# 72 scale military figure paint question.



## TonyS (Dec 17, 2010)

Hello Group, 

I was hoping someone has experience with the 72 scale figures that are made out of soft plastic. Enamels and acrylics don't work on them. Any one know what kind of paint to use on these little guys?

Thanks for reading,

Tony


----------



## btbrush (Sep 20, 2010)

Hey Tony,
Nothing sticks to polyethylene. I recommend either casting them in resin or pitching them and buying some resin figures. Just not worth the hassle. Just MHO.
Bruce


----------



## djnick66 (May 2, 2008)

You can paint up soft plastic figures nicely. It takes some work. Different brands are harder/softer than others too. Also I found some, like the current Airfix reissues of the old Esci World War II British are in a plastic nearly as hard as styrene.

Wash the figures well with dish detergent, rinse well, and then let dry. You can prime them with something like Tamiya spray primer. You might also mist on a light coat of Tamiya or Pactra white Polycarbonate spray paint. These sprays are formulated to stick to the flexible clear lexan RC car bodies.

Enamels or acrylics work ok on the figures. You do have to be careful as the paint can flake off if you bend them. Acrylics seem tougher. Spray with a clear flat sealer like Dullcoat.

I used a lot of these figures for war gaming and mounted them on small card bases. This protected thin parts like guns and enabled me to pick up the soldiers by the base and not by the figure.


----------

