Photo Etched Parts Questions

[malvern_man]

Hi all,

As photo etched parts are all new to me I have a question or two about them.

I have a 1/35 Tamiya Willys MB Jeep that I will be building some time in the future and I have seen that there are some photo etched parts available for it, so, my questions are...

• what are the pros and cons of PE parts
• do you need a special glue to attach them
• do you treat them like plastic parts when it becomes time for priming and painting

Regards, Chris.

 

[Ian M]

PE. Can be a great improvement to a kit IF THE KIT NEEDS IT. Some of the PE you see is just a replacement for the - just as good - part you cut off to replace.
Larger parts that are built up from several parts of PE will always be best soldered, but superglue used correctly does the job. You can also used a pva/acrylic glue on small flat parts .
Most all paints and primers we use are suitable for plastic and metal.
Some swear that a metal primer is needed if there is PE involved.
Things that are going to get handled a lot may benefit but personally not been affected.

 

[Jakko]

• what are the pros and cons of PE parts

The main pro is that you can add finer detail to the model, of the kind that manufacturers find very hard to mould in plastic, like very thin pieces. Stuff like stowage racks made from flat iron strips on the real vehicle, for example, can be made pretty much to scale thickness in etched brass. Or grilles, gratings, and similar things that have big openings but very little actual material.

The main cons are added expense, because you have to buy the etched set in addition to the model, and the fact that many etched parts are fiddly to very fiddly to assemble. Also, as Ian also says, a lot of etched sets have replacement parts for things that are already perfectly well in the kit — or even better. For example, etched sets often like to give you etched grab handles — but those are frequently made of round material in the real world, so if you replace the kit part that’s moulded round, by an etched part that’s flat, you’re actually taking a step backward.

• do you need a special glue to attach them

You will need superglue to stick them to plastic parts. Most are also best stuck to each other with superglue, but if it needs strength, you can also solder them like Ian mentions.

BTW, sand the areas of the etched parts where the glue will go. This will help it stick to the metal.

• do you treat them like plastic parts when it becomes time for priming and painting

Prime them with a primer suitable for metal. If you go and apply model paints directly onto etched parts, it will almost certainly not adhere well.

 

[scottie3158]

Every thing has been covered above. I use quite a bit of etch but there is normally quite a lot left on the frets as they are not always better than the kit parts or a scratched item.

 

[Jim R]

Sound advice already.
I'll just add one thing. Cut the piece of PE from the fret on a hard surface with a bit of give, use a rocking action with a curved blade. If you use a cutting mat the part will distort and if the surface is too hard, glass or a ceramic tile, you'll wreck the cutting blade. I use a piece of perspex but anything with a bit of give will work. You'll need a needle file to smooth off any "nibs"left.

 

[minitnkr]

Don't throw away the unused brass as it is a great source of scratch material.

 

[malvern_man]

Thank you all for the wealth of information.

The jeep build will be a while before it's started so I've got plenty of time to decide if I'll go down the PE route.

Regards, Chris.

 

[Gary MacKenzie]

Thank you all for the wealth of information.

The jeep build will be a while before it's started so I've got plenty of time to decide if I'll go down the PE route.

Regards, Chris.

I have the Eduard PE set which i was using on my Jeep build which I will get back to working on.
I reckon I will use less than 33% of the material due to the more 2d than 3d appearance of most of it.
Started a thread @ https://www.scale-models.co.uk/threads/jeep-1-35th-tamiya-mm219.35329/ which I must get back to doing.

 

[Scratchbuilder]

Photo etch.
All of the advice above is relevant and good.
I would advise that you start with a scrap set from evilbay, then if you mess it up at least it is not the set you need that gets damaged.
Etch needs a bit of dexterity, three hands and four eyes... It can be there one second and gone the next, when cutting from the fret if the part is small then cut inside a plastic clear bag thet the kit parts come in. Three hands - one to hold the part, one to hold the model and one to feel around for the c/a glue. Four eyes two to see what and where the part needs to go, one to check where the part does actually go on the instructions and the final eye to look for the cat or cuppa that has just been placed next to your elbow.
Do you really need etch? Yes and no, if you have light guards or you want to add tie downs where you can loop a strap through, then the answer is yes. To replace parts that you can scratchbuild to replace over scale thick parts then no.
Cement - I use(d) a lot of etch on some of my builds and the current one is no exception, now you can solder etch using low melt solder or you can glue the parts together. If I am building a framework then I will more than likely solder (bar/slat armour) or if it is to attach to resin or plastic then I will use c/a (superglue), I do not have a particular brand but normally mix 50/50 fast and slow drying c/a together which is my own preference as this gives me time to position a piece without the rush.
What to do with what is left over - keep it! you will be surprised once you get into using etch that you can always find a part on the fret to replace the ugly part.
The slat armour on the Challenger below all came from brass etch which was soldered and then c/a was used to attach it to the vehicle.
Hope this helps
Mike.

 

[BattleshipBob]

I have a hate, hate relationship with the dreaded stuff but after lots of advice and some good info on YouTube I am getting there. Practice and a large swearbox, oh forgot do downstairs as I sometimes feel like jumping out of the window lol

Use a curved scalpel blade with a rocking motion to cut the pe off the sprues plus get small containers to hold the bits before they vanish, for ever lol. I bought cheap plastic pots from IKEA plus the paper cupcake holders, ideal!

 

[Scratchbuilder]

Also forgot to add, if your fingers are too big for the part then use two pair of tweezers as extensions to your fingers.

 

[Waspie]

Photo etch.
All of the advice above is relevant and good.
I would advise that you start with a scrap set from evilbay, then if you mess it up at least it is not the set you need that gets damaged.
Etch needs a bit of dexterity, three hands and four eyes... It can be there one second and gone the next, when cutting from the fret if the part is small then cut inside a plastic clear bag thet the kit parts come in. Three hands - one to hold the part, one to hold the model and one to feel around for the c/a glue. Four eyes two to see what and where the part needs to go, one to check where the part does actually go on the instructions and the final eye to look for the cat or cuppa that has just been placed next to your elbow.
Do you really need etch? Yes and no, if you have light guards or you want to add tie downs where you can loop a strap through, then the answer is yes. To replace parts that you can scratchbuild to replace over scale thick parts then no.
Cement - I use(d) a lot of etch on some of my builds and the current one is no exception, now you can solder etch using low melt solder or you can glue the parts together. If I am building a framework then I will more than likely solder (bar/slat armour) or if it is to attach to resin or plastic then I will use c/a (superglue), I do not have a particular brand but normally mix 50/50 fast and slow drying c/a together which is my own preference as this gives me time to position a piece without the rush.
What to do with what is left over - keep it! you will be surprised once you get into using etch that you can always find a part on the fret to replace the ugly part.
The slat armour on the Challenger below all came from brass etch which was soldered and then c/a was used to attach it to the vehicle.
Hope this helps
Mike.
View attachment 491761

Yours makes mine look really bad!!! I'm very - if not immensely jealous!!