what are some tools you use that others might not think of

[lanesteele240]

that brush thing is for getting up pet hair. i saw one at my friends house.

[Greg Cullinan]

Mark Jones will cringe, but I use round toothpicks for hundreds of things...applying paint and glue, all the way to becoming the missles for this James Bond "Little Nellie" build...

Is there an egg in there? Seriously that"s a cool build.

Gary and Charlie thanks for the refresher,

I actually bought some 91% alcohol cause I

Knew it had a use but couldn't remember.

I knew it would come up again so I was

patient so I didn't have to start a topic

[dwc43]

hemostats and such. OH, Hemostats! Anyone else use these little gems? I bought a bag at a garage sale a few years ago with about 100 for $5... I always see 'em at the flea markets too. Great little clamps.

I use them a lot. Especially when painting something. I got mine new at Northern Tool and Equipment.

[dwc43]

Hemostats are good, but I need to find a couple more pairs. I tend to bend them up clamping down on things and then they don't hold well anymore.

Try Northern. That's where I got mine at the local store. These are the only ones I see on there site.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_419625_419625

[Hornistfuller]

i use these little clear plastic sample cups tohold small parts in and use the bottoms as putty paletes. its about 3$ for 200 of em last i checked. they sell em in stop n shop.

[Junkman]

[Sixties Sam]

I use plastic pudding cups to mix paint or epoxy, or put thinner in them to clean small paint brushes. I just toss 'em out when I'm done.

Sam

[1320wayne]

Here's a couple of tips that I can pass along.

My work surface is a larger, white glass cutting board that sets on top of my workbench. The white helps things show up better and the glass part allows me to use an x-acto blade without carving into the workbench.

For those individuals that pour their own resin castings. I use syringes (minus the needle) to apply the resin into smaller detail pieces to help ensure that the resin gets into all of the little nooks and crannies.

I picked this one up from another modeling forum. Use the back sides of white plastic spoons as paint pallets when you are comparing color shades to get just the right tone.

Edited April 24, 2010 by 1320wayne

[J Smith]

Here's a couple of tips that I can pass along.

For those individuals that pour their own resin castings. I use syringes (minus the needle) to apply the resin into smaller detail pieces to help ensure that the resin gets into all of the little nooks and crannies.

Wayne

1 ? about this How do you get the resin out of the syringe,( after it has dried )

or do you buy alot of them for 1 time use?

Thanks

[highway]

I use the plastic lids off Pringles potato chip cans for mixing epoxy glue and mixing small amounts of paint. A lid will usually last a couple of projects then I throw it out. It's a good reason to buy the chips which of course are a nice snack while I'm modelling.

rob

I use something similar for that, but they aren't Pringles lids. I use CDs that the cd burner messed up and didn't write right for "glue discs"!

[1320wayne]

After I have poured the pieces intended I squeeze out any excess resin left in the syringe, just before it starts to cure. That should only leave a thin layer of resin inside the syringe. For that I use a dental pick and toothpicks to remove the rest but I wait until just after the resin starts to set up so that it's not too soft and not too hard to remove what is left. If I time it just right I usually get every bit out in one shot.

[sjordan2]

A variety of hole punches for items like gauges, custom horn button logos and other round and curved thingies; also, a circle cutter. All can be used to cut paint masks as well.

[Tonioseven]

I use foam sanding blocks of various grits for smoothing body lines and such. I get them from Bed Bath & Beyond and beauty supply stores. I also get cool colors of fingernail polishe at those places. I know people wonder what I'm gonna do with the nail polish becaue half of the time my wife is in another part of the store. Lol.

[whale392]

Cash register paper rolls.......they used to come on a plastic center. I use that (as it has a bunch of holes in either end), cut down and glued to a heavy base, to hold my paintbrushes. I have a PLANO multi compartment organizer set on end to hold my Testors Model Master jar paints, toenail clippers for cutting parts off sprues and for giving a nice radius to curved parts, sandpaper discs meant for a DA (as the are round and adhesive backed) stuck to my workbench to achieve a flat sanded surface.........I have lots of stuff for lots of uses. Oh yes, one more vote for toothpicks!!