Melting LEGO

[Wardancer]

Do you think it is necessary to do this every time you need fresh paint or is it possible to keep some dissolved bricks in a small jar and use that same solution every time you need to paint?

[Str0ngbad]

As long as the jar seals well, it will keep. I've been working with the same jar of white for the past ten days and it hasn't thickened on me. If it does start to thicken up, just pour in a little more acetone and stir it.

[RoyalBrickCustoms]

How thick/thin is it?

Does it work with pearl gold bricks? What about pearl silver?

~ RBC

PS: Oops, sorry ADMINS/MODS for the double post.

[Str0ngbad]

I tried melting a couple pearl gold pieces; a treasure chest and a 45 angled piece. Neither dissolved. I haven't tried pearl silver but assume its the same. There are actual pearl silver bricks though, aren't there?

[Wardancer]

I am getting excited over here.

Can this really be used like a regular paint or is it more like a thick mud with chunks in it? Wouldn't it ruin every brush you use it with immediately?

Pictures, we demand... errr politely ask for pictures.

[Str0ngbad]

Haha! I'm going to be out of town this evening but I promise I will try and sit down and take pictures of a project tomorrow. I bought a few more jars today and some sanding supplies. It really can be used like a regular paint with the only difference being how quickly it starts to dry. You only get a few seconds to put it where you want it and then you need to leave it to dry as it gets sticky. Drying only takes maybe 10 seconds though. I use cheap nylon brushes from WalMart as nylon is not dissolved by acetone. I put acetone in a small glass to get the paint out of the brushes. However, it WILL take the paint off the brush handle if that matters. I'm going to try and yellow the elf ears on Tauriel's hairpiece. It should be pretty easy to apply but I imagine I will still need to do a little sanding to touch it up.

RBC, I'm also going to try some pearl silver tomorrow.

Edited March 28, 2013 by Str0ngbad

[Str0ngbad]

HOOAHH! Too bad I prefer fleshies.

The right ear is better than the left since I learned from a mistake but even the left turned out quite well. I didn't even need to do any sanding. The left ear took a long time because I applied too much at once and so it didn't settle into the details of the ear. I removed it before it solidified but in doing so I also removed the flesh paint. It took a LOT more coats to get it the right color of yellow with the flesh paint gone which resulted in a less clean looking ear. I have a picture of the left one on my Flick'r and would post it here but the difference is so negligible that it doesn't show up well in the picture. The right ear took maybe a minute and only 1-2 coats. If I do this again, I will first clean up LEGO's less than perfect paint job on the ears with a little Brasso.

Edited March 28, 2013 by Str0ngbad

[Wardancer]

Best thread ever. Almost.

In a perfect world where I had more time I would go meltpainting now.

[RoyalBrickCustoms]

Depending on how much Acetone you use can you get it to like a (watery) liquid consistency?

~RBC

[Str0ngbad]

Yes. It is pretty watery when melted without putting extra acetone in. I generaly chop one or two bricks into small pieces with a pair of wire cutters and then pour just enough acetone in the jar to cover the plastic. You can buy small canning jars at Hobby Lobby for 1.50 each. They had (and may still have) a half off sale on them at the beginning of this week.

SB

EDIT: And regarding metallic colored bricks, it looks like they would work if I had larger pieces. LEGO makes many of their accessories out of a different kind of plastic and I won't have any other pearl gold bricks to test until I get a Bricklink order in. I'll test a silver technic beam tonight.

Edited March 28, 2013 by Str0ngbad

[rafsemedo]

Sir, I think you're starting a revolution in minifig customization. I'm deeply impressed and look forward to trying this out. I tip my hat to you, thank you for sharing your experiences.

[Str0ngbad]

I don't think it is nearly that special but thank you for your kind words rafsemedo. If you try it, I would love to see what you do!

RBC, the silver technic beam didn't melt either and I don't have anything else that I can try it on yet. Aanchir pointed me towards some gold pieces that appear to be ABS though so I've not given up yet.

I sanded down the handle of a Sting sword, coated it in black ABS and, once it had dried, I tried inserting and removing it from a minifig hand to test the durability. It failed the test.

While more durable than paint in the same situation it will still peel when put to it

Edited March 29, 2013 by Str0ngbad

[Henchmen4Hire]

Fun thread lol. I've melted a few action figures by accident trying to remove paint, trial and error is great but only when it doesn't cost you $10 a figure!

I wouldn't suggest using this melt-method to make custom pieces though, not if you want some nice sharp details anyway. You're better off using jeweler's wax to make the piece (easier to carve and shape than ABS, especially at this scale) then making copies of it with some simple silicon molds and alumilite/resin/whatever.

[Str0ngbad]

Thanks for the advice. I am hoping to start learning to mold stuff and hadn't heard about jeweler's wax before. I plan on using this method to color molded pieces but I'll hold off molding them in it until I know better what I'm doing. I suppose it can't hurt to try.

Edited March 29, 2013 by Str0ngbad

[Propicz89]

Those yellow elf ears look really nice, you're definitely on to something here ;)

Edited June 13, 2013 by Propicz89

[Cirvihi]

How well does this process work on transparent pieces?

[Silent Nomad]

That'd be a cool way to give Sinestro a better hairpiece like the one he has in the LB2 video game, matching the elf ears to the color of his head and giving him more of a widow's peak.

[loalcat]

Somebody please help.

I have acetone from chemical lab and Lego pieces (see picture). I put pieces into acetone but they do not melt! Maybe I need some special kind of acetone?

[Deathleech]

Somebody please help.

I have acetone from chemical lab and Lego pieces (see picture). I put pieces into acetone but they do not melt! Maybe I need some special kind of acetone?

How long did you leave the piece(s) in for? Is it 100% acetone or watered down with something else?

Edited April 29, 2015 by LuxorV
Please do not quote images from the same page. Thank you.

[loalcat]

I left it for about 3 hours.

Acetone is taken from laboratory of chemical paint factory I work at, it is marked "acetone prepared for chemical analysis 99,2%".

[Deathleech]

It's probably too thick for the acetone to really break it down quickly. At least that would be my guess. You should try to leave it in much longer (24 hours+) and see if you notice any melting, or shave/cut down the part into smaller, thinner pieces so it breaks down easier.

[MAB]

Yeah, leave it in for longer. You will find the surface gets a little sticky after a few minutes, but it can take hours to dissolve fully.

If you want thick paint, leave it for at least a day, dripping in acetone slowly. You want minimal solvent so less evaporation and minimal ingression of the solvent into the other parts when it is drying.

[loalcat]

Seems like I've did it, but instead of acetone I used dichloroethane (popular plastic solvent in my country), Lego shavings turned into something like gel or slime after 10 minutes. So I used it for repairing and increasing of thickness of some cracked Lego Technic pieces I have. 48 hours passed and I took a needle to check hardness of new 1 milimeter plastic layer. Needle easily makes holes in it ! Original Lego plastic cannot be pierced by needle without force but the dried plastic can. Should I wait more? Will it become harder? Or ABS-plastic after dissolving and drying will stay so soft and easily pierceable forever?

Edited May 1, 2015 by loalcat

[smiley200]

I have to try this sometime!

[MAB]

Seems like I've did it, but instead of acetone I used dichloroethane (popular plastic solvent in my country), Lego shavings turned into something like gel or slime after 10 minutes. So I used it for repairing and increasing of thickness of some cracked Lego Technic pieces I have. 48 hours passed and I took a needle to check hardness of new 1 milimeter plastic layer. Needle easily makes holes in it ! Original Lego plastic cannot be pierced by needle without force but the dried plastic can. Should I wait more? Will it become harder? Or ABS-plastic after dissolving and drying will stay so soft and easily pierceable forever?

I wouldn't use dichloroethane, it is carcinogenic.

The plastic will always be softer than real lego afterwards, as some solvent remains in it and also you have swollen the polymer. If it is very soft, you have used too much solvent. You really want the smallest amount (which is much less than you think). It needs to dissolve slowly. A couple of drops on a brick, give it a day, then another drop, and so on. That way, the minimal amount of solvent is in the "paint".