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Hey Dakka! Took a huge break from 40k and starting to get into the funk of things again but i was curious if there was anyway to remove paint (and spraypaint) from models without damaging them?

Also has anyone else had a problem with the GW Skull White spray paint? it ended up drying in some spots with this rough, bubbly texture. Ive used the chaos black spray forever and never had this problem... (Can shaken well before and during use, not to close to the models while spraying either)

Thanks Dakka! Good to be back!

Any acetone based cleaner will work on metal, I reccomend nail-polish remover. For plastic, I soak them in Simple Green for 24 hours then scrub them.

Hi there NeedsMoreDakka,

I don't know the best ways, but here is what I've heard. For metal miniatures, Pine-Sol is terrific! I soak my metals for An hour or two and retreat if necessary. For Plastics use Simple Green, which is available here in the States. I understand you need to spend hours soaking plastics in the Simple Green, but it won't damage the plastic so leave it overnight.

Then, take a toothbrush and toothpick to your models and clean out the recesses.

That is how I clean my models As for the spray paint, you might be holding the can too far away, or it may be very dry? If the paint starts drying in the air on it's way to the model, it can get gritty and sandy.

Anyways, I'm the worst painter I know, but I hope this helps a little Good luck, and enjoy your hobbying!
-- Frankie

Ninja'd you, Frankie!

A quick search would have found several threads about this. In short, the answer to all your stripping woes, is Simple Green. Dunk the models in it full strength for a day or two and scrub em with an old toothbrush.

Thanks for the advice all!

P.S. trying to keep anything a nice solid white color is BRUTAL, definatly need more practice.

Yeah, with spray I find several gentle coats are best, and I've found that skull white out of the pot is pretty much useless for anything other than blending your own shades...

I use nail polish remover on the end of a que tip, works well without any damage. It does take some time though.

That's an interesteing idea... I'd never thought of using Q-tips before. Thanks for the inspiration, Kaidsin!

Keep in mind that acetone (nail polish remover) WILL melt plastic if left in contact for more than a second or two.

I use simple green for everything, metal and plastic. I soak them for 3-4 days (yea i know its a long time) Then put then under water and use a tooth brush for the cracks and such. I did this to models that were caked on with paint I got from a trade. He used what it looked like Sherman Williams paint and the models had like a inch think of paint on them. Paint came off like butter.

Todosi wrote:Keep in mind that acetone (nail polish remover) WILL melt plastic if left in contact for more than a second or two.

Very good to know! Was going to try nail polish remover but im definatly waiting on Simple Green now...any idea where i could buy some? should i just order online or should a hardware store have it?

I just stripped 30+ Chaos Marines. I used Acitone FREE nailpolish remover. It came out with amazing results, some models that I bought had a lot of coats it took off most of those and thinned the first coat.

I prefer Green Works for metal models not plastic just because simple green takes too long and I like to get things done fast. A wash with nailpolish remover will strip a model in about 4 minutes, and if you don't get it all off the first time soak it for another four and your good to go! (8 minutes > 24 Hours).

To do it simply pour the nailpolish remover in a bowl, submerse your minis, then after 4-5 minutes take them out and scrub them.

It works well getting all the details in minis out (Space marine under armor, eyes, ect.) without damaging them.

Good luck with whatever method you use!

-Revackey



EDIT: Simple green can be found at just about any grocery store. http://www.simplegreen.com/products_all_purpose_cleaner.php

Metal models are very easy to strip. THe best product I have ever used was Klean-Strip paint stripper, it comes in a can and spays on very easily. In a second or two the paint litterally melts right off the model. Rinse them under water and scrub cracks and recesses with a tooth brush to finish them off. Be sure you wear hand protection, as this stuff will eat skin too. If this happens, run your hands under water to neutralize the reaction. Easy off oven cleaner is my next choice but requires some more elbow grease to get a good finished product.

Simple green works best on plastic, but an old friend of mine told me that some forms of easy off oven cleaner can strip plastic models as well, because many ovens use plastic components. I'd look into this more if I were you.

NeedsMoreDakka wrote:Very good to know! Was going to try nail polish remover but im definatly waiting on Simple Green now...any idea where i could buy some? should i just order online or should a hardware store have it?

Funny story. I asked the same question here about a year ago, and was directed to the simple green website. I checked where they sold it, and yes, they did sell it in my country but after a week or two of looking in hardware stores, supermarkets etc I went back to the website and emailed them, saying that I'd heard good things about their product, why I wanted it, and that I'd be a regular customer if it was only possible to buy it in my town. A few weeks later there was a shelf full of it at my local supermarket and a slapped-together-looking ad playing regularly on TV. Just goes to show what us wargamers can get done!

brother_zach wrote:
Simple green works best on plastic, but an old friend of mine told me that some forms of easy off oven cleaner can strip plastic models as well, because many ovens use plastic components. I'd look into this more if I were you.

Lol, I use simple green on my oven. After using it on minis I realised it's actually just a really good all purpose cleaner, I keep a bottle in my kitchen and bathroom in addition to the one I keep for stripping paint.

I use Heavy Duty Easy-Off. Works on everything in one go and won't harm plastic. Mind you its Sodium Hydroxide(LYE) so be careful.

Oh and I've tried all forms of Easy-Off. None of them harm or soften plastic. New or even the old stuff from rogue trader days. Heavy Duty is just overall better because it can strip paint in as little as 5 minutes. I've never had to wait more than 30 min to strip anything with it unless it was so gunky it needed to coats.

simple green for plastic, brake fluid for metal.

Dont think you can get this Green Stuff in the UK. I used acetone for stripping my metal minis and break fluid for stripping my plastic minis(also worked for metals as MisterMoon said). I used a toothbrush to brush off the paint and toothpick to get to the tight areas.

Super Clean engine degreaser, the kind that comes in the purple jug. seems to be the cheapest and most effective way to strip paint off of models. It can work on plastic and metal and can be dumped down the sink, unlike brake fluid which must be taken to a specified location that can deal with haz-mat

acetone free nail polish remover can destroy models according to various reports.

SamplesoWoopass wrote:acetone free nail polish remover can destroy models according to various reports.

From my experience, that is completely false, it worked like a charm.

SamplesoWoopass wrote:acetone free nail polish remover can destroy models according to various reports.

Add one more report to that list, acetone free nail polish remover WRECKED this one

dammit.

Are there any risks using the simple green or is it cool to just let it soak for a day or so and come back to it whenever?

Simple green works really well, IF you keep the fluid agitated. This means stirring, and if you have some place to be in the period of 2-3 days this also means rigging up a automated stirring device.

I recommend a rumble pack off of an old gamecube controller glued to a popsicle stick. Crude and ghetto but really effective and cuts down on time by about 50%.

I did tests. Really.

Good Luck!
-Nick

Simple Green can damage metal models, making them brittle, if you leave it in for too long. Like a few months.

Hey check out my thread, I stripped 150 orks with super clean, works will with both metal and plastic. Doesn't melt plastic, biodgradeable, and easy to get.

NeedsMoreDakka wrote:

SamplesoWoopass wrote:acetone free nail polish remover can destroy models according to various reports.

Add one more report to that list, acetone free nail polish remover WRECKED this one

dammit.

Are there any risks using the simple green or is it cool to just let it soak for a day or so and come back to it whenever?

Again, what brand did you use?

Acitone free worked the best for me.

revackey wrote:
Again, what brand did you use?

Acitone free worked the best for me.

I got acitone free, it was in giant letters on the bottle, turned the model into rubber which would be pretty cool if i wasnt excited to paint it

Oh well, tax free weekend is now so i at least saved a couple bucks buying a new one.

Well, I'm not sure what happened there, must be a special brand.

I apologize for the pain I have brought on :O, good luck with your others then.

For the UK folks, Simple Green is a just a water based cleaner. I'm sure they make something like that for the UK market. If not the US military uses Simple Green- if you are near a US military base that could be an option.

Or, they can use simple green anyway:
http://www.simplegreen.co.uk/