Questions, Answers & Tips - 2
Micro Kristal Klear
Q.
The article about building an Athearn GP40-2, from the
September 2012 magazine, mentioned using Micro Kristal
Klear to create cab windows. My question, is does anyone
know how to use Krystal Klear for cab windows when kitbash-
ing an model locomotive?
– SD40dash2fan
A.
Microscale Micro Kristal Klear (2a & 2b) is good for making
windows in small openings, can fill gaps, and is very good for glu-
ing clear parts in place. It dries clear and can be tinted with food
coloring to make colored lenses. For a larger opening like a diesel
locomotive windshield, you will have to experiment and see if it
meets your standards.
Kristal Klear is very good at gluing dissimilar materials together,
like fixing brass details to a styrene plastic body.
It works fairly well making windows up to
about 1/4” in size, but the “glass” will be
slightly thicker at the edges than in the
center. It's handy for putting flush glazing
into multi-paned structure windows, and
for filling in the sight glasses on the long
hood of EMD Dash Two locomotives.
To make small windows, dip a flat tooth-
pick in the cloudy liquid and draw it all
around the edges of the opening. Then,
hold the flat of the toothpick parallel to
2a: Kristal Klear is sold by
Microscale, the decal people, and
has several modeling uses.
2a
2b: The three
stages of Kristal
Klear. These win-
dow panes are
1/4” square.
Top left is the
first attempt.
Top right has too
much material
applied, and both
attempts show
trapped air bub-
bles. The third try,
at bottom right,
has cured for
about 2½ hours,
and will eventu-
ally be clear.
the edge of the frame and draw it across from one side to the
other. It gives you a fair amount of working time. Kristal Klear
can be washed off while it remains cloudy. When it sets up, it
will be clear, and will not yellow over time.
Making the windows takes a bit of practice, so don't expect the
first try to be perfect. Some openings are just a bit too large for
the liquid film to stretch. The more material you get in there, the
longer it will take to set up and turn clear. A tool wider than the
standard toothpick can help.
At $4 for a small bottle, it's not a big risk to try out.
An alternative technique for bigger openings is to save flat
pieces of the thin clear plastic that is everywhere in packaging,
2b
MRH-Oct 2013
