"Priming and Assembly of Multi-Part Plastic Figures" Topic

Hi guys,

I have a couple questions.
#1. I searched the subject priming plastic figures and found Rustoleum Specialty Plastic Primer was recommended in 2011. Is this still the best?

#2. On the multi-part figures that need to be glued, do you recommend complete assembly before priming or assemble after primed and painted?
The reason I ask is access to the torso on figs holding a weapon is a little tight when completely assembled. If you assemble after primed and painted, do you mask off the joints to get good bonding when glued so it is bare surface to bare surface?

#3. Do you mount your figs on a temporary base when painting such as a dowel rod? If you do, what glue do you recommend?

Thank you very much for your time.

Tony

I do all my plastic figures while they are still on the sprue.
ymmv,
R

Assuming hard plastic figures like perry or victrix. Assemble first with a proper polystyrene cement. Then prime (I use humbrol enamel). If you assemble after painting you will get a very weak joint and damage the paint job. I have built many hundreds of these things. The ones that have fallen apart have been those I assembled after painting.

I've been working with styrene plastic since 1964. I have never primed a piece and never had a problem. I recommend painting the torso details and weapon details (belts, firing locks, etc.) prior to assembly since you have better access.

1: That spray is fine. Rustoleum and Krylon both make camouflage lines of spray which are safe on plastic, cover well, dry quickly and dry very flat.

2: I prefer assembling the figures completely and just deal with odd painting angles figure poses can cause.

3: I glue the figure to its permanent individual plastic game base with model cement or metal fender washer with white glue depending on the game the troops are for, and then paint them

1. I use Walarmt flat black primer. Cover plastic great without a loss of any detail, and is cheap.

2. I assemble first using Ten-X 7R plastic weld.

3. I use Duco Household cement to glue them to large nails. The glue is thick so figs stick easily, pop right off when done, and the nail is easy to turn to paint the fig. I stand them in a styrofoam block to dry.

I just prime with white brush on acrylic paint after I do a complete assembly.Like Sigwald I just deal with the weird angles & tiny spaces.

1. I use the Rustoleum Flat White primer you can get at Wal-Mart and most all home stores(in the US) or just the 96 cent Walmart brand white. The Wal-Mart white doesnt cover well on a pass, but as primer is your first coat of paint on the model its better to do thin coats you build up then one quick thick coat. Krylon is good, except their new spray nozzles are a joke.

2. I assemble with Plastruct Plastic Weld, the brush on stuff and then deal with the odd area's as I go. Sometimes depending on the area I dont fuss to much, since it will likely be hard to see anyways.

3. All of the above ideas are great. I used to just hold the model by the base I glued it to, then used the sport drink bottle cap and Blu-Tac method but now I use a dowel system I build out of 7/8th dowels and a 2 x 4 as the stand. Since I put washers in the bottom of all my bases I put some magnets into the dowel's top and just magnatize the base to the dowel. Haven't had a problem with them falling off.

I use Gesso as a primer on all my figures metal or plastic

I don't prime plastics. 15 years painting and no dramas yet.

For priming of plastic figs, I've used lots of products and they all work fine.
-Gesso
-One buck store brand spray. Most every hardware or big box has this stuff (the name varries) in black and white, once in a while you'll find grey or ruddy brown primer as well.
-Krylon and Rustoleum primers grey, dark grey, ruddy brown, etc.
-Krylon and Rustoleum camo sprays. (love these!)
If there's something from the above list in a suitable base color I'll use it to combine priming and basecoat in one step.

I always assemble the figs and glue them to a base and then paint. The base has always been enough for me to hold on to while painting. However, if you're multi-basing, then gluing them to a cork or popsicle stick or sprue, etc is probably best.

I spray on sprue- no particular brand, just make sure its a thin coat so you don't flood the details.

Remove from sprue then paint.

Assemble with superglue. I breathe on the non glue surface, as superglue is activated by water. I recently read on another forum that dusting the non glue surface with baking powder produces an instantaneous and strong bond, but not tried it myself.

I sometimes file joins first to expose the plastic again.

If you use a black spray primer – airbrush if you have it – it gets into all the tricky bits, and if you then don't manage to get block colour in it doesn't matter; it's just another area of shadow.