The Hot/Cold Water trick

By tomkat364, in Imperial Assault Painting and Modification

I posted this in a different forum (Battelore) because the mini I'm having trouble with is from that game, but that forum is relatively dead so I hope no one objects to my asking the question here as I will have to adjust some IA minis as well.

I have been trying to reposition the wings on the Barrow Wyrm as shown in this other painters picture:

https://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic2891017_md.jpg

My Barrow Wyrm has it's wings clasped together vertically in a very flat, uninteresting pose, and I am trying to reposition them into a flying position similar to the above picture. Under hot water, the wings move very easily, and a blast of cold water sets them in the desired position. But then 4-6 hours later, he's right back to where I started. What am I doing wrong?

post-243943-0-02408500-1464815854_thumb.jpg

Edited by tomkat364

I'd love to know the answer to this as well!

The plastic has memory, it tries to restore itself to what it was molded to. The more you bend it, the more it tends to restore itself. The same happened to the tails of my Nexus...

If you want to make big changes you need to cut and glue.

With some Return to Hoth figures I needed to keep the hot water running for a quite a while to debend the Bantha base, and keep it pressed against the sink while keeping cold water running for quite a while as well. The more mass, the more time it takes to get it to warm up and cool down fully. (The HK Assassin Droids were faster.)

Use more heat for a longer time and more cold water for a longer time.

The more heat you apply, the less the plastic keeps its memory.

Use enough heat to bend the plastic and then hold it in place for a long time. It needs a lot of time to retain the newly formed shape you created. I will also occasionally hold a mini while keeping them posed in the freezer so it gets cold enough to start holding the shape.

I heat mine with a hair dryer then chuck it in the freezer for 20 mins. works with lightsabers and bent guns

After having bent lightsabers, I went with this - I boiled the jug, let it sit for wee while so the water was hot but not scolding then poured it into a cup up to the brim and then dipped the saber in. Almost instant softness! I then cooled/straightened it with an icecube.

Worked well.

Note that very hot water will make the plastic very supple so you need to be gentle and do so at your own peril!

Hi,

With more stubborn models I put them in the oven at about 60 to 70 degrees Celsius. This helps the heat penetrate the model and makes it quite malleable.

I would use some bracing, matchsticks etc, to help correct the pose. Then straight into the freezer to set the plastic again.

With your dragon, focus on the base of the wings where it meets the back. Perhaps something inbetween the wings to push them apart.

I have found that the longer the model is in the oven the less likely it is to revert to its 'memory' pose.

Obvious risks are that you will end up with a dripping puddle of plastic instead of a dragon if the temp is to high.