What do you make with your Waldron punch and die set?

Here you go - //forums/655476/ShowPost.aspx . I had to go the Waldron route because even something this simple exceeds my meager abilities and available tool resources.

mikepowers wrote:

Wish I could share some info here but I haven't been able to find one that is cheap enough for me to buy. They are quite expensive. Mike

I couldn't agree more.  I have been wanting one, but cannot justify the expense.  But, a while back, didn't someone post a method for making your own punch and die set?  Anyone remember seeing that or know where it is?

No slamin for going that rout. We have to be crafty with what we have and can afford.

 I use my sets (yes, I have both Waldron sets) to make all sorts of stuff. Wheel covers, sensor fairings, raised rivet detail - with some extra work, cockpit switches, dials, knobs and all trim/control wheels. On engines stacks of them make spark plugs, magnetos and other hardware.  On tanks and armour there are countless pieces that can be made. They are indespensable for instuments. A must have any type of scratchbuilding. Whatever the type or brand you have.

I know I'm gonna get flamed here but I have been using quality hole punches for years to make all sorts of shapes and such.  Much less cheaper than the Waldron set, but you don't get as much choice for sizes.  They work well if you punch the hole very quickly.  I get them at craft shops and they come in all sorts of shapes, circles, squares, rectangles and triangles etc.

Agreed, mikepowers, either set is hideously expensive, but ... when you discover how easy (or even doable, for that matter) they can make some jobs, especially at the small scales I work in, it can become almost a Zen-like experience. More uses:

• As the pattern for small-diameter wire rings (hawse pipe linings, for cargo boom rigging, etc.);
• As templates if you want a very small circle of one color of paint, using the punch to keep the other color of paint separate (clean the punch up right away, of course!);
• Bolt heads for cars, trucks or armor, and to a lesser extent, older aircraft;
• Creating "spacers" to hold things apart, like a 5-inch gun platform off of the deck, so it looks more three dimensional.

Wish I could share some info here but I haven't been able to find one that is cheap enough for me to buy.

They are quite expensive.

Mike