How to pre-assemble a kit?

[retired & glad]

I am asking for a way to pre-assemble a kit to make sure everything fits and-or needs something adjusted before final painting and glueing. I think I have read where Elmers white glue is used and can easily be removed for final glueing. My hands are not that steady anymore so need somehow to hold the part together. 

What and how do some of you do this?  Tape, glue, spit, bubble gum, sticky clay, etc. etc.  

Thanks

Richard

[afx]

I know white glue works and several people that use this technique.  I try to build up sub-assemblies to the maximum extent possible and use pins, cleats etc to hold think in place.  Some examples from my current project; I added the cleat to the top of the cylinder heads to hold and align the valve covers and the large pin to the engine block to locate the timing cover/water pump as well as the fan pulley.

 

[Tom Geiger]

Early on in my modeling, I wondered how people got models built without damaging any of their freshly painted surfaces, and not getting glue etc on anything.  One of my hobby heros was Joe Cavorley, who built some monumental light commercial models back in the day.  Joe would come to our meetings and we'd get to see the progress on his builds. Seeing a model as it's built, before any paint or finishing, is really seeing how it's done.  

Joe assembled the entire model by press fit and pinning everything together.  He literally could build the entire model without glue or paint, make sure everything fit and worked the way he wanted, then take it apart to finish all the parts and reassemble again.  Once you've covered the "fit" part, and everything sits together with no gaps or issues when pinned,  the "finish" and final assembly is a breeze.  And you just have to put a dab of glue on the pin itself. In fact I have models where the pins hold it together so well that I never went back and glued them!

The photos above show how I pinned together a Chevy 327 many years ago just to illustrate the process.  These are small lengths of straight pin.  

The pin method really comes in handy with fabricating exhaust.  This is a Volare chassis, where I had installed a slant six engine.  The exhaust is at least eight pieces, lengths and shapes taken from a Duster dual exhaust set.  The cat is from the Volare.  This is all just pinned together here. It works well as I can rotate and adjust all the parts, just like you would as you put an exhaust system on a real car before tightening up all the clamps. Only here, once I have parts in place, I pull them apart far enough to add a dab of glue.

Hope this help!

[Ace-Garageguy]

Depending on what I'm mocking up, I'll sometimes use pinning, rubber cement, or a tiny drop of liquid cement.

White glue can be helpful, but it takes some time to develop any strength. It's great for attaching windows and other clear parts (it dries clear) with no risk of fingerprinting or fogging, but the parts need to fit well, and windows usually need to be taped in place, or jigged some other way, as it sets up.

While white glue has limited strength, it's usually entirely sufficient to hold pinned parts in place permanently, if you elect to use Tom's suggestions...which are very good.

AFX's suggestion to build up sub-assemblies to the max extent possible is also a good one.

[retired & glad]

Thanks all for the very good info. I like the idea of the pin method. This is what I like about this forum. When my brain quits working for a solution, just ask and someone will answer a good way.

Thanks

Richard

[aurfalien]

Hi,

I started building a complete kit via MicroScale Liquitape, did this on my current Sesto.

It dries tacky pretty quickly so I can remove and re attach as desired.  After  afew days it seems to loose its tackyness.

I then disassemble and soak in alcohol to remove residue.

Hated the stuff at first but now I love it.

 

[retired & glad]

Thanks Brian. I will give this a try and see if it works for my builds. Will look it up today and see if I can find any locally or internet.

Richard

[fiatboy]

Yeah I really like MicroScale Liquitape; it is good for tacking things together.  But if you leave the parts too long together, then you can't remove the excess and that is a problem.

[VR6 BeelzeDub]

what kind of "straight pin" is everyone talking about? and how do you press them in?

 

[afx]

what kind of "straight pin" is everyone talking about? and how do you press them in?

 

Plain old straight pins used in sewing.  Small diameter wire will also work.  

You drill into the part you want to attach, then glue in a section of pin/wire.  You drill a corresponding hole where the part is to be attached.

[waynehulsey]

 

Early on in my modeling, I wondered how people got models built without damaging any of their freshly painted surfaces, and not getting glue etc on anything.  One of my hobby heros was Joe Cavorley, who built some monumental light commercial models back in the day.  Joe would come to our meetings and we'd get to see the progress on his builds. Seeing a model as it's built, before any paint or finishing, is really seeing how it's done.  

Joe assembled the entire model by press fit and pinning everything together.  He literally could build the entire model without glue or paint, make sure everything fit and worked the way he wanted, then take it apart to finish all the parts and reassemble again.  Once you've covered the "fit" part, and everything sits together with no gaps or issues when pinned,  the "finish" and final assembly is a breeze.  And you just have to put a dab of glue on the pin itself. In fact I have models where the pins hold it together so well that I never went back and glued them!

The photos above show how I pinned together a Chevy 327 many years ago just to illustrate the process.  These are small lengths of straight pin.  

Will agree that the pinning really works well. Joe was my intro to it. He did a demo at the AMS Convention in Texas in 1990(?) and showed the method along with putting together a working steering ft axle out of Evergreen. That was a real slap in the head of that's so simple why didn't think of that moment.

[Jhedir6]

BlueTac, StickyTac whatever name you know it by. I get mine at the $$ store. I use it to hold wheels on or other parts for test fitting. I also use it on attach small parts to the ends of skewers for painting. Once it looses its stickiness I just toss it. Cheap and readily available. 

[aurfalien]

BlueTac, StickyTac whatever name you know it by. I get mine at the $$ store. I use it to hold wheels on or other parts for test fitting. I also use it on attach small parts to the ends of skewers for painting. Once it looses its stickiness I just toss it. Cheap and readily available. 

Hi,

That's cool stuff.

How do you remove it from your work once done?

[Jhedir6]

just pull it off, its like gum. Most of it will come with the first pull. If not, just take a ball of it and dab on what's left and it will pull off. Generally I try not to get too much paint on it, but even if it gets covered, once its balled up with more the paint just blends in. If its in a tight spot, like the inside of a wheel tunnel (where the rubber grommet would go on a Fujimi or Tamiya kit, I just use the end of one of the skewers or a toothpick to dig it out.