Workshop Wisdom: Stripping Miniatures
Giving old lead and plastic a second life in the Bohemian theatre.
Every wargamer eventually faces the same dilemma: a unit of miniatures that no longer meets the standards of the current project. Whether it’s an old eBay find or a regiment painted before your 18th-century research truly began, sometimes the only answer is to start again.
In the United Kingdom, my "secret weapon" for this task is a household staple: Dettol. While most use it for sterilising cuts or kitchen worktops, it is an incredible tool for the hobbyist.
Why Dettol?
The beauty of Dettol is that it is not a solvent. Instead of dissolving the paint into a liquid mess, it works by loosening the bond between the paint and the miniature. This offers several distinct advantages:
- Safe for Plastic: Unlike harsh chemicals or aggressive thinners, Dettol will not melt or warp plastic components. This is vital for the delicate details on our 6mm reinforcements.
- Environmentally Friendly: It is significantly better for the environment than industrial strippers and much safer to handle in a home workshop.
- Reusable: A single bath can be used multiple times, making it an incredibly cost-effective solution for large-scale "re-enlistment" programmes.
I have filmed a full demonstration of this process, which you can view in the video above. It shows the exact consistency to look for and the best way to clean the figures once the paint begins to lift.
By stripping back these older figures, we ensure that every 24-figure Baccus battalion on the table maintains the high standard of accuracy that the Muskets & Magnification archive demands.
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