Removing paint on figures for repainting

[Flaffy]

Has anyone had experience with paint strippers? I've recently acquired a Safari ltd Psittacosaurus with really wonky eyes, and it'd be ideal if I could remove as much eye-paint as possible before starting my own repaint.

I've heard that acetone is commonly used as a paint stripper for models and such, so would that be safe to use on Safari ltd plastic? The delicate details packed into Doug's fantastic Psittacosaurus sculpt deserves to be displayed in all it's glory, as opposed to being hidden under shoddy paintwork.

Thanks!

[Halichoeres]

I don't think you can. It's possible that I'm mistaken, but my understanding is that these are painted with PVC paint, which forms a covalent (molecular) bond to the underlying PVC in the figure itself. If you want to paint it with acrylics, I think you just have to cover up the area you want to fix with a primer. Maybe S @Shane or someone else knowledgeable about manufacturing can corroborate or disconfirm?

[paintingdinos]

I strongly recommend against using acetone on -any- type of plastic. It should only ever be used on metal (pewter) models to strip completely (and even then, tbh, there are safer options). There are some people who use acetone-free nail polish remover, but I've never tried.

Are you going to repaint the whole model or just add details? If you're doing a full repaint, no need to strip the paint. Just cover with primer. If you're only wanting to touch up, my personal advice is to pick a color close to the one you want for that area and only paint over the parts you don't like. Stripping paint is a tedious and imprecise process that is rarely worth it unless you need to completely start clean on a model. Even then... probably still better to just reprime and start again.

[Shane]

I don't think you can. It's possible that I'm mistaken, but my understanding is that these are painted with PVC paint, which forms a covalent (molecular) bond to the underlying PVC in the figure itself. If you want to paint it with acrylics, I think you just have to cover up the area you want to fix with a primer. Maybe S @Shane or someone else knowledgeable about manufacturing can corroborate or disconfirm?

Hi,

Halichoeres is correct, the paint is PVC based and bonds with the figure, it is definitely not advised to attempt to strip the paint from the figurine.

As long as the figure is primed using an acrylic based paint, you can apply right over the existing paint. I would recommend a good acrylic based medium to seal it, and then you should be good to go.

I recommend using an acrylic base because it's a plastic-based paint, but there are probably other options that can be used as well.

[Flaffy]

Thank you all! Is nail polish remover not recommended either?

The paint around the eyes is really thick, and obscures quite a bit of the surrounding sculpted detail. So that's why I was hesitant on adding even more layers onto the area.

[CARN0TAURUS]

I strongly recommend against using acetone on -any- type of plastic. It should only ever be used on metal (pewter) models to strip completely (and even then, tbh, there are safer options). There are some people who use acetone-free nail polish remover, but I've never tried.

Are you going to repaint the whole model or just add details? If you're doing a full repaint, no need to strip the paint. Just cover with primer. If you're only wanting to touch up, my personal advice is to pick a color close to the one you want for that area and only paint over the parts you don't like. Stripping paint is a tedious and imprecise process that is rarely worth it unless you need to completely start clean on a model. Even then... probably still better to just reprime and start again.

Last summer I ruined a Papo Ceratosaurus with Acetone.  I originally bought it a couple years ago and when it arrived it had to massive glue drops on the right side and when I tried to peel them off the paint came with the glue.  I contacted the seller and they offered a partial refund if I kept it.  I didn't want to deal with the hassle of returning it so I took the deal but that was a mistake.  I stuck it in a box and forgot about it for a couple years then last June I decided to repaint it and boy I should've either just primed it and painted all over again or simply touched up the two areas.  Live and learn.  Acetone is dangerous and I can't believe women use it on their nails, holy cow!  I used a cap full so not very much and I started carefully dipping a small flat brush and gently brushing my ceratosaurus and it took everything clean off.  The figure looked like out of the mold clean, boy was I exited!  But then while I was washing the dinosaur with soap in the back yard I noticed my heavy duty rubber gloves started to disintigrate and the skin on my hands was starting to bind with the gloves, I immediately removed the gloves and started washing my hands and running water over them for 10 minutes plus while the dinosaur was taking a soapy bath in a bucket.  Once I got my hands to feel  close to normal I went and extracted the dinosaur from the water with a pair of needle nose pliers.  At first it seemed fine but it wreaked of acetone.  So I rinsed it for a while and then let it air dry in an open ended box so the the sun wouldn't hit it direct but it would still dry out.  By the time I got back the legs and arms were unrecognizable and had attached themselves to the cardboard as had the lower jaw which had landed on the cardboard after the figure slumped forward.  The acetone had also softened all the detail on the PVC and the figure was basically losing it's shape.  Disgusted, I wrapped the cardboard around the figure and threw it in the trash.  Later concerned it might cause a chemical reaction with other trash, I poured sand over it while it was in the can. 

A couple months ago I also started a thread asking for help with paint stripping but since then I've repainted 6 figures without stripping paint.  I either work with the paint already there to change the look or I prime them with flat grey rustoleum and start over from scratch.  I won't be stripping paint going forward unless I learn of something that won't destroy PVC and won't be so dangerous to use.

[paintingdinos]

Thank you all! Is nail polish remover not recommended either?

The paint around the eyes is really thick, and obscures quite a bit of the surrounding sculpted detail. So that's why I was hesitant on adding even more layers onto the area.

You could try acetone-free nail polish remover, but again, haven't tried it myself and can't speak to how well it will work. I try to avoid stripping paint whenever possible, and the few times I've needed to it was a full removal (done with a very long soak in Simple Green). And that was on a mini that was painted with acrylic designed for model/mini painting. The paint for a mass produced figure will likely not behave in the same way. 

If you use very thin layers of acrylic, you should be fine. I know the paint looks thick on the model, but I'd say that's more generally due to sloppy application vs too much paint. The details are obscured because they were painted poorly. Mask over the whole area with a solid color, then paint in the eye detail. Pick a high quality acrylic to start with (I like liquitex soft body), thin, and do a few light, even coats. I have no doubt you'll be pleasantly surprised.

[bettashark]

I have used acetone on a recent-run Safari figure (the Deinonychus), and it is possible to get most of the paint off this way. However, you will not be able to get all of it. The plastic itself becomes very fragile for about a day, I would say, while the acetone fully evaporates, so it's very important not to scrub too hard. Gentle wiping motions in a single direction are best. It can be a real pain with figures with a lot of fine surface detail, as it's easy to obscure it under paint by the time you apply enough to cover the old colors. And the gloss they've been using on eyes lately is practically impossible to paint over.
If you just want to touch up the eye region and nothing else, I would say apply a matte paint-on varnish over the area first so the paint will stick.
If you want to do a full repaint, just be gentle with the acetone.
I've had no luck at all with non-acetone nail polish remover, but nail polish thinner works, although you then have to soak the figure in vinegar for a few minutes to get rid of the smell.

[stargatedalek]

I've had good results with alcohol based nail polish remover. It doesn't just wipe away the paint, but it weakens and smears it enough that a good scrub with an old toothbrush can generally get the job done. It's also great for cleaning electronics.