Easy to respray a 1:43 Minichamps model?

[southpaw]

I own a silver facelift Focus ST and would really like a model of it, but unfortunately models were only ever made in orange, red and black.

Would it be easy to dismantle and respray a 1:43 Minichamps model, or does anyone know of a company/person that would do it for a reasonable cost? I've already approached Red Firecracker but he can't take on anymore work at the moment.

If I did it myself, would I need to strip the old paint off or can you just spray over it, and would normal Ford spray paint do or would I need a special type if I did it myself?

Thanks!

[thebigmacmoomin]

They didnt do a black Mk2.5, just orange, red & white with a blue stripe. Its orange & black on the Mk3 Focus ST.

Personally I havent tried one but I have done a few 1/43s. I have a Minichamps Focus ST to go aswell, changing it from orange to Sea Grey probally.

Take it apart & use paint stipper to get all the orignal paint off. Remember to remove EVERYTHING plastic as it will melt. Prime, paint & laquer. Ford's own spray paint is perfectly ok, just expensive. I use Halfords paint usually. They dont fo Performance or Imperial Blue sadly for me but their Moondust silver is fine.

[steveo3002]

would be best to strip the paint and start from fresh , but if you feel its too much then sand the orig paint carefully with 1200 wet n dry

hardest part is any detail work , does it have black strips down the sides or anything , theyre tricky to do really well

[Red Firecracker]

One thing to watch out for/a little tip. When you look inside the model at where the headlights etc 'should' be, you may see a little blob of plastic. This is the glued or melted over sprue from the back of the plastic moulding. Slice this off and tap out the headlight or whatever with a small hammer and drift. I normally use either a cocktail stick or small philips screwdriver.

What you need to do though before tapping is to put a piece of masking tape over the front of the bit you are removing so that it does not fly off into the ether. For double security, aim that part of the model into a pot or similar container.