"Prepping and Priming 1/144th Shapeways Armor?" Topic

Just curious if anyone has any tips for prepping, priming, and painting the 1/144th scale, Shapeways, White Strong Flexible (WSF) printed plastic, Cold War vehicles?

I asked about this on an older thread, and with the 20% off discount, and free shipping today, ordered a couple of BMPs to try out:

TMP link

I'm wondering if there are any tips for getting rid of the graininess of the WSF material, by sanding, priming, or filling it in some way, before painting?

Would love to see some close up, painted examples of the BMP-1s, BRMs, and/or other Cold War vehicles, if anyone has any of those to share.

My BRMs are not finished yet (and probably won't be for a few weeks due to moving for a new job), so no photos available.

Soak the kits in warm water with dish washing soap for about an hour, then rinse thoroughly. When dry, prime with automotive primer. The graininess varies by vehicle. I found thicker layers of primer and/or paint hides most of them. You can sand or scrape some of the grains off, but that is a lot of work for something hard to see on the table.

Black washing will bring out the grains if you do not build up a clear layer over the paint before washing. I use a 1:4 Magic wash mix, but found 2 coats of clear mix or gloss clear spray provides a good base for the black wash. You would expect the grains to be most visible on flat sides like an M113, but with 2 layers of clear, you can't see them.

Thanks for the tips, CS.

I really appreciate them.