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Hello Dakka.

I've been looking for a solution for stripping plastic minis for a while now. Simple Green seems to be the favourite, but it is expensive in the UK (if you can even find it). I've had limited success with Dettol and Pinesol but nothing to shout about.

Last week I came across a product on ebay (in the UK) called Biostrip20. It claimed to be an eco friendly paint stripper that was safe to use on 'most plastics'. I decided I would take a chance and buy some to see how it would fare on plastic miniatures. Since no one on Dakka seems to have mentioned Biostrip before I thought I would share my results.

I have some Plastic Marines I bought 2nd hand a while ago as part of a job-lot. Unfortunately they were already quite poorly and heavily painted. This is them after an hour in Biostrip20...



I left them an hour because I wasn't in any rush, but I noticed that even after 10 min the paint had started to blister and was easy to rub off with just my fingers. After an hour I scrubbed them a little with a soft toothbrush and that was all that was needed, the paint pretty much just fell off.

Here is a comparison between one that has been stripped and what it was like before (note: the base wasn't stripped, that's new)...


I gotta say, this stuff is Amazing. With most of these guys it would be hard to tell that they were ever painted.

As for the actual product: it seems to be quite innocuous. It doesn't really smell strong and looks a lot like yoghurt. Actually it smells a bit like yoghurt too, it smells kinda nice (but don't eat it). I used it without gloves and didn't notice any burning or irritation, though it did leave my fingertips feeling a little bit dry. I left a space marine backpack submerged in it overnight last night to see if it would soften the plastic over a long period of time, but it came out perfect and unscathed.

It's difficult for me to find anything negative to say about Biostrip cause it did such an awesome job on everything I tried it on, it worked on Acrylics, Enamels, Spray Primer, it even melted this weird sticky emulation stuff I've been unable to get off my space crusade minis.

There are some negatives though so for the sake of even headedness I will state them... Biggest one is that it was a little bit expensive. I paid around £10 for a 500ml tub after P&P which isn't too bad but it's more than Americans pay for SG. Secondly because it is gloopy like yoghurt it is a bit difficult to reuse it efficiently because a lot of it gets removed from the tub with the minitures and then gets washed away and wasted when you rinse them. The last problem is that it is fairly opaque so if you drop lots of little bits into it then you need to keep notes, or feel around a lot to make sure you've got them all out. I tried watering it down a bit, which I thought might remedy all of the above issues. However it doesn't seem to mix well with water, even though it is apparently water based.


To be honest these are really only minor gripes. This is far and away the best stuff I've found for stripping plastic. I don't know if it is available outside the UK, but for people who can get hold of some I would highly recommend it.

Whoa, i'd love it if you fired this on my Toolbox thread! And if you don't mind could you write a wee post of hints and tips to go with it?

Oh if you see any other gaps in my list then feel free to make suggestions. Fantastic find!

Its like brand new @_@

Edit:

biostripltd is the eBay seller.

look for "Paint Stripper water based enviro friendly 500ml tub" or item number '280575241921'

Good find OP.

Man I wish we could get that here in New Zealand!

I dunno, those look awfully unpainted in your comparison shots. You mind taking pics of them actually in and during the part where you brush them off? Even the best strippers you normally see some type of signs where paint was once

Have to agree with KC - looks way too good to be true

I've used quite a few different paint strippers on plastic and they have all left residue in the harder to get to areas, even after several cycles.

The Termie on the left and the first missle launcher guy has some paint on them still, so I'm willing to play ball. May just be decoys though.

Swordwind wrote:The Termie on the left and the first missle launcher guy has some paint on them still, so I'm willing to play ball. May just be decoys though.

Haha, funnily enough the Termie only has paint left because I soaked him with his arm on (it come loose while scrubbing) so I think the biostrip didn't really get into that part, I think I could get him clean if I dropped him in again. The missile arm has been cemented since it was painted so the paint you see is actually fused into the plastic.

There are some other signs of painting, mainly where paint has come away but left a stain on the plastic, particularly where the models were twisted away from the sprue, but it's probably too subtle to see in the photos.

I dunno, those look awfully unpainted in your comparison shots. You mind taking pics of them actually in and during the part where you brush them off? Even the best strippers you normally see some type of signs where paint was once

Well I really don't have any vested interest in convincing you to use Biostrip, its not like they pay me commission. I was just sharing what I found, and if it hadn't been surprisingly good I wouldn't have bothered posting about it.

But yeah if you like, I'll see if I can get a video of one being stripped (So you know I'm not pulling your leg). Though my gf is already annoyed with me spending too much time on Dakka. If I now go and ask her to hold the camera while I strip for people on Dakka she's gonna kick me in the nuts. But I'll see what I can do.

For reals? If something looks too good to be true...

I'll eagerly await the video. Upon seeing it, if it holds up to claims, then I'm ordering some, right way.

If this is true, I can now repaint all my old models that I did when I started painting last year :O

Ive ordered a tub and paid by Paypal in the event it should suck.

As for the Video, can you not hold the camera and get your gf to strip? Im sure that would be a better video.

GBDarkAngel wrote: get your gf to strip? Im sure that would be a better video.

I lol'd

GBDarkAngel wrote:Can you not hold the camera and get your gf to strip? Im sure that would be a better video.

I'm sure you are right, but I am withholding that video from public release in case I really need to blackmail her later. :p

Instead for your viewing pleasure I have the slightly less spectacular spectacle of me stripping paint, I tried to fast forward through the boring bits for you... But it's all quite boring. The finished models are shown together at the end. The Darker Marine is painted in enamel.

Neat!

Can I confirm that these have been primed beforehand? If you're unsure, could you try priming one with a few layers of Plasti-Kote/Halfords, and then try to strip it?

Popsicle wrote:Neat!

Can I confirm that these have been primed beforehand? If you're unsure, could you try priming one with a few layers of Plasti-Kote/Halfords, and then try to strip it?

I really couldn't say because I didn't paint them. I stripped some that had been covered in some kind of spray paint, but I imagine it was most likely GW spray primer from the 90s. I usually airbrush my miniatures so I don't have any Halford's or Plasti-Kote to test it on.

The manufacturers website lists it as being effective at removing:

Polyester and epoxy powder coatings
Water based coatings
Outdoor varnish
Indoor varnish
Wood stain
Gloss
Hammerite
Toplac (Marine)
Automotive paint
Emulsion
Primers, including aerospace primers
Chrome containing primers
Oil based paints

But I have no way of testing all this. All I can say with any certainty is that it is a purpose built paint stripper (as opposed to a cleaner) that is safe to use on plastic miniatures.

I just looked on eBay and those limy gits only sell to the UK... That stuff looks amazing though. Nice find.

Also no threadjack intended but i came across this while looking for biostrip. It might warrant a look perhaps?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Modellers-PAINT-REMOVER-STRIPPER-50mls-bottle-/380274683620?pt=UK_Toys_Wargames_RL&hash=item588a232ee4#ht_849wt_905

I have to say those are some really impressive results Looking at in on ebay now!

KingCracker wrote:I dunno, those look awfully unpainted in your comparison shots. You mind taking pics of them actually in and during the part where you brush them off? Even the best strippers you normally see some type of signs where paint was once

Look at the missile launcher dudes in the first pic, where the launcher arm joins the body you can just about make out a bunch of blue crap which I would assume is the original paint, and with intense scrutiny there is a tiny bit of paint left in between the shells in the bolter clips.

I contacted the company just to try and find out some basics etc.
They will generally try and ship out the goods within 24 hours of the order (99% of the time).
The courier company they use are under a guarenteed 3 day delivery. (Eg, if you order monday it will be given to the courier on tuesday and you should receive it no later then friday.) However thay stated that normally the courier delivers in 2 days.

I am planning on doing a review myself on this to hopefully back up the findings of Smacks.
I feel however that the 5 Litre would be the dogs bollox @ £35 + delivery and could be split amongst friends at a gaming group etc.
Another interesting note on this is that im 99% positive the lady said you can buy refills for the 5 Litre at a reduced cost. (i will clarify that)

I asked about shipping abroad and was told that they HAVE done this in the past to Germany, France and several other european countries but the sticking point is the Shipping cost but if you wish to call them and get a quote on shipping they will certainly look into it for you.
Their website is http://www.biostrip.co.uk/buy-biostrip/Biostrip20/

I will use my nephew as usual to strip the minis, he has learning difficulties and i let him strip the models for pocket money so if he finds it a lot easier than the normal methods i think its a pretty good endorsment for the product.

Wow, that's... Fantastic, actually. Like, brand new! That's great though, thanks. How does it work getitng GW primer off? That stuff is like cement

Samus_aran115 wrote:Wow, that's... Fantastic, actually. Like, brand new! That's great though, thanks. How does it work getitng GW primer off? That stuff is like cement

Once it arrives i will find out.
I have a load of termies based with chaos black and sprayed bleach bone also so they will get tested first.

Nice one! Gotta get some of this.

To put it bluntly.

This is Benzyl Alcohol in a gel base application.

Not to bad on the stripping application though.

Now what is the cost?

Can anyone confirm whether this stuff is ok to use on metal minis as well, with particular regards to the lead ones from the 90's?

Adam LongWalker wrote:To put it bluntly.

This is Benzyl Alcohol in a gel base application.

Not to bad on the stripping application though.

Now what is the cost?

Not too unlike Purell (Isopropyl in a gel-base) or those gel burners you see at catered banquets.... hmm... nifty...

Not too unlike Purell (Isopropyl in a gel-base) or those gel burners you see at catered banquets.... hmm... nifty...

I soak mine in 91% Isopropyl Alcohol and get similar results.

I am still curious on the cost of this item and see if it is cost effective enough for my use in certain situations.

Because this application is interesting to me. I do not remember seeing an alcohol based product in a gel base form.

Just to update: I've stripped about 50 miniatures now. Most (not all) came out clean first go. A few needed extra cycles. I think it would be fair to say that all so far have cleaned up well enough to be repainted to a good standard.

I had an idea that this stuff might also weaken super glue bonds as well as paint. Now I'm certain of it, many of my models that had been quite firmly glued have come apart easily after soaking.

On the subject of gloves... Gloves are still recommended. The product isn't irritating, but it does cause skin to become quite dry and flaky over time.

RossDas wrote:Can anyone confirm whether this stuff is ok to use on metal minis as well, with particular regards to the lead ones from the 90's?

I can confirm that this is okay to use on metal... However: Nearly all paint strippers are okay to use on metal, including the heavy duty solvent-based ones (which melt plastic). You can pick up Nitromors at any hardware store which is fine to use on metal and very fast acting (just don't use it on plastic).

Smacks wrote:Just to update: I've stripped about 50 miniatures now. Most (not all) came out clean first go. A few needed extra cycles. I think it would be fair to say that all so far have cleaned up well enough to be repainted to a good standard.

I had an idea that this stuff might also weaken super glue bonds as well as paint. Now I'm certain of it, many of my models that had been quite firmly glued have come apart easily after soaking.

On the subject of gloves... Gloves are still recommended. The product isn't irritating, but it does cause skin to become quite dry and flaky over time.

RossDas wrote:Can anyone confirm whether this stuff is ok to use on metal minis as well, with particular regards to the lead ones from the 90's?

I can confirm that this is okay to use on metal... However: Nearly all paint strippers are okay to use on metal, including the heavy duty solvent-based ones (which melt plastic). You can pick up Nitromors at any hardware store which is fine to use on metal and very fast acting (just don't use it on plastic).

Thanks Smacks; I'm quite fond of my old Undead and High Elf minis and it's good to know I can clean up the likes of Dieter Helsnicht for repainting without worry.
Cheers!