The Ultimate Guide to Paint Stripping

Want to know how to strip that paint down the plastic without melting it?

The Dos and Donts of Paint Stripping

Let’s face it, we all make mistakes. That paint job we thought was good 12 months ago is now antiquated and you want to fix it. First, lets cover a few things you don’t want to do:

Don’t just prime over your existing paint scheme - the more layers you throw onto the model, the more definition of detail you lose. Those fine, crisp, edges disappear just as if we lacquer on a bunch of paint without thinning it. We need to get that existing paint removed. Don’t use a paint thinner like turpentine or acetone - it will melt the plastic and you’ll need to buy new models. Don’t try to scrape the paint off - again, you’ll likely cause damage or remove details in the process.

How to Strip the Paint Down to the Plastic

You’re going to need a few supplies for this to work:

A 5 gallon bucket, preferably with a top Simple Green Concentrate - typically found in the cleaning section of your local home goods/diy store. If you have a lot of models to strip (say 20+), go ahead and grab the 2.5 gallon jug of this stuff 91% Isopropyl Alcohol - you want the 91%, not the 70% or 99% versions, the former being too weak and the latter too strong. My recommendation is to go with 2x Pints (roughly 2L) - you can find this at your local drug store often on the bottom shelf near the bandages. A large bowl or dish, deep enough to cover a batch of models completely in Alcohol An unused toothbrush

A Quick Warning on Alcohol

While this process does use Alcohol, you need to be careful how long you leave your miniatures in it and the smaller they are the less time they need to soak. Leaving them in Alcohol for too long WILL lead to softening of the plastic, which is why my process below does not soak them for long.

Second, please be careful with Alcohol - it’s dangerous and very flammable and you can get yourself badly burned if it catches fire. Alcohol actually burns clear, which means it could catch fire and you won’t even notice it! Make sure you follow all safety precautions on the bottle.

The Process

Fill your 5g bucket with Simple Green Concentrate - do not dilute it Toss the miniatures into the concentrate that you want stripped - once they’re in, theres no going back :) Cover and let them soak for about 24 hours After soaking, take a toothbrush and softly scrub the model, being gentle to not damage any delicate parts At this stage you can go one of two ways. If layer/detail paint (the stuff from pots) has mostly come off, then you should move on to the next step. If there is still a considerable amount of paint, give it another 24 hour soak and scrub again Rinse your minis off and shake any excess water off them Using a large bowl or dish, place a batch of minis in the bowl such that you can cover them with Alcohol when filled Fill the bowl with enough Alcohol so that the minis are completely covered and make sure the bowl is placed in a safe location where it will not spill or get knocked over Let the minis soak in the Alcohol for about 10 minutes After soaking, softly scrub the miniature with the toothbrush (make sure it is rinsed off before you do so) At this step you should notice primer coming off revealing the original gray plastic If you don’t, rinse the mini again, shake off excess water, and let it soak in the Alcohol for another 5-10 minutes If you soaked it again, give it another soft scrub with the toothbrush, but do not repeat the Alcohol soak more than twice. Even two soaks is enough to soften some models After all the paint is off, give them one last rinse and set them out on some paper towel to dry for a while - you will want to give them a good 3-4 hours to dry before attempting you prime them again

Before you prime them, make sure they are completely dry. To be 100% safe, I typically let them dry for 24 hours. After that you’re good to go!

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