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So I was wondering, after yet another failed attempt to get all of the mould release off of a set of Forge World parts, has any body tried using an ultrasonic cleaner for this?

Such as http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/jpl-ultra-7000-ultrasonic-cleaner-075-litre-a46hq



How well did it work?

Is there anything I should be wary off (like, does it make the items warm enough to warp etc.)

It sounds like a minute of so in the cleaner should shift anything off of the parts.

Isn't that what they used to clean tattoo equipment? I remember using a autoclave to clean reusable parts when I worked at a tattoo shop. I wonder how this would work with paint on a model. I tell you what, if this works without damaging the model, I think it would be a cool idea.

I have not used it to clean mold release off resin. However it does not heat up the water at all. Just makes it oscillate really fast.

You could try it with water and adding a few drops of dish soap.

 darefsky wrote:
I have not used it to clean mold release off resin. However it does not heat up the water at all. Just makes it oscillate really fast.

You could try it with water and adding a few drops of dish soap.

For ridiculously foamy fun!

I've used it (I have that exact model) for cleaning up mantic restic, forgeworld etc. Does the job. Sometimes a bit of a scrub with a toothbrush just to get things going, but a few cycles in that and I've not had problems.

Edit: Yes, if you use warm water in it to start, it's enough to soften thin pieces, and finecast. You may need to adjust parts with hot/cold water after cleaning.

Ultrasonic cleaners are great for cleaning resin. As winterdyne suggested, you'll want to complement the cleaner with some manual brushing. The cavitation of the water basically breaks up material by exploiting the cracks and crevasses in it. I usually do at least two cycles for every piece, each preceded by a toothbrush treatment.

Cheers, for thirty quid sounds worth it. I can also use it to clean car parts, jewelry etc.

They'd have to be pretty small car parts, and they'd have to already be pretty clean -it's no industrial unit.

Use a little simple green in place of soap, it does not completely replace the need to wash it by hand but it can clean off release you may have missed in the fine detail.

my never fail way of cleaning forgeworld mold release:

disclaimer: if the resin sweats or has some other problem then nothing will work.

tools: Americans use dawn dish soap, the blue stuff. Brits use fairy liquid.

sonic toohbrush, I use a sonicare.

1. Cover parts in extremely liberal amounts of dish soap of a type listed above. Fill bucket with warm water. Leave overnight. This puts things in suspension.

2. get another container, smaller. Use this for cleaning invidivual parts. Fill with warm water. Put to one side.

3. Take each part out of the soap and rinse off under a tap.

4. Submerge the part into the new container. Use the sonic toothbrush with a new or old head you won't use any more and slowly clean it like you would with a regular toothbrush, just dont push as hard.

5. Once slowly cleaned rise off again and put to one side. Repeat for each part.

6. Repeat this entire process a second time.

This is the only bullet proof way i have found to completely remove forgeworld mold release. It took me 12 hours to clean a thunderhawk gunship, but it's clean as a whistle.