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What's the weirdest tool you use for modeling?

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  • Member since
    November 2005
What's the weirdest tool you use for modeling?
Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 9:37 PM
If you don't count my one long fingernail, mine would have to be a ring cutter that my brother gave me from the medical company he works for. It's supposed to be used for cutting jewelry from swollen fingers but it works great for styrene and balsa strips too.

-fish
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Sandusky Ohio, USA
Posted by Swanny on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 10:03 PM
An electric toothbrush. One of those $5.00 Crest electric tooth brushes with some 600 sanding paper superglued to the brush. A wonderful and inexpensive power sander.
  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Third rock from the sun.
Posted by Woody on Tuesday, November 18, 2003 10:19 PM
Swanny that is brilliant! Cool [8D] I like to use drafting pens as liquid cement applicators. Wink [;)]

" I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast; for I intend to go in harm's way." --John Paul Jones
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Tochigi, Japan
Posted by J-Hulk on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 7:11 AM
Swanny, that is a great idea! Gonna have to try that one...

It's not really wierd, but I use disposable wooden chopsticks (don't tell GreenPeace!)all the time, for all kindsa jobs. Stirring paint, mounting pices for painting, aligning link trax, bases for sanding blocks...and others I can't think of right now. A versatile piece of wood it is!
~Brian
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Sandusky Ohio, USA
Posted by Swanny on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 7:51 AM
And just to make it better, you can buy additional replacement heads for the brush and apply different grades of sandpaper to them so it becomes a multi-tool. Very useful for sanding wing roots and intakes.
  • Member since
    January 2003
  • From: Foothills of Colorado
Posted by Hoser on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 1:41 PM
Swanny, you beat me to it (kinda). I use a Lady Remington Smooth & Shapely Manicure System in the same way. It oscillates in-line with the body, runs on 1 AA battery and has 5 attachments. I use rubber cement to attach the sandpaper.
And my nails look GREAT! Kisses [:X] Big Smile [:D]


"Trust no one; even those people you know and trust." - Jack S. Margolis
  • Member since
    May 2003
  • From: Central USA
Posted by qmiester on Wednesday, November 19, 2003 8:31 PM
If you think about it, to someone who doesn't model a lot of us (myself included) use a really weird tool when we airbrush - panty hose - great for straining paint - Besides which, I tend to agree with Murphys 9th Rule of Combat:

If it's stupid but works, then it ain't stupid
Quincy
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, November 20, 2003 5:08 AM
the bristle head of an old toothbrush is useful for cleaning parts before painting or getting rid of dirt in displays, much like a miniature shoe buffer! just break of the handle after a little deration at the base, and it can still be used as a putty or glue applicator! transparent colored toothbrushes also make good signal lights, depending on the specs and size you can carve easily.
used toothpicks (eeooohhh) for paint mixing are the most unusual, but cheapest!
  • Member since
    November 2003
  • From: Manila, Philippines
Posted by shrikes on Thursday, November 20, 2003 9:06 AM
I CAN'T BELIEVE FSM DIDN'T FEATURE THE TOOTHBRUSH/POWER SANDER THING EARLIER! That's a stroke of genius! Man, i gotta find one of those things for myself. The weirdest thing on my desk are straws. keeps my brushes from being flattened, and it's a good way to transfer paint to a palette, or even thinner.

oh, and which grade of sandpaper best gets rid of plaque? and maybe we'll see a whole new line of dental products from this like: Stretched Sprue Floss (comes in desert yellow and neutral gray) Tongue [:P]
Blackadder: This plan's as cunning as a fox that used to be Professor of cunning at Oxford University but has now moved on and is working with the U.N at the high commission of cunning planning
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, November 20, 2003 12:32 PM
While we are on tooth care, I use a Water PIK to wash models before I paint them. It quickly removes sanding grit, loose putty, etc from panel lines, door seams, and other hard to reach places.

I work in a research laboratory (see alias) and there a lot of specialized tools that I have adapted from the lab to the modeling bench. I used Parafilm long before it became available outside the lab. Weighing spoons, tiny spatulas, and other lab tools make great applicators for putty, epoxy, and various glues. My rule of thumb is that almost any strange lab implement has some sort of modeling use.

We have a vacuum coater for our electron microscope that deposits a gold coating on samples. Sometimes I will stick a small detail part in with the samples and have a perfect gold coating.

I don't know if these qualify as weird tools, but one thing I love about the hobby is scrounging around, finding outside-the-box uses for new tools, and even building my own tools when necessary. If only the quality of my models reflected this effort....
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, November 20, 2003 2:48 PM
ChemMan, I'm with you!! There's all sorts of stuff to use in modelling that can be found at the sewing shop, the medical supply house and the auto body supplier, just to name a few.
You know the mini-drill that comes with the Star Trek optical fibre kits? I've converted mine into a motorized paint stirrer. I just wish i could figure out how to make a chuck for it so I can use different size drill bits. Any suggestions out there?

Rich


  • Member since
    April 2003
  • From: Hayward, CA
Posted by MikeV on Thursday, November 20, 2003 2:56 PM
Those are some great suggestions guys, especially the one Swanny posted that seemed to go over well. Cool [8D]

I guess modellers are the real mechanical engineers in this world. Big Smile [:D]Wink [;)]


Mike

Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom. " Charles Spurgeon
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, November 21, 2003 7:19 AM
Went to a friend's house one day and say a beaut of an F-14 on his bench. Looking closely I saw two stings hanging out the rear. When I asked him what it was he promptly grabed the stings and popped out two tampak and say "just the masks, I was painting today" Ribs hurt for a week from the laughter.
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Panama City, Florida, Hurricane Alley
Posted by berny13 on Friday, November 21, 2003 9:43 AM
Moist toweletts for wiping down a model to remove sanding dust. I also use them to clean out paint bottles after use. I also have a camera lens cleaner with brush that works great for blowing off dust and cleaning hard to reach places. A mini dust buster for cleaning up around my model desk and finding small parts dropped on the carpet. With the fine mesh paper filter, I have recovered many parts off of the carpet that I thought was lost forever.

Berny

 Phormer Phantom Phixer

On the bench

TF-102A Delta Dagger, 32nd FIS, 54-1370, 1/48 scale. Monogram Pro Modeler with C&H conversion.  

Revell F-4E Phantom II 33rd TFW, 58th TFS, 69-260, 1/32 scale. 

Tamiya F-4D Phantom II, 13th TFS, 66-8711, 1/32 scale.  F-4 Phantom Group Build. 

 

  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, November 21, 2003 4:47 PM
A coffee cup warmer to keep the white glue/water decal solution warm and to warm paints before spaying.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, November 26, 2003 4:40 AM
While over at the Scale Auto Forum quite a few people have used Food Dehydraters for helping dry paints quicker....I bought Diane a new larger one 2 years ago....and have had her old one sitting in the garage collecting dust waiting for that yard sale I swear Im going to have one day....anywho...I havent tried this yet but I plan on blowing the dust off of the old one and plugging it in tomorrow!
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, November 27, 2003 2:08 AM
QUOTE: Originally posted by berny13

... A mini dust buster for cleaning up around my model desk and finding small parts dropped on the carpet. With the fine mesh paper filter, I have recovered many parts off of the carpet that I thought was lost forever.


I've used nylon stockings as a filter with my dust buster. I got the idea when the wife bought a box of foot stockings instead of knee highs and asked me if I could use them for anything in my modeling. She's great about finding stuff for me to use. I thought about it then got the idea to just insert in over the opening, place the excess inside and use for removing excess "grass" & "dirt" form dioramas. The stocking provides a handy pouch to keep the material clean and together to re-use.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, December 11, 2003 8:59 PM
i use ear-diggers to hold CA. now that is freakay
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, December 11, 2003 9:11 PM
Nothing much weird stuff in my tool-box, msot of it came from the local LHS.

Including this gadget that sends the family fleeing for the bathroom whenever I pull it out.



Great for adding damge, heating "water" in diorama to add waves, etc and similar things.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, December 12, 2003 12:25 AM
deci damps ear plugs are great for "masking" hollow odd shape areas. These are earplugs that machine operators use that you roll/sweeze into a point and they expand until they hit a solid joint and gives a really close mask ( I have never had to do any touchups around these masks. Square, rectangular, circular, oval, any shape they will cover.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, December 12, 2003 1:24 AM
I have a large bundle of Prismacolor water-soluble colored pencils in my toolbox. They are great for subtle dry-brush effects, weathering, rust streaks, paint chips, bare metal highlights, adding color variations to camouflage schemes, etc. What is even better about them, if you don't like the effect, you can blend them with water and a artist's blending stick, or wash it off completely.
  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: USA
Posted by mark956 on Friday, December 12, 2003 9:53 AM
Swanny, I really like the tooth brush tool. Thanks for sharing it with us.
mark956
  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Canada / Czech Republic
Posted by upnorth on Friday, December 12, 2003 4:57 PM
I've used mouse traps to clamp relatively flat assemblies, like top and bottom halves of a wing, together. They're great when you have warps to overcome in those parts as they have enough pressure to keep everything together but that metal wire distributes pressure evenly to keep things from cracking or pinching to tight in the wrong spot.

with thicker wings, you can bend the wire to conform to the wing curvature and still keep the pressure up enough to keep it all together.

Mouse traps: the best thing a dollar store ever stocked! :-)
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Friday, December 12, 2003 5:03 PM
It's not weird, but I do make use of something we all have tons of when we finish our kits; Left over sprue.
I cut as many straight lengths as I can from the tree. I then use a lighted candle to warm the centre of each length making sure not to over cook it. When the sprue is warm and gooey, I pull on both ends of the sprue leaving the centre a whole lot thinner than the ends. Then I cut in the centre to separate. The finished item is then cut to varying lengths and thicknesses.
Why do I do this? Simple! They make excellent Q-tips for applying CA. When the end of the Sprue-Tip ©™ (Patent Pending) becomes cruddy from the CA, just nip off the end with a sharp scalpel blade and away you go.
Take a look at the pictures to try to make sense of what I’m rambling on about.
Bob





  • Member since
    February 2003
  • From: Indiana, USA
Posted by cassibill on Friday, December 12, 2003 5:43 PM
QUOTE: Originally posted by upnorth

I've used mouse traps to clamp relatively flat assemblies, like top and bottom halves of a wing, together. They're great when you have warps to overcome in those parts as they have enough pressure to keep everything together but that metal wire distributes pressure evenly to keep things from cracking or pinching to tight in the wrong spot.

with thicker wings, you can bend the wire to conform to the wing curvature and still keep the pressure up enough to keep it all together.

Mouse traps: the best thing a dollar store ever stocked! :-)

They say cats are the best mousetraps maybe Brother will set on them for me. He's pretty hefty He could really unwarp something or make it in the other direction.

cdw My life flashes before my eyes and it mostly my life flashing before my eyes!!!Big Smile The 1/144 scale census and message board: http://144scalelist.freewebpage.org/index.html

  • Member since
    November 2003
  • From: polystyreneville
Posted by racingmaniac on Friday, December 12, 2003 10:08 PM
My wife has these two, uh, uh, uh, "things". I don't know what they're called but they are for your fingernails. They look like sculpting tools. I should say she "had" these two things, as I have confiscated them to use to apply putty.

It is truly amazing what we call "tools of the trade". It never fails when the wife and I go shopping, i have to hit the craft and beauty sections. I also use triangular make up applicators to do the decal work, they're soft and pliable, works really well.

That reminds me, it's about time to raid the wifes make up kit, lol.

Ken
that which doesn't make us irate or irritated, has probably been thrown against the wall.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, December 13, 2003 12:34 PM
Ow about an old record deck set at its slowest and covered with a purpose built cover as a spray booth.
  • Member since
    March 2003
  • From: Brooklyn
Posted by wibhi2 on Sunday, December 14, 2003 6:11 PM
I also use the "Sprue-tip" tm for CA applicators. They are wonderful.

The weirdest tool I use for modelling is my mind.Mischief [:-,]Laugh [(-D]Whistling [:-^]
3d modelling is an option a true mental excercise in frusrtation
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Monday, December 15, 2003 12:47 PM
I just thought of another one.

Years ago I bought a drafting compass that had several tips for various types of circle drawing, one of which was an ink tip that had two jaws that could be adjusted with a screw to give wider or thinner lines. The ink was trapped between the jaws and ran out at a rate controlled by the width of the jaws.

This pen works great with thin plastic glue like Tenax. I adjust the jaws to a very close tolerance, which keeps the glue from running out on smooth plastic. However, when the pen touches an uncemented seam, ZIP - the perfect amount of glue, no more, no less, is drawn from the pen by capillary action. I press the parts together, and a tiny bead of plastic raises in the joint. Trim away the bead, and you have a perfect joint.

It sure beats those brushes, etc that come in the bottles. The only thing I had to do was make an extender so I could get the pen tip down into a nearly empty bottle of glue.
  • Member since
    November 2005
Posted by Anonymous on Monday, December 15, 2003 1:53 PM
Don't know if it's 'weird', but I use a large make-up brush as a duster on my finished models. Particularly if I'm entering a model contest, always nice to show any model dust-free! It's a big brush (about 1 1/2" wide) with soft bristles. Got it at the cosmetic aisle at the local drug/variety store!

Glenn
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