Eastern Seaboard Models White Tower Restaurant Kit Review

[wcfn100]

I guess I'll ask a dumb question then, is the support material wax?

I had washed my parts in dish soap and warm water before the Bestine.  What I'm left with is a patchwork of the white coating, semi-transparent and even some material that's still fully transparent (also some really warped walls).  And what I'm seeing isn't jiving with what's being explained to to me as it relates to why the surface it turning white.  Like I said before, I have a white spot right next to a spot that is still mostly transparent and the white portion is raised ( I can feel the ridge with my fingernail).  That doesn't say 'dissolved' to me.

I don't know what's going on, I'm just trying to share what I'm seeing.  All I really care about is how it looks when it's painted, so I look forward to seeing that.  If everyone else has great experiences with the Bestine, then obviously it was something I did or didn't do.

Jason

[Chris333]

I soaked mine in Bestine for 1.5 days in a covered container. Then I scrubbed lightly with a brush. let it dry and it started to turn white just like it does with acetone. I sprayed it with a few coats of Model Master light aircraft grey.


Mostly I painted it so I could see it. Now I can see what areas need cleaned up.

[wazzou]

Looks like a market has been created for a line of Super Micro sized files.

[JoeD]

I've ended up re-dipping the shell and then using a soft tooth brush, scrubbing the surface understanding that the fine detail on the door would go away.  I was able to easily get the white frosting off and get to the bare resin easily.  Getting ready to paint now and will post some shots of it primed.  Regardless of the minor issues, this is going to be a really cool finished model.

Joe

[DKS]

I guess I'll ask a dumb question then, is the support material wax?

I had washed my parts in dish soap and warm water before the Bestine.  What I'm left with is a patchwork of the white coating, semi-transparent and even some material that's still fully transparent (also some really warped walls).  And what I'm seeing isn't jiving with what's being explained to to me as it relates to why the surface it turning white.  Like I said before, I have a white spot right next to a spot that is still mostly transparent and the white portion is raised ( I can feel the ridge with my fingernail).  That doesn't say 'dissolved' to me.

I don't know what's going on, I'm just trying to share what I'm seeing.  All I really care about is how it looks when it's painted, so I look forward to seeing that.  If everyone else has great experiences with the Bestine, then obviously it was something I did or didn't do.

Jason

The support material is wax. As for inconsistent surface features, this is all quite believable. I had several jobs from Shapeways that were totally unusable because of poor rendering, which included blotchy areas, irregular raised spots, and other anomalies, not to mention serious warping. These images show the material as delivered, before any cleaning or other treatment:









The whiter blotches are indeed raised, almost like blisters. The loose flecks are blobs of wax. As for the natural color of the resin, yes, it's translucent, as you can tell from some of the images above. But roughen up the surface, even just a little, and it's no longer translucent; whitish areas will almost certainly be resin with finely-faceted roughness, like fine sandpaper, while more translucent areas likely have a sheen of wax.

Without being able to see your model, it's hard to evaluate what's going on; with so many variables at work, you may be seeing any number of artifacts. Since you used soap and water, which can leave all manner of residues unless rinsed very thoroughly, followed by a heptane chaser, you've probably created a small science experiment with your model, unfortunately. I will say, though, that bumps and other irregularities are quite probably rendering flaws, as opposed to areas damaged by cleaning.