Best tool for photo-etched parts?

I don't have one, try building your own. I remember doing that with some wood, it worked pretty well and it was almost free.

I can tell you that the etch mate is worth every penny. There's alot more to it than 2 pieces of metal and a thumb screw. You could make it with the proper Dxf file and a CNC 3 axis milling machine, but for $55 (check hometown hobbies), it's hardly worth the effort. It really is a nice tool and well engineered.

My $.002

Ted

A 'compair between' review of the two main tools and the market.......

http://smallshopeu.com/LeeLLyod_REVIEW8.htm

Alasdair

For me, the "best tool" is my hands and an optivisor - believe it, or not. But, an etch-mate will definitely help with larger pieces of PE or very small, fragile pieces. I've got one and have used it on every build with PE thus far.

Enjoy your modeling...

The best tool? Your brain and knowing when it's time to put things down for a little while and cool off. I haven't used a lot of PE but anytime I do I wind up getting mad and swearing I'll never do it again. Just finished the seats for my Phantom and, once again, I swear I'll never do it again.

To answer your question, I use a couple of X-Acto knives (one with a #10 blade for cutting them from the fret), tweezers, double-stick tape. I also usually work over a box top so when I drop something I stand a chance of not losing it.

Hey MusicCity...ever thought that the reason you get all wound up is because your NOT using a etch bending tool ?? :) :)

QUOTE: Hey MusicCity...ever thought that the reason you get all wound up is because your NOT using a etch bending tool ?? :) :)

Good point, but I don't think so. It isn't the bending that causes my problems. PE parts are SMART! They will happily sit there on the end of a toothpick and let you put CA on them, move them to where they need to be, and right before you get ready to stick them down they'll jump off the toothpick. Or they will let you stick them in place only to find out that the CA you used had about as much affect as using water for glue. Or they will sit in the jaws of a tweezer until you turn your head and can't see where they go, then they will launch.

I did forget to mention that one of my favorite tools for working with PE is a toothpick cut off so that the end is about 1/16" wide. I then put a tiny spec of Blue Tack on the end of the toothpick. It makes picking up those tiny little parts much easier.

This is a picture of my home made PE bender. It is basicly a copy of Etch Mates product. The main difference is I placed the tool head in the center, that way you don't have to reverse it to use the other side. Mine is made from scrap pieces of 1/8 inch 2024-T3 aluminum. The only tools I used were a die grinder and various files. Because I used scrap metal it cost me nothing. Check with a local sign shop or sheetmetal shop to see if they have a scrap bin you can pick through.

I use this tool all the time, it's very handy.

Darren

Guys... You all had some awesome suggestions and advice. Ironically enough, this thread started out with me complaining about how much the Etch Mate was. Honestly, I'm not sure how this happened, but I just ended up spending $102 on the 8" Mk'R' Multi-head Kit. Sometimes I really question my spending habbits. How does one go from thinking that $65 is too much, then spend almost twice that on basically the same thing?

Anyhow, maybe it just goes to show how hard of a time I have working with PE. From what everyone else has been saying, I'm not alone in this. Hopefully this will make it a little less stressful.

~ Garth

I spent around an hour last night working on Eduard's PE cockpit for mt 1/72 109 G10, so you can imagine the size of the parts.

I'm sure the Etchmate is a great peice of kit, but so far I have found a 6 inch steel rule and a sharp Xacto blade work plenty well enough, especially on components 3mm across!!!!!!!

If I was bending large amounts of PE, I'm sure it would be worth the outlay, but seeing as I don't, and not forgetting that I am cheap, I'll stick to my home spun methods of dealing with PE.

Karl

Hello Garth,

Is Mk'R' the brand name and is it made of steel?
I hope your tool is value for money, and that you're happy with it. I have only recently registered and I enjoy reading the contributions to the forum. Thanks,

Paul
Netherlands

I was trying to get a good deal on a 4" Hold and Fold on Ebay but it seems that everyone that sells on there goes for around $45 or so.
They are only $50 from the manufacturer.
Some of those Ebay bidders just have to win don't they?

Mike

+= my 4 cents.....
CA glue....& accelerator
very sharp cutting instruments......side cutters or xacto knife
rat tail file set....
round toothpicks......
a thinly profiled steel ruler.......
& p a t i e n c e........perseverence & practice......

I would also like to add this: the best tweezers/hemostats that you can afford. I bought som of those junk Pakistan tools from ebay and online places and they may look good and are cheap, they are junk. Find a dentist or surgeon and buy a pair from hime (or medical supply house). German or US made. They offer much less resistance and this I find is critical for handling the minute parts and pieces. I have a locking pair and a strraight pair, both with angled tips. Simply priceless. In fact I have 3 pairs of the cheap ones that someone can have. I wouldn't even try to pul a splinter with them.

Some cheap tools do come in handy. I found a pair of flat nose pliers without a taper that are excellent for forming flat parts and for flatening parts. They were only 3 bucks at a flea market.

Oh, yeah, also get a those fingernail files w/ sandpaper on them from Walmart or target. The black ones. I use the one with 4 different grits on them and the finest grit really works well for removing that ever bothersome bit of brass that is left on the part after cutting. It polishes it off more than anything.

OK, I'll add my 2 cents too.

My coordination level is just average and my close vision has sunk below average, so I'll take every advantage I can get. That includes a PE bending tool, surgical instruments, high power magnifying glasses, and so on.

The PE bending tool is great. Even though it has only two main components (with precision alignment pins), it shows the sort of quality machining that you don't see too much anymore. The design is obviously more than two chunks of metal slapped together. For instance, the holder that screws against the base is sprung, so the fingers meet the base first, and the clamping pressure is controlled by the amount of tightening of the nut. Bending is not only easy, it's also gives the pleasure that comes from using a high-quality tool.

A few years ago my wife purchased a large amont of surgical instruments from a lab that was being closed. I "borrowed" several of the tools for modeling, and like tediam said, the quality difference in the German tools is evident. These tools have really made holding small parts easy. I particularly like the ones used for eye surgery - tiny tweezers (or whatever their medical name is).

The aspects of modeling that I once found emotionally challenging - parts flying away, not being able to see what I'm doing, bends that aren't right, etc, can usually be alleviated by using the right tools. I salute those whose skills allow them to do complex work with simple tools. For the rest of us a little help equals a lot better work and more enjoyment.

darrenbb - Nice job on your own PE holder! It shows you don't need a CNC mill to make it yourself.

I use micro surgoens scalpal with different blades, a regular scalpal, a regular round exacto blade handle and tweezers. But I find the most important tools for working with PE is a magnifying lens and a flashlight so i can find them when I have tweezerpult. dont foget the ca, dont matter how good you are with the stuff if ya cant attach it to the model.

I'm in with KJ200 and cirikili - add a blunt nose pair of pliers, jewlers/watch makers tweezers is also very helpful

But that does not take anything away from "tools that make life easier" - I'm just old school and would rather spend the money on a kit as I don't bend PE all that much ( and it shows )

I too am trying to decide if one of the Hold and Fold units is worth getting for myself.
They look really handy when needed but I wonder how often I would need one as many of the kits I build do not have PE parts, but then again when I want to go into some better detailing then one would be invaluable.
I am like my dad was and like to "build it myself" when I can, but it might not be worth all of the work for the price. I think the 4" Hold and Fold would be all I would ever need, and they are only $50.

Mike

so I ended up spending quite a bit of time with the new hold and fold this weekend and have only one word for it... AWESOME. i didn't lose one piece and things actually have nice, crisp folds now. all that, and i can bend them in 1/4 the time.

ya know, i'm not one that likes to rush through things (i've been working on the same model for over a year now!) but really like the fact that i didn't have to spend an entire day bending PE. i can't believe i ever doubted this thing...

~ g

My two pence worth from the UK!

I used a PE set on a Tamiya Skyraider and ended up giving up due to losing parts and not getting bends bang on the joins.
I bought an Etch mate and used it to add a PE set to a Schwimmwagen.
One word - AWESOME - worth every penny.
There is no doubt you could make one if you have the skill and resources but personally I'd rather spend the time on the PE than making a tool to use with it.

Fiasco,

This is off topic, but what PE set did you use for your Swimmy? Was it 1/48 or 1/35? I ask only that I am currently using the VE set and am not really pleased. It's ok, but not Aber by a long shot.

Ted

Jippi,

I just got my new Etch mate as well!

Now I'm just waiting for my new Sea king Superdetails...
Perhaps I'll work on my sovremenny class lattice mast??

I use the "Hold-n-Fold". I have both the 4in. and new 2in. version.
I dont know how I got along without them before.
By the way, Small Shop Eu now has a tool available for doing
round parts and grab handles

Etch-mate is worth every penny. Well made, easy to use, and way better than trying to lump some sort of make-shift thing out of scrap metal. I just don't have the time to waste making something I can buy for about $50 . I also don't have the money to waste on PE by using the wrong tools.

Buy an Etch-mate or similar. You'll be very happy.

Craig

My humble opinion is to use two straight blade razors. When cutting, I work on a piece of 1/4" glass. When bending, I work on a self healing cutting mat with a grid on the surface to ensure a true 90 degree bend. Use one razor to hold the part and one to bend.

I work with 1/700 scale PE and find this method most useful. I have a selection of brass tube to make round sections. I recently finished a LA FAYETTE frigate using those tools and created among other things a safety cage for a vertical ladder and the "stealth" cover for Exocet missles.

You may use any thing to hold the parts during cutting, I use a matchstick or tweezers. Other good tools are a scribe and PE shears. I have sucessfully created gun hatches for the 1/350 USS TEXAS (1898) using the frame from a PE sheet. Again, it takes patience and a good state of mind to create things in PE. Try assembling a 1/700 SPS-40 radar with that high-dollar Etch-Mate!

I really had doubts about spending 50 bucks for what looked like just a simple two piece appliance for folding PE. So I didn't spend the money, and kept doing things the hard way, razor blades and tweezers. Much to my surprise my wife surprised me a few weeks ago with a new Etch-Mate. I'll never go back too the old ways. It's a great tool and just what it saves in time and aggravation makes it worth every penny I wasn't willing to spend.
Semper Fi, mike

I just started to to use PE for the first time, and I put the model away out of fustration because of bending the PE parts, losing the very small parts on the floor etc. I have been debating whether to get the Etch Mates for Christmas. Maybe Santa will be good and get me one. Or I just may put a bug into my wife's ear.

I've never worked with PE before, however small parts handling is an issue for me. I was planning on picking up the multi head kit, however, before I did, I wanted to know what the general concensus was on the value of the additional parts (not just the bender but all the other stuff that comes with it). Yeah, they're expensive, but if it can make my life easier, it's money well spent.

Also, who has the best price, and what are considered to be the "best" online sources for kits/suplies/etc? I see a lot of "competition" out there, but frankly, most of them are really, REALLY close in price. I've had good experience with Hobbylinc.com, but they don't have quite everything I need.

Thanks, all!