Steel Wool

[MikeyB08]

Besides soaking Steel Wool in water to create rust, what else do you use the wool for in the modeling world?

I just acquired a bunch from my father so I'm open to experiment.

[Ben]

I think you might get more help if you change the title of the post to show your looking for ways to "rust" things. I use a product called Sophisticated Finishes Rust Antiquing Set. It's sold at Michaels Craft stores and I believe at Hobby Lobby as well. It's made by a company called Triangle Coatings. It's a two step process that actually rusts the plastic part. The first step is to paint the part with two coats of a special paint that comes in the kit that is loaded with super fine iron particles. Once this dries, you paint it with the second part which looks like Windex. This actually makes rust form. Here's some pics of it used on an exhaust manifold/turbo and a brake drum.

Edited June 16, 2013 by Ben

[Kit Basher]

I use 0000 steel wool to rub the shine off of tires.

[jaydar]

i use 0000 on all my white metal parts before priming. sometimes there is a good enough shine after rubbing with 0000 to just coat with clear and go with that.

joe.

[Mike Kucaba]

I've been using 0000 steel wool for paint prep, removing mold lines, scuffing tough places to sand etc. I usually give a small ball

of it, (or the whole pad )& rinse it out with denatured alcohol and then rub the part down and wash with dawn. Steel wool is cheap, and if a piece of it starts to rust I toss it.

[Edsel-Dan]

I use it to polish the metal axles in old kits

[lanesteele240]

Ben. Thanks so much for sharing the name of the rust system. I may try it out

[southpier]

at the model railroad division of Southpier Enterprises, we use it to clean brass and de-fuzz stripwood after it's been treated with weathering solution or painted.

keep it on the bench and the uses will present themselves.