1.4 ) Metal Parts
Aluminum, brass, white metal are the primary materials used in scaled-modeling. Given their strength to plastics or resin parts, they are more sturdy to work with, but is also more difficult to mold and sculpt.
Aluminum in malleable tin-foil layers, is used to model clothing, fabric covers, seat cushions, mirror reflectors, etc. Brass is used for gun barrel tubing, vehicle exterior skin and fenders, wheel axial and struts, etc. White metal is molten lead shaped to a specific size, such as propellers, guns, artillery shells. Modelers used this material to custom replicate model parts.
Example 1 : Brass fenders ( lower center ) and rear turret storage bin used on a German Panzer IV tank, rest of the items are photo-etched parts.
Example 2 : Wiring details used inside the folding wings of a US Navy S-3 Viking electronic warfare aircraft. Brass is used instead of copper due to its malleability.
Example 3 : Flat paint primer sprayed onto plastic and metal parts provide surface gripe for final painting. Without the primer, the paint will run and collect into model's joints or crevices.
Example 4 : With final painting and weathering, metal parts blends nicely into the model. For this model, the wing's wiring details are a good focal point.
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Brass metal-turned barrels, sold as after-market items, but are included in premmium model kits. Brass barrels does not have the crease marks of plastic barrels.
Soviet T-72 tank using metal parts for power cables, barrel ribbings, storage bins.
Modelers can cast customized metal parts by pouring White Metal into a RTV Rubber formed mold.
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