Removing seams off funnels?

[BattleshipBob]

Morning all

Just started the funnels on Tashkent, i have a flexi file but after what seems a lot of sanding the seam is still visable. Am i doing this right??

 

[boatman]

Morning all

Just started the funnels on Tashkent, i have a flexi file but after what seems a lot of sanding the seam is still visable. Am i doing this right??

WELL Bobm8 if i was doin it id file off the worst of the seam then get some very fine wet an dry sandpaper an sand it down usein water to clean out the sand paper an your seam should gradually go so its so smooth not to notice but again Bob just try your best as noone can ask for more hows that but the other members may have their ways of doin it
chris

 

[BattleshipBob]

Morning Chris, biggest fear is losing the curve of the funnel!

 

[dalej2014]

I'd scrape off the worst of the flash with a knife blade (adzing the flash) then move onto wet and dry, very fine grit - 1500 to 3000. If the seams don't quite match up you may need to lay a very thin bead/sausage of fine putty along the two edges, then adze and sand. It's a tedious job, but makes a massive difference to the finish. Best of luck.

 

[boatman]

YES i see what you mean Bob mate but then dale thinks like me in my answer so there you go you have your answer so get stuck in lol
chris

 

[Mark1]

What your sanding with should have a hard surface,anything soft will ride over the shape of the seam

 

[Jakko]

Is it only visible, or can you also feel it with your fingertip and/or fingernail? If you can’t feel it, you probably won’t see it either once a coat of paint has gone over it. Which is the best way to check, by the way: paint the seam and its immediate surrounding area.

 

[BattleshipBob]

I'd scrape off the worst of the flash with a knife blade (adzing the flash) then move onto wet and dry, very fine grit - 1500 to 3000. If the seams don't quite match up you may need to lay a very thin bead/sausage of fine putty along the two edges, then adze and sand. It's a tedious job, but makes a massive difference to the finish. Best of luck.

Many thanks Dale

What your sanding with should have a hard surface,anything soft will ride over the shape of the seam

Thank you Mark

Is it only visible, or can you also feel it with your fingertip and/or fingernail? If you can’t feel it, you probably won’t see it either once a coat of paint has gone over it. Which is the best way to check, by the way: paint the seam and its immediate surrounding area.

Thanks Jakko

Have read that if you run a marker pen over the seam and then sand until the pen mark goes??

 

[BattleshipBob]

Not many seams on a StuG lol

Always thought you had to sand until the seam line has gone??

 

[boatman]

Not many seams on a StuG lol

Always thought you had to sand until the seam line has gone??

WELL Bob mate if you keep sanding you will go right through but do as dale has said with sandin then build it up with putty to retain your funnel roundness is the way to go
chris

 

[Jim R]

Jakko is right. Sand until it feels smooth. The line in the plastic may well still be visible. Priming that area will show whether the seam is still there. If you do find the seam needs filling I paint Mr S 500 along it and then sand again.
Jim

 

[Jim R]

With a StuG all problem areas can be dealt with with a liberal application of mud glorious mud. Mud halfway up a warship's funnel however just wouldn't work.

 

[Steve Jones]

If you sand in a circular motion it reduces the risk of mishaping the area

 

[BattleshipBob]

WELL Bob mate if you keep sanding you will go right through but do as dale has said with sandin then build it up with putty to retain your funnel roundness is the way to go
chris

Thanks Chris, will not use the black an decker then lol

Jakko is right. Sand until it feels smooth. The line in the plastic may well still be visible. Priming that area will show whether the seam is still there. If you do find the seam needs filling I paint Mr S 500 along it and then sand again.
Jim

Thanks Jim, appreciated

With a StuG all problem areas can be dealt with with a liberal application of mud glorious mud. Mud halfway up a warship's funnel however just wouldn't work.

Bugger thats, that idea down the plug hole lol, luv mud!!

If you sand in a circular motion it reduces the risk of mishaping the area

Lovely, thanks Steve!

 

[Tim Marlow]

Hi Bob. On a curved surface the best way to sand a seam is to sand wet at 45 degrees to that seam. That will minimise the possibility of thruppenny bitting the part, ending up with flat spots. It’s standard practice in model railway loco building to ensure the boiler remains round.
Your idea of marking the seam before work is a good one, but if there is an appreciable cavity in the seam I would fill it first.

 

[Gern]

With any seam, I always run some Extra Thin along it after it's started to set. The idea is to make sure that the joint is fully glued all along its length. If it isn't glued together you'll have a gap all the way through the thickness of the plastic which won't sand away.

 

[BattleshipBob]

Hi Bob. On a curved surface the best way to sand a seam is to sand wet at 45 degrees to that seam. That will minimise the possibility of thruppenny bitting the part, ending up with flat spots. It’s standard practice in model railway loco building to ensure the boiler remains round.
Your idea of marking the seam before work is a good one, but if there is an appreciable cavity in the seam I would fill it first.

Hi Tim, good advice, thank you!

With any seam, I always run some Extra Thin along it after it's started to set. The idea is to make sure that the joint is fully glued all along its length. If it isn't glued together you'll have a gap all the way through the thickness of the plastic which won't sand away.

Good idea, thanks very much!

 

[Tim Marlow]

Forgot to say, the sanding medium (wet or dry or what have you) should be fixed to a hard flat backing. This will ensure it takes off high spots but does not generate hollows.

 

[JR]

?
Hammer , fire , or a liberal coating of 4BO.

 

[BattleshipBob]

Hopefully finished the funnels

You can still see the remains of the sprue attachments, never quite sure if these need to be totally removed?