I’ve just purchased MDC’s resin cockpit upgrade for a BF 109 G6. I’ve never worked with resin parts before - is there anything special I should be aware of when working with resin specifically regarding cleanup of parts, priming the parts prior to painting, special glues necessary etc?
Mate,
Resin details can be fantastic - far more detail possible than injection molded plastic - it’s easy to cut, saw, sand and carve…but remember that polyurethane resins contain isocyanates - not good for your health…wear, at a minimum, a good quality dust mask when sanding, and when possible, use wet-or-dry, wet, to minimise dust.
Sometimes, specific resin details could be made for the same plane you’re working on - but made for a different manufacturer’s model - sometimes you need to do a lot of test fitting.
It will only glue with cyanoacrylates - don’t bother with styrene glue. Won’t work.
It’ll paint up just fine with your favorite paints - enamel, acrylic - whatever…prime as you would with plastics.
Remember, the stuff tends to be brittle, and thin section stuff can be broken very easily.
Good luck!
I’ve heard that Swanny’s Models Video #2; Resin and PE cockpits is helpful [:-^]
If resin is molded much the same way as plastic, why can they get so much more detail?
If you’ve only modelled plastic (like me) then the level of detail with resin will astound you. I couldn’t believe the level of detail in the cockpit, specifically the piping along the sidewalls. MDC have done an amazing job on the cockpit I ordered (for an ME 109 G6)
You should wash the parts with warm, soapy water first. Be very carful when cutting them away from the pour stubs. Resin is more brittle than styrene and can snap when you least expect it.
Assemble with Super Glue (CA), and prime before painting.
Enjoy working with it. Resin ROCKS!
Regards, PWB.
I think the answer on molding details comes from two areas. The first is the viscosity of the medium, namely melted styrene vs liquid resin. The resin is lower viscosity and can flow into much smaller volumes without impediment from surface tension and flow problems. The second is that the small molds used to produce resin aftermarket parts are generally produced by craftsman who take the extra time to produce that level of detail. Were a styrene kit to be produced with molds at this level of detail the price would be enormous. I really think it’s the first item that’s the real issue though.
dcaponell, thanks for the answer about resin details. It was just something I have always been curious about.
The main reason is because if the molds, injection uses hard steel molds which will produce thousands of shots and resin uses flexible molds which need to be replaced fairly often. With a flexible mold you can use detail that has negative relief, meaning the model can actually go behind the part that is being produced and still be removed. With a steel mold it is not possible to do negative relief because the mold would just rip off the part as it was removed. The easiest thing I can think of to show this is an injection model piece that has a fire extinguisher on it. If you look at it the bottle does not have the bottom side rounded off, it just meets the other piece at 90 degrees. If it did go more than 90 degrees you would not be able to remove the part from the mold since the mold is rigid. Hope that answers your question.