| Cuchulainn | 19 May 2012 11:15 a.m. PST |
I'm looking at the hull of the Airfix 1/1200 scale Bismarck, and think it looks just awful. The waterline is so low on this kit the instructions actually suggest painting the model with a large amount of draught showing, as if the ship was needing to be fully provisioned. Would a hot wire be able to cut the excess hull off the model and leave it looking a little lower? |
| fairoaks024 | 19 May 2012 11:46 a.m. PST |
no, basically. best way to do it is with a razor saw or jewellers saw, then smooth with fine samdpaper or wet and dry paper. regards jim |
| David Manley | 19 May 2012 11:51 a.m. PST |
I've used them and they work fine. What you find is that the plastic often reattaches behind the wire as it passes, but if it does the weld is very weak and thin, and so you can snap it off or ease it apart using a knife. |
Chef Lackey Rich  | 19 May 2012 12:02 p.m. PST |
What David said – you'll generally still need to do some sanding to get a nice smooth line afterward, though. I'd advise practicing a bit on scrap sprue or a sheet plastic sign to get a feel for how your tool handles a given thickness of material first, and for safety's sake, do all the work outdoors in a well-ventilated area. Fumes from melting plastic are not good for you. |
| Mako11 | 19 May 2012 12:19 p.m. PST |
A belt sander would probably be easier to use, and make for a more even waterline. |
 John the OFM  | 19 May 2012 4:39 p.m. PST |
The problem with a hot wire is that it will follow the line of least resistance, and may bnot give you a straight cut. |
| Cuchulainn | 19 May 2012 5:55 p.m. PST |
Hmm… for some reason I never thought of a belt sander. I will have to do a bit of measuring to see exactly where the cut needs to be. However, looking at the hull it might be that it'll have to be through solid plastic, not like a 1/600 scale Airfix kit which would be two sheets with a hollow between. If that is the case, maybe I'd better go down the sander route? |
| Charlie 12 | 19 May 2012 8:58 p.m. PST |
Use a belt sander? You're kidding, of course? Having worked in a woodworking shop in the past that strikes me as a sure fire way to get yourself a trip to the emergency room. |
| Katzbalger | 20 May 2012 7:39 a.m. PST |
Having used belt sanders in my foolish teens and early twenties, I can say from experience that a belt sander accident will generally NOT result in a trip to the hospital. A circular saw accident, on the other hand…well, the less said the better. For belt sander, you can actually do this relatively safely by carefully clamping the the model upside down. Rob |
| hindsTMP | 20 May 2012 3:08 p.m. PST |
I have dealt with this issue numerous times over the years, from 1/1200 scale down to 1/6000 scale. The best way to do it is to clamp a large, sharp, metal file to a table. (The file needs to be larger than the ship hull). You then place the model on top of the metal file, and move the model in a appropriate direction to remove material. The key here is to check your progress frequently by removing the model from the file, placing it on a flat surface, and checking it from different angles at eye level. You may want to mark in advance the amount of material to be removed using a pencil. I would not recommend either a hot wire setup, nor power tools for something this small. MH |
John Leahy  | 20 May 2012 6:40 p.m. PST |
I game with 1/700 ship models and have had to deal with this before. You can score the line you want to cut then snap it off. Thanks, John |
