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Help with making "welds"

Iron Mike

Iron Mike

Master At Arms And Resident Curmudgeon
Hey everyone! Finally got a little bench time, assembling the turret for the KV-1 project I have under construction and will need to fill and enhance the welds on the upper deck. What is the best method for doing so? I have not tried this previously and wanted to know more from the experts. Thanks!! :cheer:
 
Hi Mike , well not considering myself an expert on this mater i have only given weld enhancement a go on my current build using thin strips of Evergreen styrene ( i also have Plastruct 10 thou rod for adding small weld detail which i haven't tried yet ) then soaked with small amounts of Tamiya extra thin cement . Once the styrene has softened slightly i use mission models micro chisel to replicate the weld seams
Hope this has helped a little as there are many great techniques out there

cheer's

Matt :)
 
Hey thanks, Matt! I don't have any stock that small, but your idea sounds like it will do what I was looking for. Too bad the nearest hobby shop is 40 miles away! Any different suggestions, anyone?
 
Terry Barrow has a method he uses with solder , maybe you can look at how he does this on his builds . I have not tried this but menally kept notes for when I do need it :)

Jenny :kiss:
 
you can try sculpting putty something like AB, miliput, Pro Create I like AB for this but any will do,
roll a thin sausage of the putty a bit smaller then the size of the weld, place the sausage and wet the putty a bit to help remove fingerprints, then with a blade make a IIIIII patron or better take some round tubing sharp the end like a syringes/needle then you can make CCCCCC patron. For large welds first make 1 line then 1 next to it and then on top of both one more.
hope it helps and understandable.
greetings
 
When I do a weld bead I lat 2 parralel strips of tape down with at most 1 milimeter between them. Then I put some putty on. Depending on the height of the bead I usually scrap off even with the tape top. Then I pull up the tape. This leaves you with a line of putty standing proud. Then using a scalpel / hobby knife I indent close together until I have my weld. If some of the putty gets pulled over a little bit it only enhances the look. I use red automotive putty or even tamiya putty. hth
James
 
Wow! Thanks a heap for all the ideas! I have some Milliput and also the putties mentioned, may try some of each (in different areas). The tape and putty idea sounds like it might be the ticket for the turret and using a small, round tube to make the patterns was genius! Thanks again for the feedback, I appreciate the help! :silly:
 
I use stretched sprue. It meets my most important criteria...it is cheap!

I apply some liquid cement along the weld line, lay the stretched sprue on it, then give it another coat of cement. For fine weld lines the 'pucker' caused by the cement is close enough to scale. for really lumpy welds I just prod the soft sprue with the end of my pointed tweezers to roughen it up.

As I do a lot of scratchbuilding this is also convenient as I can use a coloured sprue which makes it easier to see when working on white styrene sheet.

Regards Dave
 
Cheap is good, had not thought of the stretched sprue idea. Planning to test the ideas this AM, will try to post a picture or two. Thanks again!
 
Re:Help with making

Iron Mike wrote:
Hey everyone! Finally got a little bench time, assembling the turret for the KV-1 project I have under construction and will need to fill and enhance the welds on the upper deck. What is the best method for doing so? I have not tried this previously and wanted to know more from the experts. Thanks!! :cheer:
Click to expand...

Hey Iron Mike,

As Jenny said I make some of my welds using fine solder wire. You can get a roll of the stuff at most electronic stores for not much and it will last a long time.

Here are some welds that I made for my E-100.
DSC01042.jpg


It is not very hard to do. First you glue the wire down where you want the weld to be.
DSC02567.jpg


DSC02568.jpg


DSC02570.jpg


Then just add the texture with a knife.

DSC02571.jpg


DSC02573.jpg


And presto a weld bead.
DSC02574.jpg


This won't work for all welds, but it works for the bigger one's. I hope this helps you out.

Terry B)
 
Re:Help with making

Wow, that looks like the ticket, Mr T! I just happen to have a roll of .015 silver solder in ye old parts box, I'll give it a shot! Thank you!
 
Re:Help with making

As advertised, Mr T's tip works GREAT!
IMG_1808-1.jpg


IMG_1807.jpg


First attempt, easy peazy, lemon squeezy!
 
Some great tips here - thanks folks.

How do these "roll yer own" methods compare to the Archer decals? Do the Archer decals have the same or similar texture?

Rudi
 
Hey Rudi! I haven't tried the Archer product, but the roll your own was sure easy and the spools of .015 and .020 silver solder cost less than ten bucks for both. There's probably enough solder on those two rolls to last me the rest of my life. :lol:
 
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