I recently got the Verlinden interior set for the Tiger I, but some of the big parts were warped. I was reading here and there that a dip in hot water would sraighten them out, so I tried it, but it didn’t work well enough.
I thought maybe boiling water would help–warped one part even worse.
I thought since I already had water boiling, why not try the steam.
This worked great, so I though I’d share my idea here.
First I boiled some water in my teapot. I left the spout open so the steam could escape in a controlled manner.
I then held the warped part in the steam for a few seconds (until it started to bend)
I placed the part on a piece of glass, then took two ice cubes and pressed down on the part with the ice.
The ice rapidly cooled the part, making it hold its new straight shape. I help the ice on the part for about a minute or so.
This idea probably isn’t new, but I haven’t worked with resin that much, so it’s new to me. Maybe it will help someone else, too.
I think I covered it all, if you have any questions, I will try to clarify for you.
Once resin gets hot, like around 150 to 180 degrees F, it gets soft and you can bend it into the desired shape. The real trick is to hold the shape and then dip in cold water to lock it in. Sometimes with severely warped pieces you must repeat the process. Whether you use steam or near boiling water does not matter - just acquire the temperature and set the shape.
Yea, I only used steam as an afterthought b/c the full boiling water seemed too hot and the tap wouldn’t get it hot enough. The cold water worked for me on some of the small er or less warped pieces, but the ice worked great for the long pieces that I couldn’t get totally straight without laying on a flat surface. Is there an easy way to get the peices straight using a jig or something?
Just thought I’d resurrect this one. Tried it with steam on my Commander Models M1A2 37mm AA gun and it worked like a charm. Straightened the chassis, sights and gun barrel with minimal effort.