As in, How the heck do you get them off of this weirdly curved resin wafer they’re on, without decapitating or at least kneecapping most of them?
I knew they’d be small, but still … 60-some guys jammed into a 1/2 x 1/4-inch space, and not a whisker of space between the figures?
I may have to go back to my tried-and-true flat PE sailors beefed up with a little thick super glue. I honestly have no idea how to tackle this.
Since the only boat I have in that scale is the carrier Wolverine, and I most likely will never build it, I would say try one of those snippers with the fine blades they use for small parts and some PE.
If it is small stubs sanding may be a better option than trying to snip them.
A friend who does 1/700 ships told me they are nigh impossible to cut off without inflicting damage. I had a look at some of those figures, and thought I was looking at a tiny swatch of velcro!
Photo-etch saw.
Sounds similar to removing Black Cat’s fair leads and bollards. I use NEW #10 scalpel blade held flush against the casting block and shave. A new Xacto blade is too dull in comparison
Thanks for the ideas!
Sanding is out of the question, the resin block they’re on is both curved and thick.
I’ll get on to one of my medical contacts for a scalpel blade … and cross my fingers about avoiding blood.
Good luck. My guys are always missing feet. The only company I had luck with was Tori Factory, but I don’t think they make 700 scale.
Just in case, those clotting bandaids work very well. I ended up with a hole in my swollen foot and after going through several paper towels and some time holding them against the blood flow, it eased up enough to apply a few of them. I kept them on until they came loose a few days later and it was completely sealed. I will be picking up more this week…after I get the rest of the blood out of the carpet. The colors just clash too much.
I thought my glueing my finger to my ear was 'bout as bad as it gets, seems I sit corrected [;)]
I see why they give you so many of the little guys on each resin wafer - the casualty rate so far is in excess of 50 percent …
Andddddd … I give up. I’m sure it seemed like a good idea at the time, but a curved resin wafer, with the figures on the inside of it, just doesn’t work.
So I am trying some 1/700 3D-printed figures from Ion Model that I ordered through Freetime Hobbies. At least their feet seem to be accessible. Anyone dealt with these before?
Intrigued, I dusted off my sets and had a look.
Firstly not all northstar sets have this warping issue, the older stock do but newer ones are printed on more solid resin base and don’t have this issue.
Second, like most resin, they become more mellow at higher temperature. I dumped mine in a bit of boiling water and ‘unbended’ the sections what I want to work with (can use either fingers or tweezers or etch folding tools, what not. If the issue is yours is so bent there’s little working space, then that should help.)
Third, northstar figures have a bit of a ‘block’ below the feet that can be cut into. I use an etched saw because, unlike a knife, which ‘cut’ material but don’t ‘remove’ material, etched saw ‘removes’ while ‘cutting’ so there’s no stress on the other leg due to the thickness of the blade (which can break a leg). But given there’s plenty of ‘block’ if there’s space to maneuver you can even just break them off with a fine tweezer. I tried cutting and breaking, both seems workable.
I think your issue may be, mostly tool related.
This is what I got to work with:
And the first couple I cut off with minimal loss, see the ‘block’ below walking figure’s feet means there’s a fair bit of margin left, I need to trim them!
Never thought of boiling the little guys … I think I have enough left to give that a try. And I will break out my JLC fine razor saw as well. Thanks!