Frankenstein (Son of) Monster GEOmetric FF--or--Cleaning-up a vinyl kit

I spent yesterday evening "cleaning-up" the kit. What does "cleaning-up" a vinyl kit actually entail? Well, that depends on the modeler and the kit.

RE: THE KIT. As I indicated in the initial posting, this (my sample) is one of the best vinyl kits I have ever seen! I know that not a few of those who came before complained about the over-engineered hands, but this is a none-issue AFAIC. Total air bubbles could be counted on two hands--with fingers left over: this is no small feat, especially with the relatively "light-weight" vinyl used by GEOmetric.

"CLEAN-UP" À LA AUGIE. Clean-up for me begins with a thorough inspection of the kit. This includes a parts count and checking for any miscasts. With a vinyl kit, one should also check for distorted pieces. Note that a distorted piece is not a miscast! Distorted pieces can usually be restored by placing in hot water or applying heated air from a hair dryer: vinyl, much like resin, has "original memory" and will usually revert to its original conformation with judiciously applied heat. Finally, I do a preliminary inspection for air bubbles.

Assuming all is as it should be, the next step is to remove the pour cones, wholly or in part. The standard practice is to heat (air or water) the area to be removed, and then carefully removing it with a fresh X-acto blade. Not for me. I slap a fibreglass cutting-wheel into the Dremel, and go to town. I might have some minor fine-tuning remaining to be done with an X-acto blade, but I can usually get the kit 98% clean with the cutting wheel.

Now comes the "fun" part. Once all my pieces are "de-coned", I fill them with PUR, in this case standard Alumilite. I can usually do two 1/8th scale kits with a a 28 oz. set. Some people might argue that it's expensive, wasteful, and makes the kit too heavy (?????); but the simplicity and effectiveness of this approach is unbeatable.

Once this is done, I will then dry-fit all the pieces, tweaking and adjusting the fit as required, and opening all remaining air bubbles--these will be filled during assembly. At this point all that is left to do is wash all the pieces in warm soapy water, and setting them aside to dry . . .

Frankenstein (Son of) Monster GEOmetric FF

Having recently rediscovered the Son of Frankenstein, the third part of the Karloff/Universal Frankenstein trilogy, I was quickly reminded of the iconic nature of this incarnation of the Monster--as well as why Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks used this film as the cornerstone for the classic Young Frankenstein!

In any case, last week I was lucky enough to stumble upon a venerable classic in its own right: GEOmetric's 1/8 scale "Son of Frankenstein"--in vinyl! This kit was superbly sculpted by William Paquet, and IMO epitomizes the art of vinyl kit production.

I had great plans for this kit, when much to my [pleasant] surprise they were dashed! You see, I had visions of scratchbuilding the prosthetic right arm of Inspector Krogh, etc. etc. etc., when lo and behold, it is included in the kit!!!

Equally as surprising is that this iconic accessory is rarely seen in/on write-ups and/or build-ups of this kit. Certainly it can not be considered too gruesome? Or potentially offensive?? This is definitely a head-scratcher. . .

This kit is targeted for next year some time, though preliminary clean-up and staging (anyone who has ever worked a vinyl kit knows of what I speak) will begin soon . . .

A~