prettying up an MRCE

[Tiepilot1138[TK]]

I'm in the process of fixing up my MRCE now. I already drilled and filed out the teeth, and now I'm caulking. I noticed with the stuff I'm using (white silicon stuff) that the crack is still visible. I'm probably wiping too much off, but I'm afraid that if I don't there will be too much left over. Any thoughts? New lenses are on the way, and I picked up the screws for the ears.

 

Also, are slimming the ears necessary for elite status? I don't think I mind doing it, but was wondering if you're supposed to trim just the ear, or the whole piece that goes down to the neck.

[darthgarth]

I am in the process of 'prettying' up my mrce too, and ill let you know what I have learnt so far.

 

caulking, make sure it is caulk and not silicone, silicone will not take paint in the same way (more on that in a mo). I found that gunning a line of caulk in the frown, once smoothed down, the caulk sunk in. after I had built it up layer by layer to even, I painted some humbrol enamel paint over the top. this looked ok i thought.

 

Then i removed the ears, and found that as you remove the ears, the lid gets manipulated and flexes. this means that the caulk line tends to recrack, especially if you have used it to fill the cracks on the back too.

 

I have reinforced the edges where the two parts of the frown meet, (look where the bottom ear screw is behind the trim on the inside of the lid) I just used a big blob of araldite across the join, ill let you knwo if it works.

 

basically i would say if you are going to do the ear mod, do that before filling anything. I am experimenting with the supplied ears cut down, and a set i bought from john danter on this board. I will say i am not happy with either yet, but that is more down to my modeling skills than anything else. i am finding it a problem with getting them to fit properly after cutting them down, i have tried shaving little bits of the stems but i dont think other people have (maybe someone else can chip in here)

 

having said all this, I have a tame car spray repair shop who are going to spray my lid after i have it ready, therefore I am using milliput as a filler on everything. I know you dont need to do the ears to be accepted, but as for elite, again maybe someone else can chip in. hope this is a help to you

 

garreth

[Daric LaRone[501st]]

If you can thin the ears at all it is HIGHLY recommended... it made a huge difference w/ my MRCE. I had a lot of trepidation about it at first but once you take the plunge it's really not that hard and kind of fun. Go for it!

[Tiepilot1138[TK]]

I'm really not at all happy with the caulk. I'm using silicon, which was recommended in several different places. It seems if I touch anywhere near the crack it gets all balled up and rubbery. As much as I don't want to repaint, I'm thinking I'm going to use some kind of filler instead. I've drilled the holes for the screws, but realized the screws I have are too short to reach all the way through. That will be remedied tomorrow with a trip to home depot. I haven't cut down the ears yet, that will probably be one of the last things I do.

---------

Edited February 9, 2021 by gmrhodes13
link not working, removed gmrhodes13 2021