Hi Guys. First post so please be gentle!!
Still fairly new to the tanker scene, and am in the process of modding my HL Tiger. I've done the usual: mantle, cupola etc, and also had a go at airbrushing for the very first time, but have a couple of what you'll almost certainly think are basic queries.

1/ Although I carried-out several coats of acrylic and finished with three coats of matt varnish, the paint is still rubbing away easily. Any advice please????
2/ The metal tools / accessories keep falling off. What glue do you guys use? I've tried cyano, but although it seems fast / strong....nope!!
3/ Disconnected the crazy red LED's from the headlights, modded the "covers" to form the slits, and tried a couple of very small bulbs that my father gave me (used on model railways) but they don't light up at all. Any ideas?? (I assume its a voltage / resistance / current thing)
4/ Would it be worthwhile stripping everything back off the tank, re-spraying the whole thing with plastic primer and starting the paint job all over again?

I don't want to go too deep as my pocket won't allow me the luxury, but I wanted it to be....well,..... mine!!

Thanks
Tanxalot

First welcome.

Is the paint rubbing off down to the original suface? tell us more about what you mean by rubbing off, is it staying tacky? (not drying)

hi tanxalot and welcome to the forum
first question put the L.E.Ds back in and carefully grind them flat with a dremel then just put your slitted covers on works a treat
second question pop down to halfords and grab a can of their acrylic primer aned dust the body with that first,then spray your main colours/camo then finish your decals/weathering and lock it all in with a couple of coats of johnsons Klear

Tanxalot:

Paint rubbing off: Did you clean the hull first? Good surface preparation is ~essential~. Yes, you may want to strip out many of the mechanicals first... and use something relatively strong, Castrol Superclean or Mean Green (many of us use this as a paint stripper) Then clean it again with a decent brand of dish-washing soap, and rinse with HOT water. A gottle of the Castrol or MeanGreen is mebbe $6. Easy Off oven cleaner is almost the same. Watch out, none of these is kind on the hands, so wear some kitchen gloves, and DON'T use it on aluminum parts. It EATS aluminum!

Bits falling off: Many plastics have different adhesion qualities, but the best glue for styrenes is Tenax-R or a similar liquid solvent product. Get it cheap at a plastic's shop as MEK, and they often have syringe-type dispenser mini-bottles too, so you don't have to find a Touch-n-Flow. Also make sure you're gluing to a ~clean~ surface, by scraping away a bit of paint to put the piece styrene-to-styrene. Neat thing is you can apply this with the pieces already assembled as it 'wicks' into a joint. 500 ml should run you about 10-12 bucks.

Metal tools? I assume ya bought aftermarket... why not make some tie-down straps like the real tanks had. Use loops of wire that go through to the inside of the hull and are net over, then make a 'strap' for the tool from something like thin paper tape. I've seen a guy that sells stuff for making seat belts on eBay, would be good for tool webbing too, I think. Or the germans have webbing, and even PE buckles too.

FV432 said it right on the LED's, but don't grind too much off. The lights probably need a higher voltage. Mask a thin strip in the middle of the LED, paint with black first, then the camo color, and remove the strip-mask. If they don';t light up one way, you got the leads reversed (check before ya solder 'em)

As for item #4, see answer #1.

Hi Guys, and thanks for the prompt answers.

@hdbeast: Although the paint has well dried by now, it scratches / rubs off very easily. I expect an excursion around a sandy / rocky / generally rough area, would remove most paint from the wheels / body

@fv432: The original LED's were red....whatever possessed HL to come up with THAT little gem????? I'd like to use LED's to be honest but I thought these "bulbs" might give a nice soft glow. Been in Halfrauds recently and noticed they sell plastic red oxide primer. Is this what you mean? Where do you get the Johnson's clear?

@WhiteWolf McBride: Must be honest, didn't wash the shell anywhere near as thoroughly as you suggest (too impatient??) Never heard of the products you've named over in little old UK!! The tools ARE aftermarket, tried superglue, but the slightest knock...they are off. Like the wiring idea, but with my size 12 hands, it would look too much like they'd been attached by a boxer .....wearing his boxing gloves!! I think a visit to the local Maplins is in order....clear LED's anyone....?????


Thanks all, hopefully the suggestions will bear fruit!!

Tanxalot!!

Try PVA wood glue.Its white stuff. Quite good at holding small addon parts that dont need to be structural.Use the super glue too at the same time, They work well together , one is tough but brittle the other flexable but not as tough. Trick is small amounts.

WHOOPS should of added, plastic model glue that melts the plastic together works perfectly on the heng long tank plastic. This is what you should use to add plastic parts or modifications in plastic ; then put on super glue for extra strength. Not strictly necessary but every little bit helps LOL

Tanx:

Ok, are you using any of the CA accelerant spray (ZipKicker or whatever spray to fast-harden the glue? DONT. That is part of the problem. If you can, use the gap-filling or flex-CA formula they make. You could sprinkle a bit of making powder on the CA to harden it... much better hardener, and makes an interesting surface (test it on a scrap of something) Critical: is the styrene and metal where you are applying the glue BARE and CLEAN? If not, thats your problem: its fracturing at the styrene/paint or metal/paint interface. Use some fine sandpaper to get clean surfaces before ya glue, then paint over it later.

Barring the CA solution, look for another of the super-glues, like gorilla-Glue, NoNails or another of the non-CA glues. Perhaps a bit of two-part epoxy meant for metals (like JBWeld) would be better. ColonelChimp, you have any ideas?

As for the wiring... got a friend thats handy with a soldering iron? Offer to trade a bit of work for some hook-ups.

As for suppliers in the UK, perhaps ColonelChimp and some of the UK-crew can assist ya.

PS: arhumphreys, see post #4

in all honesty tanx ive only used there grey primer but as long as its acrylic it should do the job
guess the halfrauds is a countrywide thing as we call em that too
oh yes nearly forgot the klear floor polish was from asda walmart