The Energon Pub

Sorry if this has already came up or if this isn't the right fourm for this question. Im starting to get into paint apps and was wondering what the right method was to removing paint if I mess up ?

Hey anyone have any idea how to work with a broken perfect effect figure? The peg of one of the wing guns(right) of my shadow warrior (red one) snapped off in the back and won't come loose now. Curious if any suggestions to get it out and maybe re attach.

If not willing to sell cheap, otherwise h has all parts in perfect shape...except for this one problem

Have just received Dr Wu Partners through the post and on opening I noticed Sparkplugs leg is broken



Is there any way to fixt his and keeping his articulation? I have tried popping out the snapped nub where the leg connects but it is in too tight (probably the root of the problem) any help would be appreciated.

amtm wrote:I have an MP-04 Optimus Prime with a broken trailer hitch piece. I also have a regular Hasbro Masterpiece Prime with an intact trailer hitch piece, but the rest of the toy is in rough shape (missing head and several pistons, beat-up paint).

I was thinking of trying to replace the broken hitch on MP-04 with the one from the Hasbro edition, but could not figure out how to get the pin holding it in out--needlenose pliers and such have not worked, and I don't want to risk breaking it by using brute force. I've attached pics of the pin on the Hasbro version (a little fuzzy, sorry).

Anyone have any ideas on how to remove it (and of course, install into the other toy) without damaging the leg where it's seated, or trailer hitch?

TF-MP-OP-TrailerHitchPin-Front.jpg

TF-MP-OP-TrailerHitchPin-Back.jpg

Get a VERY small nail, nip off the point to make it flat and use that to push out the pin.

The ends of the pins are typically different. One has a pattern cut in to help it grip in the plastic, the other is typically smooth. You want the end with the patter to pop out first, if not you will be trying to push that part all the way through the joint which is difficult to do.

Once you get that one end out you can usually grab the pin with the pliers.

This trick works for any pin joint where you can reach both sides of the pin.

leakin' lubricant wrote:Have just received Dr Wu Partners through the post and on opening I noticed Sparkplugs leg is broken



Is there any way to fixt his and keeping his articulation? I have tried popping out the snapped nub where the leg connects but it is in too tight (probably the root of the problem) any help would be appreciated.

First, see if you can send him back and get the retailer to replace him ... that is your best bet. but if you can't,, one trick I've used to make replacement joints for figs is this:

Get a piece of wire about the diameter of the peg, maybe less.
You'll kind of have to judge what gauge to use.
I don't have the Dr Wu fig in question so I don't know how little he is.

But drill out a hole in the body, as well as the replace the broken peg. Use a drill bit the same size or just a TINY bit smaller than your wire.

It is a small fig, so be careful. You can probably drill it out with just the bit, without using an actual drill.

Cut a piece of wire to replace the old peg.

Viola! New pin joint. It'll hold in place with friction.

I've often used the wire that ties the figures in the packages.
Not the new eco friendly junk, the older plastic wrapped wire.
If you need to you can glue in one end, and have at least one side solidly mounted.
So if you have old packaging laying around, you probably have wire.

I've used this trick to replace many wrist pegs as well as other simple joints on TFs, Joe scale figures and Marvel Legends.

Say I had a hole in a figure and I wanted to fill that hole. What should I use?

rpetras wrote:

leakin' lubricant wrote:Have just received Dr Wu Partners through the post and on opening I noticed Sparkplugs leg is broken



Is there any way to fixt his and keeping his articulation? I have tried popping out the snapped nub where the leg connects but it is in too tight (probably the root of the problem) any help would be appreciated.

First, see if you can send him back and get the retailer to replace him ... that is your best bet. but if you can't,, one trick I've used to make replacement joints for figs is this:

Get a piece of wire about the diameter of the peg, maybe less.
You'll kind of have to judge what gauge to use.
I don't have the Dr Wu fig in question so I don't know how little he is.

But drill out a hole in the body, as well as the replace the broken peg. Use a drill bit the same size or just a TINY bit smaller than your wire.

It is a small fig, so be careful. You can probably drill it out with just the bit, without using an actual drill.

Cut a piece of wire to replace the old peg.

Viola! New pin joint. It'll hold in place with friction.

I've often used the wire that ties the figures in the packages.
Not the new eco friendly junk, the older plastic wrapped wire.
If you need to you can glue in one end, and have at least one side solidly mounted.
So if you have old packaging laying around, you probably have wire.

I've used this trick to replace many wrist pegs as well as other simple joints on TFs, Joe scale figures and Marvel Legends.

Thanks for the advice, much appreciated, I managed to get the nub out and repair it with super glue, the leg snapped back in place after a bit of careful cutting with a craft knife. If the joint breaks again I will try your method.

Not sure if this is where I should post this but I just picked up a Cybertron Soundwave figure (from the CGI cartoon not the game) and I noticed his chest panel is made of translucent purple plastic with painted gold parts and was wondering whats the best way to remove some of the gold paint without scratching it off, I wanted to do a little bit of work on this but this is my first attempt at customization of any kind

Hey everybody,
I recently acquired and extra Alternators Skids. I know the guy's been modded to here and back but it's my only duplicate so I want to re-paint him and maybe switch his head.

What should I use to take off the existing paint apps?
Where can I get a good sized head? Voyager class maybe?

Thanks

Tom_Servo wrote:<img src="http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l141/misterroundheels/MDrill.jpg" border="0" alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a>
I got this drill for Christmas, and I've used it on almost every project that I've done since. It's magic.

I was reading through the old posts and saw this. Thanks for sharing. I prefer manual tools to power tools and I was thinking about getting one of these but wasn't sure about them. After hearing your praise I'm defiantly gonna pick one up.

Thanks again.

One of the peg holes on FOC Onslaught's gun is on the verge of breaking. I'm currently keeping him in robot mode to avoid that.

Is there any way I can fix the peg hole?

Hi all, I'm looking for some tips on fixing the paint job on my classics Prowl, for some reason all of a sudden the paint has become tacky (it was fine up until now). I was going to use Plastikote spray paints to replace the dodgy Hasbro stuff, has anyone any tips on the best way to mask off the doors with minimal bleeding, also does anyone know if it is advisable to clear cote over reprolabels sticker to preserve them.

Hi,
I just gotten G1 Scavenger and Scapper. They are dirty and the joints are a little tight. I don't want to damage them or peal the sticker off.
What should I do to clean them?
Thanks!

leakin' lubricant wrote:Hi all, I'm looking for some tips on fixing the paint job on my classics Prowl, for some reason all of a sudden the paint has become tacky (it was fine up until now). I was going to use Plastikote spray paints to replace the dodgy Hasbro stuff, has anyone any tips on the best way to mask off the doors with minimal bleeding, also does anyone know if it is advisable to clear cote over reprolabels sticker to preserve them.

Use Tamiya's masking tape. It might be expensive, but the masked edges show no bleed-through at all.

Do you have an airbrush? Airbrushes put on a much finer mist of paint, minimizing bleed-through. Also, try spraying from the side of the masked part--meaning, spray with the masked side facing toward you. The logic behind this is that if you spray with the unmasked side facing you, the masked edge of the tape acts like a dam, pooling paint on the edge, creating the risk of bleeding and an unnaturally thick border.

Also, you should use a blade to cut along the edges of the masking tape. Apparently, lint and dust might get stuck onto the sides of the tape, and create an uneven border on the painted surface.

SKYWARPED_128 wrote:

leakin' lubricant wrote:Hi all, I'm looking for some tips on fixing the paint job on my classics Prowl, for some reason all of a sudden the paint has become tacky (it was fine up until now). I was going to use Plastikote spray paints to replace the dodgy Hasbro stuff, has anyone any tips on the best way to mask off the doors with minimal bleeding, also does anyone know if it is advisable to clear cote over reprolabels sticker to preserve them.

Use Tamiya's masking tape. It might be expensive, but the masked edges show no bleed-through at all.

Do you have an airbrush? Airbrushes put on a much finer mist of paint, minimizing bleed-through. Also, try spraying from the side of the masked part--meaning, spray with the masked side facing toward you. The logic behind this is that if you spray with the unmasked side facing you, the masked edge of the tape acts like a dam, pooling paint on the edge, creating the risk of bleeding and an unnaturally thick border.

Also, you should use a blade to cut along the edges of the masking tape. Apparently, lint and dust might get stuck onto the sides of the tape, and create an uneven border on the painted surface.

Thanks very much, kind of a novice at this so your advice is very welcome. I dont have an airbrush unfortunately too expensive for how little I would use it. Would you advise using clear coat over the top of reprolabels or would that screw them up.

leakin' lubricant wrote:

SKYWARPED_128 wrote:

leakin' lubricant wrote:Hi all, I'm looking for some tips on fixing the paint job on my classics Prowl, for some reason all of a sudden the paint has become tacky (it was fine up until now). I was going to use Plastikote spray paints to replace the dodgy Hasbro stuff, has anyone any tips on the best way to mask off the doors with minimal bleeding, also does anyone know if it is advisable to clear cote over reprolabels sticker to preserve them.

Use Tamiya's masking tape. It might be expensive, but the masked edges show no bleed-through at all.

Do you have an airbrush? Airbrushes put on a much finer mist of paint, minimizing bleed-through. Also, try spraying from the side of the masked part--meaning, spray with the masked side facing toward you. The logic behind this is that if you spray with the unmasked side facing you, the masked edge of the tape acts like a dam, pooling paint on the edge, creating the risk of bleeding and an unnaturally thick border.

Also, you should use a blade to cut along the edges of the masking tape. Apparently, lint and dust might get stuck onto the sides of the tape, and create an uneven border on the painted surface.

Thanks very much, kind of a novice at this so your advice is very welcome. I dont have an airbrush unfortunately too expensive for how little I would use it. Would you advise using clear coat over the top of reprolabels or would that screw them up.

Glad to help.

I've clear coated Gundam stickers before when building my MG Gundam Exia, and it looks fine even a year later, so I suppose it should be okay with Reprolabels.

I haven't used Reprolabels before TBH, so I can't say for certain. It SHOULD be okay, though, as there hasn't been any reported cases of stickers being damaged by clear coats.

Just be very sure you have your sticker(s) where you want it before applying a clear coat, because it can be very difficult to remove dried clear coat , if not downright impossible (unless you're using Future).

SKYWARPED_128 wrote:
Glad to help.

I've clear coated Gundam stickers before when building my MG Gundam Exia, and it looks fine even a year later, so I suppose it should be okay with Reprolabels.

I haven't used Reprolabels before TBH, so I can't say for certain. It SHOULD be okay, though, as there hasn't been any reported cases of stickers being damaged by clear coats.

Just be very sure you have your sticker(s) where you want it before applying a clear coat, because it can be very difficult to remove dried clear coat , if not downright impossible (unless you're using Future).

Thanks again, good advice, I should be getting the paints together later today so I'll let you know how it goes.

Hey! I recently ordered some Pledge Future after seeing so many people recommend it for tightening up joints, but when it arrived, it was Multi-Surface Finish.

http://www.pledge.com/en-US/Products/Pa ... inish.aspx

Every online link I go to redirects to this product, and even though I'm positive I ordered Pledge Future, with the product image even having the Future logo on it, this is what I got instead. Is this the same stuff with a different name, or am I missing something?

Thanks in advance! Sorry if this is on the wrong place, the maintenance thread seemed like the best place for it.

EDIT: Actually can a mod please delete this post, I think I'll post this in the customization section.

Does anyone know how to remove this pin in Generations FOC Grimlock's shoulders?

I've tried heating it up with a hair dryer, I've tried using a hammer and a nail to knock out the pin (the gnarled end is on the top I think, which makes knocking it out tougher).

Anyone have an advice on this one?

Finally finished my Classics Prowl paint job, I used Plasticote paints and some generic Police model decals, was a labour of love and one hell of a learning curve, but all worth it in the end.

Enjoy.

*Edited due to accidental double post*

kirbenvost wrote:Ouch, that's a harsh break to have on an exclusive toy. So far I haven't had much luck using superglue on any sort of stressed areas of plastic... it works fine for cosmetic fixes (side mirrors, head crests, etc), but anything under stress like a joint, the glue just snaps right off. I dunno, maybe I'm doing it wrong or something. Could be I need to let it cure longer. I used superglue on one of the armor tabs on my G1 Jetfire, and it broke the first time, but is holding so far the second.

Maybe you could rig up something more permanent as a splint. Tape may leave a residue on the plastic, you could perhaps try some of the clear elastics they use in the Hasbro packaging.

I bummed me out that the knee broke off right out of the box, still does bum me out, but I did resolve it, in a way.

I never did fix this problem or find any possible solutions online. He's been hiding out in one of my air-sealed containers in the back office. Today I came across another Fire SL Convoy online & bit the $120 bullet. The completist in me wants to have that perfect condition Fire SL Convoy.

Now that I've got him on the way, I can actually handle the 1st one without crying. Rather than mess with the new one & hope the "fragile knee join" problem comes up again, I'll just continue to splint Mr. Limpy without worrying about hurting him further.

Hey folks.
Yesterday my Planintum Edition Optimus Prime came in (Super-class Energon Optimus mold). He's a great figure, especially since I'm used to my Deluxe-class SL Grand Convoy. The only problem he seems to have is that the ratchet in his left shoulder doesn't seem to have very much resistance/torque to it.

I'm not 100% how the ratchet functions but it seems like there's a spring in there pushing the teeth together. Any advice or input about putting in a new spring, things to watch out for when unscrewing things to get inside, etc.

So, I was wondering if anyone knew of any ways to reverse yellowing that don't include bleach, acid, or sandpaper. I got a G1 Jazz at a local geek expo and I was hoping to do a bit of restoration on him.

Also: is there any good solid glues that would work with that plastic? I got him cheap because the roof/windshield part was snapped off and I've been trying to glue it back on, but the Instant Krazy Glue I got isn't working out.