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Not sure if this goes here or what. I ran a search and could find nothing on the subject.

Some of my models are on a shelf and most are inside a large GW case, but, despite regular use in games and such they seem to have built up quite a bit of dust. Now, I have gone over them lightly with a feather duster and even a brush that had no paint or anything on it but I just can't seem to get them "clean". Does anyone else have this problem/what do you do to fix it?

Get a can of air. That should do the trick. It will get into the crevices that dusters and feathers cannot.

-Jim

JimLofa wrote:Get a can of air. That should do the trick. It will get into the crevices that dusters and feathers cannot.

-Jim

Thanks Jim, thats what I thought, seems like common sense , just wanted to see if there was anything else to it.

I use a new, unused blush brush from the makeup department. It gets into the nooks and crannies and doesn't chip the paint at all.

For my minis that are sealed well, if they have a LOT of dust on them, I just run them under water shortly.

However, as that is not a solution for all my minis (I have a lot of displays up) I was thinking some kind of air purifier/dust thing...

Anyone have any suggestions for one of those things that might;
1 - actually work
2 - not cost a mint.

thanks

I've personally found a can of air to be fairly useless, your best long term solution is to feather dust them in my opinion...unless you don't mind varnishing them and running them under water briefly...The BEST solution though, is prevention. Get a case for all of your models. It can be insanely expensive and make it harder to display them proudly, but it's the best way to avoid dust.

I've found air to be pretty much useless against existing long-term buildup, especially if your storage area is at all humid (moisture sort of "sets" the dust), although it can blast away light, loose dust well enough. Basically, it works as part of a regular upkeep regimen, not as a remedy for an existing problem.

When models get nasty, I go at them with a moderately stiff brush, my favorite being a cheap (like, $.50 at the craft store) 1/2" bristle chip brush - it's got enough stiffness to knock stubborn dust loose, but has sufficiently long and flexible bristles to get at every nook and cranny. Unless you're using terrible paint without any primer or sealer, that shouldn't be enough to damage the finish. Since I varnish my models, as well, there's no way I'll suffer ill effects unless I sneeze violently and scrape them with the ferule, or something. I have yet to find water necessary, unless using soap to remove mold release or oils from handling, so there's no dry time required, either.

Can of air is good, but I often get that really dense layer of dust that won't come off. For that, I use a soft toothbrush (often an old one because they soften up with use) and carefully brush it off. If it's really bad you can moisten the toothbrush (doesn't need to be soaking wet) and that'll get it off as well.

If you're gentle it should be fine, I've never knocked or scratched a paintjob using an old toothbrush.

davethepak wrote:For my minis that are sealed well, if they have a LOT of dust on them, I just run them under water shortly.

However, as that is not a solution for all my minis (I have a lot of displays up) I was thinking some kind of air purifier/dust thing...

Anyone have any suggestions for one of those things that might;
1 - actually work
2 - not cost a mint.

thanks

Yes, see my above post. It actually works.

davethepak wrote:For my minis that are sealed well, if they have a LOT of dust on them, I just run them under water shortly.

However, as that is not a solution for all my minis (I have a lot of displays up) I was thinking some kind of air purifier/dust thing...

Anyone have any suggestions for one of those things that might;
1 - actually work
2 - not cost a mint.

thanks

Using an old toothbrush has never damaged any of my models and the vast majority of them aren't varnished or sealed or anything. It "actually works" and costs absolutely nothing (unless you don't brush your teeth at all in which case you'll have to buy a toothbrush and wear it out some how to soften the bristles).

I used a hair dryer (or whatever that thing is called) at full speed. Stormboyz can really fly after all

Compressed air is the answer. however if dust has settled onto your mini as the paint was drying then its there for ever, the solution is to clean your house! hehe.
But for regular gathering of dust from sitting on a shelf or somewhere cans of compressed air would work.. but I'm loathed to buy air! Get a compressor, and air blower gun, mayaswell get an airbrush while your at it and kit out your hobby zone with tones of useful tools powered by compressed air.

Even a tiny little airbrushing compresor would make a good enough air duster - mine cleans my PC's cooling radiators just fine.

I use an old round GW tank brush to dust mine.