay, but it makes sense, anything you inhale
that is not air is not supposed to be in there.

Ray
===

Cheers, I guess it's just that the Italeri stuff isn't very good.

To me the detail doesn't look that great - the plastic parts in the kit are
excellent, I would say better than the resin.

Also the rsin parts will need a lot of razor saw work to remove the parts
from the huge lumps of excess resin.

Frankly I can't see the point in this case - just added to try and justify
the kit as being special.

Cheers,

Nigel