Siri's Black Dragon Disaster

[Sirithiliel]

So I had ranted about this fellow a bit in my other, general WIP thread...but I think he deserves a thread of his own.

 

This is a Black Dragon, from WOTC D&D Miniature #40055. He was sculpted by Kim Graham and produced around the year 2000 in limited numbers [Thanks Belerophon for telling me!]

 

Here he is before I started working on him:

 

 

 

He was given to my husband in high school by a friend, and after we married we found him in a box and my husband asked if i could touch him up, as he had some scratches and chips. 

While I was getting ready to do so, I noticed his details were, in general, just horribly mucky...so I decided to strip him and repaint him entirely. Thanks to some advice from fellow forum members, I began soaking him in Green Stuff adn began to scrub...and scrub...and scrub

 

Come to find out, he has been repainted quite a few times on top of the original, because as I scrubbed through the black, I got to a solid red coat...and then another black coat...and finally I'm on the last coat. So this will be my WIP thread for him as I continue to try and restore this poor dragon

 

I took some photos of his glued joints as well...I have NO IDEA what was used to put him together but it has held up after 48 hours of Green Stuff soaking, and was put on extremely messily...as evident in the photos   

Edited July 29, 2014 by Sirithiliel

[kay13]

It looks like your black dragon has future ambitions as a stripper....

[Sirithiliel]

It looks like your black dragon has future ambitions as a stripper....

 

hmm I'm not sure, he's proven very stubborn and resistant to stripping =P 

 

But I'll make him see differently 

[Dr.Bedlam]

Hm. I'd sure give a pretty to know what was used to attach those pieces. 

[Sirithiliel]

Hm. I'd sure give a pretty to know what was used to attach those pieces. 

 

Me too =( 48 hours in SImple Green and only the head has gotten loose enough to jiggle free. The wings and tail are as solid and tight as they were before the soaking...and it really looks so gosh darn terrible, slopped over the surrounding joints as it is...

Edited June 8, 2014 by Sirithiliel

[Flamehawke]

This does look interesting all said. I look forward to seeing what you do with him as you progress.

[Erifnogard]

Could be almost anything.  If you get a good enough seal with no gaps for liquids to work into, most glues actually hold up surprisingly well to chemicals.  Try tapping the join sharply with the back of a heavy kitchen knife.  If it's epoxy that will likely cause it to shear.  Might work for CA as well.

 

Also, I have had some luck with acetone from the hardware store.  For any that don't know, do not use acetone on plastic or indoors.  Wear gloves.  Don't breathe the fumes.

Edited May 31, 2014 by Erifnogard

[Sirithiliel]

I'm not sure. I'll try tapping him with a knife tomorrow after I let him soak tonight

So far I've made good progress on the head, just the nooks and crannies are stubbornly holding on to their paint. The wings are coming clean, but the scales on the body are, again, being stubborn and not wanting to clear off

 

i'm hoping another long soak might do it >.<

[Erifnogard]

Sometimes heating the figure helps, I have boiled some pewter figures apart.  I wouldn't try that with lead I don't think though.

[Last Knight]

Sometimes heating the figure helps, I have boiled some pewter figures apart.  I wouldn't try that with lead I don't think though.

This was made in 2000, I doubt it's lead or even high lead like P-65.

[Sirithiliel]

Hmm I don't want to risk ruining him >.> Maybe i can heat up some water and try to pour it directly onto the joints. I dunno XD we'll see what this next soak does. I think I can work around the glue, I'm more concerned with getting as much of the black paint off as possible

[Erifnogard]

Well, acetone eats paint as well as glue if you can't get it off any other way.  Just soak it overnight, outside, in a disposable container and then hit it with an old toothbrush the next day.  Can't say I recommend it if you can live with a bit of the black paint remaining just because acetone is nothing to play around with.

[Sirithiliel]

I don't mind the black staying in the nooks and crannies. I just want the majority off =P so I will probably pass on the acetone heehee

[TaleSpinner]

I would chance a guess that the glue is some sort of epoxy, based on its strength and the manner it was applied. See this article (but don't exceed the melting point of the pewter).

 

Also a soak in Turpentine or Gasoline may do it, and will definitely remove the rest of the paint.

Edited June 1, 2014 by TaleSpinner

[Sirithiliel]

Oooooh I mentioned what you said to my husband. He says his friend did like epoxy. That is probably what it is