Alternatives to bare metal foil

[khier]

I am fed up with the wrinkles and non smooth finish of BMF. Are there any alternatives? No chrome pens, no Alclad please.

Edited April 4, 2023 by khier

[Rick L]

The quality of BMF depends on the underlying paint finish. The smoother your paint finish the smoother the BMF will appear. Mig chrome sheets are slightly thicker and look better than BMF (IMO), on straight and subtle curved surfaces only. If you’re looking to get down into ultra fine detail, BMF is the only way to go. There is plenty of debate on this subject and I’m sure you’ll get all of those opinions following this so you’ll have to judge for yourself.

[ctruss53]

BMF takes practice. Wrinkles can happen if you don't burnish the BMF in the right way, especially on complex surfaces. And if you lay it down over a surface that is not smooth, it won't be smooth.

I still do body trim with BMF, but I have started chroming parts with SMS Hyperchrome paint.  HOWEVER, chrome paints are even more sensitive to surface textures. The slightest imperfections are magnified by the sheen of the chrome paint. So those same imperfect surfaces that are affecting your BMF finishes will be even worse with chrome paint.

[tbill]

There is also the fact that some of the older sheets of BMF are thicker and don’t stick as well, most of those were out around/during Covid .

[khier]

On 4/4/2023 at 4:43 PM, Rick L said:

The quality of BMF depends on the underlying paint finish. The smoother your paint finish the smoother the BMF will appear. Mig chrome sheets are slightly thicker and look better than BMF (IMO), on straight and subtle curved surfaces only. If you’re looking to get down into ultra fine detail, BMF is the only way to go. There is plenty of debate on this subject and I’m sure you’ll get all of those opinions following this so you’ll have to judge for yourself.

They are already wrinkled on the backing paper

[khier]

On 4/4/2023 at 8:43 PM, ctruss53 said:

BMF takes practice. Wrinkles can happen if you don't burnish the BMF in the right way

They are already wrinkled on the backing paper

[ctruss53]

20 minutes ago, khier said:

They are already wrinkled on the backing paper

If you apply it with care, you can undo most of that.

[jaymcminn]

Honestly, there's no real substitute for BMF for some things. Hasegawa does make a nice mirror foil. It's Mylar and has a little stretch to it, but it's thicker and doesn't cut as easily as BMF. It doesn't conform to tight details like vent windows as well either. I bought two sheets of BMF directly from the manufacturer a few months ago and it's fantastic, no wrinkles and it adheres perfectly. A sheet I bought from an Amazon seller a year or so ago was from the bad batch with poor adhesive. If that's the stuff you have, I definitely understand your frustration.

BMF is tricky stuff, but it produces the best results for the modeler willing to put the work into learning how to use it. There isn't really a magical chrome product out there yet that works equally well for all applications, but BMF is by far the best for chrome trim around windows, body trim strips, etc. 

 

[Sidney Schwartz]

3 hours ago, khier said:

They are already wrinkled on the backing paper

It shouldn't be. You might try contacting the vendor and telling them you got a defective sheet and ask them to replace it. 

[Bainford]

As Jason alluded to above, BMF is best when fresh. There have been quality issues with BMF at various times over the years, always the fault of suppliers rather than BMF themselves. Problems range from material too thick, adhesive not stick enough, and wrinkling/tearing. As such, old batches of BMF remain out there as old stock is disseminated by venders. BMF have had the problem sorted for a year or two now. The best bet is to order directly from BMF to ensure you are getting fresh product. The general consensus among the modelling community is that (good) BMF is the best foiling product out there. No point in looking for anything else, just be sure your BMF is the latest and greatest.

A tip: Avoid BMF that is labeled Ultra Bright Chrome. It is more difficult to work with, hard to get good results. The best stuff is Chrome, or New Improved Chrome.

Also, BMF may be best when fresh, but I have BMF that is quite old and has become wrinkled over the years. It is the good stuff, from before the quality issues of a couple years ago, and it is still usable despite the wrinkles, so long as I can find an un-wrinkled section large enough to do the part in need chromed.

 

[peteski]

39 minutes ago, Bainford said:

Also, BMF may be best when fresh, but I have BMF that is quite old and has become wrinkled over the years. It is the good stuff, from before the quality issues of a couple years ago, and it is still usable despite the wrinkles, so long as I can find an un-wrinkled section large enough to do the part in need chromed.

That's my experience too.  I have parts of a sheet still left that is over 20 years old, and it still works. The adhesive is still good.  And I do work around the wrinkles (as long as the foil is not cracked).  Since in most applications (like thin window trim) is very small thin area, even if the wrinkle cannot be smoothed out completely,, it will be pretty much invisible.

And yes, in the past there have been some bad batches (most recent during the COVID pandemic), the current production run of the New improved Chrome is really good. 

I also steer clear from Ultra Bright Chrome. That is just thin aluminum foil (not a special soft pliable alloy used for the Chrome BMF) and it is very stiff. Will not conform to complex model surfaces.  The Ultra Bright Chrome was BMF's answer to Detail Master's foil, when they started making that back in the '90s.  Detail Master bragged that their foil was much brighter and shinier than BMF, so BMF produced their version. Both Detail Master and BMF versions of the bright foil are pretty much unusable to me.

To me the ultimate compliment was when BMF started using my models for advertising. 

 

Edited April 6, 2023 by peteski

[khier]

18 hours ago, Bainford said:

 The general consensus among the modelling community is that (good) BMF is the best foiling product out there. No point in looking for anything else, just be sure your BMF is the latest and greatest 

 

What about hasegawa's mirror finish?

[Sidney Schwartz]

1 hour ago, khier said:

What about hasegawa's mirror finish?

I tried the Hasegawa gold mirror finish for the emblems and lettering on a body. It was awful. Way too thick for the details to show through. Waste of money. ☹️ Ended up using a gold fine point marker instead.

[peteski]

1 hour ago, Sidney Schwartz said:

I tried the Hasegawa gold mirror finish for the emblems and lettering on a body. It was awful. Way too thick for the details to show through. Waste of money. ☹️ Ended up using a gold fine point marker instead.

Well, it can have its uses for simple straight or flat items without deep recesses or complex curves.  Things like straight moldings, or rocker panel covers.  It is much "chromier" looking than BMF, so it would not be a good idea to use both on the same  model.  There is a detailed review and comparison of multiple brands of chrome foils available.

 

Edited April 7, 2023 by peteski

[khier]

I tried two brands of self adhesive chrome tapes over the weekend. I don't know what they are originally intended for. I guess HVAC duct tapes. One is made by 3M and the other is a no name brand from the cheap stuff store. Both look good, and probably better that BMF. The down side(s) are they adhere strongly to the surface, this impossible to use with painted bodies. They are too stiff and require high pressure to trim. The no name tape was slightly better but still useless as a modelling material, at least as a replacement for BMF in the scale car world. Maybe good for large scale aircraft models but definitely not for 1/24 window trim. 

Conclusion: I have to stay with BMF.

The photograph bellow compares BMF (right) to chrome tape (left).

[stitchdup]

you can get bmf like products in rolls 2 or 3mm thick.  Look for nail art striping tape and its about a buck for 5 rolls (from china). Its doesn't have much give from side to side so not much use for curved areas but for straight pieces its does the job on body trim. The rolls arent very long being maybe 1 metre in length and are also available with chrome patterns (one has a convincing burnt polished metal look)and colours. Not quite as easy to work with as bmf but its shinier and can be used under acrylic clears as its usually sealed when used on nails. I'm not home just now but can get pics when i get back if anybody is interetsed