I am debating the purchase of a Sylvan Resin kit of the CN van. It has no place on my layout but I like its unique look and I’m always up for a new challenge.
Never worked on a resin kit before. Wondering if anyone has expirience in Sylvan Models or resin model kits in general? Specific problems or differences over a standard plastic kit etc. Any concerns for painting?
Hi there which van are you contemplating. Myself i like the transfer van I’ve put a couple together. They take a bit of work but aren’t too too bad. There buildings and newer freight cars are amazing as the bodies are one piece. With the vans just make sure that you get them square and you shouldn’t have too many problems. I use acc glue any brand will suffice I usually use the MED zap a Gap but any of your fav brands will work.Get yuorself a bottle of their resin prep though and rince off the parts.This removes any left over mold release then paint them with what ever paint brand you are used to.Decal like a plastic kit and enjoy. I’ve also found that the atlas caboose trucks work the best on these kits. Hope I’ve helped. I know Clare the owner, if you have any problems with your kit e-mail him they are great to deal with. Rob
A good quality resin kit usually isn’t any harder than a qood plastic kit. A resin kit that is not good quality is nearly impossible. My experience with Sylvan is that they are good quality.
That the one trolleyboy. I saw a pic of the CN transfer van in the walthers catalog in the photo section. Immediately thought., I got to get that caboose. Do not know if the picture is of the sylvan kit, but they are the only ones I have found that make it. You mention the “resin prep” solution. Where do you find that at? Is this for cleaning before glue application or for paint prep?
I kitbashed a Sylvan Great Lakes freighter using their hull (with extensions) and aft cabin. (http://trainweb.org/ironbelt/oreboat.html) I’m happy with their level of surface detail.
trolleyboy gave excellent tips on resin surface preparation, follow that and you’ll be in good shape!
Sylvan kits are about as good as Westerfield resin models. But if you’ve never built a resin kit before, I’d recommend starting with something a little simpler, like a plain-Jane 40 foot boxcar. There are a few tricks to resin, and building a less expensive (and more foolproof) simple box will bring you up to speed before you do something potentially dizastrous to a more complex caboose kit (believe me, I know this from experience!)
Sylvan makes the resin prep. I imagine that you should be able to get it through walthers as well. Most hobby shops that carry sylvan kits will usually sell the resin prep.If you can’t find it drop sylvan an e-mail they’ll likely sell it to you direct. They prefer that you go through one of their affiliated hobby shops but you can get it from them.It’s actually a citrus based cleaner likely a bit more mild than goo gone or any of the others.It’s a before you paint cleaner.you use it full strength and then rince off with warm water.It works on most of the resin car makers kits as well. Happy cabboosing www.sylvan.com if you need to get in touch with them. Rob
Sylvan Scale Models web site
Thanks all for the information.