Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Well I was having a go through of my painted models and I saw Ghaz (Old metal one). I thought "I could do better". But I have a few questions, How do I strip paint of metal models? I mean a safe way with not a lot of chemicals. Or would I be better off just spraying over the model with matt black and just redoing it from there?




Automatically Appended Next Post:
I was just nervous spraying it over with another coat of black, I was thinking it might lose a bit a detail and get all thick and yuk looking :(

Metal models are really forgiving when it comes to paint removal. Almost any nasty caustic chemical you can think of will do the job without damaging the model (other than the base). Paint stripper, brake fluid you name it.

If you don't want a lot of nasty chemicals I'd look into regular high strength cleaning products like simple green and purple power or things like nail-polish remover. (don't know if you consider ammonia a nasty chemical)

I'd strip him down with some household Dettol disinfectant otherwise more coats of paint will lose some of the definition from the finer parts of the model. After stripping with Dettol i'd give it a damn good scrub with soapy water to get rid of the hospital smell you get from the disinfectant.
Personally i use an extremely aggressive stripper called Nitromors which will remove any paint no matter how ingrained it is, in no longer than 10 minutes. It smells horrendous while you use it, if it gets on your skin it'll burn like the flames of hell. But with the correct personal protective equipment (rubber gloves and goggles for when you rinse and scrub off the old residue) it is second to non when it comes to paint stripping.
Others will recommend Simple Green for stripping but it's a product i've not personally tried so i can't say if it's any good or not but it's entirely down to personal preference which product you try. Just don't spray over the old paint thats all i can advise.

Yep, your in Europe, +1 greenplanet.

Dettol is your best bet, besides something like Acetone or Lacquer Thinner (if they're even available, but they are pretty nasty chemicals)

Caution: You only use Acetone or Lacquer Thinner for METAL MINIATURES.

I second Lacquer thinner. I will be clean in less than 10 minutes. Just try and get him off the base first, it turns plastic to swiss cheese. Literally, it makes the plastic bubble.