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Hi Folks,

while I am writing this a Package from Germany is on it`s way to me - I ordered a Compressor and an airbrush and I can`t wait to start painting new models!
So in order to save money (the airbrush allready robbed me of some precious gold), I bought some models second hand.
Normaly I paint Imp. Knights, but since I got some Orks chaep, I decided to start an Orc Army as well.
But now here is my question:
How do you normally get ridd of old Paint? What are your experiences with different Methods?
Or is it even necessary to get rid of the old paint, if it is not too thick? (Just priming over the old colors and then painting again?)

Still kind of new to the hobby, so I hope the question is not to trivial for you.

Hopefully see you on a Table soon!

Dettol, brake fluid, smart strip are some chemicals to strip paint off models.

I used brake fluid and it worked with the paint, but I had some issues with primer.

To answer the question of is it necessary- it kinda depends on the model. If its a fairly older model with not too many details then you can probably get away with just painting over it. Newer models have way more details and I'd recommend stripping the paint.

Dettol and brake fluid are both horrible to work with, and there are disposal issues with the brake fluid too. Try isopropyl alcohol or Biostrip 20.

Dont use isopropyl alcohol on plastic mini's

First of all, what you're looking to do is commonly known at "stripping paint". That as a search term will get you alot of good info.

I don't know what chemicals are available near you, but if you have any industrial/automotive strength degreaser's avaialble near you with the active ingredient "2-Butoxethanol" That's what I'd go with.

It's the active ingredient in Purple Power, my favorite product for stripping paint from plastic minis. It works great and is quite cheap. Definitely needs to be handled with solvent-resistent gloves though.

It's also the active ingredient in Super Clean, and was the active ingredient in Simple Green until they changed the formulation a few years ago.

Good luck with the stripping. I've stripped hundreds of miniatures over the years and have probably saved myself thousands of dollars by doing so.

Thx for all your input!
Any experience with Resin Models and stripping Paint?

Haha this is a controversial one! Everyone seems to have a different idea of what's best to use.

Lots of people swear by Simple Green/ Dettol/ Brake Fluid etc. etc. Personally, I'd always advise against a product that is designed for a different purpose. Things like household cleaners and brake fluid will vary their formula based on the country, sometimes even the season, or just randomly change up what's in it. As long the product does the function it's designed for, they aren't going to announce that there's been a change. Your brake fluid might work today, but the stuff you buy next year might be a totally different formula and you'd be none the wiser.

I swear by IPA/ Isopropyl alcohol/ Isopropanol (all the same stuff, some using proper systematic chemical nomenclature, some just going wild...) Get the strongest stuff you can - Rubbing alcohol is pretty widely available at pharmacies, that's somewhere around 70%. You can get 99% which is often used for cleaning computer components, so you can find it in repair shops and the like. You know exactly what's in it - Alcohol and water. Not gonna change depending on where you are in the world.

If you're stripping metal - go crazy that stuff is mostly invincible.

Resin and plastic can be a bit picky, again it's a bit of a guessing game as to what exactly a 'plastic' or 'resin' mini is made of, so it's always best to do a test on a small area.

A lot of people will tell you to soak your minis overnight, but that can be risky with plastic and resin. Resin especially sometimes gets soft when left in stripping mediums for a long time and you can ruin the models - again, do a small test piece first if you plan to leave them soaked.

Again, just my own (probably controversial) opinion: Don't soak anything. 99% isopropanol and a firm toothbrush will strip pretty much anything. Fill a tub with alcohol, dunk the mini, get to scrubbing. Just like doing the dishes. If the paint is stubborn, do more rounds of scrubbing. If you're worried about the plastic or resin getting soft, then do a round of scrubbing and let the mini dry, then dunk and scrub again. IPA evaporates very quickly, so there's not really any risk to your models unless you leave them submerged.

So yeah that's my pennies [: Buy some 99% Isopropanol and a firm toothbrush.

For resin I still use Purple Power, but if you leave it in to long it can make them soft.

I'd recommend a short bath in Purple Power or use alcohol.

For hard plastic or metal minis you can leave them in a bucket of Purple Power for months with no adverse effects.

 shmvo wrote:
Haha this is a controversial one! Everyone seems to have a different idea of what's best to use.

Lots of people swear by Simple Green/ Dettol/ Brake Fluid etc. etc. Personally, I'd always advise against a product that is designed for a different purpose. Things like household cleaners and brake fluid will vary their formula based on the country, sometimes even the season, or just randomly change up what's in it. As long the product does the function it's designed for, they aren't going to announce that there's been a change. Your brake fluid might work today, but the stuff you buy next year might be a totally different formula and you'd be none the wiser.

I swear by IPA/ Isopropyl alcohol/ Isopropanol (all the same stuff, some using proper systematic chemical nomenclature, some just going wild...) Get the strongest stuff you can - Rubbing alcohol is pretty widely available at pharmacies, that's somewhere around 70%. You can get 99% which is often used for cleaning computer components, so you can find it in repair shops and the like. You know exactly what's in it - Alcohol and water. Not gonna change depending on where you are in the world.

If you're stripping metal - go crazy that stuff is mostly invincible.

Resin and plastic can be a bit picky, again it's a bit of a guessing game as to what exactly a 'plastic' or 'resin' mini is made of, so it's always best to do a test on a small area.

A lot of people will tell you to soak your minis overnight, but that can be risky with plastic and resin. Resin especially sometimes gets soft when left in stripping mediums for a long time and you can ruin the models - again, do a small test piece first if you plan to leave them soaked.

Again, just my own (probably controversial) opinion: Don't soak anything. 99% isopropanol and a firm toothbrush will strip pretty much anything. Fill a tub with alcohol, dunk the mini, get to scrubbing. Just like doing the dishes. If the paint is stubborn, do more rounds of scrubbing. If you're worried about the plastic or resin getting soft, then do a round of scrubbing and let the mini dry, then dunk and scrub again. IPA evaporates very quickly, so there's not really any risk to your models unless you leave them submerged.

So yeah that's my pennies [: Buy some 99% Isopropanol and a firm toothbrush.

THX for that - I`ll try this one for sure!


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Eilif wrote:
For resin I still use Purple Power, but if you leave it in to long it can make them soft.

I'd recommend a short bath in Purple Power or use alcohol.

For hard plastic or metal minis you can leave them in a bucket of Purple Power for months with no adverse effects.

The second thing I can find for "Purple Power" online is Weed Seed =)

Isopropyl is your best buddy. Just buy some, get a glass jar, pop a few guys in, leave them for at least a couple days, get a toothbrush, scrub it all off, take a toothpick to fish leftover paint in the recesses, wash under the tap, dry and prime. It sould be that simple.

I also have been considering stripping some of my old armies from back when I first started (and had no idea what I was doing, nor had a loop-lamp to see what I was doing)

This thread is pretty helpful, I did wonder though, I heard sometimes that nail polish remover was a good tool for this, but others said not to use that..
Same with sticker-remover.

Anyway, I think the alcohol + insta scrubbing is the best idea, leaving something overnight is kindof lazy, I mean I understand when you need to strip 500 units heh.. but ok, I'll get some of it. (Unless you guys can convince me that nail polish or sticker' remover is fine)

Nail polish remover is usually made with acetone, which is also an ingredient in some plastic glues.

No surprise then that it's a good product for stripping metal figures but it can melt plastic figures.

 Eilif wrote:
Nail polish remover is usually made with acetone, which is also an ingredient in some plastic glues.

No surprise then that it's a good product for stripping metal figures but it can melt plastic figures.

To add to this:

If you are using acetone based removal on metal, be sure to pop them off plastic bases, and if they have plastic arms/backpacks/etc those as well. Acetone will turn those to goo if you do not.

Crispy78 wrote:
Dettol and brake fluid are both horrible to work with, and there are disposal issues with the brake fluid too. Try isopropyl alcohol or Biostrip 20.

99% of the time, if you are going to use dettol, you are better off using isopropanol anyway (which is by far the largest % part of dettol - there's some other antibacterial goop in there as well as the liquified koala crap that gives it its distinctive stench.). Costs a little more than dettol (you may have to get it from a hardware store instead of a pharmacy) - but I have it easy ... one of my brothers-in-law works at a chemical plant, and isopropanol is one of the chemicals they manufacture.

There's nothing really problematic about brake fluid disposal. You can't just pour it down the sink, this is true ... but many car mechanics have drums for the proper disposal of this stuff, and if you have one nearby, asking nicely can often get your stuff disposed off as well. I filter the paint crud out and reuse it a couple of times first (it's good for 2-3 goes) - but my friendly local mechanic is literally across the road from me.

OP may not have been aware that you can't just tip brake fluid down the sink. And given that the other stripping solutions can just be tipped down the sink - not being able to do that is an issue, especially to those of us without a friendly mechanic over the road...

So just to be certain, because I see different convictions in this thread, is alcohol good or not? (because some said not to use it on plastic minis)
Confusing -_-

 Leopold Helveine wrote:
So just to be certain, because I see different convictions in this thread, is alcohol good or not? (because some said not to use it on plastic minis)
Confusing -_-

What a question...-shure it is good. I like Rum, Gin, Ale and Beer, my minis love Isopropanol - at least thats what I have heard here =)

Crispy78 wrote:
OP may not have been aware that you can't just tip brake fluid down the sink. And given that the other stripping solutions can just be tipped down the sink - not being able to do that is an issue, especially to those of us without a friendly mechanic over the road...

As someone with a septic system at my house no solvents or striping solutions are going down my sink. So all chemicals are recycled or dropped off at this little chemical drop off place not far from my house.

I've used stuff like Pine-sol and other such cleaners with some success. Haven't had a chance to try isopropyl alcohol yet.

Pine-oil cleaners work, but it is quite a bit of work to make it work. Lots of soaking and scrubbing involved. It's okay for small batches, as you probably already have something suitable under your kitchen sink.

But if you're going to be doing large batches, I'd recommend something with more 'oomph' to it. If I ever decide to do a large batch, I certainly will be looking into alternatives!