What do You guys do with your Dremel tool?

Someone gave me a Dremel many years ago because it had proved worthless for plastic modeling. I too found the Dremel worthless and gave it away. It lacked torque and even with varible speed was too fast and melted plastic. Dremel may have improved since then. Overall, the Dremel was probably the most disappointing modeling tool I've ever used.

I have a MiniCraft UK, drill & varibke speed transformer. It has excellent torque and works fantastic at low rpm. I use the MiniCraft on all my military AFV builds.

• Spin road wheel and sand of mold seam
• Spin two piece plastic main gun barrel and sand to avoid flat spots
• Spin one piece plastic main gun to remove mold seams and sand to avoid flat spots.
• Dental bit to remove shallow punch marks.
• Dental bit to remove heavy mold seams 

Proxxon very similar etc. 

Deeve, that’s a great tip.

I have a flexible extension on mine and an adjustable chuck like whats on a drill.

I use it mainly for poslishing canopies. I picked up some cotton swabs with a plastic stick. Instead of the rolled paper like a Qtip. I cut it into 2 pieces and stuck it into the chuck. A little plexiglass polish and low RPM and you can thin and polish a canopy nicely.

nope i'm not him as it appears he did not shorten the length of the Oklahoma like i did as you can see in my link i had already posted.

the Baron, i think i found that modeller you where talking about.

http://www.modelshipgallery.com/gallery/users/John-Bange/user-index.html

I was half expecting you to reply, "I'm Paul Helfrich" I thought that would have been an interesting coincidence.

the Baron, no offense taken. i use the dremel to grind/sand the torpedo bulges to shape, grind all the main & upper deck solid railings off plus the boat outrigger bars amidships & a general grinding/sanding to the hull to remove all details. i have 2 more dremel clones with builtin speed controls waiting to be used when & if the current tool craps out. will still use the external speed control on them.

Here's one of the ones I'm talking about, a conversion to the Oklahoma.  The builder is Paul Helfrich:

http://www.modelshipgallery.com/gallery/bb/bb-37/720-ph/ph-index.html

I may be misremembering about the number of builds, but I'm sure there's also a Nevada, and a West Virginia conversion, too.  

ddp59

the Baron, are you certain it was 1/720 & not 1/429 scale because as far as i know of, i am the only 1 to do that many ships from 1 model? i have seen at least 1 model done by a member but not a number of them by 1 member except for me. been on that site since 2009. 

Yes, it was definitely the 1/720 kit.  I stumbled across the posts while doing searches for my own conversion of a 1/700 Arizona into the Pennsylvania circa 1935.  My apologies, I meant no offense by mentioning that.

the Baron, are you certain it was 1/720 & not 1/429 scale because as far as i know of, i am the only 1 to do that many ships from 1 model? i have seen at least 1 model done by a member but not a number of them by 1 member except for me. been on that site since 2009.

ddp59

Chemteacher, what level of work are you doing to your Arizona? this is what i'm doing to mine.

http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=165105 

That's a great project!  Have you posted it here in FineScale, too?  I bet the group here would love to see it.

There was another project on the Model Warshop forum years ago, where the modeler did a similar kitbash but using the smaller Revell Arizona kit.  I remember that he converted it to the Nevadas and the "Big Five".  It's amazing what can be done with that old kit.

the Baron

 

 

fudbfu

I don't use dremel they break usually after a few years...

 

 

 

Not mine.  I had mine for about 20 years.  It was the basic model, single-speed rotary tool.  Eventually the on/off switch wore out.  I contacted Dremel and asked about getting a new switch and/or servicing it.  They asked me to send it to them, and after they looked at it, they said they couldn't repair that particular version anymore.  So they sent me the latest version of that model, free of charge.

 

I still have my original Dremel that was a Christmas gift.  That was about 75 years ago.  I no longer use it because it does not have a speed control.  It still works, though, after about fifty years of service.

Mine is in an old tool box.  I have not used it in years since the speed control broke.  I realy did not use it much, just to make armour texture more pronounced.  I probably made it look more like concrete!   I got them as gifts a long time ago.

Yes DRemel is a great company that supports thier products well, and When I was building balsa planes it was the tool you Had to have hands down.  BUt for plastic.. For drilling holes i use a pin vise.  for sanding I use good ole sandpaper and energy.  for cutting I use some really nice saw blades I got frome scalemotlesport.com or the tested and true x-acto number 11.  

fudbfu

I don't use dremel they break usually after a few years...

Not mine.  I had mine for about 20 years.  It was the basic model, single-speed rotary tool.  Eventually the on/off switch wore out.  I contacted Dremel and asked about getting a new switch and/or servicing it.  They asked me to send it to them, and after they looked at it, they said they couldn't repair that particular version anymore.  So they sent me the latest version of that model, free of charge.

Don, mine is not a Pearl Harbor diorama but organized by class from the Wyomings on the left to the Colorados on the right.

Doing a Pearl Harbor diorama is apparently more popular than I realized.  I know of two people in the Twin Cities MN who did them, including Chuck Bower whose Battleship was featured in a recent FSM issue.

Wow, nothing that intense. Beautiful work. I don't have the skills or time. I'm just building OOD aside from drilling portholes, updating the ship's boats, and crane, etc...

Chemteacher, what level of work are you doing to your Arizona? this is what i'm doing to mine.

http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=165105

I have several of the old Dremel 2 speed MultiPro model 770 type 1, small handheld cordless tools. Been using them for over 20 years.

I do a lot of customizing, kit-bashing and scratch-building, so I drill with them, cut with cut-off wheels, and grind and sand with all sorts of rotary tools.

I have 3, so when I wear a battery out, I can move on to the next one.

It's one of my main tools, and I have learned to refurbish the power supply, no longer available, with new rechargeable batteries from Amazon.

Thank you, YouTube!!!

I don't use dremel they break usually after a few years you are better off going into harbor freight and pick up a similar tool built by a company called Chicago but only Get the plug in .I have mine 20 years and I paid about 25 bucks .

stikpusher

Basically the only limitation is your own imagination.

I don't have a Dremel brand but same--same. I have many uses for it and I use it often. It makes quick work of things. GMorrison once wrote something along the line of, it's too easy to make quick mistakes using one of these. Bill is SO right about that. Been there, done that. And I also follow Timmys comment about injuring one's self.  I have done that too. Depending on the type of bit you are using a person needs to be very careful with it.

But all that said--I continue to use it and it is a big part of my regiment. From grinding to cutting, it makes quick work. In fact. I just recently cut a piece of brass tubing using a cutoff wheel bit. The other thing I use it for is cutting parts from sprue. I purchased a micro tooth saw bit. The wheel is super thin, and the teeth very sharp. It cuts through plastic like butter, and cleanly. I can get right up to the edge of the piece and most often very little cleanup work is needed. Sometimes, none. But that is a bit that scares me and I have to keep my wits about me because one slip will cut you open faster than a heartbeat. 

Probably more than you wanted to know. Good discussion.

I've found several usage for it. From thinning plastic, cutting stuff off, removing molded areas I want to detail......

1/350 airplane

As a dentist, rotary instruments are a part of my daily life.  In modeling, I find them most useful for bulk material removal on plastic/putty and cutting/polishing metal.  

Having said that, I don't actually use a Dremel.  When we were switching out handpieces at the office, we had a couple older ones that weren't compatible with the new connections.  I brought them home and set up a compressed air line at my bench.  The cost of buying an air turbine handpiece new would probably be beyond what most hobby users are going to pay, but definitely worth looking at if you ever have an opportunity to pick one up in the used market.  The speed control is far superior to any Dremel and the ergonomics of the instrument make it much easier to use.

I pften make brass or aluminum nameplates for models displayed on bases.  I use the Dremel with cloth polishing wheen to polish the plates.

my Dremel hangs on a hook over my desk. it has a flex shaft installed and operates with a sewing machine foot controller. I use it for drilling, filing, buffing, sanding and grinding. With the foot controller I can control the speed from zero to full throtle. I use a honing bit to re-edge xacto blades and points. After my optivisor it is the most useful tool in my arsenal.

For plastic scale modeling I primarily use mine with a grinding bit to thin out kit parts to a more scale thickness. At the lowest setting and with a light touch I've gotten pretty good at it. Especially on kit parts like older aircraft kits it's great for thinning down bucket seats. I can also use it on tanks to replicate the texture look of cast armor. They are great for grinding off old molded on details if you want to replace them with something else. The tool is also great for grinding off large pour stubs on resin items. Basically the only limitation is your own imagination.

My Dremel hangs from a coat hook on the back of the door. Haven't used it in years