Hopefully someone who has attempted this will respond. I would be concerned about using a paint stripping product that also attacked the plastic itself.
I have never repainted a mini. I've got too many unpainted minis to put a first paint job on still...
Here's a thread discussing exactly what you are asking. Hope it helps.
The old paint should not interfere with the primer's ability to stick. But you might want to strip anyway, depending on how thick the original paint is. You don't want your new layers obscuring too much detail.
If you strip, just stay away from caustic liquids such as paint thinner and Jasco paint stripper and the like. Some of those will just soften the plastic, but some will actually melt it.
I use Simple Green. I just put the mini in a cup or small bucket, pour in the concentrated stuff, and add a little bit of water to make sure it is totally covered. Simple Green should loosen the paint overnight, and then you can rub the rest off with an old toothbrush.
It will not hurt the plastic and it also should not hurt your skin.
If its the factor paint on a plastic mini its pretty much baked on there to the point of BEING themini. You should be fine leaving it.
I will second the Simple Green suggestion. While I've never yet tried it on minis that you intend, I do use Simple Green on my Warhammer minis (pewtwer and plastic) and it works very well. I also recommend getting a tooth brush with which to scrub off the paint from tight folds and nooks.
Be warned, that since D&D minis are made from a different plastic than Warhammer minis you should first experiment on a single miniature that you like least.
The idea of a ultrasonic bath is new to me, and might be the best avenue.
I managed to remove some paint off a plastic mini but never in the deep creases/relief without damaging the said reliefs. Since getting the paint off these detailed area was the only point I saw in the whole affair, I abandoned the idea.
I have re-coated and repainted many pre-painted minis before without substantial loss in detailing, but some detailing is lost by re-painting a plastic mini that have been painted with typical hobby acrylic paint.
'findel
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I repaint my DDM figures all the time without stripping the paint. They come out fine. Like BigNorseWolf pointed out, the paint and the plastic are basically one and the same with those things.
I have three or four of the WoW minis too. I haven't repainted them yet, but the paints seem to be of similar quality so I wouldn't worry about those either.
I repaint my DDM figures all the time without stripping the paint. They come out fine. Like BigNorseWolf pointed out, the paint and the plastic are basically one and the same with those things.
I have three or four of the WoW minis too. I haven't repainted them yet, but the paints seem to be of similar quality so I wouldn't worry about those either.
I too repaint my D&D minis with stripping the paint. I really don't think there is a need to do this with them. I only use high quality paint which does not accumulate as densly as hobby shop craft paints.
I have repainted lots of D&D minis and a few Wow ones. With the D&D minis, I usually soak the in Simple Green, just to bring out some of the sculpting details that are usually obscured by the thich paint and protective overcoat used by the painters in China.
I've found that I don't have to do that for the WoW figures. The existing paint makes a fine primer and the paint is thin enough that it doesn't clog up the nice detail of the figures. If your careful, you can also change the colors on just part of a WoW mini. I'm not a fan of the outragious hair colors that WoW figures have. I've turned several pink, puple and blue haired figures into blondes and brunettes.
Remember to use a protective coating on your paint job once it's finished. The oils from your fingers will rub the paint off a plastic miniture much faster than it does on a metal one.