Allegheny2-6-6-6I would have to advise that if you can't read the directions don't use it! If it requires you diluting it or only to be left on for a certain amount of time and you don't adhere to them to the letter you may wide up with a blob of gooey plastic that used to be the shell of your locomotive. When all else fails just use 90% ISO Alcohol put it straight in a container. I use those plastic shoeboxes you find in the home improvement stores because they have an airtight lid. Let it sit for about 20 minutes pull it out and rub the paint with your finger. If it starts to come off use a cheap tooth brush (not your wife's) and scrub it clean and then rinse under cold water. If the paint doesn't come off right away just dunk it back in for another 20 minutes and keep checking it until it's ready. At worst case scenario I have never seen a shell melt or get damaged doing it this way. I did read if I'm not mistaken that Kato uses a different type of plastic on their shells so strippers etc. maybe harmful under the best conditions.
alco's forever!!!!! Majoring in HO scale Minorig in O scale:)
this is what karto recommends to use. it will omly remove stripping ,lettering etc it will not remove the
base coat,i use it to remove soy based paints of what they and others are using for metioned above you brush it on the the strips letterinmg then let set a few min. wipe or rub and reapply as needed , it works great for removing this type of paint.
Something to keep in mind here...I read somewhere, a while back, that Kato (includes some old Atlas) did not use conventional paint on their models but, instead, used a type of printers ink. I was told this is why it does not strip with "conventional" methods. All Atlas & Kato products I strip now are done in the grit blasting booth. In fact I have pretty much resorted to this method for everything now. If the 90% alcohol does not do it then I don't even try anything else. Before someone jumps in and suggests to use brake fluid, remember, it is alcohol based which is why it works like it does. The only difference is that there are some lubricating additives in it to help protect the rubber seals.
Dan
Well I brushed this stuff on and let it sit. Nothing, so I kept brushing on the stuff, after about 10 - 15 min the paint started to get soft. KOOL right. Well no that was as far as the paint removal got, the paint getting soft, so I left a bunch of finger prints in the paint. Then I decided to dunk it and wait. Sort of worked BUT BEWARE THE PLASTIC HAS BECOME VERY CRACKED WITH FINE CRACKS EVERYWHERE. AND I ONLY GOT HALF OF THE CAB ROOF STRIPPED BEFORE I COULD GET NO MORE OFF..
So for 12.00 for an unreadable amount of japanese fluid I have sucessfully done nothing but ruin a shell. Just thought I would warn everyone incase your lhs tries to talk you into this product like mine did. Supposedly someone one in the us is going to market the stuff in english.
Atlas still makes the bodies, when I was searching for C424/425 shells, the kato ones showed up as in stock. The newer ones are almost identical, just need a few modifications for it to fit on the old stuff. I bought new ones since they were only a couple of cents more, and had all the holes drilled out for grabs and such.
As for Mr. Hobby, I have on of their airbrushes. I tried to get a friend who knows japanese to try to decipher it, but they have two or three types, she only knew one. So I'm winging it.
Vincent
Wants: 1. high-quality, sound equipped, SD40-2s, C636s, C30-7s, and F-units in BN. As for ones that don't cost an arm and a leg, that's out of the question....
2. An end to the limited-production and other crap that makes models harder to get and more expensive.
Anyone ever use this stuff. All directions are in japanese. How do you use it, dunk it and let it soak, brush on and wait then scrape, or brush on and keep on brushing on to wipe off. Nothing seems to be taking the paint off my yellow box rs-1 with kato drive. Does atlas still make and sell just bodies and such in case I screw this up royally?
Mike