Hi Everyone, I have a few models that I wanted to strip the paint completely off of so I can repaint/rebuilt the miniature, and I'm not sure about a good way to go about doing it. I've thought about soaking the models in Simple Green and scrubbing them off with an old toothbrush, but I'm wondering if there might be any better ways of stripping paint. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks!
Not sure if this is the right term, but I recommend methylated Spirits (basically household cleaning alcohol) for metal miniatures. Submerge them for half an hour and then brush the paint off with a toothbrush. Works like a charm.
@Scribbler I've used water and a used toothbrush to remove paint. It might take awhile but it works and it's safe for resin or plastic models.
Aceton is very good to clean your minis, it melts superglue and plastic. You have to rebase you minis or try to save the bases, and that works not every time..... or i am to clumsy. For plastic i use a disinfecting hand lotion what hospitals use called Sterillium. Your rubbing alcohol should work as long as there is no oil in it.
Here in the UK we have an antiseptic cleaning solution called "Dettol" that works wonders! If you can find the equivalent whetever you live I highly recommend it! Leave the models in it for 24 hours and then "blot" them with kitchen roll and the paint comes right off! https://www.googleadservices.com/pa...=2ahUKEwiRsI6r1fjgAhUrQxUIHcV_CmsQ0Qx6BAgOEAE
I do mine with Sterilium (don´t know if its available outside of Germany). In very hard cases i use acetone, it melts everything but it´s not good for your skin/everything else. Greetz Oni
Here's a very relevant blogpost. TL;DR: Simple Green works well enough. Then again our minis are metal, you can just dump them on industrial grade acetone without harming them (assuming you take the right safety measures, you are not made of metal).
I use Simple Green. I use empty Talenti Gelato containers for a lot of hobby work, they have a wonderful screw-on lid and are immune to alcohols and Simple Green, even over years of soaking. Melts bases, but it's cheap and effective. Wear good nitrile gloves, regardless of which paint remover you use, even Simple Green or Rubbing Alcohol are not things you want to be soaking your hands in!
It was already discussed here so you may find all the info you need. I'll stick to my opinion and tell you to avoid all this toxic stuff as break fluid even if it is super efficient. You have enough (and cheap) option which are efficient enough. I'll also continue to promote the use of Glanzer (aka Emsal power cleaner) in this case. Cheap and efficient AND as safe to have in house as your other house cleaning products. I also use to clean my airbrush.
The main ingredient in Dettol is Isopropyl (Rubbing) alcohol, plus a couple of other cleaning agents that certainly don't hurt. If you're using alcohol you want to be looking for 90%+, the normal stuff on the shelf is 70% and might work eventually but takes a while. Both require quite a bit of scrubbing, a good brass brush is advised but an old toothbrush (not the wife's) works OK. Acetone (or a cheap nail varnish remove that's full of it) works much better on metals, less soaking time and less scrubbing. It will destroy bases, resin, plastic, superglue, and probably small animals so be careful with it. If you're in the UK there's a cleaning product called Biostrip which is apparently miraculous on all materials.
If you're using dettol, you may as well just use isopropyl alcohol anyway, since what Colbrook says is right. Dettol is mostly IPA with some congeners and stuff for extra anti-bac content (eucalyptus oil). The reason you have to dilute it for wound cleaning is because of the high alc content ( 90%+ which can strip skin if you soak in it. Your skin will peel off). For miniatures stripping DO NOT DILUTE it, use it neat (or it turns acrylic paint at least into so much sticky goo that becomes a pain to remove). Wear gloves AND GOGGLES/eye protection because you don't want it on your skin OR in your eyes. I use some fine copper/brass wire brushes (not like the stiff steel wire brushes used for rust removal on car parts, more like a really stiff toothbrush) with a good soak of iso (but if I want them stripped back to bare metal, and I know an enamel primer was used, they get brake fluid baths. You need to wear ppe to use dettol anyway so it's not a major change. As for disposal, any decent mechanic has a drum for it. Make friends with one.).
Biostrip20, once you've used it you won't use anything else https://fuze-products.co.uk/shop/biostrip-20-paint-stripper I've stripped metal and GW plastic minis with no issues, it works in like 1-3 hours as well so no waiting around, here's a tutorial: It seems expensive for a tub, but due to the small amount you need per model it'll last you ages
"Biostrip destroys X-Wing ships in seconds" The Death Goo. hehehe Also mentions resins can fail, never let them more than 30 seconds. MSDS says one ingredient is Benzyl Alcohol, which seems to attack epoxies. Local shops sells Bencílico for over twice than Isopropanol; will keep it in mind for when the cheaper fails.
