Building Forge World Marines

[Bloody Legionnaire]

So I'm not entirely new to FW resin models but this is the first time I'll be building Resin Space Marines. For you guys and gals that have already built some do you bother with pinning things like weapons to arms (i.e. BPs, Bolters, CCWs)? I've been doing it so far for the Bolt Pistols I bought for my Plastic Calth Marines because I was a little concerned about how brittle Super glue can be. Do you think pinning is necessary or overkill?

[Son of Carnelian]

Pin everything. All the time. Always. 

[lokkorex]

Pin for the Pinned God, Super Glue for the Sticky Throne!

 

i myself pin nearly everything, ever since i discovered how failtastic GW plasticglue turned out to be, since they changed their recipe or something.

[Bloody Legionnaire]

Pin for the Pinned God, Super Glue for the Sticky Throne!

 

i myself pin nearly everything, ever since i discovered how failtastic GW plasticglue turned out to be, since they changed their recipe or something.

 

I never use their glue anyway.. but if you were ever using plastic glue on resin models that'll be the source of your troubles =P

 

Looks like pinning it will be. Thanks gents.

[Brother Pheidias]

I've never had any issues with just using regular super glue to bond the FW marines. Pinning will add stability to the join, but can be time consuming, so I skip it most of the time.

[E_50_Panzer]

I use generic super glue, and I've always found it takes half an hour for any resin parts to bond with it. So I looked online and found out that you can use baking soda to instantly bond super glue. Just put a small amount of baking soda onto a piece and some super glue on the other, and it will be a complete bond in 5 seconds. I love it, and I can't model resin without it.

 

However, it is imperative that you use the baking soda sparingly, when it mixes with the super glue it forms a gel and tends to spread out, thus, it can corrupt detail.

[Tyberos the Red Wake]

I use very strong super glue and I find sometimes when I want to salvage a part like an arm or a weapon, the resin breaks before the part comes off! Other times, I've had models come off bases and backpacks/arms snap easily off which I attribute to me using older glue that was close to expiring.

 

I don't think pinning is necessary with a good brand of glue, such as Loctite or Gorilla Super. The bond strength is stronger than the resin when done right. I tried de-basing a Finecast model once and it left two small holes in the base: the glue was so strong it took two chunks out of the base from where I glued the feet. This was a Terminator Librarian, so they have big stompy feet, if it were some weedy ankled Tau or xenos the model would've likely broken before the base or the glue.

[Verger]

I have always used pound-land superglue.  No pins.  It might be cheap, but its very, very strong (tiny bottles, so not cheap per ml).  As Tyberos said - the resin can often snap before the join does.

Unless you have heavy-handed friends or your gaming case is going to get bashed around in luggage - then glue should be plenty on a marine, without pins. :)

[Bloody Legionnaire]

To all the guys saying pinning isnt necessary (since there were a few of you ) thank you for your responses. Normally I'd pin everything butI need to pick up some new metal rod snippers. I'm ready to build these guys and I considered trying it out... but didnt want to risk the bonds not being strong enough. Maybe it'd be okay. I do use pretty good super glue.

[Ovidius Incertus]

I can't imagine pinning most weapons, especially not a pistol or a bolter (which is even cradled by the support hand) on an infantry model, but I often pin arms to torsos.  That's more for the sake of posing ease on my part though and not so much worry about the strength of the joint.

[Major_Gilbear]

Smaller infantry resin parts are not very heavy, so as long as you've used a good glue and a get a good fit, you shouldn't need to pin everything. I would consider the following:

 

1) Not all superglue is the same. Regardless of what you pay, the adhesive quantity can vary a lot. I would therefore always buy and industrial-grade glue from a hardware shop - not only will this have more and better adhesion, they are usually good value too. I would avoid any very cheap "big brand" glues however, as they are often not very good. I would also avoid anything that looks old or comes in a container that's hard to seal as this will spoil the glue inside after very little time.

 

2) The tighter the joint, the less glue you need, and the better the final bond is. The more glue you use, the weaker the joint will be. Less glue also means a shorter setting time.

 

3) Spend time with a file and/or knife on every joint, even if it has a pretty good fit to start with. Not only will this improve even a good fit, but the tooling will help to remove any release agent on the surfaces and the light scratches to both surfaces really helps the glue get the best grip to them.

 

4) Avoid accelerants or activators. Let the glue cure normally, and you'll get a stronger bond. Using less glue lets it set quicker, so keep that in mind too.

 

5) Resin often has release agent over it, so you will want to wash everything in warm water and dishsoap at least once. Personally, I would suggest washing, then cleaning up all the mouldlines and do all your filing, and then washing a second time.

 

6) After a joint is fully cured, you can always add a little more glue around a joint to help  secure it further.

 

 

I'm normally in the "pin everything" camp, but in truth this is not always the best course of action with delicate FW resin models. I would nonetheless consider pinning any smallish joints like wrists with big parts on them (such as shields), and maybe consider pinning the same arm back to the torso too.

 

I would also consider pinning any parts that you might want to paint separately - heads is a good one (since prior assembly rarely nets any big benefits), and possibly bolter arms (with their weapon attached) so you can reach the chest area.

 

Finally, I would always pin both feet to the base. That's often a weak spot, and this is usually a very good course of action no matter what. Even if on small human-sized troops you break the model's ankle, pin through anyway - you'll most likely have to do this eventually, so you may as well get the trauma out of the way during assembly and not later after painting!

[Bloody Legionnaire]

Smaller infantry resin parts are not very heavy, so as long as you've used a good glue and a get a good fit, you shouldn't need to pin everything. I would consider the following:

 

1) Not all superglue is the same. Regardless of what you pay, the adhesive quantity can vary a lot. I would therefore always buy and industrial-grade glue from a hardware shop - not only will this have more and better adhesion, they are usually good value too. I would avoid any very cheap "big brand" glues however, as they are often not very good. I would also avoid anything that looks old or comes in a container that's hard to seal as this will spoil the glue inside after very little time.

 

2) The tighter the joint, the less glue you need, and the better the final bond is. The more glue you use, the weaker the joint will be. Less glue also means a shorter setting time.

 

3) Spend time with a file and/or knife on every joint, even if it has a pretty good fit to start with. Not only will this improve even a good fit, but the tooling will help to remove any release agent on the surfaces and the light scratches to both surfaces really helps the glue get the best grip to them.

 

4) Avoid accelerants or activators. Let the glue cure normally, and you'll get a stronger bond. Using less glue lets it set quicker, so keep that in mind too.

 

5) Resin often has release agent over it, so you will want to wash everything in warm water and dishsoap at least once. Personally, I would suggest washing, then cleaning up all the mouldlines and do all your filing, and then washing a second time.

 

6) After a joint is fully cured, you can always add a little more glue around a joint to help  secure it further.

 

 

I'm normally in the "pin everything" camp, but in truth this is not always the best course of action with delicate FW resin models. I would nonetheless consider pinning any smallish joints like wrists with big parts on them (such as shields), and maybe consider pinning the same arm back to the torso too.

 

I would also consider pinning any parts that you might want to paint separately - heads is a good one (since prior assembly rarely nets any big benefits), and possibly bolter arms (with their weapon attached) so you can reach the chest area.

 

Finally, I would always pin both feet to the base. That's often a weak spot, and this is usually a very good course of action no matter what. Even if on small human-sized troops you break the model's ankle, pin through anyway - you'll most likely have to do this eventually, so you may as well get the trauma out of the way during assembly and not later after painting!

Thank you for the detailed response.. I've been building models for a number of years,  I am specifically questioning bolt pistols and ccws in the exact context. Since I'm using cork bases on my World Eaters all of them are definitely at the least getting their feet pinned.

 

​I know even the strongest super glue does not produce the same bond as plastic glue does on plastic so that's where the majority of my concern has been coming from.

 

So far I have been using Scotch Super Glue and I've been very impressed with it so far. I also have Loctite Super Glue at home.. are either one of those high quality glues that you were talking about?

[Major_Gilbear]

I appreciate that you probably already knew much of what I posted, but I like to give complete answers for the benefit of anybody else who may be looking for similar advice and comes across your thread. Either way, I would probably pin the CC weapons, but maybe consider the bolt pistols on an individual basis (depending on how outstretched the pistol-holding arm is for example).

 

Glue-wise, Loctite is pretty good, but I don't have any experience with Scotch unfortunately. I also see Gorilla recommended a lot, but again it's not one I have personal experience of.

 

I use Deluxe Materials' Roket Max (which is actually a specialist modelling CA glue), but I also like Everbuild too. If you search for "Industrial Super Glue" and "Industrial Cyanoacrylate" on Google, you will get a few more (perhaps local) options too. :)

[Tyberos the Red Wake]

Resin axe handles suck.