Lead Rot

I received some free oop orcs in a trade I've done.
They have some lead rot then I was planning to clean them.
What is the better method to clean miniatures with lead rot? Thanks.
 

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Zhu Bajie

Member
Lead rot is a chemical change in the metal - it can't really be cleaned off, only the damaged parts removed. The best way to resuce the model is to then resculpt the missing bits with greenstuff or whatever, then undercoat to 'seal' the model and stop it being exposed to atmospheric catalysts.

Lead oxide (the white 'rust') is really toxic, so it's important to make sure it doesn't get breathed in or eaten. Personally I just chuck stuff that I don't trust, just not worth it.
 

Fimm McCool

Member
You want to check it is Lead Rot though, I've seen so many poor castings decried as 'Lead Rot' when it's not at all. Those orcs don't look rotten to me, not enough white bloom.
 

PantherV

Member
My Dad had some figures with lead rot and he couldn't bare to throw them away but they just ended up being bagged up and kept separate in the basement! It will spread so if your sure that's what it is I'd just sling them. Apparently in the very early citadel days they used to cast the figures out of any old lead they could get there hands on including old car batteries!! I think this is where some of the crap quality and inconsistent castings come from....
 
Fimm McCool":cgsnvh3g said:
PantherV":cgsnvh3g said:
I think this is where some of the crap quality and inconsistent castings come from....

Anyone started suffering horrendous health problems as a result yet? :shock:

There used to be a caster at Chewton St called 'Metal Mickey' because his lead toxicity blood results were so high. :lol: Basically though, you were tested yearly, and if it went over a certain threshold you got fired, it was in everyone's contracts at the time.

There was also the time that Eastwood apparently got closed down after a lead delivery turned out to contain former shielding from X-Ray machines and was therefore radioactive, that I got told by a fairly solid source.
 

Crowmire

Member
I seem to have the same problem, only in smaller scale. I read couple of articles and here's what I learned:

-You can dip the models in vinegar, this should dissolve the rot.
-Brass brush can also be used to clean the stuff off.
-after cleaning, you should wash the models and dip in Isopropyl alcohol to expel any acid and water from them.
-Finally, you should prime the models asap to prevent any contact with air. Some suggest using solvent based gloss varnish to seal the model before painting.

Haven't tested any of these, so can't say for sure that they work. Also, your models seem to be in very bad shape, so alot of the surface detail will be gone after cleaning the rot off.

Edit: also after reading through several articles, it would seem that lead rot being contagious is not true. If the models are being kept in same conditions/enviroment as the afflicted models, the rot will affect other models. However it will not move from one model to other.

Things to do to prevent:
-Prime, paint and seal the models.
-keep humidity low.
-make sure your display cabinets have some degree of air flow and are not in direct sunlight.
-Do not store unpainted models in wooden boxes or drawers.

some articles:
one from G.R.R Martin http://www.georgerrmartin.com/for-fans/ ... ollecting/
Some blogger, with links to others: https://mikemonaco.wordpress.com/2010/0 ... -lead-rot/
toy soldier museums article: http://www.the-toy-soldier.com/index.cf ... &pid=31841
 

Fimm McCool

Member
Crowmire":35hpm2p0 said:
-Finally, you should prime the models asap to prevent any contact with air. Some suggest using solvent based gloss varnish to seal the model before painting.

Edit: also after reading through several articles, it would seem that lead rot being contagious is not true. If the models are being kept in same conditions/enviroment as the afflicted models, the rot will affect other models. However it will not move from one model to other.

My understanding of the mythical disease is that it's a chemical reaction not actually oxidisation, so sealing the model might not help and contact with other models might spread if the offending chemicals are transferred when they touch. Not sure how accurate that is, just what I had heard about this condition which seems to massively divide opinion!
 

Crowmire

Member
Well, I heard about the thing just today, so can't really say for sure what's true and what's not. But to me the Toy Soldier museum's opinion does have some weight. You'd expect them to know something about lead models, wouldn't you? Anyway, I'm gonna put my money where my mouth is, and try the vinegar trick(there's also chance that the vinagar actually makes it worse, as it is acidic). Then I'll seal the models and see what happens. Can't say reliably before considerable time has passed, but this guy had the models with exactly the same problem as me, and they're even from same manufacturer and same line of models and he waited for a year with the undercoat on and it seems no further rotting started to take place. (But then again, these are roughly 20 year old models, so one year is pretty much nothing)
http://www.lead-adventure.de/index.php?topic=89376.0

So keep your thumbs up, gonna give it a try.

and yeah, I'm not even 100% sure it is lead rot...
 

Crowmire

Member
Ok, The vinegar trick, I had my suspicions and yeah, it didn't work.

The Leadrot's one required component is acetic acid, and soaking the model into one as a cure seems bad idea, and it was. Everything seemed fine)the vinegar actually did remove the existing leadrot for most parts and softened the ones that it didnt), but after I had soaked the models in alcohol couple of days to remove the vinegar, the models started get frosty/salty. I sealed them in plastic bag and threw them away, along with every tool I used to clean them.

So do not try.

So either manual removal or the electrolytic reduction if you want to get high tech.
 

PantherV

Member
On this subject I recently bought this figure on ebay, is this lead rot or some other malady? I have given this the dettoll dunk and has been scrubbed clean with warm soap and water. The figure just seems to be breaking apart. I've not come across this before..... I could fill in the cracks with green stuff and make it serviceable but am reluctant if it will contaminate my other stuff. Any insight would be most appreciated! Cheers,

Tom
 

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