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I'm trading some of the O&G models I have and don't need for some Tau to start up 40k. Included in the lot is a Hammerhead that is painted well, but I would like to redo it. What's the easiest way to strip this?

the biggest thing i have done is a rhino, predator, and oop vindicator at once. I have great success with Purple power cleaner/de-greaser. What i did was found a bucket or some kind of container and submerged them in the solution and found something to weigh them down so they didn't float. I let them soak for like 12 hours just cause I wanted to make sure that it got all of it off but only a few hours is needed.

Picture of the bottle I used. Its relatively cheap and can be found in hardware stores like lowes, home depot, and walmart. I also found it at car parts places as well.
http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/096582/096582432001lg.jpg

Awesome, that doesn't seem as hard as I thought. Thanks!

Many people say that Simple Green works as well just as another option. I haven't tried it out. Both require copious amounts of scrubbing with a toothbrush as well.

I have done Simple Green ... an entire Chaos Army.

And it works.

And yea there is some scrubbing and you may not get it all off. Base coats / Primers.

But i removed like 8 layers from my models i bought online.

All that removed in i would say 24 hours of soaking and 2-3 hours scrubbing 50+ models.
Vehicles tend to be a problem with all their dam pointy bits that will fall off if your not careful.

I could have scrubbed more but i was lazy they turned out amazing after i base coated them.

Hypothetical question: If a model is painted correctly, i.e. thinned paints to conserve detail, would it be noticeable if you just sprayed primer over it?

So, what does one do if their model appears coated in Krylon?

It depends on how thick your primer is. Generally speaking, it's better to strip than repaint. Also, while a toothbrush is the accepted cleaning tool, I found a Sonic Scrubber at the local big-box that takes paint removal to a whole new level. It comes with a variety of brushes (firmness and shape) and is basically a giant motorized toothbrush that makes short work of most scrubbing problems.

The majority of my models are previously owned and I do a lot, and I mean a lot, of paint stripping. The Sonic Scrubber was the best investment I made. A gallon bottle of Simple Green, neoprene gloves, and a tuff-tote or bucket round out my tools.

That sounds about right. I did a land raider in a large salad bowl with simple green over the span of a few weeks. A sonic scrubber sounds pretty awesome, but I've been getting along with a $2 electric toothbrush from walmart.

Purple power cleaner/de-greaser

This stuff is amazing I have used it for lots of models. Also depending on how much time you have to allow them to strip, if you just leave them in it for like 48 hours it drops right off with just a light scrub, and usually all the way down to bare plastic. Just need a pick for some tiny details. But is really amazing I use ziplock containers with lids.

Zefig wrote:That sounds about right. I did a land raider in a large salad bowl with simple green over the span of a few weeks. A sonic scrubber sounds pretty awesome, but I've been getting along with a $2 electric toothbrush from walmart.

An electric toothbrush is to a Sonic Scrubber as a Ford Pinto is to a monster truck.

I use LA's totally awesome all purpose cleaner, its like 3 bucks for a big jug at the dollar tree. Works perfectly with some scrubbing.

All of these (Purple Power, Simple Green, etc) are safe for plastic, right?

I've been trying to strip some paint off of plastic with (formerly Castrol) Super Clean. It kinda works, but I've not had very good success stripping minis that are entirely plastic. Plastic/metal hybrids seem to work, as once I scrub paint off the metal parts the paint on the plastic parts flakes off. But on all plastic it all just seems to cling to the model no matter how much I scrub.

JOHIRA wrote:All of these (Purple Power, Simple Green, etc) are safe for plastic, right?

I've been trying to strip some paint off of plastic with (formerly Castrol) Super Clean. It kinda works, but I've not had very good success stripping minis that are entirely plastic. Plastic/metal hybrids seem to work, as once I scrub paint off the metal parts the paint on the plastic parts flakes off. But on all plastic it all just seems to cling to the model no matter how much I scrub.

Simple Green and LAs Totally awesome do not hurt plastic. I havent used the others.

Jollydevil wrote:

JOHIRA wrote:All of these (Purple Power, Simple Green, etc) are safe for plastic, right?

I've been trying to strip some paint off of plastic with (formerly Castrol) Super Clean. It kinda works, but I've not had very good success stripping minis that are entirely plastic. Plastic/metal hybrids seem to work, as once I scrub paint off the metal parts the paint on the plastic parts flakes off. But on all plastic it all just seems to cling to the model no matter how much I scrub.

Simple Green and LAs Totally awesome do not hurt plastic. I havent used the others.

Anything with Sodium Hydroxide can harm plastics, depending on how old of the models and such. I've had a few problems stripping and damaging models that were created in the 90's. Newer models depend on the batch of plastic that was used during that particular run.

The super purple power, I have not had any problem with, however were gloves or it will dry out your hands. It is also great for breaking apart models super glued together. I got a landraider I stripped and it broke up all the glue to were it's back to being like it is right off the sprue.

Gavin Thorne wrote:

Zefig wrote:That sounds about right. I did a land raider in a large salad bowl with simple green over the span of a few weeks. A sonic scrubber sounds pretty awesome, but I've been getting along with a $2 electric toothbrush from walmart.

An electric toothbrush is to a Sonic Scrubber as a Ford Pinto is to a monster truck.

I would assume so. I went with the electric toothbrush because they're readily available, mind-boggling cheap, and I'd not heard of sonic scrubbers. Where can I go about finding one? How much are they?

Try your local hardware, grocery, or big box. I've seen them in dollar stores as well. The starter, which comes with 3 (IIRC) brushes, normally runs around $15-20. I got mine for $10 on clearance at my grocery store. The brush pack was $5 (again on clearance) and there were 4 to a pack.

Here's the one I got, for $12.99 direct There's also a detailer brush that has it's own grades of brushes, maybe more appropriate for modelling, but I like the soft and firm varieties in the kitchen set.

The kitchen brush pack, also $12.99 direct. That large brush made the task of stripping the majority of paint from a landraider take less than 5 minutes. Followed by the cone to get in the nooks and crannies, maybe another 5 minutes. Beats a toothbrush by a mile.

The website's offering some discounts and free shipping on selected items.

Huh, nice. Have to check those out then if I get another big lot to strip. Thanks!