Photo-Etching

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 9:03 am

Has anyone ever tried their hand at photo-etching brass parts. I just got my kit and I'm trying to figure out what my first project should be: rat-lines for Napoleonic ships, add-on armor or turret baskets for micro armor or something completely different.

Anyway if anyone has tried this I would appreciate hearing any and all stories or advice that may be out there.

Paul

33YearsGHQ · Post by **33YearsGHQ** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 9:10 am

Where did you get your kit from?

gunbunny · Post by **gunbunny** » Tue Jan 25, 2011 10:47 pm

av8rmongo,

I have worked with a lot of photo etch using a "bug" tool on 1/700 warships in the past. It adds immensely to the final product. Are you making your own or are you finding these gems for 1/285th? I would be an instant customer for 1/285th PE products.

Gunbunny

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 3:13 am

33YearsGHQ wrote:Where did you get your kit from?

The kit is from Micro-Mark tools. It looks pretty basic and straightforward but not something that lends itself to large scale production.

gunbunny wrote:Are you making your own or are you finding these gems for 1/285th? I would be an instant customer for 1/285th PE products.

I am going to be making my own. Looking at things that lend themselves to being produced as a flat sheet that can be bent if needed. I made some engineer YPR-765 vehicles using off the shelf PE mesh bits but I think I may try again with custom made parts. I've also been looking for a way to do applique armor packages to update some of my French armored cars from "The Other Guys" and this might be the way to go. We'll see if it pans out.

Paul

Steel Arrows · Post by **Steel Arrows** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 9:00 am

Mongo,

For some of the flat apilique add-ons. You can use thin styrene plastic. For Side-Skirts or fender added wheel coverage. As for ERA Bricks and Blocks can be created from the same material. I've seen very thin long block/Squared styrene from the local hobby such as Brookhurst Hobbies in Garden Grove CA. Comes in packs of 5 to 6 rods. Easily cut by xacto blade to lengths or in tiny cudes.
If you're making stand-off screen armor. GHQ sells the packs. They also make in brass the radio antenna kits for the WW2 German 8x8 armored cars.

HKurban · Post by **HKurban** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 12:49 pm

Just some brainstorm ideas here. Sorry if its incoherent, I'm awake at 1 in the morning right now. :

Slat Armor for vehicles other than the stryker.
Non-standard engineer equipment and blades for other countries and vehicles
Coalition Identification Panels
Signs/Scenics (For people doing modern Iraq, they could do the sign that goes on the back of Humvees saying "Stay back from this vehicle" or whatever)
Components for scratch building unreleased variants of existing vehicles (may not be able to do all, but I'm sure some people would appreciate some help in their scratchbuilding endeavors.

Mk 1 · Post by **Mk 1** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 11:37 pm

Some horse-shoe antennae for early-WW2 Soviet tanks would be nice. Two sizes, to fit to T-26 / BT-5 / BT-7 turrets, and to fit T-28 / T-35 turrets.

But I wouldn't suggest anyone else go making them for me. Lotta work, for only very few antennae that are needed (1 per 10-15 tanks).

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 12:41 am

Steel Arrows wrote:Mongo,

For some of the flat apilique add-ons. You can use thin styrene plastic. For Side-Skirts or fender added wheel coverage. As for ERA Bricks and Blocks can be created from the same material. I've seen very thin long block/Squared styrene from the local hobby such as Brookhurst Hobbies in Garden Grove CA. Comes in packs of 5 to 6 rods. Easily cut by xacto blade to lengths or in tiny cudes.
If you're making stand-off screen armor. GHQ sells the packs. They also make in brass the radio antenna kits for the WW2 German 8x8 armored cars.

I've tried styrene for applique armor and was not satisfied with the way it "layed down" on the model. At such small size I fould the plastic to be very rigid. Maybe if I heat treated it... Anyway the thin brass could be pressed down to be more conformal.

Mongo

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 12:49 am

HKurban wrote:Just some brainstorm ideas here. Sorry if its incoherent, I'm awake at 1 in the morning right now. :
Slat Armor for vehicles other than the stryker.
Non-standard engineer equipment and blades for other countries and vehicles
Coalition Identification Panels
Signs/Scenics (For people doing modern Iraq, they could do the sign that goes on the back of Humvees saying "Stay back from this vehicle" or whatever)
Components for scratch building unreleased variants of existing vehicles (may not be able to do all, but I'm sure some people would appreciate some help in their scratchbuilding endeavors.

Stay back signs? Now that is something just unique enough, just esoteric enough to be very intriguing, hmmm...

I'm thinking also of engineering equipment. I would like to finish my Chieftain ARV projects and maybe do up a BW Keilor (sp?) Mine flail. Problem is thinking in 3 dimensions to render in 2 dimensional drawing.

Mongo

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 12:56 am

Mk 1 wrote:Some horse-shoe antennae for early-WW2 Soviet tanks would be nice. Two sizes, to fit to T-26 / BT-5 / BT-7 turrets, and to fit T-28 / T-35 turrets.

But I wouldn't suggest anyone else go making them for me. Lotta work, for only very few antennae that are needed (1 per 10-15 tanks).

I you have pictures or better yet scaled drawings I would consider it as my test project since it seems pretty simple. I don't do WWII so I don't have reference material, or use for the finished product but again as a simple test run it might have merit.

Mongo

opsctr · Post by **opsctr** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 1:06 am

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bailey_bridge

Single Bailey Bridge panels and stringers would be useful. Will

piersyf · Post by **piersyf** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 4:09 am

Thanks for that idea Will! I have been etching for years but not photo etch (I was impressed with the Micro Mark kit, but I don't like those chemicals. I use ammonium persulphate; almost no fumes, easy clean up, short skin exposure is OK). I hand draw the images onto brass sheet, but I do have a ruling pen that takes the resist very well, so straight line work is quite easy and accurate. I never thought of bailey bridging panels! I think it'd have to be done in multiple layers to look right, but it'd be worth the effort...

P

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 5:00 am

piersyf wrote:I have been etching for years but not photo etch (I was impressed with the Micro Mark kit, but I don't like those chemicals. I use ammonium persulphate; almost no fumes, easy clean up, short skin exposure is OK).

Could you explain your process? I'm just venturing out into etching and if there is a faster, safer way then I'm all for trying it.

Paul

opsctr · Post by **opsctr** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 6:56 am

piersyf, ...you could build the bridge just like they're built in real life with the road support stringers setting the spacing and allowing for the three kinds of bridge: Single, double, or triple, as I remember. They could be a bit hard to work with but they'd make a fantastic model on the table. If you do it I'd purchase enough for a 8 -10 section bridge. Great project! Will

opsctr · Post by **opsctr** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 6:57 am

sorry, another duplicate post... Will