I need advice & recovery of kits expertise

[sander1942]

I have little to contribute to a resolution but wanted you to know that I cannot imagine what I would do under the circumstances. Terrible.

[THE DC]

Originally Posted by nebeltex

You could try ironing some of the pages flat, with some cotton on top. Picture framing places often use a large heat press for mounting images to foam core. It might be possible to recover some pages that way as well.

I'll definitely try that. The Los Angeles airship's too water stained to bother flattening and both kits were in different boxes!

The Macon kits and Hindenburg kits that were foil sheeted all stuck together and even careful separation caused chipping. Can't be salvaged.

The Loughland Space Freighter and Battle ship were dried but badly stained, as was the George Wythe house kit from Williamsburg.

Still, I am trying to salvage and restore what might be saved.

[Algebraist]

Sorry to hear what has happened to your kits DC. The following might help in some cases.

Take a plastic tub which has an air tight lid and which will take a sheet of model lying down. Put a generous layer of rice in the bottom. Then put a sheet of baking parchment the same size as you model sheet. Then rest your model sheet on the baking parchment and seal the lid.

The rice will absorb all the moisture out of everything in the tub (including your model sheet. The baking parchment will stop the rice from sticking to the model sheet. It takes time though.

To speed up the process place the tub in a warm place like an airing cupboard.

This might save your wet "blocks" of models too.

From experience of something that happened to me, I would say try not to dwell on things that have been lost and can not be replaced (since you can not alter that fact). Instead concentrate on looking forward to enjoying what you are are going to be making.

Kevin

[sprogs]

Hi Dc
Saddened to hear of your health problems.
If it's any help I believe I still have the Paper clock book. Yours if I do. I live in the UK where are you.
All the best.
Liz

[WVA]

All of the drying solutions may work, but may not be worth the effort, for this reason: Paper shrinks. And, not uniformly. Not all paper, but most. And more or less according to the grain. The width may shrink more than the length, or reverse. So, while some simple models may be ok after drying out, complex, multi part models may have very poor fit.

We have all seen a flat sheet of paper or card stock curl up after getting wet. That is because one side (most paper has more than one layer) dries before the other, and pulls the sheet to that side. It shrinks. Wetting the other side, and letting it dry sometimes counter acts the curl, and the sheet is flat. It is also smaller. Sometimes very little, sometimes a lot, depending on how it was made. And, mind you, the force in shrinking is very large. It can happen even when the sheet is pressed with heavy weight!

Now something positive, DC. I will replace your Empire State Building, the PMI Lightning, and Mr. Smith's seaport, free of charge! All you will have to do is BUILD them, and post the pictures here! I will never get to them.

Send me a PM

Jim

[Kevin WS]

DC - You can try scanning and then touch up (remove water damage marks etc).

If you want to do this and load the files in a shared drive, I can start the touch-up for you...

[THE DC]

Originally Posted by Algebraist

Sorry to hear what has happened to your kits DC. The following might help in some cases.

Take a plastic tub which has an air tight lid and which will take a sheet of model lying down. Put a generous layer of rice in the bottom. Then put a sheet of baking parchment the same size as you model sheet. Then rest your model sheet on the baking parchment and seal the lid.

The rice will absorb all the moisture out of everything in the tub (including your model sheet. The baking parchment will stop the rice from sticking to the model sheet. It takes time though.

To speed up the process place the tub in a warm place like an airing cupboard.

This might save your wet "blocks" of models too.

From experience of something that happened to me, I would say try not to dwell on things that have been lost and can not be replaced (since you can not alter that fact). Instead concentrate on looking forward to enjoying what you are are going to be making.

Kevin

I would never have thought of that.

I use to do a lot of photography with fiber based paper. If I used your method, and used an old print dryer, could I smooth out the wrinkles?


Hmmm?

[THE DC]

Originally Posted by Kevin WS

DC - You can try scanning and then touch up (remove water damage marks etc).

If you want to do this and load the files in a shared drive, I can start the touch-up for you...

I have been trying to dry some that have wrinkling and color bleed. I'll see if I can get to a scanner next week and PM you, if that's okay.

Some, like the Williamsburg Wythe House, the Space Battleship, Space Freighter, and the Los Angeles airship appear so shrunken and water stained, I fear that it would be too great a task to clean up.

Thanks for the idea and offer to help. Maybe I need to learn from you how to do this, or we could make a "clean thread" instead of a build thread to help out others in the future who may experience a similar loss?

[Madbrit]

DC, I have an extra copy of The Brooklyn Bridge and maybe (I've yet to fully check) a few others in the Dover editions. If interested just shoot me your snail mail. Sorry to hear of your loss as indeed I think most of us are.

Derek

[THE DC]

Originally Posted by Madbrit

DC, I have an extra copy of The Brooklyn Bridge and maybe (I've yet to fully check) a few others in the Dover editions. If interested just shoot me your snail mail. Sorry to hear of your loss as indeed I think most of us are.

Derek

I just wanted to thank Madbrit for the Brooklyn Bridge and share a nice story.

With the Cover lockdown in progress, the book he sent me was prepped and forwarded to a youth group, with detailed instructions, who are currently secured an unable to visit family or even go outside for sorts. They will start building this bridge next week in a contest with other youth who are also under lockdown, in an effort to positively distract them, competing with sister facilities.

Just wanted you to know that, even though you didn't expect to have this type of affect, the kit went farther than warming my heart; it will help many others who are otherwise unable to find diversion from the stress of the times.

Now be careful if they try to sell anyone "their" Brooklyn Bridge!