[CrateCruncher]

White metal is really soft so if you haven't much experience go easy with the power tools and abrasives until you get a feel for it. Sanding and polishing removes a lot more material than you might realize. Once the detail is gone, it's gone. I often reduce slightly overscale parts by polishing them down to scale by removing material.

WM is so soft that you'll likely have at least one piece thats bent out of shape. Warm it up with your fingers and bend SLOW, a little bit at a time. If it cracks you can drill oversized holes and epoxy it together with a piece of wire.

I usually rely on one of three methods for preparing the metal surface: wet sanding with 600, hand brushing with a soft brass toothbrush, or 0000 steel wool. The one I use depends on the surface roughness I want. Of the three I use the wool 75% of the time. It's also great for polishing if you plan to leave the metal natural.

I'm currently using the Tamiya Metal Primer in the rattle can. It dries clear and fast and improves adhesion considerably.