How to strip paint from Warhammer 40k models

Warhammer model figures are attractive to collectors. But the paint on many of these models is often chipped and faded, causing the figure to look unsightly. Repainting the model requires removing the original paint first. This can be done without damaging the model, provided that the required steps are followed exactly. Patience and attention to detail are necessary in order to make sure that the paint is removed without inflicting damage to the model.

Things You'll Need
Clean cloth
Simple Green all-purpose cleaner
Plastic cups
Scissors
Wax paper
Disposable toothbrush

Put the clean cloth on a work surface. Take the scissors and cut the plastic cup about halfway down its length. Fill the plastic cup with the Simple Green all-purpose cleaner.

Place the Warhammer model figure in the cup filled with the Simple Green all-purpose cleaner. Cover the top of the cup with a piece of wax paper. Allow the figure to soak overnight.

Remove the Warhammer model figure from the cup. Throw away the cup and its contents. Rub the toothpaste against the figure. Continue rubbing the figure, removing as much paint as you can.

Wash the figure in warm soapy water. Place the figure on the clean cloth and let it dry. Cut another plastic cup in half and fill it with Simple Green all-purpose cleaner. Put the figure in the cup and cover the top with a piece of wax paper. Soak overnight.

Rub the figure with the toothbrush once again, removing as much paint as you can. Wash the figure in warm soapy water and let it dry. Repeat the soaking process if there is still more paint to remove.

What You Need
*Dettol - Antiseptic Disenfectant (Get the brown stuff. DO NOT get the nice smelling stuff (purple/green?) - it wont work)
*Jam Jar / Plastic Container - Big enough to submerge your models completely (or at least half in the case of tanks). I highly reccomend geting a container/jar with a lid if you don't like the smell of hospitals...
*Touth Brush - An old one is fine, if it has a small head you may find it easier to get in between legs. Would not suggest anything too stiff as you are going to be scrubbing your minis with it..
*Cocktail sticks - Wood ones.
*Plastic Washing Up Bowl - An old one is best, this will get splatted with nasty funky dettol paint so please don't use the one your mum uses for the washing up!
*Rubber Gloves - Whilst not toxic, neat dettol will dry your skin out and make it blister with prolonged exposure. These will get manky so again ask your mum/partner first!
*Newspaper - For keeping the floor/desk/patio clean
*Tea Towel - For drying models after - shouldn't get too manky but again it may be wise to check first

Stage 1 - Soak
*Break apart your minis (optional)
*Take off the models base (optional)
*Drop your figures into your container
*Fill the container with enough neat detol to cover your models completely .
*Put the lid on your container
*Put it somewhere it wont get kicked or mucked about with.

Breaking apart your minis can help the dettol to get in and most importantly makes it much easier for your to scrub off the paint later. I recommend breaking off pieces that come away easy or those that very badly obscure part of the model. You really don't need to do this for all minis. Be careful as very small bits can be hard to pick up in rubber gloves!

Taking off the base can prevent flock from getting in your detol mixture, and hence this makes it last longer. You will be able to do more minis at once if you take the bases off (but don't put in so many that the detol can't reach lots of parts on your minis). If you do take the bases off I suggest you stick a gloved finger in every now and again to jiggle the minis around.

When doing anything with neat dettol or the unrinsed minis I would suggest doing it either outside or in a well ventilated room. This is not really for health reasons (unless you class bruised ears as health reasons...).

Neat dettol stinks, nuff said.

When filling the container, remember that anything not covered by dettol will not be stripped. For tanks it may be necessary to strip one half and then flip the model and strip the other.

Stage 2 - Wait

*Wait some time
*Scrub off a layer or two of paint (optional)
*Wait some more time

How long this process takes varies greatly, based on the paint type, amount of paint, model type (metal/plastic), primer type etc

Some of my observations
*Metal models which have been painted multiple times will need to stand between 8-12 hours.
*Plastic models painted multiple times will need to stand for about 8-16-24 hours.
*Metal models which have been primed and painted only once can be ready as quickly as 4 hours.

In order to speed up this process you can scrub some of the paint off and then return the miniature to the dettol stripping pot. Follow the method in stage 3 for scrubbing.

Stage 3 - Scrub
*Use the toothbrush to remove the loosened paint
*Use a toothpick to get in the very tight cracks
*Return the model to the dettol stripping pot and return to stage 2 if needed

RINSE THE MODEL USING NEAT DETTOL - DO NOT APPLY ANY WATER AT THIS STAGE! - Other wise you will end up with a gluey messy model ;)

Using your rubber gloves simply scrub the model with your touthbrush. Put your hands and model inside your washing up bowl to keep stripped paint splatters to a minimum and your ears a healthy pink colour. You should see metal, or a much deeper level of paint very quickly (one or two stokes).

If you don't find this process easy then return the model to the paint stripping pot. If your in a rush, scrub as hard and as long as you like, your toothbrush should not scratch plastic or metal.

If you find the model gets a bit gooey, or you end up with paint fragments dotted around then just get some neat
dettol on your brush and wash it away.

Repeat this process until all of the paint is gone from the model. You can stop earlier if you like, but it is certainly possible to get 99.9% of the paint off the model using this process.

Stage 4 - Rinse
*Plunge the model into warm soapy water
*Rinse throughly
*Towel dry
*Check for a tacky residue

Once the model is totally stripped, plunge it into a bowl of warm water and washing up liquid. Make sure the water isn't too hot or you may deform plastic. The washing up liquid prevents the nasty guming affect mentioned in the stage 3. Wiggle the model in the water for a while to make sure all the dettol is off. If you don't get all the dettol off then you will find that paint and primer will not hold well to model.

I've found that it is possible at this stage to use a toothpick or cocktail stick to scrape out any gummy bits of paint left in cracks. If you clean out your toothbrush (in the soapy water) you can also give the model a quick scrub with it to knock of any paint flakes.

Rinse the model in cold water to get off any soap residue once this is done for the same reason.

When the model is dry check for a tacky residue, this will indicate that the model needs a bit more washing ;)

Well done you... guess what, your done!

This is what i use%u2022Acetone - $12
*Dremel Knock off (Sontax Rotary Tool) with wire brush - $12 (Bunnings warehouse)
*Pair Of Gloves - $2.50
*Old Glass Jar - Recycled
*Safety Glasses - I actually wear my Oakley M-Frames
*Tweazers - $2.00

Step One
Place a small amount of Acetone in the Jar. Wearing gloves and safety glasses, slowly place the minis in the Jar trying to avoid dropping them and creating a splash. If you get any Acetone on bare skin rinse immediately with cool water.

Allow these to soak in the acetone for atleast 15 minutes, i usually give it an hour or two or leave it over night.

Step Two
Now put your safety glasses and gloves on and using your tweazers remove the minis. Place them on paper towel or something similar and allow the acetone to evaporate, then rinse them in water. Allow the minis to dry. Dont be disheartened if it looks like no paint has come off!

Step Three
Holding the mini firmly in your non-master hand use the Dremel Knock off to strip the paint. Hold the mini over a sink. Let the tool do the work for you and watch the paint strip off! Make sure you wear a glove on your non-master hand and your safety glasses... allow the tool to rotate away from your body!

Step Four
Continue to strip the miniature as detailed in step three. You will actually see the miniature be buffed up and nice and shinny as the metal brush strips the paint. Dont worry the mini wont be damaged!

And finally after about 10 Minutes work with the Dremel Knock Off Give them a quick rinse in water and they are ready to be painted!

Notes%u2022ALLWAYS use Safety Equipment
*If you don't have a rotary tool you can use a toothbrush or something similar (takes a while)
*You can put the mini in a vice or something similar rather than wearing a glove and holding it