Thin plastic sheet

[Ian from Doncaster]

Not sure if this is the right part of the forum but here goes. 

I am not a scratchbuilder at the moment however I will try and make/repair parts from time to time. As such I have a variety of plastic sheet, rod, strip and brass tubes in my kit box.  Today, I found something else that may be useful.

At lunch I had some prosciutto ham from the deli at my local supermarket.  The meat had been very thinly sliced and pre-packed.  In between each slice of meat is a sheet of what looks like plastic paper.  I haven't measured it yet but it looks to be around 25x8 cm and as thin as tin foil.    I don't know if it is white plastic or coated paper but it is white, very smooth, but flexible and doesn't crease unless it is sharply folded.

So thin it could be semi translucent, this could be used to skin scratchbuilt wings/fuselages etc and also would make very thin slivers for gap filling etc.

I don't have a pic but this could be a source of relatively cheap modelling material that may be easily available.  Wash off any greasiness from the meat and let it dry.

Any one else using similar material?

[ermeio]

I was lucky to find some very thin plastic dishes in the '90 and I used that plastic to cover some scratch built WWI fuselages ( a la Des)
Currently I do not have a source of very thin plasticard, and the thinner is 0,25 mm while until some time ago we were able to find 0,15 mm sheets.
The white sheets produced by evergreen are not so good like their clear counterparts and they tend to crease.
I put aside every bit of plastic that can be used to scratch build, like the bottom of the 1kg ice cream boxes

[Des]

Because of my desire to build scratch built models I am always on the look-out for materials, and using clear plastic from packing is a common source of my thin plastic. A lot of products that we buy on a regular basis have a clear plastic window to display the product, this plastic is really good to keep, the thickness varies from paper thin to quite sturdy, I have amassed quite a collection of this plastic.

Des.

[Ian from Doncaster]

Try your local deli Des - you may find what I did - although some may just use greaseproof paper?

I seem to remember you using a complex curve section from a plasticdrink bottle to make the front of a tub for a pusher aircraft model?

[Des]

Yes Ian, I remember it well, it was the front section for my Voisin III, it worked beautiful.

Des.

[Pgtaylorart]

I'm always on the lookout for different materials to work with. It's funny how some of the best supplies are not found in hobby shops.

George

[Des]

Coke can aluminium has an abundance of uses, great for making the little control surface hinges and fuselage frame brackets, easy to work and CA holds it really well.

Des.