I'm planning to build a Sd.kfz 234/1(Puma with 20mm gun) interior for the Italeri kit I have. Since this is the first scratchbuilding work of mine I'd like to ask you experienced guys which materials are good and which are not. Also what do you use to cut those brass plates and where can I get those little brass hollow cilinders as seen in the Tiger interior on this forum.

Hi Zenedon,
the material you can use are almost infinite. You can use thin brass, copper, aluminium, lead and plasticard foils for instance. The first four can be found at any hardware store and plasticard in different thicknesses can be found at hobby shops. Lead (for doing straps for instance) can be the one from around the necks of wine bottles, aluminium from the coke, bier and soda cans.
I personally prefer copper because is easier to work and bend, and I prefer to solder it (with a standard solder for electronic purposes wit a max power of 20-25w) instead of using cyanoacrilate. You can also using a variety of materials for tubing of the same materials mentioned above that can be found in the same places. Other stuff for tubing can be syringe needles for machine guns, straws, handles from the kid's baloons (the one they give at Mc Donald's). Rivets can be done toot using the same stuff as well. If you want to have an idea of what I used in a real case you can have a look at my post:

https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/9091&page=1

but if you dig in the forum arhives you can find many more from other fellas here at Armorama.
Ciao

Welcome Zenedon. I find that there are certain things I use the most. Evergreen styrene comes in card stock, as well as strip stock, rods, tubes, angled stock, structural stock, channel, you name it and they have something for it. I have only been scratchbuilding for the last eight or nine months, but I already have about 20 varieties and need more. I also use wire of varying thickness. These can replicate wiring, hoses, ducting, etc. As Fabio said, foils of varying thickness are wonderful for doing sheet metal, straps, flags, cloth, etc. I go to my dentist for an never-ending supply of lead foil. I ask him to save me the backings from the xrays. They are about 1" X 2". I flatten them using a pencil to roll them out on a magazine. They are wonderful for just about everything. I also get thicker stuff at the model shop. I think a good sized spares box is also important, never throw anything out, especially anything round.

As for tools: I have a straight edge ruler from AlumiCutter that has a built in steel edge for cutting along, a good assortment of x-acto blades, a scriber, a set of micro-files, a good assortment of tweezers, a set of micro-drills, a box of matches, the list goes on, but ultimately you need to figure out what works best for you.

I really enjoy scratchbuilding and hope you will learn the craft as well. It is really a kick to show off a well done scratchbuilt interior or conversion.

Rob

Thanks for the replies guys. I'm really happy now that I found a good forum for modellers.