Making custom / replacement parts for your models

[Flyermay]

Did you ever drop one of those small parts, which after hours of looking for it all over the place, simply seemed to vanish?


In my case, I don't think there has been a model so far that's not missing a small part or that has a broken part glued back together.


I saw a guy on YouTube making custom or replacement parts with at least 3 methods and materials –which he doesn’t explain-, so I'm wondering if you guys also do it and would be willing to help explaining what the best options are for this.


Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[kintosh]

This is a difficult one to answer fully the method and material depend so much on the part you are recreating. There are many materials out there to suit your needs I use anything that will serve from metals, plastic's, resin's, cardboard, wood etc.


Bob

 

[Flyermay]

This is a difficult one to answer fully the method and material depend so much on the part you are recreating. There are many materials out there to suit your needs I use anything that will serve from metals, plastic's, resin's, cardboard, wood etc.


Bob

Thanks Bob,


I kind of know how to work metal and wood parts, so I'm more interested in the plastics and resins; specially those methods involving some sort of casting with a mould.


Do you know which materials are used for creating plastic and resin parts, and the moulds?

 

[kintosh]

 Adam Casting resin parts for a one off replacement is a little counter productive as you would have to first make the part to make mould from it, if that makes sense. Usually an RTV rubber is used for the mould as for the resin there are again a few different types depending on use there are a lot of suppliers on the interweb. Plastics parts can be made from the left over sprues from the kits also Plasticard which is a high impact polystyrene and again can be found on the web. Hope this is of some use.


Bob

 

[Gern]

Try typing 'scratch build' into the search bar. There may not be many tutorials as such, but you'll start to get some ideas of what you can use.


It's also really handy to get yourself a big box and fill it with whatever odds and sods you might come across. Extra or unused parts from kits ( build an aircraft with the wheels up and there's LOTS of bits you can save; or build an armoured vehicle all buttoned up so you don't need the interior parts) or old domestic appliances can be taken apart (I made an armoured support vehicle from an old vacuum cleaner and oddments from my spares box). Try to only pick those materials which will be easy to glue together. Anything made of soft polythene type plastic is no good - there are a very limited number of them which can be glued. If you're clearing out those old, half finished kits, cannibalise them for whatever bits you can get off them undamaged. Old electronic PC boards are full of odd shaped bits although you may need a soldering iron to remove them without breaking them.


For scenery and bases, look at terrain building sites for things like Warhammer. We also have loads of excellent builders here who create backgrounds and scenery from just about anything. The main staple seems to be coffee stirrers and lollipop sticks!


It's also worth getting hold of some assorted styrene strips and sheets. They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes but they can be expensive. Look for packs of mixed sizes, or job lots of accessories being sold off on ebay. Better still, check out the model railway stuff on ebay - there's lots of sales for spares and scenery accessories.


Metal parts can also be useful - especially small tubing and electrical wire of almost any description. It can be separated into strands and there's a wide range of thicknesses..


You could start here:

 

[Flyermay]

I also saw a guy on a video using some kind of Plasticine or modelling clay, which seems to harden and then glues and paints for use in his models. Do you know about this material or a brand name that I can search online?

 

[John Rixon]

 Adam Casting resin parts for a one off replacement is a little counter productive as you would have to first make the part to make mould from it, if that makes sense. Usually an RTV rubber is used for the mould as for the resin there are again a few different types depending on use there are a lot of suppliers on the interweb. Plastics parts can be made from the left over sprues from the kits also Plasticard which is a high impact polystyrene and again can be found on the web. Hope this is of some use.


Bob

I managed to cast a hub for an AFV club Scorpion, I lost one of a pair, so pressed the other on into a chunk of fresh Blu Tac, then mixed some 5 minute epoxy, heated up in a spoon until it went very thin, then poured it into the makeshift mould. Sure, it took a bit of cleaning up, but I challenged my mate, for whom I built the tank, to guess which one was home-made, and he couldn't !

 

[Gern]

I also saw a guy on a video using some kind of Plasticine or modelling clay, which seems to harden and then glues and paints for use in his models. Do you know about this material or a brand name that I can search online?

Here you go Adam:


http://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/home-crafts/clay-and-moulding/air-drying-clay


I've seen a few builds where guys have used the DAS clay, but that's been mainly for scenery, not for precision type parts I think you're talking about.


PS There's a guy on here called Paul P who started a series of sculpting tutorials but I've not seen him for quite a while. I don't have details as it's not my thing, but I'm sure you'll be able to find them.

 

[stona]

I keep all my unused parts and sprues from completed kits. You'd be amazed how often a part can be replaced from this stock, sometimes with only a little adaptation.. I've replaced everything from control columns, to little control surface actuators, to the little flaps that cover a Spitfire's flap actuators, to all sorts of antennae, to entire windscreens this way.


Otherwise parts can be made from plastic card (as mentioned) and of course wire, as well as other scratch building materials most will have in the cupboard.


Rather than modelling clay I use a two part epoxy for sculpting and sometimes filling. The one I use is Milliput, but other brands are available


Cheers


Steve

 

[Gern]

There's a whole series of these videos. They're in Japanese but they will give you ideas about sources of materials and techniques. The transformation from the original kit and the groundwork are spectacular in this set of 3 videos:

 

[dubster72]

Or you can always ask on here for spare parts


As Steve said, with most kits there are many unused bits & most modellers keep them "just in case"


I've got loads of boxes just containing spare parts

 

[BarryW]

I often have lost small parts to the carpet monster.  In addition a kit part might be a bit crude or oversized and may need replacing for that reason. 


The options then depend on what the part is:


Searching through the spares box for a simular shaped part that can be cut/trimmed/sanded to a fair representation of the lost part.  The spares box is where all the left-over bits from models go and over the years it can build up to a lot of bits.  My spares box was started over 50 years ago before I was even a teenager!


Then there is lead wire.  This is very useful for pipework and wiring for instance.  I used it for pipework recently on my HKM Mossie.  It is very easy to shape and cut, a must have in any tool box.


Then there is stretched sprue.  I do not use this very often but it is a good option.


You also have available plastic sheet and rod that can be utilised.


Metal rods and tubes are also useful.


Don't forget - you might also want to sometimes add details and all the above can be utilised for that.


Just also remembered somethign else I recently bought that might prove to be useful.  I dont remember what its called, I am in my office and cannot get to the workbench to look.  But it is a plastic material, comes in coloured squares.  You drop it in a jar of hot water which softens it.  When you remove it you can shape it to any shape you want and let it cool and harden.  It is a very versatile material and everyone should have it in their tool box good for many uses, not just modelling.

 

[Ian M]

There are as many ways of constructing parts for models as there are ways to cook chicken! 


However making a replacement for a part that has been lost is going to be a tough one. Problem one, what does it look like and how big is it. Easy if there are multiples of the same part, not so simle if it is the only example....


For my small part replacements, mostly for parts that are damaged of very poorly moulded, I use any thing from brass or lead wire, plastic profiles or sheets, even a clear plastic blister from a package has been put to good use! The sky is the limit.


Milliput which Steve mentioned is also pretty handy. Aside being an excellent filler for larger jobs, you can also use it to 'construct' things from.


Patrick pointed out that you can also ask/look for bits her on the forum. Have a look in "The Bits Bin" section. quite amusing what can be found in there!


Of course if all else fails there is always the 'customer service' which although some are better/quicker than others can normally provide you with the part you need. Providing that the kit is not older that Mosses and long out of production.

 

[Flyermay]

What a coincidence, the guy on that video has the same name as the one I saw using the modelling clay; though this one is from Poland.


Forgot to mention that for now I would need those parts for aircrafts; as it's all I do at the moment. I'm trying to keep all the unused and optional parts, but so far, after half a dozen kits, it's mainly bombs, gas tanks, and landing gear.


I think the DAS is what I was looking for; as long as it glues well.


As John above, I usually lose a piece from a set; where I have an exact one to make a mould. Last time was one of the 12 exhausts from a P-51. So I'm keen in learning the process of making parts with moulds; whether it is with Blue Tac and epoxy, or with something else. This is the video I mentioned, though he uses something else:

He's using silicone and gypsum, in this case; but I'm sure there are better materials and methods.