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Hi all,

I wondered if anyone here had any experience of this or a similar issue. I have a sizeable Iron warriors army for both 30 and 40k which is mainly composed of mk3 marines (plastic). I have an issue causing much aggravation and multiple paint strips. Along the legs of the mk3 marines there is a very strong mould line that runs through the plastic. I file, knife and sand this what I think is away but 60-70% of the time once painted and the models are washed the line stands out a great deal. Some I get right, but its just chance. The danger in removing the lines is eventually I slip and I lose detail from the rivets etc or cause too much damage to the surface which stands out as much as the lines, so this is a balancing act. I should note I am not an experienced modeller or painter, but I do normally get by far most of the lines from every other model I have, I am reasonable at removing them now.

Not sure if anyone has experienced this and has any suggestions? I have attached an image of the legs but this doesn't do it justice.

Many thanks for any suggestions. My strategy at the moment being to switch to mk4 marines!

In my opinion, these are the single greatest invention for model building. You can fold it over to get into the tight spaces between the rivets, and it makes the mouldlines disappear without losing detail. Great for any blending of scratches, burrs, or customizing on any part of the models too.

Hope this helps!

Thanks very much, I found some on eBay so will order a few!

This probably goes without saying, but be sure to get the Super Fine grit, or it will leave scratch marks.

Also, it helps to take some of the lines off with a knife first, at least the sharpest parts, or else you'll be doing a lot of sanding.

Thanks, will do. Not so easy to find in the UK it seems but have a number to call on Monday. Yes, I have been using knife and file combo but for these lines its not been enough, its too deep into the plastic and shows up after washing / dry brushing.

Goeskan wrote:Thanks, will do. Not so easy to find in the UK it seems but have a number to call on Monday. Yes, I have been using knife and file combo but for these lines its not been enough, its too deep into the plastic and shows up after washing / dry brushing.

Goeskan wrote:Thanks, will do. Not so easy to find in the UK it seems but have a number to call on Monday. Yes, I have been using knife and file combo but for these lines its not been enough, its too deep into the plastic and shows up after washing / dry brushing.

shiner wrote:In my opinion, these are the single greatest invention for model building. You can fold it over to get into the tight spaces between the rivets, and it makes the mouldlines disappear without losing detail. Great for any blending of scratches, burrs, or customizing on any part of the models too.

Hope this helps!

You can get Diall ones from B+Q that are exactly the same (And probably cheaper as well), I have some at home that I just tear pieces off when i need them.

Failing that, emery boards from Boots, superdrug etc will work just as well if you can find the ones that go down to super fine, if it's good enough to grind down a fingernail, i'm sure it will find plastic no trouble!

Ah thank you, something like this I suppose?

http://www.diy.com/departments/diall-100/60-fine/medium-sanding-sponge/261537_BQ.prd

I will head down to B&Q tomorrow! It is the line at the top near the thigh that is the most difficult to get rid of, hopefully this will help. Cheers.

I use Norton sandpaper in medium and fine grain from B&Q.
Even <1cm strips folded over are firm enough to sand metal.

Basically any *good* sandpaper will do you probably, and by good I mean trade quality as opposed to discount shop crafts.

If you want something that can get in the little crevices without causing a bunch of scratches to what you're *not* trying to sand - there are little sanding sticks you can buy from a company called Flex-I-File. They make various hobby-specific sanding doo-dads.

A quicker alternative to hunting those down:

Take an old tiny brush that's basically ruined. Pull out the brush fibers. Smash the little metal piece that held the fibers. Glue a tiny piece of sandpaper to it. Glue it so it wraps from the front to the back of the flattened part. That way you can use the sharpened tip to get really small areas, and the flat part to sand flat areas.

Goeskan wrote:
Ah thank you, something like this I suppose?

http://www.diy.com/departments/diall-100/60-fine/medium-sanding-sponge/261537_BQ.prd

I will head down to B&Q tomorrow! It is the line at the top near the thigh that is the most difficult to get rid of, hopefully this will help. Cheers.

That's the one!

Thanks for the ideas all, plenty to try out.