Need some "how to" on building resin kits... Thanks

I’ve talked about how I’ve felt Resin kits are expensive, and how I feel I’ve not got the skill to work with resin, but I’m always willing to have a go. But, at £100+ a kit, I’ve voiced a few times how I feel they are grossly overpriced for many model builders, and offer less detail sometimes, being in the form of curbside and what not. Anyhow, I’m always willing to put my money where my mouth is, and I’ve got my 5 year long service bonus from my employer this month, so pay packet is considerably larger then normal. Plus, I’m selling some plastic kits off, as I’ve got duplicates, and kits that no longer interest me, I’m looking to sell at least 25 kit – why I bought all of them I do not know…. I also donated some plastic kits at the weekend to the PDSA, a local UK animal charity that I didn’t want, but that’s another story..

Anyhow this should be enough to get a resin kit, and one I feel I might stand a chance of being able to complete. What I need, is somewhere I can read AS much as I can about building resin kits. The BAR Honda from Studio 27 has a simple colour scheme, and a decal scheme that doesn’t put your hairs on end just by looking at the decal sheet. And being mostly white, if a few panel lines are not that sharp, it won’t matter, as I hate black panel lines on white, so they won’t be as highlighted as my other builds.

Is there anywhere I can go, to read up on how to clean the white metal parts, the resin, and what tools I need? Also, what types of paints I’ll need for preparing the metal, the resin etc… I know small bits, from various FAQS I’ve read, but I want to learn as much as I can before I plunge feet first….. the FAQS are all fragmented, perhaps there is a book I can buy? I know you need to wash the resin thoroughly, but what about priming? Do I need different types of primer?

This is make or break for me…. If I buy this kit, and it turns to worms I’ll perhaps never look at resin again. I tried to use resin when I’d only been building for two months, and it all went horribly wrong. But I feel this was due to lack of experience with plastic. This is all changed how, I’ve got 16 completed models behind me and 17 months of building, if I can build a resin kit by now, then it’s never gonna happen.

http://www.mediamixhobby.com.sg/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=2635

As it happens, I’m a big fan of BAR Honda Racing, so I’ve always wanted the BAR, a kit that can only be obtained in resin anyhow. Anyhow, thanks for reading, I hope some of the resin kit builders can help me out….. I’m on one of my treasure hunt moments, looking for as much information as I can find, to justify a £100 purchase..

If you ask me just give it a go, don't hesitate, look at it like now or never. As for the different way of doing it, well it is not all that different, just more expencive :)
I hope that Bil won't mind for this link http://members.shaw.ca/motorsportsinscale/On_The_Bench/BAR006_Buildup_Part1.htm

One little hint, if you have rotary tool (aka dremel) buy those fine wire sets for cleaning white metal parts.
Keep in mind that different materials react differently on heat (when useing hair drier on decals).
Tamiya primers worked fine with me on all materials (Tamiya metal primer also worked good on PE and white metal).
As for the panels, you can scribe them much deaper and sharper in resin then plastic.
That's it, nothing to much special, just enjoy it.

An F1 kit might be a difficult way to begin your resin adventure. I've built a couple of Le Mans Miniatures sportscar kits and they were quite straightforward so long as you're careful.

I've heard warnings about resin dust when you sand. Not good for your health apparently. Techniques are much the same as with plastic kits just with a lot more preparation and test fitting. Metal parts will need an etch primer of course and whenever possible use pins and other methods to reinforce joins. Particularly on tricky parts like wing assemblies.

Can't think of much else off the top of my head. Be prepared to exercise your problem solving skills and make sure the subject is one you are passionate in so the motovation doesn't waver when progress slows down. But I guess that applies to all modeling. :)

Good luck.

Mick, this is pure theory on my part since I haven't started my resin kit yet (apart from a bit of clean up) but I've done my usual thing of reading up considerably on the subject and the only really big differences I've read about are:

1. Sometimes the resin parts are slightlly flawed (pits, air bubbles etc.) which may mean some filling etc to get a smooth shell. I've read that biiger airbubbles can be drilled out with your pin vice first to make things easier. Having said that, my renaissance kit doesn't have an air bubble in sight;

2. Forget glues and putties that are toulene/acetone based - they won't work on resin. CA and epoxy only.

3. Cleaning the body of mold release before any priming/painting is a MUST. Bleach apparently does the job famously.

4. Resin is harder to sand than plastic (but you know that already ;) )

5. Depending on the mfctr/kit you may come across some fit issues that will require modification - but then again that is also true of plastic kits so it's not really resin-specific

Other than that, nothing else comes to my mind. You'll do as good a job with this as with your other builds so long as you don't lose your temper with it ;) Just don't start it expecting 100% "Tamiya-like" fitment and then you can only be positively surpirsed rather than disappointed.

Alex K has done many of these kinds of kits so I'm sure he'll offer you some useful tips. Also just reading the resin threads here on AF will provide heaps of useful tips.

Good luck!

Ok, I’ve decided to buy the BAR 007, but I’m very confused. I took a look on www.hlj.com and found one I liked at a price better then mediamix –

http://www.hlj.com/product/S27FK20188

As you can see, it looks pretty nice if built correctly. Even has lucky strike decals. However before I pushed the buy button, I thought I’d have a search around and see if I could find the box contents.. and I did.. This is it -

http://www.1999.co.jp/dbimages/user/hobby/itbig/10046534n.jpg

Notice something odd with the decals…? Yep, no red circles, and no lucky strike decals either… Have I just lost the plot, or something.. I really wanted the one with the tobacco decals.. If I can’t even find the right kit I want, then what chance do I have of actually building it..??? LOL

Thanks for the responses guys.. I’ve got the money for it, plus I’m getting my list of kits to sell ready.. And that BAR built up link provided was a great model..

Looks like a nice kit Mick. Looking at your pics there might be another decal sheet under that one.

Looks like a nice kit Mick. Looking at your pics there might be another decal sheet under that one.

I think you might be right... Someone on f1m said it does in fact come with lucky strike decals. I'll order this one, it looks to be nice kit. Doesn't look to be a complicated decal, or colour scheme, so here goes nothing.. Or, here goes £100.. Oh well, I love the car, so it's this or a diecast..

Yes if you look at the bottom edge of the sheet you can see another decal sheet with the red circles.

Tips for resin: files are far better then sand paper for these kits. Resin is thicker and more dense then plastics so you will save alot of time starting with a file to do clean up. Resin is heavier and it is going to be a bit tricky getting the F1 suspension to properly hold the weight of the body and parts so take your time with the suspension and reinforce it as much as you can so that it sits properly. Dont assume anything will fit right, especially decals. Everything else has been said that i can think of. PM me if you run into any trouble.

Well,

It's now ordered.

http://www.hlj.com/product/S27FK20188

HLJ would only ship EMS, its in stock so give it about 7 days, and it should be here. I also ordered replacement belts, some 1/20 MFH belts. £100 just gone. I must be going barking mad. I'd better stick to the promise, and sell some kits off now...

Oh well.. As long as I take my time, I should be OK.

I keep praying Honda wins a GP so we can get a plastic kit of one of their F1 cars. It's hard to justify $170 on a kit that isn't going to drive me to work. Good luck, I'm interested in how it comes out. At Honda's rate these days, resin may be our only option of building a Honda F1 car. In your searching - did you find any with the "Look left, look right" livery?

You'll probably like this link.

http://members.shaw.ca/motorsportsinscale/On_The_Bench/BAR006_Buildup_Part1.htm

I know you got the 007, but the 006 is close enough. The problem you need to be aware of about F1 kits is the suspension and front wing. Be prepared to use lots of glue and lots of dry fitting. I have several resins kits and have been working on an in depth resin article showing most of the types of resins, the different skill levels in kits, and basic things to look out for. It will probably be several weeks if not months away from being placed on the web. In the meantime though, after you get your kit, make sure you post pics and ask questions if need be. You can always put down the knife and paint to ask a question instead of pushing into the unknown and possibly damaging a very expensive kit.
Nic

I keep on hoping that BAR Honda get at least one GP behind them, as this might prompt someone to release the car in plastic, but it’ll perhaps be Revell that picks it up, and it’ll be in 1/24 if Revell produce it. I do, don’t ask why prefer 1/20 with my F1, I just like the larger scale.

It is a very expensive kit, but the FW24 is £35, so £89 for a resin kit isn’t all that bad. It was £8 for the replacement belts, as I wasn’t keen on using P/E belts. P/E buckles are fine, but not the actual belts. I need to find some better needle files though.

As for the look left, look right – I too noticed they are missing from the front wing etc... I was going mad trying to ensure it came with luckies. It looks better with the full compliment of sponsorship decals.

HLJ have put my BAR on back order….!! How dare they… It was in stock when I put the order in, that’s why I did it. In the space of a few hours they’ve gone from in stock to back order..??? They always do this. They have a strange stock system.

Still, when it comes back in stock again, and I get it, I’ll start up the WIP. I’ve got enough to be getting on with at the moment.

It probably went on back order because you bought the last one. Don't worry so much. If they don't send you a shipping notice in a few days, then worry so much.

It probably went on back order because you bought the last one. Don't worry so much. If they don't send you a shipping notice in a few days, then worry so much.


Hmm... You were right.. I'm just a HLJ novice. They are getting it ready for shipping as I type this. Being sent via EMS, so should only take 7 working days. Better get my workbench cleaned up... I'm looking foward to it, but very worried I'm about to stuff up a £85 kit.. :uhoh:

resin is also harder to bend back in shape if it gets distorted. you'd need a tub of hot water and patience.

both i didn't have when i tried straightening out the resin front bumper of the veilside skyline and broke it in half. :lol:

other than what the others posted, you're good to go and we'll wait for the progress pics :D

be prepared for a custums charge.
anything over £18 from japan should incur a charge.

if you don't get charged i'm not going to speak to you for a month........


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i never knew you could bend resin parts.

be prepared for a custums charge.
anything over £18 from japan should incur a charge.

if you don't get charged i'm not going to speak to you for a month........


* * *

i never knew you could bend resin parts.


Yep.. :rolleyes: But, I've had orders from HLJ that were worth £57 and £63 and didn't get charged, but this package will... It's too much value. I'm expecting at least £25 on top....

As for bending resin, I'm not planning on bending the stuff...:p

Being on my first one - not some how-to's but some how-not-to's...

As allready stated by somebody else - the wings are tricky. When doing the final layer of paint on your rear wing, hold on very carefully. Otherwise even CA glue is not strong enough. To ehhrrr... worsten it - also keep this fact in mind when putting on the primer on your front wing! Well, otherwise don't work over a tiled area, like I do when I paint. ;) Okay guys, stop laughing, please...

Also, onto something more serious and less easily repairable. It was strangely not mentioned, but I was warned about it a few times when doing my research. The white metal suspension parts can be broken surprisingly easily. The postal services around the world give it their best shot, causing you to have to straighten out everything. Be very carefull when doing this.

I didn't notice anyone else mention it, but don't just test fit stuff... dry build the entire car before you paint / prep anything. I've got a Microscale product called Liquid Tape which remains tacky enough to hold an S27 F1 car together, but never actually sets - Assemble it with this, then check ride height, suspension alignment etc - you'll probably find that the car's not actually square until you've tweaked / bent a few things - Often on S27 kits the supports for the nose wing are way too long - You need to have a good idea of the finished ride height before you start trimming / shortening them.

And as mentioned, wings can be a pain - You usually end up having to cut off the locating lugs and file the ends of the wing planes square. There's usually enough 'meat' in the wing elements to redrill guide holes, and assemble with sewing pins or similar while glue sets.

Also, be careful bending photo etched pieces, especially if you want a curve - Roll the parts over something circular, and work them into the shape you want - you can't just 'bend' a curve in a P/E part, it will crease, and you'll never get the crease out

Other than, just be patient and work slowly. A lot of Super glues are too 'fragile' for white metal - Especially something like the rear wing of an F1 car - and epoxy (your only real alternative for this sort of thing) is a pig to work with if you're not used to it....

This all sounds a bit doom and gloom, but I've built two, (and have about 15 more waiting) and am very happy with the results...

Good Luck

David

As mentioned before, dry fit everything. When I did my first one I got so excited that I prepped the body, painted it and then realised I had no holes drilled for the wishbones!!!!!

Oh, and have fun!

be prepared for a custums charge.
anything over £18 from japan should incur a charge.

if you don't get charged i'm not going to speak to you for a month........


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i never knew you could bend resin parts.

Hmm... Well, the package is just down the road from me, held in storage, as customs will not release it, as the invoice is missing. Hmm... Royal mail says it's with Parcel force24, who say customs have not yet assigned their charge, but royal mail want £14.50 when it is released, and a further £5.50 for 10 day storage, free if the parcel is released in 10 days, but if it's 11 - 20 days then £5.50 will be slapped on top, + 17.5% on top of the actual cost of the goods.

I'd have been better off getting this from grandprixmodels in the UK. This is going to be expensive.. Very expensive. First, and last resin kit I get imported. I've still not got any idea if and when customs will release this. It took only 24 hours to get from Japan to the UK, its taken customs 48 hours so far to tell me the invoice is missing..

Gawd, I hate living in the UK... Its little wonder the UK is a laughed at country, what with all the red tape..

So, you can still speak with me, its been charged.. and retained at the moment..:frown: :frown: :rolleyes: :uhoh: :banghead:

Gosh! You've convinced me, I'll never use customs again!

Gosh! You've convinced me, I'll never use customs again!


Yeah sorry, bit of a rant on my part... I too "wish" I could chose not to use them, but not a lot of choice I'm afraid.. Oh well, just have to wait and see what happens. You're lucky, toys and models etc in the US are tax free when imported, us UK folks get ripped sometimes..

Its a UK thing I think, we aren't called "rip off" Britain for no reason.. :rolleyes:

it souds a little strange that they say Customs has not assigned a charge;
it sounds like they've lost some paperwork.

lost invoice = reason to contest it in my opinion.

Gosh! You've convinced me, I'll never use customs again!
:iagree:
That's terrible customer service.

:iagree:
That's terrible customer service.

Hmm.. Don't think it's parcel force, but customs. I've dodged them with every single package sent from hlj, and I've had a few, but none sent via EMS. All SAL. This one is EMS, and I know HLJ do not put a printed invoice in the box. I bet they've opened it, and can't find the invoice.

They can sometimes open up parcels, but it's a sod when they do. I just hope the kit is worth the expense.... I'm sure it'll be fine, but I'm not sure what customs are doing.. I guess they are contacting the sender, to find out the invoice value, even though it will be on the box anyhow... Red tape as always... :rolleyes:

Mick HLJ normally send you a confirmation of cost/invoice and sending the item. Will customs accept that as proof of value?

Mal

last time i had a HLJ parcel, the cost of items was on the postage stamp/sticker on the front.

Well,

This is getting better and better. The values for HLJ are always on the box, but I don’t know what they are doing… I called today, got nowhere… I could go into how they just jerked me around, but I’m now not in the mood. It’s been with them now since Sunday, and nothing has happened, and I’ve emailed, called, told them I can send them the invoice, everything. It’s really poor. Parcel Force really is a crappy company when it comes to giving advise. Just how hard can it be for them to tell me what Customs want, as I rang UK customs, and they told me the delivery com[any are the ones I need to speak with.. In the end, I lost my rag, and the last person I spoke with hung up on me….

So, I doubt I’ll ever see this… Parcel force will now perhaps stamp on the box, and crush it before they send it, just to try and teach me for mouthing them off, as I got no logical response from them… Glad it has insurance, but I don’t know what customs do with packages they confiscate. I’ve looked on UK law websites, and typical UK law, makes no sense at all….

Ah well, just ranting to get it off me chest.. Isn't worth the blood pressure anymore. If I get it, then I get it, if not then I'll have to see if I can claim on insurance..

That is one sad and sorry tale Mick. I hope things will sort themselves out and it doesn't prove too expensive.

Phew.. Just took delivery of my BAR Honda. It was delivered to my workplace, and I’ve had a look in the box, along with most of the crew I work with, as they were all intrigued. WOW…

I really hope I can build this, as what a kit. The folks at work were like little school boys, I had to limit them from touching it, as they’d never seen anything like this before… They were all like WOW, this is great..I must say, the resin cast body was superb… I’m impressed. The white metal has a few edges that look like they need cleaning up though, but the metal turned wheels are great, and the tires looked to be really nice…. They are really black, and not white, and little moulding material left on them.

Instructions seem a bit pants though. Decals are really nice, and do include the lucky strike decals. But what is impressive, is the level of detail on the cast body. The panel lines are already really nice, but shame its not got an engine.

No idea what the problem was with customs. It was all clearly marked up on the box, value, sender, where to go to everything… Parcel force just dumped it at works reception and left… It has a big label over it saying custom charge, but I’ve not paid for it. Perhaps they send me an invoice..??

Anyhow, at least its not lost, why customs or Parcel force couldn’t keep me informed of the progress, or continue the tracking correctly is beyond me. I’ve just checked the tracking again, still says invoice missing.. Yet it’s on my desk right now… Stupid..

Sorry for the ramblings guys.. Lets hope its all worth it.

Glad to hear that all went well. Are you gonna make a WIP?:eek:

Yeah, glad to hear it all worked out. Here's hiping they don't come after you for the customs charge- seems it might go some way to make up for the frustration. Looking forward to seeing pics.

Are you gonna make a WIP?:eek:

Of course he'll do a WIP- he knows that by now if he didn't, we'd all have him banned....

Glad to hear that all went well. Are you gonna make a WIP?:eek:

Yes.. I'll make a WIP, but I'm still gathering information, ref pictures, how to on cleaning and filling and priming resin, that sort of thing.. But I've got lots of goodies...

Tamiya Primer (the good stuff as it's now known.. LOL), tamiya metal primer, Gunze (spelling) top coat clear, SMS decals, Model Factory Hiro 1/20 belts.. It''s the full works I think... I'd better not make a mistake. :rolleyes: :frown: It's the reason I'm not rushing into this.... But it's a resin kit, it already has P/E, and CF decals etc are all stuff I've worked with before... Erm.. Hmm... This could all end in tears.. :uhoh: