The other reason for home casting (4 Viewers)

Hi, KV,

It holds up pretty well to handling, and can be easily reapplied. I haven't seen it flake off or otherwise wear. As an acrylic, it's pretty tough.

In modeling applications, Future is used to make clear parts look clearer. Dipping them deposits a thin film on their surface, providing a smooth surface by filling in the tiny imperfections from handling. In fact, I've seen aircraft canopies that were damaged and had to be sanded smooth, and were as good as new, with the sealer coat of Future.

It's also used as an undercoat for decals, for the same reason. It provides a smooth surface for the decal to settle onto, eliminating "silvering" in decal film, caused by air trapped in tiny pits on the surface. And as an undercoat, it has to stand up to applications of solvents used to help decals settle down on the surface, and also, dullcoating lacquers, applied after that step.

I guess, too, since it's made for coating floors and giving a nice shine, even with a lot of traffic, it's formulated to be tough.

I find that coating a figure with Future can also enhance the color of the paint underneath. I have a Prussian officer from the SYW, for example, whose coat took on a richer or deeper hue, once I brushed the acrylic over it.

It can be airbrushed, too, either straight, or cut with distilled water or isopropyl alcohol, though I'm not live yet with my airbrush, so I haven't tried that yet.

Prost!
Brad
 
After applied to figures, is there much "settling" of the Future to cracks/crevices? I got the idea for figures after reading a model article on canopies and thought, "why not?" Do you 'quarantine' the figures in something dust resistant to prevent..well,...dust? I'd be afraid of dipping a figure, or brushing it, and setting him up straight and having it all run off and puddle on the base (or off of it).
 
Again with the Oakleys.......say are you paying a licensing fee?:D


Njja
 
Gneisenau said:
After applied to figures, is there much "settling" of the Future to cracks/crevices? I got the idea for figures after reading a model article on canopies and thought, "why not?" Do you 'quarantine' the figures in something dust resistant to prevent..well,...dust? I'd be afraid of dipping a figure, or brushing it, and setting him up straight and having it all run off and puddle on the base (or off of it).
Click to expand...

Hi, Gneisenau, I've found that Future flows nicely into all surface details, and it levels itself pretty well. It's hard to get build-up in any surface relief, unless you brush on a lot in that area, and keep hitting it. It dries relatively quickly, though most modelers say they let a piece that they have coated cure overnight, before putting anything else over it. I usually let mine sit overnight before handling them.

And yes, I do put them under a cover while they dry, to minimize getting dust on them. I use plastic containers (like Tupperware), with a piece of paper towel under the figure. In fact, I may use a couple of pieces of paper towel in the process, first, to wick off any excess Future, and then in the drying container. I've watched to make sure that no paper fibers attach themselves to the base of the figure (which could happen, if you do any cooking, you may have run across that caution about using paper towels when greasing a pan), but so far, no problems.

Hope that helps!

Prost!
Brad
 
I may have to try this. Spray on finishes are usually expensive. But these are glossy. What about matte?
 
Hi, KV, I've only ever used Testor's DullCote for matte finishes, but only on scale models. However, I don't see why you couldn't use it on a figure in the same way.

The first time I ever shot it over an airplane that had been Futured for decaling, I was astounded to see how the surface went from glossy to matte.

One safety tip--as a lacquer, it's best used in a well-ventilated area.

There are other products, too, but I have only used the DullCote so far.

Prost!
Brad
 
any yellowing? I've noticed over the years that white enamel paint from original figures I've done does not hold up as well as white acrylic. On their own, yes...but put a new white figure next to them and the difference is startling....
 
I think that has to do with the composition of the paint, plus any coating over it, like a varnish. I haven't noticed any ageing yet with ones that I've painted, but I've seen what you've described, with older soldiers.

That, too, can happen with scale models, for the paint, the decals as well as the plastic.
 
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