How to attatch rigging???

QUOTE: Originally posted by noisey I have tried just about everything from fine wire to thread, depending on the type of rigging. One thing that did seem to work well was fine black thread which I stiffened by "wiping down" with Elmer's Glue. This made it stiff enough to work with, and, unlike wire, it could be gently pulled taught enough to remove sag. Most wire comes in spools and is difficult to straighten, but it does work well for short runs. I attach either with Elmer's Glue, which I apply with a small artists brush. After I get it positioned, I let it dry before adding a little more glue to make sure it stays in place.

If you have a CA accelerator, you can pull the other end, glue then the CA accelerator hardens the CA and everything is in place. Careful though, don't pull it too hard or you'll bend the mast.

I have tried just about everything from fine wire to thread, depending on the type of rigging. One thing that did seem to work well was fine black thread which I stiffened by "wiping down" with Elmer's Glue. This made it stiff enough to work with, and, unlike wire, it could be gently pulled taught enough to remove sag. Most wire comes in spools and is difficult to straighten, but it does work well for short runs. I attach either with Elmer's Glue, which I apply with a small artists brush. After I get it positioned, I let it dry before adding a little more glue to make sure it stays in place.

Another useful tool is a pair of tweezers with wide, flat tips, like spatulas. Stamp collectors use them; they can be found in well-stocked hobby shops or stamp dealers. The tips are rounded a little on the edges, so they're good for picking up and manipulating pieces of stretched sprue without breaking them. They're also great for handling decals.

Another method which no one else seems to touch upon is surgical silk. I use it exclusively now on all my models. It's monofilament (no fraying), and you can get sizes down to human hair consistency.

It takes glue very well, and once attached (CA touched to both attachment point) I use a colored ink from my local wargaming shop to color it. The ink is water-based, so its only absorbed by the silk.

You can get this stuff from most decent medical supply houses... Be forwarned that most surgical silk is now sold pre-threaded on the needles, which they won't let you purchase unless you're in the medical profession. Some places still sell the suture silk on rolls, like thread.

Regards,

Jeff Herne

I'm certainly glad I picked up on this thread (no pun intended) yesterday. I've a 1/350th Tirpitz (Tamiya) I've been avoiding doing the rigging for quite a spell. While I did get around to rigging a Spruance class DDG a few years back I really wasn't completely satisified with the end results. So, after reading jtillley's recommendations yesterday I decided to forge ahead and give it a go. I used Elmers white glue to attach 15 lb. test monofilament fishing line, which I painted black with a Sharpie marking pen, to a test point on the main mast. My fears that Elmers would not provide enough adhesive strength were laid to rest when, after allowing it to dry for a couple of hours, I put some tension on it and attached the opposite end to a hole in the deck with CA. WALLA! It worked and the end attached with Elmers did not snap! Thanks again for the information; now I only have about 50-75 more pieces of rigging to attach!
p.s. I have found that a single strand of copper 12<->16 gauge electrical wire, 1-2 inches long, chucked into a X-Acto knife handle makes an excellent tool with which to dab small amounts of glue into areas too small for normal application methods.
Thanks again,
Dick McC

Yes, they make tweezers that are at an angle which are a must. Also check a sporting goods store or angler shop that sells tools for fly tying. These tools such as the jig can come in handy if you start doing a large job. The jig works as a third hand and I use it when attaching flags or when I need to run mutiple lines that will stem off of one line.
Scott

again, never would have thought of the scissors, and I can think of a million moments they would have helped (do they make tweesers like that too?).

A few tools to you need to give you less hassle. Go to you local discount store or beauty supply store and get the following manicure tools:

Long tweezers with a short mouth and bend at 45 degrees (get 2 pair)
Short wide mouth tweezers
Small scissors that bend at 45 degrees for trimming off excess sprue - with these you can get into really tight places and trim.

These tools are inexpensive and will help you a lot.

Wow, I'm glad I asked, because that sounds absolutely ingenious, and I really didn't want to have to deal with tying anything off to those really small spars. Thanks!

I agree. One alternative that some people (including me) prefer at least some of the time is to use white glue (e.g., Elmer's) instead of CA. The advantages of white glue are that it takes longer to dry (giving you more time to align the sprue properly), it shrinks a bit as it dries, and it's easily reversible. (If the line breaks and needs to be replaced, you can touch the attachment point with a water-dampened brush, and both the line and the glue will come loose so you can start over.)

My experience is that there's a big re-learning curve in rigging small-scale warships. I find that every time I do it I have a horrible time with the first couple of lines; I break several of them, cut them too short, etc. Then after I've been at it for an hour or so I can't believe I ever thought it wasn't easy.

Good luck. Once you get a little practice it's fun.

For 1/700 scale, most modelers use the stretched sprue method. Take a piece of sprue, preferably black, hold it over a candle between both hands until it begins to melt and then pull so that you have a nice, scale like, thread. Trim to your desired length and attach this plastic thread to your mast or where ever you want with CA glue. I apply the CA with the end of a needle to both the thread end and the mast and then align it with tweezers. Touch up with paint and your done.
Scott