I just recieved an ABER photo etched set for my Tamiya 1/35 Tiger I early kit.
WOW[:0][:0] Those are SMALL parts…This is my first attempt at photo etched , can you offer any TIPS on handling and working these teeny parts. Thanks. Mark
From what I’ve heard, Aber is very nice, but will make you want to pull your hair out trying to construct it. An Etchmate and some razor blades are necessary to construct, but by no means a must. I’m sure some pros with more experience will give you a lowdown. Good luck and welcome to the forums.
My only advice is this:
Be patient!
Only work with a few parts at a time
Use a magnifier (I use an optivisor myself)
Make sure you use a new x-acto blade to separate the parts
Hold a finger tip over the part during separation (prevents shots across the room)
Use a shallow container (I use a yogurt lid) to hold your unattached parts
Good flat tweezers, razor blades, and even your fingernails can be used to fold the parts
and finally
Keep a bottle of nail polish remover at hand in case the CA glue gets out of hand!
Hope this helps…
Again forgive my ignorance , I am new to this lingo
CA glue? is that super glue?[:I]
Take some masking tape and lay it sticky side up under the area or pieces you are going to cut. Lay the PE on this and press. The PE will stick to the tape and prevent it from flipping off and ending up someplace you’ll never find it when you cut it.
Cut on a hard surface. If you cut on a cutting mat, the “give” of the mat will allow the brass to bend a little as you press down to cut and distort that edge.
Clean the PE before you use it. ANy oils from handling or residue chemistry may interfere with the glue bond.
What Foster said. Did he mention patients?
Sounds like Renarts also has some good ideas too. Like him, I always clean my PE, but I have not noticed a difference.
I will add a few more things:
- Make sure you have the right tools. I have a couple different pair of those little pliers, a couple different round nose ones and some flat nosed ones. I think I got the pliers for $4 a piece and they were well worth it. I also have an Etch-mate, but I only use it for pieces with long bends. I would skip the Etch-Mate unless you end up using PE on a lot of your models. The right tools can really make things less frustrating!!
- I sand my PE with fine grit sand paper before I start cutting parts off the sheet. I don’t sand very hard because I don’t want to remove any of the detail, but sanding will help the paint stick better.
- wait until the last possible minute to apply the PE to the model. It will break off easily and surly get lost if it is handled too much.
- HAVE PATIENTS!!! Seriously, taking your time will save you some frustration. It may take a while to get used to manipulating those little parts, so take your time!!
- Don’t feel obligated to use the entire PE sheet that Aber has included. I did this with my first Aber sheet, and the model has still not been completed.
Good luck, and keep us up to date
Yes, super glue for lack of a better term. “CA” is the abreviated slang for the chemical composition for these glues and much easier to remember. Photo etch have to be attached using CA glues because normal solvent-based glues will not adhere the metal to plastic.
renarts, great tip using reversed masking tape! Another tip to put into the stack for future use.
- I find it helpful to buy two sets of PE for each model. You throw the first kit over your right shoulder as an offering to the Great God Tweezerpult in hope of avoiding his wrath.
- If you remove the lenses from a pair of glasses, you can attach funnels that will direct all flying pieces directly into your eye to save time.
- Glue your fingers together about an hour before you begin to get used to it a little.
- Tape your mouth shut, you’ll avoid inhaling all those clamp pieces.
Seriously, the only addition I have found helpful, with the tool clamps, instead of killing yourself trying to assemble a four piece working clamp loose on the bench, glue the base to the model, then at least you have two hands to fight, and when you do finally get it together and you face is beaming, it doesn’t disappear into ether or fall apart before your eyes.
Now that is a great tip ausf !! Those tiny clamps have had me runing around the house screaming.
I have heard some people anneal (heat to red hot with a gas torch or similar, then let cool) PE to improve it’s bendability. I haven’t worked with PE yet, so someone might be able to clarify this, but I know it works with copper pipe.
Okay, good luck to you. Aber for your first set is kind of like jumping into the deep end when you haven’t been in the pool before. But have patience and keep cool. Don’t let the parts get to you. (You’ll see what we mean when you start on those 3 part clamps of theirs.)
A couple of thinks to add. After you cut the piece of pe from the fret, you will need to clean the attachment point up a bit. You can use a file, but be very careful or you will launch the part into never never land and Michael Jackson hates all these photo etch parts winding up at his ranch!! I prefer to clean the attachment points up with a sanding stick. For me, it’s easier.
Second, don’t try to make the parts, like the tool clamps and the hinges workable. They are engineered so they can do that. But they are very fragile and very hard to do that way. I made the mistake of trying to do both. I worked on one of the tool clamps for over 2 hours before giving up and just gluing all the parts together. And, I havent touched the model (a mid Tiger I, by the way) in over 5 months! Very frustrating!!
Some modlers like to bathe their pe in vinegar for about 5 minutes or so just to give a bit of etched surface to the parts. I’ve never done that , but it sounds reasonable.
Very best of luck to you. Please keep asking questions, we’ll all try to help, and be sure and post lots of pictures of your progress.
Welcome to the forum and to the darkside!