I have had several Accurail kits before, as they are very simple to assemble, yet have decent detailing and usually very good paint. And they will work very well with minimal investments. (KD’s and metal wheels.)
The last boxes I opened however, the instruction sheet ink rubbed off onto the car bodies, and unfortunately will not wash off, even with a vigorous scrubbing using an old toothbrush with soap and water.
Anyone have any ideas? (Short of repainting the entire thing?)
I thought maybe heavy weathering, but these are pretty new models for my layouts time frame… (Pretty new period actually.)
And of course, the ink is black, and the models (CSX Covered Hoppers) are very light cream colored.
While it could be plausable, if weathered just right, it’s on all three of the three pack. so I would really need to get imaginative with the explanation… (Especially as it’s only on one side of each car body.)
As I said, this is a new one on me, having never before seen this happen.
(But I am now pulling all printed assembly/parts sheets from all model boxes, so that jerk Justin Case can’t visit those boxes…)
Were these new kits, as in unopened? If so, I would suggest approaching Accurail to see about replacements. If this is a packaging problem then Accurail would certainly want to know about it.
If they had previously been opened and any protective wrapping had been removed, then you might be out of luck as far as getting replacements, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask. Also, they might have some advice about what to try and what not to.
Since soap and water didn’t work, the next thing I would try is alcohol on a paper towel. Obviously you want to apply it very lightly and dry it off quickly.
You just need to discover what solvent carried the ink. Alcohol would be my first choice (as it is in so many ways) and if that doesn’t dissolve the ink the try acetone. Then paint thinner.
I agree with Dave: Contact Accurail and explain to them what happened. They may just end up sending you a replacement shell. I approached them about a defective truck in the past and they shipped me replacement (i.e. both) trucks.
And I would NOT try cleaning the shell with a solvent unless Accurail instructs you otherwise.
I know for a fact that these were brand new, almost wonder if it was a heat transfer during shipping? Knowing how much these packages tend to get “lightly” tossed and bumped, it would not surprise me.
I have stripped their shells using Isopropyl before, so I would not use anything at all stronger.
In fact, Isopropyl reacts severely with their paint within 15-20 seconds, and leaves a white-ish mark almost immediately. I would be concerned about damaging the finish before it even affected te ink.
I will try the pencil eraser on the one with the least noticable marks, as that one I’m sure if it doesn’t work I can hide with weathering.
The other two however had quite a bit more.
I will also contact Accurail, maybe they can at least confirm it’s Toner, and they may need to adjust the assembly sheet, maybe folding the ink side in instead of out…
Now to finish pulling the rest of the assembly/parts sheets from my boxes…
I’m going to bet that the residue is from printer/copy toner. Maybe some of the smaller runs of kit instructions were run off on a laser printer. I’ve seen this happen especially when copied/laser printed pages were placed in protective sheets and the toner reacts to the plastic.
If you Google “remove toner stains” you’re suggested to use alcohol. Toner being what it is it may have migrated into the “pores” of the paint. Maybe try lightly wiping the car sides with one of those foil-packed hand wipes you get at the rib joints?
One wonders if the instruction sheets were hot off the printer when packed with the kits - or maybe the plastic kits themselves were still warm from the plastic die machines? Otherwise it is hard to imagine how this transfer could happen.
I would try highly diluted isopropyl alcohol and a swab (maybe a Q tip but I prefer the more solid swabs or mini brushes that do not shed fibers). What I have learned is that there is a point where suddenly it starts to loosen and remove paint and lettering, which happens less with 70& versus 90%, and even less often with the 50% that WalMart sells cheaply. But you can dilute it yourself with distilled water
Another mild solvent is DioSol or the other liquids meant to make decals snuggle down. Even PineSol the household cleaner might work but again I’d dilute it with distilled water since it has been used as a paint remover.
If you try an eraser I’d go for the softest one in your drawer. True abrasion on plastic is a useful weathering method for an older car but it could stick out like a sore (and very out of scale) thumb on a newer car.
My first instinct would be to try various remedies myself but I do agree that Accurail is a very responsible firm that would make good if this is something they did wrong. At the very least take complete and close up photos of the damage before attempting your next “fix” so that you could show them what you had to work with
Is the unwanted marking covering anything you need to keep, any of the actual lettering of the car? If not, I’d suggest Solvaset and a pencil eraser. Work slowly and use a light touch. The Solvaset will remove lettering that’s pad-printed on, so I assume it would work for ink also.
As other folks mentioned, I would contact the manufacturer first to see what they say…
Also, you brought back a memory from my old mechanical drafting days. We had these eraser pouches for cleaning pencil smudges from drawings (pre-CAD [8D])
