"Flash and mold lines and such." Topic

Gotta ask about this….

I did a small order from Rebel Minis last week, of Earth Force marines. I told myself that I wasn't going to order anything until I got some of my existing stuff painted, but I couldn't resist.

(This is why I have waaaay too much lead.)

They showed up remarkably quickly, and I started working on them last night. The first thing that I noticed was that I forgot to order the command pack, so there's another order in my nearish future.

The second thing was that the casts of the Wild CATs mecha are amazing. Really sharp, really clear, and the little guys stood up without even needing basing.

But the Marines themselves are really rough, and are going to take an awful lot of work. Heavy mold lines on a number of them, lots of flash around the guns and the backpacks, and the bases are going to need a LOT of filing. There's one or two that I might have to just convert to casualties….

But now I'm wondering: at this scale, how much of a problem is this going to be? I've not painted too many 15s, and I have to wonder how visible some of these flaws are really going to be at this scale.

What's your experience been? How crazy do I need to make myself?

1. Dremel tool is your friend.

2. Not too crazy the people I play with are squinting too see the detail and from 3 feet away they can't spot inperfections at all.

Sounds like the Earthforce Marines mold might be getting worn out – you might want to email Rebel Mike and let him know. I bought mine a couple years ago (and some are still unfinished). They were pretty clean castings.

But I've received a few other rough castings (like a few of the old Laserburn figures). My advice: focus your cleaning on "smooth" surfaces, like helmets and face shields. Mold lines on fabric or segmented armor surfaces (arms, legs, backpacks, most weapons) generally disappear once painted.

For the integrated figure bases, Dremels are certainly nice when you get the hang of them. Or you can just get by with a big metalworking file – they'll chew through soft pewter pretty quickly.

-Chris K.

Just got my order today and had a pack of the earth force. Mine are pretty good with a tad of flash at the end of the guns. The bottom of the bases will require filing but I always do that. Some bases are rougher than others but that's the only problem. Wonder if you got a bad cast ?

But now I'm wondering: at this scale, how much of a problem is this going to be? I've not painted too many 15s, and I have to wonder how visible some of these flaws are really going to be at this scale.

Tidy them up.
I make sure my 6mm are all flash free and smooth, you can see it otherwise, painting just highlights the issues.
15mm will be even more obvious.

I`m with Angel Barracks. Have seen too many nice paint jobs spoilt by still visible mold lines.
I usually spend more time cleaning up than painting my 15s ;-).

I second Chris's theory and suggestion. I've painted up about 100 Earth Force without much cleanup. That said, i think I purchased most of them in 2011.

Wonder if you got a bad cast ?

The rebel stuff I've got (mostly modern as I don't fancy the look of their sci fi models) have had pretty heavy mould lines on them as well. You can clean that up, but only to a point.

Hmm, the packs I have here look ok, but let me check with the caster. It might be time to do a new mold. Thanks for the heads up!
Mike