Painting Real Small Parts
by Bill Wolfe
While I know that, for the most part, everyone reading this details the kits they build to the 10th degree. I came up with an idea for those kits that have no after-market details available. I say I came up with it, but it’s really an idea stolen from the aircraft guys and their cockpit woes.
Let’s say your building a kit and you like the look of the tool brackets. The problem is, if you go ahead and just glue them to the hull you will have to be VERY careful when painting the tool heads and handles later and if your like me you’ll end up getting some of the tool paint on the AFV. So what to do?
Well you could stick the tools in foam or tape it down to some cardboard or something but I found that many of the tools are too small and hard to handle with these methods. For example, what about an axe head with no handle that attaches to the hull with two brackets. Give this a try; Glue the parts in their position with a drop of white glue in the tool parts holes on the hull or turret.
Leave them to dry over night or you will end up knocking them off while handling (how do you think I learned this!)
Airbrush the kit as usually do including the tools that have been attached with the white glue.
Once the kit is completely painted and washed, remove the tools and paint the heads and handles in whatever color you choose. Reattach the tools with super glue, as plastic cement won’t hold on painted plastic.
There are two benefits of this method:
1) there will be outlines (not noticeable when finished) of where the tools go after painting.
2) the base coat of paint on the tools will act as a primer making the tool painting easier.
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