Painting small or awkward parts

[danman6677]

What should I use to hold the parts? I have longer dowels.

[MrBuick]

I use double sided tape or a small dab of Elmer's glue (easy to cleanup and doesn't bond too strong) to hold the part to a Popsicle stick...that works very well for me.

[Foxer]

alligator clips on a length of sprue with a hook at the end hangs well for me. I stick tape to wide, flat stick for many parts. Sometimes I drill a small brass rod in a part to hold it.  I only remember one instance that these methods wouldn't hold a part and needed two sessions to cover.

[Mike_G]

On really small stuff I cut the point off a toothpick and glue the part to it.

[Harry Joy]

I paint them on the sprue that they come in, then do touch-up when they are removed.

Sometimes, I will remove them from sprue, then use a tiny dab of CA to re-glue them to a sprue, with the dab of CA placed where it won't be seen on the finished item. Because you know, they don't just float - even the littlest parts get glued to something. But I don't do this very often, because if the part is that small it often makes no sense to airbrush or spray-bomb them. Glue them where they go, then break out a jar of paint and a small brush.

 

 

[Misha]

I often cut off the locating pins on the part then drill a hole and use CA to glue in either a long brass or floral wire. Leaving enough length to use an alligator clip to hold the piece to paint. Afterwards I trim the wire back just enough to use it as a locating pin. That way the part is much more secure when glued.

Also use masking tape to hold flat parts then attach them to file cards to make handling easier for painting. Clothes pins, alligator clips, small clamps such as the ones that come with the Tamiya paint stand are very useful. 

Hope this helps, cheers Misha

[Quick GMC]

I will drill holes on the mating surface, then lightly superglue a toothpick in the hole and then stick it on foam board. Stick toothpicks through holes, like on brake rotors, oil filters, etc. 

[Tom Geiger]

I often cut off the locating pins on the part then drill a hole and use CA to glue in either a long brass or floral wire. Leaving enough length to use an alligator clip to hold the piece to paint. Afterwards I trim the wire back just enough to use it as a locating pin. That way the part is much more secure when glued.

Bingo!  That's my preferred method as well, only I use straight pins. I cut the tip off them, and glue them into the drilled hole. I leave the entire pin intact.  Then I can stand it up on the pin either in a block of foam, or through small bathroom cups.  

I keep a box of these cups in the model room for spraying paint into them for touch up work. Once used, I flip them over and make paint stands out of them. Here are Model Cars & Replicas of MD interior door handles standing on their own mounting pins. I just poke holes in the cup as needed.  I do the same with the straight pins  and I also drill holes in parts where it won't be seen and jam them onto round toothpicks too.  If I have a heavy part, I'll stack a couple of cups together for weight.

More parts mounted for painting. Doors are taped to cups, note the multiple cups to outweigh the doors. and keep them from toppling over. Steering wheel is mounted on a toothpick.

Edited February 16, 2016 by Tom Geiger

[Snake45]

I've done just about all the above EXCEPT painting parts on the sprue. You have to take the molding seam off a part before you can paint it, and it's nearly impossible to do that while the part is still attached (and then you have the attachment point to touch up after you cut it off).

Once in a very great while, there's some random part that lends itself to painting on the sprue, but I find that the rarest sort of exception, not the rule.

[danman6677]

thank you everybody for the advise.

[935k3]

If you have  a Radio Shack near by  you can get the really small clips(the bare copper in pic below.) with no teeth. Crimp them on Bamboo Skewers and you have great way to hold parts. After painting stick the other end of stick in a block of Styrofoam till dry. i also drill into parts and insert wire leads to clip on to.

 

Edited February 16, 2016 by 935k3

[Miatatom]

I've used all the methods mentioned above but mostly I use the alligator clip method. When there are only a few parts that need painting, I use 3M double sided tape stuck to a bamboo skewer. Get the type that is like a thin piece of foam with adhesive on both sides.

Another method I use is masking tape. Attach a strip of tape to a piece of cardboard with the sticky side up. Fold the ends over to stick to the cardboard. If it's long piece of tape, I'll put a piece across the middle of the strip, sticky side down, to hold it down. Then just stick the parts to the tape and paint away.

[wilderness1989]

Below is my preferred method.

Another method I use is masking tape. Attach a strip of tape to a piece of cardboard with the sticky side up. Fold the ends over to stick to the cardboard. If it's long piece of tape, I'll put a piece across the middle of the strip, sticky side down, to hold it down. Then just stick the parts to the tape and paint away.