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Hey Dakka! I'm finally planning on doing some converting/scratch building and was wondering about a good brand and thickness of plasticard to go with. I'm trying to start with armor plates for the open end of chimera to build a salamander scout vehicle as seen on the fw sight! Thanks everyone!

The go-to brand is Evergreen which can be found at most better scale model and train shops. A good selection of sheet thicknesses to get started are .020, .040, .100, and .125.

Thanks

Alternatively, many big-name stores sell yard signs (Private Property, Beware of Dog!, etc.) that are often made of plasticard. These are usually really cheap and you can get a lot of them for a fraction of the price of buying Evergreen.


However, Evergreen is still the go-to choice.

Plastruct is the other major producer. Depending on where you shop, you'll most likely find one or the other, although some big stores (especially online) may carry stock from both.

Plastic signs are certainly a cheaper source (unless you buy in bulk directly from a plastics supplier), but there are noticeable differences in the material. While it's still styrene, it's not high impact polystyrene - the signs tend to be much more flexible than the equivalent thickness of HIPS, which is what's generally sold to modelers. Thickness and surface uniformity is also more variable. I believe my large "for sale" sign is about .030 thick. There's also a fine step on the surface from the printing of each color, so I make sure to mind which way I'm facing the sheet. Not a big issue for most tasks, of course, but it's something to bear in mind.

If you're just getting started, picking up one of either company's sample/variety packs might be a good idea. They trend thinner, making them ideal for detailing and smaller builds. For bulking out tall steps or scratchbuilding larger structures, you'll likely want something thicker than the .040 they generally cap out at, to save yourself from copious laminating and/or internal bracing.

Personally I'd use 0.040" (1.00mm) for structure and 0.020" (0.50mm) for relief. Theyre both easy to cut (score then break the plastikard and sand the edge rather than try to cut the whole way through) and look good in contrast to each other on a model. Evergreen is widely available but expensive, if you have a model train shop near you give them a look at, they usually sell bigger cheaper sheets of plastikard for modelers to build railway buildings etc.

Thanks everyone for the info, it'll definately come in handy