Recently, I've been a bit concerned with substances and products that can be harmful to your body. so I want to ask what dangers do harmful product pose to health and most importantly, how to take measures to reduce exposure to these harmful products.

when I’m working on models; I do a lot of sanding, sometimes I might use plenty of poly cement(plastic glue) that can stench my work space, I handle super glue, I do resin casting and sometimes I use enamel thinners and paints.

Therefore, I want to know the dangers that the things listed below cause and how to take safety measures to reduce harm when working with them.The following concerns are :

working with Poly cement

working with Super glue

working with Resin casting

working with Enamel thinners and paints

and working with Sanding


I will be thankful for your comments. thank you.

Hand painting enamels will be okay I'd the ventilation is adequate,however airbrushing enamels or lacquers,you would want a open area and a good respirator,if your really doing a lot of spraying,you may want to invest in a booth.But just small kits,keeping the pressure low,and the respirator should suffice.

I can't comment on the other stuff.

I model in an area with a lot of ventilation, with a restriction to acrylics due to asthma. I also have a small spray booth that I will sand in as well as paint in, just to pull dust particles away. I use an odorless CA glue which has helped me a lot as well. I invite the kids to sit with me as often as possible so it has to be clean and fume free, or as close as possible.

My biggest hazards are from hobby knives (cut away from yourself, set on a table, don't try to catch a falling knife) and modeling when I really should be helping around the house.

thank you for your advice Anthony and Russ.

I know one thing, if it is I will die a happy man!

Any dust in excess is a health hazard. Especially resin dusts are dangerous. Excessive polystyrene dusts in can be also. So wet sanding is always recommended to be safe in addition to good ventilation.

Of course our hobby is not the best for eye sights. Haha

Life is not risk free. I don't take any precautions, cut my fingers to shreds with Xacto blades, smoke, drink and generally don't give a rats. At 67yrs my only brush with the medical profession is having my Gall Bladder removed 30yrs ago. As kids we went out to play without protective head gear, elbow pads etc. Makes you wonder how we survived! I would say though tipping a bottle of liquid glue in your groin (don't ask) is not recommended!

Hear Hear - I am about 7 years behind you. Been modeling since I was 4. Ahh the open tubes of those red labeled Testors glue. Painting, airbrushing in the basement. Paint thinner, lacquer thinner everywhere. That being said, in recent years I have adapted better safeguards if for anything the family plus I don't think I now want to push my luck. If you take time to look at all the different chemicals, materials a modeler uses today (some not even designed for the hobby) I wonder they just tag this hobby with a big HAZMAT label (I think I saw a post where the great state of the Peoples Republic of California is now requiring cancer warning labels on model kits).


Cheers

open bottle of tamiya thin liquid cement send me into a whirl wind of chasing migraine meds. I have stopped thinning paints acetone, and now thin them rubbing alcohol instead.

I have stopped using enamels sometime ago. Not because I believe they are bad for you, I just sucked really bad at using them.

talking about good ventilation, i don't bother opening a window when i'm working inside. the reason why is because it gets cold when i open a window, especially at night. the only kind of model work i do outside with good ventilation is spray painting.

I've been modeling off and on since 1959, and have used just about every modeling tool, cement, or paint product at one time or another. For a while, I built models for commission, so I was doing it all the time. I think ventilation is key, you should never paint, sand, or glue in a tightly enclosed space. But frankly, the quantities and hazards of the toxic chemicals we use as modelers infrequently are not a lot different from those found in kitchens, laundries and bathrooms for cleaning. In fact, the side effects for garden sprays, insecticides and fertilizers can be way worse. There are very few things in this life that are not harmful if used incorrectly, and modeling is one of the safer pursuits. That is unless your significant other finds the kit you just added to your ever growing stash!
VR, Russ

More harmful to your wallet than to your health.

VS

Back in the late 1980s Fine Scale Modeler had an article by, IIRC, a chemist or medical professional. The author revealed the ingredients in model glues, solvents and enamel & lacquer paints. He wrote about what health risks certain ingredients were known or suspected of creating, whether acute or chronic, severe or mild.

I had a similar scary list from art school but some of the FSM revelations were very worrisome to me. It caused me to migrate to acrylics and away from certain paints and glues, plus by OSHA respirators and a spray booth.

Only harmful to my health when my SWMBO sees how much I have spent on bits and pieces for the stash !!!!!!!!!!

As said before ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,I hope I die a happy man having got some of the stash eaten into !!!!!!!!!!

Nige

It has caused me to lose feeling, in my fingertips.

Matt, I have heard that from other long-time modelers who used enamels and liquid cements.

FWIW, and I do not have the afore cited FSM article in front of me, I recall the author stated that an ingredient in liquid cements was an ingredient that was used in making mustard gas.

I think it has been replaced but MEK (Methyl ethyl keytone, or butanone) was widely used in glues and paints. MEK is serious stuff. I learned in art school that many ingredients and products, like lacquer thinner and MEK to name two, can even absorb through the skin - let alone inhaling. Nowadays, I will not even touch it without being outside, wearing an OSHA respirator, and chemical gloves.

Modeling is fun and - and I am not qualified to state this beyond what others with a qualified background have told me - I believe that, with care and in moderation, that even solvent-based paints and glues can be used without turning one into a zombie.

Here are a couple similar forums. Enjoy and model on!

Learn all About Glue

Testors Model Glue Question

Also forgot to mention that our hobby may make us fat since it's not exactly an active calorie-burning activity.

I suffer from burning ca glue off of tools and using lacquer thinner for all stages of building. It was my fault, as I never wore the OSHA masks hanging next to my work bench.

Matt,
Sorry to hear of the loss of feeling in your fingertips, however, I respectfully submit that there could be many causes unrelated to modeling for this problem, and urge you to seek medical attention if you have not done so already. Certainly, large doses and exposures to the compounds found in model glues, or as you have indicated-- lacquer thinner, can cause temporary sensory problems, but if it's a permanent condition, you should speak to a physician as there are other environmental and physiological conditions which can cause these problems.
VR, Russ

After a month away from my bench, I am regaining feeling. I will be taking precautions, upon returning to my bench; such as wearing protective apparel and shortening my build sessions.

Matt,
At the risk of sounding like your Mom, I'd still tell you to see doctor. I'll relate a story to you about a modeling acquaintance I have-- he's in his 50s, has been model building since he was 10, and used all type of paints lacquers and glues. a few years ago, he took up figure painting for commission. two years ago, he started losing the feeling in his fingertips, and like you, he took a break-- things got better, so he went back to work. A few weeks later, the same symptoms re-occurred, but he ignored them. One day, he woke up and couldn't feel his toes, had numbness in the lower extremities, and was very unstable when walking-- he said the worst problem though was controlling his bowels and bladder. After being rushed to the hospital, undergoing numerous tests, the Doc's ruled out exposure to modeling chemicals, however, he was sent to a neurological specialist who found that bulging disks from leaning his head forwards while painting had pinched his spinal column, likely caused by his work desk arrangement. He underwent an operation to remove several disks, and had a portion of his vertebra fused with rods. He's now back to modeling for commission now, but he works from an elevated stool, and his work surface is about 10" above the level of his belly button. Bottom line, your lack of feeling might be related to your neck too, not just chemicals. As a side note, if you are a veteran and spent any time wearing a steel pot (or Kevlar) you already have a head start on the neck issues. after hearing my friend's story, I've elevated my work bench and now use a stool. But I also use rubber gloves, and occasionally use a respirator when painting since I too use lacquer thinner for thinning and cleaning.
VR, Russ

Russ, you mentioned that the workbench should be elevated to reduce back problems.

now, when i paint or do some other model work, i need to hunch forwards to see properly what i'm doing, but that's not very comfortable and neither is it good. some time ago i notices that an elevated workbench is better for your back.

so my point is, what can i use to elevate my work bench. in particular, i wan't something like a little table that goes on top of my table( just enough to elevate my work space). Though a stool doesn't feel so comfy.

Hyder,
My workbench is an old tool bench made of metal, but it had holes in the legs for adding wood risers, which is what I did. To make up for the extra height in seating, I purchased a cheap adjustable ergonomic bar stool which has a circular metal base with a foot rest at Target (a local variety store-- don't know if they are in the UK). It puts my work surface just below chest level. It's pretty comfortable once I have it all adjusted. I also added a 1" marine-grade wood top, and another 1/4" glass surface on that, which adds to the height. I wore a helmet in the military for 30 years, and the Doc's have told me I already have some vertebra and disk damage from that. After seeing what happened to my friend, raising my work surface has helped a lot with neck issues that I have already. I suppose raising the level of work with another "level" above the desk would work, but if you only use the desk for modeling, you could just as easily find some material to put under the legs to raise it to the desired height, it doesn't take much. I have seen some trays with fold-able legs which could be placed on top of a desk though, which might also work. You also need to find the proper seating to ensure you can keep your body at the right level.
VR, Russ