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Dettol bath

Discussion in 'Tools of the Trade/Accessories' started by Hembo, Feb 9, 2022.

  1. Hembo Member

    Hi all,
    So having read, on this site, many references to the ‘Dettol bath’, in connection with stripping down figures ready for a repaint, I decided to give it a try. Well, so far, after almost 3 weeks of being submerged and with the odd agitation with an old toothbrush, my experimental figure stands testament to the durability of the ‘Del Prado’ paint process. Barely a patch of paintwork has been removed. It is original Dettol, not a cheap alternative. Any advice/comments from the community?
  2. arj A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Nitromors is a good last resort for metal figures.
    Read the H&S instructions.
    Use a glass dish, outside, and don't forget to wear gloves.
    Must admit, I'm rather surprised that Dettol failed.

    Cheers,
    Andrew
  3. valiant A Fixture

    Country:
    United-Kingdom
    Mr Muscle oven cleaner might be worth a try - but make sure that whatever you apply it to is bone dry, it doesnt seem to work if there is any moisture present!!
  4. OldTaff PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    England
    I wonder if it's the type of paint on the Del Prado figures.....Nitromors should shift it, but as indicated above, take safety precautions;)
    Those figures were very heavy.,as I recall...were they high in lead content?

    Alan
    Nap likes this.
  5. Plastic Max Active Member

    Country:
    England
    Does the Dettol bath usually work on any type of paint (oils/acrylics/enamel), and metal,resin or plastic figures?
    Does anybody else use other products, such as isopropyl alcohol, acetone, or brake fluid, to remove paint?
  6. C Child New Member

    I build mostly motorcycle and car models nowadays, not figures. My recent experience with plastics, resin, and photo-etch:

    I find that a mix of Windex window cleaner and a cheap thinner for acrylics will remove most cured acrylics after a long soak (24+ hrs) and scrub, followed by 10-15 minutes in a small ultrasonic cleaner. The lacquers and primers I use don't seem to be much affected by the Windex mix, but you should still soak for as short a period as possible.

    Similarly, I'm usually able to remove cured lacquers and even primers (e.g. Tamiya rattle can) after a multi-day soak/scrub/repeat in Easy Off oven cleaner (here in the US). I don't see any difference in results between the 'odorless' and original types, so I go with the former. And I always wear gloves, since the EO quickly strips fats and oils out of your skin.

    I don't have enough recent experience with enamels and oils, but I assume EO or something similar to the old Dio-Sol would still do the trick. It always did back when I was painting figures.
  7. theBaron A Fixture

    Country:
    United-States
    I agree, Alan.

    There are many products we use to strip paint, and most, if not all, work pretty well for each respective painter. Myself, I like SuperClean, an automotive de-greaser, which can dissolve and remove most paint in a matter of minutes.

    However, I have had one or two pieces over the years, whose paint really resisted the solution, and took longer and repeated soaks. That's why I think you're right about the paint Del Prado used for that particular figure. I don't think there is any solvent that works 100% of the time, only those that work more of the time than others do.

    And regarding Del Prado, I'm not sure that they used the same paints over the life of the brand, either. I suspect that they've used-or rather, the factories they contract with have used-different paints (primers as well as colors) at different times.

    Prost!
    Brad
    Tecumsea and OldTaff like this.
  8. Hembo Member

    Gents. Thank you all for your interest and comments. It looks like I shall be making a return to a dedicated paint remover.
    theBaron likes this.
  9. Ronaldo A Fixture

    Dettol has always worked for me, the only down side is that it also debonds superglue so you have to put the figure back together .
    I paint in oils over acrylics or the earlier stuff oil over enamels
  10. Chrisr PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    Australia
    But it can also be an upside with figures that have difficult areas to paint if all the parts are put together, such as arms across the body and packs, etc. Dettol has always worked for me - and in a very short time. I also paint oils over enamel or acrylic.
  11. Nap Moderator

    Country:
    England
    Good old Del Prado ......must be the paint/ manufacturer process , Dettol has always worked on the resin busts

    Another option might be to just reprime

    Look forward to seeing the new versions

    Happy benchtime

    Nap
  12. Banjer A Fixture

    Country:
    England
    I have never used Dettol but want to give it go, is it used neat from the bottle?

    Bill
  13. Chrisr PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    Australia
    Yes. I use it neat. Leave it for about half an hour and scrub with a toothbrush.
  14. Banjer A Fixture

    Country:
    England
    Thanks Chris,
    As I suspected but as the instructions say to dilute it for use I wanted to ensure it wouldn't attack the figure if neat.
    I currently use IPA ( rubbing alcohol ,not pale ale:) ) but it's expensive and seems to evaporate quickly.

    Cheers
    Bill
  15. Chrisr PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    Australia
    Hi Bill,
    I have left metal figures in neat dettol for over 24 hours without any problems. The paint largely slipped off, but still needed a toothbrush to get it out of the ‘crevices’
    Cheers
    Chris
  16. Hembo Member

    Hi again all,
    Just thought I'd update this thread that I 'kicked off', back in Feb, and much to my surprise, is still running. Well, after something like 15 weeks in the Dettol bath, the paint on my figure softened to a reasonable degree. Still had to go back to good old Nitromors to finish it off completely. Interesting byproduct of the Dettol treatment was that it softened the adhesive to a point that the figure disassembled itself, (as suggested by Ronaldo, back in August). Anyway, thank you all for the interest and advice.
  17. Jim Lawrie New Member


    I stripped a fifteen year old vehicle model covered in newbie unthinned paint and it pulled all the gunked-on paint off, I just ran everything under cold water after I 24 hours and softly brushed them with an old toothbrush¹ over a mesh strainer. It will debond any glue that hasn't actively melted plastic.
    It kind of makes you wonder what you were putting on those cuts . . .

    ¹Never throw anything away!
    OldTaff likes this.
  18. Chrisr PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    Australia
    Sure does. :LOL:
  19. OldTaff PlanetFigure Supporter

    Country:
    England
    Never mind Dettol, I remember iodine on cuts and grazes ! That made you smart a bit......

    Alan

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