Questions about 1/43 metal parts

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sportandmiah
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Questions about 1/43 metal parts

Post by sportandmiah »

Hello all

Over the years, I have collected a handful of 1/43 metal body car kits, mostly Porsches, 911, 917, Lemans, etc, that I have yet to build. My questions pertain to the sanding, prepping, and fixing of the body. Are you using solder or something else to fix holes and pits? Are the bodies easy to sand or fix misshapes? I have a nice colleciton of swiss files, sanding tools, and so on. Also, what type of primer? I have built countless plastic 1/24 kits, but have yet to build a metal body kit.

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Re: Questions about 1/43 metal parts

Post by dgwoodward2 »

Welcome to the world of 1/43. Working with metal is a bit different that traditional plastic or even resin kits. Remember, my comments are based on my experience and might differ from others on the forum. The one thing about this hobby is that there are usually multiple paths to get you to the same destination. Here are my thoughts.

Prepping, fixing the metal body. For these activities, I personally just use a file (for larger issues) or a sanding stick/pad/sponge to worth the area to the desired contour/smoothness. My person favorite for several years now have been the Alpha abrasive sticks that come in 1/8" and 1/4" widths. They tend to be small enough to get close to most areas I need to reach. Also look out for mold lines, etc. to make sure you have worn them away. Sometimes, prior to sanding, I will actually use a knife to cut the raised area away. Be careful not to nick the surface however as you then have a gouge to deal with. The Alpha sticks come is several grits so you can use the courser ones to wear the area down and then the finer ones for smoothing it out. You can also use a Dremel tool, but I have not always had great luck with them so I tend to just work using hands. Once I get the body to where I want it from a structural place, I check for obvious pits, etc. in the metal. For these areas I usually will use the brush version of Mr. Surfacer or even putty in real deep areas. Then I just keep working the area until it is smooth. I personally do not use solder as a filler. I do use solder for welding wings, etc. at times.

As a final touch before any real primer, many times I will also use finer steel wool as a last surface prep. Some may discourage this as if the surface is "polished" too much, it may make it harder for the primer to bite onto the metal surface. I most recently have been using some metal primer from Gunze to see if it improves the etching of the metal for the primer/paint adhesion. From a primer perspective, I usually lean toward either Mr. Surfacer (spray or thinned from the bottle in an airbrush) or Tamiya primer (spray or decanted to a bottle and airbrushed also). I have had a lot of luck with the lacquer based paints and primers for the bodies of kits. It is just my preference.

One other thing to consider in this whole thing of surface prep is what to do about panel lines. I go back and forth. If you are a panel line fan and want to etch out the lines, obviously it is best done early in case you need to fill around the area.

One great thing about working with metal is that if you don't like the result you are getting, you can just dip the thing in thinner and strip the paint away and start over. I was building a yellow indycar and just was never happy with the final result and started the body over at least 3 times. Each time, I did something just a bit more that helped the issue I didn't like about the last. And even now when I look at the build in my case, I plan on redoing it again some day. The only thing to think about here is that any parts you attached, will most likely detach as the thinner will usually eat away the glue. Which brings up another item, you did not ask about and that is the glue type to use for metal parts if they are not soldered together. You did not ask, but I will add a comment here. I use a combination of some CA type super glue (usually from a hobby shop as I think the formulations are a bit different) or epoxy. I have had luck with both and go back and forth on which I prefer any given moment.

I am sorry if I rambled on, but several things came to mind as I was typing. Good luck, and ask more if needed. We are always here to help. Oh, and one last thing. Make sure you have a good magnifier if you plan on doing much in 1/43.
Last edited by dgwoodward2 on Thu Mar 04, 2021 11:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Questions about 1/43 metal parts

Post by sportandmiah »

Wow, thank you for the thoughtful and helpful response! I’ve seen some of your work and it is excellent.
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Re: Questions about 1/43 metal parts

Post by jorgeralvear »

I’ve built quite a few Tameo and Renaissance 1/43 kits and I second everything DGWoodward2 said in his post, CA glue for most bits with epoxy for parts that need positioning so you have more time to get them the way you want. Mr Surfaced for pits in the metal and Tameo primer. Always airbrush the paint, spray cans quickly fill in small details.
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Re: Questions about 1/43 metal parts

Post by sportandmiah »

How about panel lines...can your scribe metal? Are panel lines as easily fixed as they are in plastic kits?

Thanks for the input so far guys, extremely helpful!
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