Air Factory: Etch Your Way To Perfection!

Rather than do anything remotely productive today, I thought I'd post my Treatise on Etched Brass Handling and Precision Installation Techniques.

Some people shun photo-etched brass altogether, but I love it -probably borders on a fetish!

Part of this was published in Scale Aviation Modeller International a while back, so I'm a legend in my own mind...right.

Here goes!

Firstly, ALWAYS protect pre-coloured or painted etched items with a splosh of good ole Johnsons Future/Klear. This will inevitably form a film over small holes in the parts. You can remove this with a toothpick or fine needle if you wish, or leave it be if it is over an instrument face -it will look like glazing. The relative flexibility of the Klear when dry will allow subsequent shaping of the component without cracking, and you won't scratch it to bejasus while bending and/or installing.

Secondly, removal of pieces from the fret can be tricky -this is what works for me: don't bother with p/e-specific scissors; use a scalpel with a very new blade, I find a small curved one works well (Swan Morton #15 is ideal). DEFINITELY work on a solid surface, NOT a cutting mat. Ceramic tiles can crack, so I use a granite-alike drinks coaster from Sainsburys, it is black which is a good colour for keeping track of teeny items once they are detatched. Don't be all macho when hacking very small items, use a magnifying lens on a stand -'third hand' tools thus equipped are ideal. This will enable you to align the blade EXACTLY with the edge of the piece, so you should not be left with any burr where the fret attachment was. Keep a finger on the actual component to hold it flat and cut with a gentle pressure and a rocking motion until the attachment (NOT the finger) is cleanly severed. Under no circumstances try to 'slice' through the attachment, this can easily drag and distort the component. If you are removing very small items (buckles, release toggles, levers, etc,) press the local part of the fret over the sticky bit of a Post-It: this will prevent the dreaded 'ping into nowhere' (or 'ping into your eye') event. Try to cut as close to the item as possible to avoid leaving a burr –these are a pain to remove once the part is released! It isn't always easy to see where the attachment points end on very small items, but as long as the edge of the part itself is right up against the edge of its reflected image in the side of the blade, you should get a clean separation.

It is useful to remove the remnant of the attachment point from the fret after the component has been separated –this will avoid things snagging on it later. Guess I forgot that a few times when I took the pic!

So far so good for the likes of Eduard, Aires and that ilk. I know that some etched frets (like those from Flightpath and the ones in certain Dragon kits) are much heftier, and will admit that special scissors may help here; otherwise patience, perseverance and several blades are the only way out. As a caution, some blades can fracture spectacularly under pressure (they are not really meant to hack through metal!) so please use eye-protection.

OK, now you have a cleanly removed erm, widget -what to do with it?

Bending or shaping components is something for which I personally have never felt the need for a folding tool (OK, OK, Beavis and Butthead please wait in the corridor); I reckon you can produce any simple or multiple folds/bends with a steel rule, a blunt razor blade and the business ends of a set of jeweller's flat-bit screwdrivers. Honest. But if you need to spend money on a glorified clamp, don't let my astounding prowess dissuade you! Again, though, going it 'bareback' really necessitates working over a Post-It, otherwise it is too easy to accidentally flick a wee half-shaped thingy into oblivion.

A brief word about rolling: straightforward cylindrical or conical shapes are easy enough, using a piece of tube or a pencil. But what of objects like those diminutive placards in 1/48 scale? Some have to be curved to fit the circumference of a landing gear leg or whatnot. How to curve to an accurate diameter something that so nearly does not exist at all? No problemo! Once the item is coated with Future/Klear, a length of low-tack copier-invisible Sellotape is stuck over the TOP side (the Klear will stop the printing being pulled off on removal). Now you can see the item under the tape, you can roll it around something without it skewing. Use rolling items of decreasing diameter and ensure that the final one is of a slightly smaller diameter than the target surface curvature. The spring inherent in the metal will always open it a little so it fits correctly without 'grinning' or leaving ends sticking up.

Occasionally, it is necessary to create compound shapes where a curved element has to conform to the edges of other, flat surfaces (a throttle quadrant, for example). Where these are all supplied as part of a single component, it is often near impossible to curve one section without distorting another. Frankly, it is easier to separate the basic elements, shape them individually and re-assemble them afterwards.

Regarding adhesive: this should go (sparingly!) on the target surface rather than on the component. For tiny things, apply cyano gel or Gator’s Grip with a sharp toothpick; the pointy white vinyl ones are good for fine work.

Sheet items like instrument panels can be installed with more Future/Klear or clear gloss varnish. Microscale Kristal Klear also works when used in moderation, and none of these will frost the surface like most cyano types do. Also, if you do misjudge the positioning, non-cyano glues will let you gently prise the part away again without ruining it. If you need to do this over a relatively large contact area, start with an ultra-thin blade: a scalpel or craft blade is thick enough to crease the brass as it lifts, even a razor blade will do that too. The thinnest blades I've found are made by Belini and are intended for a corn removing tool -they will cause least damage.

To position the smallest components, the use of forceps or tweezers, however fine, is likely to feel like you're wearing boxing gloves! My solution: put a small bead of latex adhesive (Copydex or similar) on the end of a toothpick. When it is FULLY dry, it will remain tacky enough to hold the item and position it, but will release it once it hits the adhesive. This is important: just touch the item with the toothpick so it picks it up and holds it; it doesn't need to be stuck solidly to it! Once in place, it can be fettled to the desired angle or attitude with a 'bare' toothpick point or similar before the adhesive sets solid.