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My friend gave me some Space Wolves to help start up my army, and they're already built. Not painted though.
However, the way they were built, isn't exactly "great." In fact I would probably say it's not even mediocre. They still got mould lines, parts of the sprues are still attached, and there's lots of excess glue. And I mean A LOT. And because of the way they're posed, it's impossibly hard to file what needs to be filed, so I need to take apart the miniatures first. But I don't know how. So my question is, how do I take apart a miniature so that I can fix all the issues?

If they're metal, just pull them apart and pry off excess glue with a hobby knife.

If they're plastic, it depends on what sort of glue he's used. If they're assembled with superglue, chances are you can just carefully pull them apart. If they're not co-operating, a bath in Simple Green or Dot3 Brake Fluid (preferably the former... brake fluid is bad for your health, and bad for the environment) can make the glue more brittle, allowing you to snap the parts apart and chip off the excess glue with a hobby knife..


If they're assembled with plastic glue, you might be able to just pry them apart, but if he's overloaded the glue you might need to cut them. Cleaning up excess plastic glue on the model pretty much comes down to cutting it off and trying not to destroy too much detail... there's no easy fix that I'm aware of, as plastic glue works by partially melting into the plastic.

Ok thanks, and yes, he has used plastic glue, as far as I can tell it's Citadel glue.
So what you're saying is, is that I should just cut off the parts and then do what needs to be done? Alright, simpler than I thought.

Jam a hobby knife into the join and cut it apart. Careful of your fingers.

Citadel glue? Congratulations, it's your lucky day. I've found that as an adhesive, citadel glue is closer to cat saliva than it is to a hobby glue - jam something into the joint and wiggle it, or look at it sternly, and it should come apart.

There are two citadel PLASTIC glues.

The Thin citadel glue is really, really weak. It's one of the weakest glues I've come across. But then again, they only suggest this for connecting really small finicky bits. The reason it's "superior" to superglue is that for fiddly bits, if you put plastic glue on both surfaces and wait a little bit for them to melt, slightly, when they meet, they're both a little gooey and just stick together. If you're connecting a cable from a power weapon, for instance, this works pretty well. Personally, I'd rather use superglue applied with a toothpick, but that's just me.

The THICK plastic is tough as nails. It's practically very hard to apply, as it comes in a bottle with a giant applicator. They suggest it for terrain, and any terrain pieces I've glued together with the thick plastic glue... well, I don't think those pieces will ever come apart, except with a saw. I don't think a lot of people use it, because the dry time is exceedingly long, and the applicator is so unwieldy.

The Citadel superglues are just expensive, microscopically tiny bottles of weak superglue. About the only thing the thin one is good for is to have one bottle in your gaming kit for field repairs. It's one plus? The container has an inside lip, so it's kind of spill-proof-ish, and it's a brush applicator, so it's easy to use if something comes apart while you're gaming.