Great "scores", Kevin! some time ago, I was at the tnen Caboose Hobbys and I saw a brass Erie class N3A caboose. They wanted $180.00 for that little gem. That's when i decided that I'd have to build my own cabooses of that class. I too would have been tempted by the B & O boxcar.
As for your caboose, I believe with a little work, you can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear there. looks like there are plenty of details that you've uncovered after stripping. What I've found is that the original paint on some models (especially the lower end ones), the paint is so thick that it covers up much of the finer molded-on details.
E-L man tom I believe with a little work, you can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear
.
That is what I am hoping to do. I will keep updating this thread as progress is made.
I will take the caboose out of the stripper bath on Sunday and give it another go.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Well, this caboose has been soaking ib DOT-3 brake fluid for three weeks, and the paint is not coming off any since the last photo.
I have scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed, and just managed to knock off a couple of details.
The paint seems to be a serious issue with these models. This one is for sale on eBay right now in similar condition.
I guess I will need to scrape the paint off with an eXacto knife blade.
Have you given any thought to the traditional paste-type paint stripper?
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Klean-Strip-1-qt-Premium-Stripper-QKPS301SC/307995062
I don't think it would harm the brass. I've used this before on tough paint finishes. Remember to wear gloves. It begins to work almost immediately. I use an old toothbrush for scrubbing paint out of the details.
Good Luck, Ed
Kevin,
I second Eds suggestion on the regular stripper. We regularly need to work on aluminum bodies that can't be media blasted and either commercial stripper or aircraft paint stripper does the trick. All the other follow on treatments you do should still work but keep in mind most of the paint strippers are lye based not ethlyene glycol like brake fluid. J.R.
The mention of a stripper used on aircraft brought back memories of the "yellow peril" we used when I was in the USAF. This stuff contained an acid and would definitely reach out and get your attention. It didn't like plastics either. I know because, I tried it. I also used to strip plastics with a lye solution, but used junk models from the different manufacturers to be sure they wouldn't be destroyed by the lye.
As far as the OP's caboose. It could be made into a decent model once that fingerprint is removed.
If I use "traditional" paint stripper, what are the chances it would attack the solder, and what is the best way to clean it off of the model?
SeeYou190If I use "traditional" paint stripper, what are the chances it would attack the solder,
Slim-to-none.
SeeYou190and what is the best way to clean it off of the model?
Mineral spirits, acetone or this:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Klean-Strip-32-oz-Paint-Stripper-After-Wash-QKSW94341/100234312
Have a disposable can or pail nearby to dump the old paint/paste into for disposal.
I've used cut-up pieces of old credit card/gift card type plastic to use as a scraper. Once most of the paint is off I use Scotchbrite pads dipped in the mineral spirits to clean away the rest of the gunk, then get into tiny cracks with tooth picks or skewers.
There's a "friendlier" citrus-based product available, too. I don't have any experience with that product, though.
Hope that helps, Ed
error
Well, hard to believe it has been a year. This one literally got pushed to back of the shelf. I found it again when I was cleaning out the workshop.
Sitting for a year did not get any of the paint to come off.
I also found the abrasive gun that I bought to try to blast the paint away. It came from China about ayear ao, but it still included a Coronavirus Mask.
I have this #13 glass shot to use to try to get the paint to come off.
I set the air pressure to 45 PSI and went at it. After an hour of effort, this is the best I was able to do.
It is a lot better than it was, and the remaining paint will just be scraped off with a #11 Xacto knife blade. Then I will be done with it and I can move onto detailing and paint.
I dunno, Kevin, I'm startin' t' t'ink dat she looked better wit' da paint on 'er.
Alt'o, if ya giv'er a workin'-over wit' a knife t' git ridda summa dat sodder, ya mite be able t' make sumpin' uv 'er. Iffen anybody kin do it, it'd be you.
'Scuse da east coaster accent, eh, but I bin talkin' t' muh son down der, eh, and it it sorta takes t'ings over sumtimes, yuh know.
Wayne
doctorwayne I dunno, Kevin, I'm startin' t' t'ink dat she looked better wit' da paint on 'er. Alt'o, if ya giv'er a workin'-over wit' a knife t' git ridda summa dat sodder, ya mite be able t' make sumpin' uv 'er. Iffen anybody kin do it, it'd be you. 'Scuse da east coaster accent, eh, but I bin talkin' t' muh son down der, eh, and it it sorta takes t'ings over sumtimes, yuh know. Wayne
Oh dear, somebody slipped a spoonful or two of Gern into Dr. Wayne's breakfast cereal (Red River most likely, eh?) and it's made him all giddy.
Dave Nelson
dknelsonOh dear, somebody slipped a spoonful or two of Gern into Dr. Wayne's breakfast cereal (Red River most likely, eh?) and it's made him all giddy.
Yeah, sorry about that. I had a big bowl of this....
...for breakfast, and am back to normal....well, my normal, at least.
doctorwayne I'm startin' t' t'ink dat she looked better wit' da paint on 'er.
I must have been reading it wrong, I thought it was supposed to be Scottish!
Based on how Dr. Wayne squeezes every possible penny of value out of the plastic models he uses as raw material for his kitbashes, Scottish was a pretty good guess. Perhaps we'd be better kitbashers if we all wore kilts.
or drank more scotch.
Well, it's certainly true that most accents that we may be able to mimic by voice don't always come across so plainly when written. I'd guess, in general, the Canadian east-coast dialect to be closer to some Irish accents, but with regional nuances, too.A hundred miles-or-so north of where I'm located in southern Ontario, there are very distinctive accents in play, mostly in families who have been here for well over 100 years, their origins usually in Europe, but nevertheless widespread.Regardless of their languages' roots, most seem to have that particular manner of speaking.
I notice similar regional accents when visiting friends in the U.S., too, and always enjoy hearing them, especially some of the colloquialisms.