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=O I've been mouldlining like crazy and it's taken me a LOOONG time to build my Necron, Tau, and Tyranid armies. I'm almost done with all 3, just finishing up a bunch of gaunts/gants for my Tyranids and some Gargoyles. For these should I just build and THEN mouldline what I see? I'm so exhausted!

I do big bits before assembly, then smaller or fragile ones after. Only because I have issues removing the flash off of small things like magazine pouches and bolt pistols on their own, when they're secured to the model it's easier.

So basically whenever I can I remove the flash before assembly, but sometimes that isn't so convenient.

It just depends. If the particular bit is going to be hard to manage assembled, do it before. Some pieces look better done when assembled, like carapace pieces - that way it kind of blends the seam, too.

I do every piece first, then glue together what I can so that when I paint it, I can still get to everything, then finish up the model. I'm particular about how my models look, and I hate mold lines.

Im starting to like removing mould lines before removing off spures as you can tell where they are

still slow and annoying but what do :/

Depends entirely on the bit and where it sits on the model.

On MPP 28mm models, most Citadel models have two front-and-back clamshells, which fit exactly, then vertically stack with each other in a posable fashion. For instance, there will be two pieces for the lower torso; two pieces for the main upper torso; sometimes two pieces for the head. I will clean each of these up just where they were attached to the sprue, and then plastic cement them to each other.

After that, I fill gaps and do any necessary remediation. If there's greenstuff, that means a couple of days for it all to cure.

Only then do I remove all the mold lines. After this, I superglue the upper and lower torso (in case I really want to change it later). On models which have arms that cross, I won't attach them, and I always paint the head separately. Depending on the model, I may attach backpacks and other attachments or not at this point.

Then I wash everything (isopropyl bath), dry, prime, and paint!

My prep process is painstakingly long -- removing mold lines feels like the least of it

It depends on the model tbh. A lot of the mantic stuff some of the damned mold lines aren't easy to spot till after assembly or even paint. That's unfortunately horribly annoying as a side effect of the way details on their plastic look. This isn't always an issue with harder things like armor plates but the mold lines can be subtle on softer things like fabric.

Mold lines first, then assembly. Always. Post-assembly cleanup only when needed (which is relatively rare). It's not the only way to do it, but it's always worked for me.

As an example, the Drop pods are one of the most unforgiving models when it comes to moldlines. If you forget scraping them from the right spots:

1) the doors won't stay closed
2) the parts won't match correctly
3) the whole pod becomes a wobbly, unstable mess

Spoken by a dude, who has three pods. The very first caused some pain

Tigramans wrote:As an example, the Drop pods are one of the most unforgiving models when it comes to moldlines. If you forget scraping them from the right spots:

1) the doors won't stay closed
2) the parts won't match correctly
3) the whole pod becomes a wobbly, unstable mess

Spoken by a dude, who has three pods. The very first caused some pain

3 is kind of the magic number for me. After 3 of a model, I remember where the mold lines are and don't miss them LOL. I hate it when I see a mold line after I've primed.

oadie wrote:Mold lines first, then assembly. Always. Post-assembly cleanup only when needed (which is relatively rare). It's not the only way to do it, but it's always worked for me.

Some models are a bit of a pain. For example, upper torso on Dark Eldar Kabalites have a gap between the shoulder pads which can't be filled until the two pieces are glued together. Same for Ravenwing bikes -- unless you want a seam going down the entire middle of the bike, including the tires, there's no way to avoid greenstuff after assembly.

Contrast that with most Terminators, especially multipart ones, where the model pieces just make sense. I just wish they'd put more thought into how the pieces are separated, because it makes such a huge impact on how enjoyable the model is to work with.

On a related note I just got a bunch of the previous generation tactical squad sprues, and wow. I've never seen mold lines so intense, each pair of legs requires a few minutes with a hobby knife and file before they're ready to be primed.