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How much time do you spend removing mould lines from a basic troop type model?  [RSS] Share on facebook Share on Twitter Submit to Reddit
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How much time do you spend removing mould lines from a basic troop type model?
A minute
Several minutes
Half an hour
More that an hour
I dont bother removing them
I dont paint or collect models
Other (write in)

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Made in us
Incorporating Wet-Blending






Absolutely hate mold lines.

Q&D way to do it is to slap Vallejo Plastic Putty on the seam, then scrape and trim with a hobby knife, and file down with the jeweler's files. Engraving pens help as well. How good are sanding sticks?

I also paint boardgame plastic (yuck!) and scraping off soft plastic is a pain! Serves me right for being cheap!

Crimson Scales and Wildspire Miniatures thread on Reaper! : https://forum.reapermini.com/index.php?/topic/103935-wildspire-miniatures-thread/ 
   
Made in gb
Crazed Spirit of the Defiler




Newcastle

Hate hate hate scraping mold lines off

I voted half an hour but actually that's to clip the bits off the sprue, get rid of mold lines and then assemble- although the vast majority of that time is getting rid of mold lines. Per model, it's definitely the most time consuming part of the entire process (if each paint stage is considered separate) because if any single stage of painting a troop sized mini took as long as scraping off mold lines I wouldn't do it

Hydra Dominatus 
   
Made in ca
Ambitious Space Wolves Initiate





Montreal, Canada

Oh my god.. Too much time hehe !
   
Made in us
Decrepit Dakkanaut





Hyperspace

Until they're all gone. Suffer not the mould line to live.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2017/08/13 05:46:49




Peregrine - If you like the army buy it, and don't worry about what one random person on the internet thinks.
 
   
Made in gb
Regular Dakkanaut





Aylesham KENT

I clean mold lines till they're gone.

If it does not bleed, I have no use for it. Death to the False One, freedom to the Galaxy. 
   
Made in us
Fresh-Faced New User




Phoenix, AZ

I'll generally do it for characters, but not for Rank-and-File. For the most part the lines on my RaF are along the seam-lines for clothing anyway, except the shoulderpads, so I'll give those a quick scrape after the model is assembled, and treat the rest as part of the model.

From the weakness of the mind, Omnissiah save us. From the lies of the Antipath, circuit preserve us. From the rage of the Beast, iron protect us. From the temptations of the Fleshlord, silica cleanse us. From the ravages of the Destroyer, anima shield us. From this rotting cage of biomatter, Machine God set us free. 
   
Made in gb
Impassive Inquisitorial Interrogator




U.K.

far ffar too long it feels like...

3 SPRUUUUUEESSSS!!!!
JWBS wrote:

I'm not going to re-read the lunacy that is the last few pages of this thread, but I'd be very surprised if anyone actually said that. Even that one guy banging on about how relatively difficult it might be for an Inquisitor to acquire power armour, I don't think even that guy said that.
 
   
Made in us
Guard Heavy Weapon Crewman





The correct answer for me would be "till all of them are gone".

For most GW plastic that mean a few minutes max, but for resin and metal that could take anywhere from a few minutes to a hour.
   
Made in be
Beast of Nurgle




Belgium

I answered just a few minutes, though on bigger models like a Forgeworld Daemon Prince or generally models made out of resin I tend to take a bit longer than that.

Outsmart what you can't beat, and beat what you can't outsmart. 
   
Made in gb
Storm Trooper with Maglight





Nottingham

Other.

As long as it takes to remove them.

Some minis longer than others.

Must have spent hours cleaning up tempestus scion. Disgusting. Never bought another box because of it.

Whereas gates of antares mini from warlord didn't have any and where they did, it was hidden where the models went together.

It definitely influences my choices to a degree

PLOG: Conquest: The Last Argument of Kings

The source of my Conquest : Www.facebook.com/ParaBellumWarGames



 
   
Made in us
Tzeentch Aspiring Sorcerer Riding a Disc





Orem, Utah

 Davidian wrote:
Other.

As long as it takes to remove them.

Some minis longer than others.


That's fair, I suppose. I wrote down a minute, because I think that's my average, but I'll clean and paint minis that take longer to clean, and it will take longer.

 
   
Made in us
Fixture of Dakka




NE Ohio, USA

Depends upon the mini, the medium, & the mold line.
   
Made in gb
Chaos Space Marine dedicated to Slaanesh




I chose "Other", as like a few people have said already, it depends on the model. I've not timed myself, and so far I've been trying to group it into doing eg. all the legs, then all the torsos, then all the weapons, so I can't estimate reliably.
It feels like it takes me a long time, and if I've cut my thumb it takes longer I'm hoping I'll get quicker as I become more experienced, but I'd rather take my time than rush and make a mistake.
   
Made in us
Squishy Squig






It depends ENTIRELY on how bad the mold lines are. Some models I have spent more time fixing bad molding than time actually building. Others it takes less than a few minutes.

1941 to 41st millennium in 6 seconds and $80.  
   
Made in fi
Posts with Authority






Hours and hours. Removing mold lines and assembly both take up way too much time in this hobby. Someone needs to come up with a new tool that allows fast work, but is still delicate enough so it will not accidentally remove detail or otherwise mess with the surfaces.

I could just let the moldlines be, but with GW's prices being what they are, I have to try to treat each mini as a luxury item..

EDIT: I recently got myself an AK fibreglass pencil and a box of refill tips. Loving it! Very good for delicate filing work that leaves a perfect finish. Only thing to watch out with it is that it practically turns the filed plastic into smoke, and I can't imagine inhaking plastic smoke is good for your health. So ideally you'd use one with a mask.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2020/06/20 18:49:22


"The larger point though, is that as players, we have more control over what the game looks and feels like than most of us are willing to use in order to solve our own problems" 
   
Made in us
Death-Dealing Devastator





South Carolina, USA

I don't even look at mold lines, let alone scrape them off or whatever. I might spend 30 seconds on them with an Xacto knife if they're right across a prominent part of a model that I want to kitbash into something cool, but otherwise I don't even care. Basic troop model? Zero seconds.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
 Ratius wrote:
Dont think Ive ever removed a mould line in my life.
Thinking about it, Im not even sure what a mould line is.


I think you and I should get together for some WH40K games and laugh about all these other OCD guys who would sneer at us and tell us we aren't doing the hobby right.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2020/12/26 14:04:50


Squats 2020! 
   
Made in pl
Dominating Dominatrix





 Edd Crumpett wrote:
It depends ENTIRELY on how bad the mold lines are. Some models I have spent more time fixing bad molding than time actually building. Others it takes less than a few minutes.

This.
   
Made in gb
Dakka Veteran




Lincoln, UK

Basic tidy up of connection points then build models. Once the glue has dried, remove remaining mould lines. It's amazing how much of the problem just vanishes.

Gaps in obvious places, like a horse's rump get filled with plastic cement if small, or Milliput/Greenstuff if deep. Milliput is water soluble when freshly mixed, so it's easier to get a good, smooth butt...

Lines on smooth helmets and upper surfaces get the most attention, so they're really clean. You'll notice a mouldline there almost instantly!

Then sides and finally undersides. Anything left that won't be seen, like the insides of riders' legs, are scraped to the point they won't cause problems for final glue spots.

I think I took a weekend (10-12 hours?) to clean 51 Eisenkern troops in HIPS. My Sedition Wars figures, about 100 of them in a mix of PVC and styrene, took about 14, 000 years to clean up.

Metal figures are generally in fewer parts and take a few minutes to file mould lines. If I'm taking hours to saw or cut off big chunks of metal, it really needs to get sent back as a miscast (mould slippage is a thing with cast minis).

Resin - take my time, it's a delicate material and the dust is nasty stuff.

After Sedition Wars, Reaper Bones 1 and the first Mantic Deadzone KS, I don't waste my life on "exotic" plastic materials that are a pain to scrape clean.
   
Made in us
Keeper of the Flame





Monticello, IN

As long as it takes. I'm shocked at any other answer.

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Made in us
Decrepit Dakkanaut





 Just Tony wrote:
As long as it takes. I'm shocked at any other answer.


Its funny. . . I keep seeing responses to this thread, while not having painted a GW mini in quite some time. Since I've "left" the hobby, I have been doing a ton of scale models, and hence joined a number of scale model groups, subreddits, facebook, etc. etc.

You'd probably have an aneurysm with the number of models proudly displayed on these sites/pages where no effort, or only token effort was given to removing mold lines. Even where rules are all "must remain positive" I want to just yell at these guys, like what the feth are you even doing?!?"

I mean, there are some model companies out there, like AMT who are still putting out kits with mould lines as bad as those 05-07 Space marine kits.
   
Made in gb
Dispassionate Imperial Judge






HATE Club, East London

 Ensis Ferrae wrote:
 Just Tony wrote:
As long as it takes. I'm shocked at any other answer.


Its funny. . . I keep seeing responses to this thread, while not having painted a GW mini in quite some time. Since I've "left" the hobby, I have been doing a ton of scale models, and hence joined a number of scale model groups, subreddits, facebook, etc. etc.

You'd probably have an aneurysm with the number of models proudly displayed on these sites/pages where no effort, or only token effort was given to removing mold lines. Even where rules are all "must remain positive" I want to just yell at these guys, like what the feth are you even doing?!?"

I mean, there are some model companies out there, like AMT who are still putting out kits with mould lines as bad as those 05-07 Space marine kits.


For most people, me included, this hobby isn't about 'building the best models you can possibly build'. Like, I'm not aiming for 'best'. At all. Mold lines, drilled barrels, spending hours painting a single model, blending, all of it is an option. The entire idea of 'improving' my painting or modelling just....isn't the point of this for me.

I have limited time available, and everything I choose to do has to be something I enjoy doing, or consider worth it when looking at my models from four feet away.

I COULD spend ages doing all the detailed things or making models to a much higher standard, but that wouldn't be fun. And if it means some mold lines are still visible at the end that just doesn't matter.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2021/03/30 15:40:48


   
Made in us
Decrepit Dakkanaut





 ArbitorIan wrote:
 Ensis Ferrae wrote:
 Just Tony wrote:
As long as it takes. I'm shocked at any other answer.


Its funny. . . I keep seeing responses to this thread, while not having painted a GW mini in quite some time. Since I've "left" the hobby, I have been doing a ton of scale models, and hence joined a number of scale model groups, subreddits, facebook, etc. etc.

You'd probably have an aneurysm with the number of models proudly displayed on these sites/pages where no effort, or only token effort was given to removing mold lines. Even where rules are all "must remain positive" I want to just yell at these guys, like what the feth are you even doing?!?"

I mean, there are some model companies out there, like AMT who are still putting out kits with mould lines as bad as those 05-07 Space marine kits.


For most people, me included, this hobby isn't about 'building the best models you can possibly build'. Like, I'm not aiming for 'best'. At all. Mold lines, drilled barrels, spending hours painting a single model, blending, all of it is an option. The entire idea of 'improving' my painting or modelling just....isn't the point of this for me.

I have limited time available, and everything I choose to do has to be something I enjoy doing, or consider worth it when looking at my models from four feet away.

I COULD spend ages doing all the detailed things or making models to a much higher standard, but that wouldn't be fun. And if it means some mold lines are still visible at the end that just doesn't matter.


For a hobby such as the one this board is built around, your approach makes sense. . . Even among my various armies, there were varying degrees of time spent on mould lines. Horde armies got obviously less attention than a marine army (for example). As a result, some minis, like Gants had "flat spots" where mould lines once were, while marines still retain rounded spots where I took the time to smooth out the line removal. . . But, I guess where I was going with my comment was that, in THIS hobby, you can produce 10 individual models over a day (if you're speed painting and whatnot) or a weekend+ (if you're taking more time per mini), and as such spending less time making an individual model look "perfect" is understandable. Whereas in the scale world, most builders are producing 1-2 models per month, tops. Most guys are simulating a real life object, and truly are (or should be) aiming to make it look as close to the real thing as possible. I mean, with scale models, they are literally built as display pieces (as opposed to gaming pieces that are GW minis) and, at least in my view, should change your approach to building and displaying your work.
   
Made in us
Fresh-Faced New User




I build one model at a time usually and don't fully clip and clean the sprue all at once to help track the numbers for the directions, so I go back and forth between clipping, cleaning, and gluing pretty frequently.

I'm pretty quick with a hobby knife, so I doubt I spend a full half hour on a single infantry. Maybe 15-20 minutes of actual scraping if the model has a lot of detail? I also tend to spend more time in 'carve' mode than 'scrape' mode, so I don't need to go over a mold line more than once very often, although I will rarely gouge the model a bit if I'm not focused enough.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2021/04/30 13:59:42


 
   
Made in us
Oozing Plague Marine Terminator





Half an hour, since there's multiple components including weapons and accessories.
   
Made in us
Blackclad Wayfarer





Philadelphia

About 1-2 minutes should suffice for most 28mm minis. I use an xacto blade and think files are mostly useless unless youre working with large resin minis.

I did not count drilling barrels as part of the mold line process as this is only required for 40k Space Marines. Maybe 3-5 minutes for a marine character if you go all out and drill their barrel

   
Made in us
Basecoated Black





United States

Probably 10 minutes or more lol. Has anyone found a better way to scrape em off pipe tubing, knuckles, or spikes/ rivets? It's 2023 and I still can't believe they're still placing em there.
   
Made in de
Angry Blood Angel Assault marine





Frankfurt, Germany

I fething hate mould lines ! Just kidding, but seriously they are the worst thing about building models IMO. I drybrush chaos marines which makes it even more important to remove them. The ones that you can't even remove are the most annoying.


edit: wait a minute... feth... f
...u
c
k

never knew dakka had a filter

This message was edited 3 times. Last update was at 2023/08/21 10:13:19


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Made in us
Fresh-Faced New User





I 3D print my models so they don't really have mould lines.
   
Made in au
Anti-Armour Swiss Guard






Newcastle, OZ

With the right tool, it only takes a couple of minutes per model - less for a space marine or elf.

I've never had any particularly spiky or odd shaped minis, though (no tentacles or spiney bits poking every which way), so yeah.

I'm OVER 50 (and so far over everyone's BS, too).
Old enough to know better, young enough to not give a ****.

That is not dead which can eternal lie ...

... and yet, with strange aeons, even death may die.
 
   
Made in us
Sureshot Kroot Hunter






It’s part of my building routine when assembling models. I do it exactly the same if it’s a push fit starter box infantry model or a $100+ center piece model.

Clip from sprue, file, drill barrels, mold line removal, dry fit, glue, and then glue magnet to the bottom of the base of the model.

I’ve been doing it almost exactly the same way for the last 20+ years. Mold line tool makes it easier to get every mold line vs only the really obvious ones.
   
 
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