Survey on rec.models.scale use

There have been a few things that i've wanted to ask in the past. But I would have felt a little too self-conscious about asking "Simple Questions" about things which others here know all too well and have know for years. I'm afraid if I ask questions like these that some of them will ask how come I don't know already.

Like what is the "best" brand of soap to wash kits with and how should I mix up a washing solution.

Next just how exactly should I go about washing a kit before I paint it and how long should it dry before painting. Do I use primer in all cases before painting.

But I too need to know exactly how to "wash a kit" before I try to paint it so I have a chance to get the best results.

... Carl ..........

.

Rama-Lama-BIG-BORG ; BORG TEMPLE N.Y. Central-Park-West ; Master Builder of blessed temple KITS ; Keeper of Secret Temple Decoder Rings & Bracelets ; Fluent-in-1st=96Degree=96TALK-to-the-HAND =96TEMPLE-ETTE=96Guards=96SIX=96&=96SEVEN=96

This is My Web=96Page The=95=95=95=95WORLD=96WIDE=96WEB=95=95=95=95is totally jam packed with thousands of people who are Destined to be nothing more then a faded weatherbeaten =95=95=95CHALK=96OUTLINE=95=95=95 along the=95=95=95INFORMATION=96SUPER=96HIGHWAY=95=95=95 Introducing ''SPOT-the-CAT''

I merely wipe mine down with a rag dampened with mineral spirits.

"cyberborg 4000" wrote

I use liquid dish detergent. I put some drops on the model and wet the whole thing with gentle "dribbling" from the faucet. Then I scrub it with a worn out toothbrush, again, gently. Rinsing is by a moderate flow or spray of warm water. I generally *gently* shake it to remove water and let it air dry, which shouldn't take more that two hours. If I'm in a hurry I'll blow it dry with the airbrush.

I never use a primer. Model paints are made for plastic models, primers aren't needed. More paint = less detail. A lot of people don't wash at all. If you have delicate innard detailing, or white glue holding parts on, I can see why. There are very few models with mold release on them. In those cases you can just wash the sprues.

KL

the only stupid question is the one that you didnt ask.

The U.S. election is over and all of the foaming-at-the-mouth types (from both major political parties) have now gotten their brains back in working order, so the noise level is down.

John Hairell ( snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com)

"David Pennington" wrote

Let me ask you David, why would that matter? Why not just scan the headers and only read the obvious model posts? I think it's interesting that two guys will savage each other in a political thread but three lines down the screen one of them answers the other's question on P-40 cockpit colors as if nothing happened. I have found virtually zero hostility between anyone within a _modeling_ thread. To me, the OT stuff is just like ads in a _free_ magazine. I don't how many ads there are so long as there is some useful content.

KL

I agree and in fact I used the Forte Agent kill button on most of it. I suppose I am just feeling that the majority of posts should be of interest. It go so that I was killing the vast majority instead. I also feel that if I felt like that, but didn't go, how many people did go?

I am really asking that those us in the US consider before they start a political war on the NG that there are many of us from elsewhere who have little or no interest and the effect could be one of reduced modelling input.

You can probably relax until 2008. Unless the mid-term elections next year turn especially nasty... ;-p

So it could be a good idea to give some hints on how to use the newsgroup (and tell that it exists) in modelling clubs and so on...

Anyway apart from someone that really quit, I noticed most of the old posters aren't exactly gone: they simply post once a month (or so) instead of once a day as they did before because maybe they got fed up of all the OT, flames and so on and moved somewhere else (such as Hyperscale, FSM forum and so on: to meet all the good guys of the "old" rms, and the new ones, you'd have to look at the group and at least 2 or 3 web forums... not so easy).

If there were still a lot of interesting topics many of them could come back as regular posters...

My 0.02

Al, have you noticed how early political campaigns are starting now? We'll be lucky to get out of 2006 before the ideological fertilizer starts flying again--and particularly if the midterms provide a dramatic shift one way or the other.

As for being more sensitive to the needs of Europeans (and others outside the US), ...nah, I won't go there. It's too easy.

Mark Schynert

Yeah, I guess I forgot about that... :(

Well, at least the midterms aren't national elections. Less grist for the RMS political mill. ;-p

If you won't, I won't. For the time being anyway. Unless somebody decides to fire me up... ;-p

Peace, Brother. :)

starting

I know the thread is kinda old, but I just came back after a long absence.

I unsubscribed from RMS after the '00 election. I got very tired of the OT and flames, most of which had nothing at all to do with polystyrene. Killing the threads, and finally the posters propagating the OT/flames helped some, but it all left a bad taste, so I went elsewhere to enjoy the community of plastic modellers.

I have read in this thread that sometimes the politics of a situation has bearing on the modelling subject, but it seems clear to me that modern U.S. politics has so very little to do with our hobby as to suggest maybe going to a different newsgroup for those kinds of discussions.

And they *do* exist - political newsgroups abound. Why stink up a hobby newsgroup with stuff you can hear on the radio, 24/7? I model to wash away the day-to-day, not to get more deeply into it.

I guess the folks who participate in these discussions never heard of the three things one should never discuss in polite company: sex, religion and politics. I have long held the notion that if the poster who were so vehement about shoving their opinions in everyones' faces were actually face-to-face in person, they'd be a bit more polite.

Now, mostly I lurk, and stop by every now and again to do a search on some technique I read about those few years ago. Sometimes on my own advice on different subjects, to see if I've really learned anything or not. :)

I have enjoyed the past few weeks of reading - stuff about models, and the simple joy that goes along with.

My $0.02.

E.P.

i agree 100%, there are a plethora of poly yap yap groups. but there is no way to keep a newsgroup on topic unless it has a draconian moderator. which usually makes the group useless. that's e's law....

In no way would I ever suggest that any newsgroup be moderated in any way. (Is that emphatic enough? LOL.)

No, I guess my suggestion would be to not respond to OT trolling attempts, or to take it to some political newgroup, or suggest a newsgroup like alt.politics.babble.inane. Something that makes it clear that this newsgroup is not about current U.S. politics, but about building scale models. I guess that it would require some self-discipline on the part of those folks who regularly engage in the flamewars.

Alternatively, choosing NOT to engage in flaming, but to respond in a way that one would if the conversation were happening face-to-face. Again, this requires self-discipline and courtesy. Suggesting such a thing of a usenet newsgroup does seem a little utopian. :)

E.P.

there's always someone who takes the bait. e's second law....

yeah, i know what.

Yeah, look how many respond to..., well you know who. ;(

Bill Banaszak, MFE