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J Matthes My love affair with Apoxie® Sculpt started immediately after a good friend (and accomplished figure modeler) recommended it. As a father of two small boys, anytime I can find an effective non-toxic material, I grab it, and this product certainly didn't disappoint. A self-hardening synthetic clay, Apoxie® Sculpt is a two part system that has many uses in scale modeling. With excellent adhesion, good work time (over one hour) and no shrinkage as well as being both sand-able and paintable when dry, I find it an indispensable addition to my bench. Besides the obvious applications; seam filling, welds and Zimmerit, Apoxie® Sculpt has also solved my PE woes. Yes, you heard me right, I've said goodbye to the days of throat burning CA and gluing fingers to my forehead. I use Apoxie® Sculpt to apply PE. Not only does this material form a strong bond between styrene and brass, but it can be sculpted into a beautiful tack weld all in one simple process. The Process: Mix two equal portions of part A and B between your fingers for two minutes. This is a clear case of 'a little goes a long way' and it may take a few sessions with some leftover product to properly gauge how much is necessary. Below are the two components; this tiny amount will be enough for at least a dozen of these clamp bases:  Apply a small amount of the thoroughly mixed Apoxie® Sculpt to the marked area on the build. I used a flat sculpting tool and scraped off any excess much larger than the clamp base:  Press the clamp firmly in place with tweezers, carefully adjusting into position. Excess material will squeeze out from underneath:  The excess can be sculpted into a tack weld, weld bead or anything your reference pics may show:  You now have about an hour to rework this or continue on with any other pieces you need to apply, seams to fill or Zim to create. Let it dry overnight and then you can lightly carve, scale or file the bead if necessary and paint away. Now if it could only solve Tweezerpult. 
J Matthes resides in New York where he hopes Ernie drafts some linebackers.  copyright©2005 ausfwerks |