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What is the Hornby era system for model railway?
Posted in: Model Railway
24th June 2020
The era system was introduced to model railways so that modellers could easily identify what period in history a...
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What is Graham Farish?
Posted in: Model Railway
13th November 2024
Graham Farish is a name you’re likely to come across if you're interested in British model railways, especially in...
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How important is the needle size on an airbrush?
Posted in: Painting
26th January 2022
For many regular airbrush users, the size of their needles is of the utmost importance.The range of needle sizes...
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As a model aircraft enthusiast, what tools should I have?
Posted in: Best practices
11th December 2023
As a model aircraft enthusiast, having the right tools is essential for a successful and enjoyable building...
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5 ways you can damage your model railway track
Posted in: Tracks
29th March 2022
There are many ways you can damage your model railway track, but five of them are more common than you would think....
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How to remove flash on a model?

The removal of flash from a model is known as deflashing. This is usually carried out either by an operative at the manufacturers or in more recent times by an automated process, however, occasionally some flash is left behind and makes it through to the model shop shelf.

Flash is easy enough to remove and doesn't require a great deal of skill, but as with many modelling tasks, the more patient you are, the better the results.

The general advice out there is to simply cut or grind it off, although grinding is not advised due to the risk of damage to the model.

The best tool for removing flash is a modelling knife. If you don't have one lying around, modelling files will do just fine. For a perfect finish you can always sand the model part with some very fine sandpaper (somewhere between 2000 and 3000 grade).

Our top tip when removing flash would be no matter which tool you use to remove the flash, take little pieces at a time. If you try to rush the job and yank or slice your way to victory in one swift move then you will encounter something called stretching of the material which will leave behind an unsightly white mark on the model.

Posted in: Kit building, Assembling and gluing

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