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I have a bunch of 2nd Ed metal Eldar Guardians with plastic arms and weapons I want to assemble. The problem is that the weapons and arms come separate, and the hands are just solid fists. So I assume I'm meant to cut the handle off the weapons and glue the rest of the weapon to the fist? Sure, I can do that, but it seems like it would be extremely unstable. How was this handled back in the day? Do I have to pin the weapons, which seems like a huge pain? Any help appreciated!

It was more common to pin the arms to the metal body, and use superglue. For attaching the weapons you do indeed cut away the grip from the weapon, and using polystyrene cement should ensure a solid bond

Yup, cut the handle off the gun and glue it to the fist. I used plastic glue, so never worried about the bond. Even if you use superglue, you are still joining two flat surfaces, and it’s not like the weapons are long/heavy, so there shouldn’t be a lot of torque on the join.

IIRC the fists should be holding a handle, so they are not empty.

Thanks guys, I'll try pinning the arms and getting better plastic glue for the weapons.

It's funny... I always miss metal models so much until I go back and work on them. This Christmas, I received a Sisters of Twilight & Dragon -- a large metal model (with many, many parts), with plastic wings. *Everything* has to be meticulously pinned, and man, do I miss plastic now LOL.

As others have said, many older models often present you with a need to cut off part of the grip, to fit the weapon with the hand. It might seem a bit troublesome, but on the other hand, it makes the pieces more generically useful.

The bigger PITA is the pinning >.< Boy, I sure don't miss that on large plastic models.

I haven't bought any of the newest kits but don't SM still require you to cut the grips off?

 Red_Starrise wrote:
I haven't bought any of the newest kits but don't SM still require you to cut the grips off?

No.

Go for tough glue /and greenstuff. Pin, Bub or Magnet that gak up its only way to loadout. If you need help with what can use what don't be afraid to ask