Raised or Recessed Panel Lines, what to do?

[spreckair]

I prime first with a strong primer that contrasts with the color of the plastic.  I then sand down the surface until the raise lines are almost gone, but not quite; the remaining primer highlights the lines so that it is easy to see.  Since the raised line is almost gone, I then use Dymo tape as a straight edge and scribe either over the old line or just next to it.  When I am all done with the part, I sand smooth and re-prime to check for issues.

 

If the primer is strong enough, i.e. it reacts with the plastic, you can sometimes sand off the raised line and still see a line where it was.  This makes it even easier to scribe.

[thierry laurent]

Another tip:

 

If the raised lines are accurate, use a sharp needle and make a very small hole at each end of a panel line and each time two lines cross each other. Then, use your favorite tool to scribe lines between the very small holes you just made. Quick and easy!

 

Thierry

[Wegener]

Thierry, that's exactly the method I used the last time I tried it (1980s, I think, before I decided to steer clear of kits with raised lines). I figured it out on the basis of doing the same thing for making scratchbuild parts from sheet and it did work well, although it was tedious. Still, if I had to, I could do it again and now I have better tools for the task.

[Rick Griewski]

One of the original by Charie Metz.

 

http://www.ipmsstockholm.se/home/scribing-panel-lines-2/

 

Rick