Im still in the process of getting my bench together and was wondering what 5 ( keep it there because Im sure we could all name alot more) tools could you not do without. There are of course the obvious...airbrush,paint brush,spraybooth etc...Looking for the odd ones that folks have found work for them...(ME) :-) Thanks all!

I recently purchased a set of long nosed pliers but the jaws that grip the object are tapered and round. Ideal for bending round wire cleatsof different sizes and also for doing round photoetch parts. :-)

My answer probably doesn't count but here goes anyway.

Tooth picks: for small or precise applications of glue
Emery boards: for sanding - of course
Yogurt cups: for holding small parts - lids are great for dropping glue onto, mixing paints, holding pastel dust...
Paper clamps & clips: for holding parts to dry or as extra hand
Finger nail clippers: in case you don't have "specific" sprue cutters

It's pricey, but a Dremel is a must when working with big resin stuff....

Here is my top 5 list of odd stuff I use for the hobby.
and everything in this list is either free or at very little cost.

1) Tounge Depressors or popsickle sticks.. great for taping stuff to while you paint or airbrush it.

2) a small peice of steel with a good flat surface.. great for checking if you have a edge sanded straight. or for bending small metal parts or wire.

3) Peices of straight plastic from the parts trees of kits i've finished.. (great for holding parts while airbrushing. gives a bit more reach than a popsickle stick and is easier to turn the part while airbrushing to get the sides.

4) find a diabetic.. one who has to test their blood sugar.. the small plastic bottles that the test strips come in are great for holding small parts. . I have 2 styles one with a removeable lid and one with a flip open (attached lid).......

5) a supply of laytex gloves.. I use em for the hand i'm holding the part in while airbrushing. no worries about over spray then.. ( I raid my doctors supply while they make me wait in one of those little rooms. u can get lots of free stuff this way.. I.e tounge depressors, cotton swabs. (ones with the long sticks) gauze pads (great for making camo nets) ) of course my doctor gives me permission to do this so.. its kinda at your own risk if you get caught.....LOL


here is my top 5 list of general hobby stuff.

a good way to get some of this is if you have a michales craft store near you get their 40% off coupons they put in the paper most weeks. esp for the tweezers , sandpaper, and brushes

#1 Testors Hobby knife. I've tried other types but always return to this one.. the handle is the perfect shape for me to keep a grip on.. they are sharp.. and when they get dull they are cheap to replace. about a dollar each.

#2 Good array of tweezers.. in varous sizes and styles.

#3 Sanding sticks... Plus there are sanding pads I pick up at a craft store that work very good for model building. they are in the wood work area.. they are eversand 1 side 280 grit the other 440 grit.. and I do almost all my sanding with them.

#4 an array of glue's for various uses. My primary is now Plastruck (a liquid weld type glue) also keep on hand elmers glue, 3 different kinds of CA glue (superglue) and model master liquid glue..(this is also some great stuff.)

#5 an array of brushs seperated by use.. ie. water based.. oil based.. pastels, others....

Hey I use a small set of files, toothpicks, a good quality lamp (preferably one that does'nt generate a lot of heat), little plastic paint mixing trays .99Cents at Michaels, and good resealing cutting mat.

i think mine would be -
1. A hardened glass chopping board - normal kitchen variety - saves my desk from getting axed when cutting foams etc
2. Bottle tops - ideal for putting small drops of paint in and how often do we throw them away?
3. Cocktail sticks - Excellent for painting small details on figures.
4. Tweezers - for obvious reasons ( also gonna included elastic bands on this one, once fixed to the tweezers all you have to do is hold em gently)
5. A big bottle of PVA glue. Comes in handy all the time especially on dioramas.

Thats my cheap top 5.

I don't know about 5 but...

1.) Optivisor - They don't recoginze me at my local hobby shop if I am not wearing it.

2.) Winsor Newton Series 7 Mini's - I have basically completely gone to the "darkside" (as someone else puts it) and do figures now almost exclusively. These are the top of the line sable brushes. The sable brush parts are a bit shorter and thicker than a std series 7. But, man, do these babies hold paint well..

Great all..this is why I figured 5..I have a list of 20 now..thanks and keep em coming!

OK, My 5... (redundant somewhat)...
1. Tweezers
2. Hemostats (clamping tweezers)
3. Alligator clips/ magnifying lens combo tool (great for the teeny tiny stuff)
4. Emery boards
5. Toothpicks
plus, a 5 ml eyedropper for measuring paint/ thinner ratios, a pin vice that holds from .0135 to .039 and appropriate bits, needle nose pliers, side sprue cutters, strips of rubber for getting those paint-gummed jars open... (++)

Without these 5 items, it would be hard to build at all...

Tweezers
Sanding Sticks
Q-Tips and Toothpicks
Pin Vise and Micro drills
X-Acto knife

Scott

1} Exacto with No. 11 blades
2) Steel straight-edge/ruler
3) Plate glass cutting/building surface
4) Sprue nippers
5) Dental pick

1.Sprue cutter.
2.Tweezer
3.Sanding sticks (I am partial to Squadron )
4. Optivisor,ditto on the not being recognised!
5.Exacto knife.

Add
6.paint brushes.
7.Razor saw bldes,fit in the exacto handle.
8.Scissors ( for decals )
9.Self healing cutting mat.
10.Tool caddy. All this needs a home.
(++) (++) (++)

1. Xuron Sprue Cutters.
2. Piece of ceramic tile for cutting on.
3. Toothpicks.
4. Small gauge solder.
5. Assorted dental tools. (From my wife's office)

Some things I also find useful which I get from work are: needles of all sizes, scapel blades, syringes, and sutures.

Patrick

Here's 2 for you:


http://www.dxmarket.com/micromark/products/82393A.html


http://www.dxmarket.com/micromark/products/80975.html

Here are my favorite additions to the basic model tool kit.

1) A model airplane building board. Either a FLAT surfaced wood board, with "T" pins, or a magnetic board with magnets. Helps keep everything straight and true. Even better when equipped with a straightedge, 90 degree corner, and a few squared blocks for aligining wings, Hull sides, or anything square.

2) A fly tying vise. Grat for holding small parts, makes a great third hand. Holds small parts for detailing or brush painting. Mine is a nice one that still gets used for serious fly tying, so I won't use it for messy jobs, but for precision gluing, painting, holding and inspection, it's hard to beat. A neat add on for fly tying vises is a neutral background. THis is just a smooth grey formica surfaced card that mounts to the vise, and sits behind the fly. It allows you to look at the fly without background distractions. Even without a vise, this idea works for the modeler. Do you have a place on your bench where you can really focus on the piece you are working on against a neutral background?

3) A good light. I have a small high intensity color accurate light with a diffuser over it, plus a couple of other lights off to the sides. I can't build what I can't see.

4) A good flat sanding surface. I use a variety of things, dpending upon the size of the project. I have T bars in different sizes. I also have some metal extrusions with sandpaper glued to them, and a flat piece of glass that I can stick sandpaper down to. Great for getting nic flat seamlss joints on fuslage halfs and the like.

5) Nut files. Too specialized for the average modeller to go out and buy, but I use them for their original purpose, guitar nuts. They com in sets of several diffrent sizes, and they are for making slots. THey look like a small flat file, but the teeth are on the edge of the file instead of the face. I use the small ones for cleaning out between cooling fins on radial engines, and for defining slots, and making tabs fit smoothly. The larger guitar ones are nice for general notching and cleaning up slots and notches. THe bass ones can be used to file in corners where a flat file is too big to reach. Any time you use a small flat file, and wish there were teeth on the edge too, you can use the nut file. By the same token, fret files are even more spcializd and expensive than nut files, ,but they hav some uses too. THey have a concave edge, with teth on the inside of it. They can be used for smoothing out rounded edges, leading edges of wings, smoothing out gun barrels, and other similar tasks. They are designed to grind fret wire, so they ar fairly durable, but you ned to be careful not to clog them up with softer materials, and to clean them up well.

Bonus tool! I just tried making a violin type of a clamp for smaller tasks, and I think I have succeeded. All I did was to glue flat washers onto a bunch of nuts. Then I screwed a pair of them onto a bolt. THis gives me a clamp that I can use to hold the edges of flat items together. I made a couple dozen of these, and I think they will come in really handy. They are simple, can be adjusted to any opening width (Just use a longer bolt for larger gaps) and dirt cheap.

My five essential tools are:

1) scalpel (with 10A blades)
2) vallorbe file set
3) superglue
4) jewelers eyepiece
5) tweezers

with these you can build anything - everything else is just a luxury

Lee

D'oh!! No wonder my workbench (aka computer desk) looks like termites have eaten it... #:-) (++)

Toadd to all those who have gone before:

1. Swing arm magnifing light. I use it for everything from lighting my work area, being able to see better, and hanging parts from to dry.

2. Forceps. My wife gave me these and it's the best tool she has given me.

3. Piece of scrap glass. The best thing I've "borrowed" from my wife's stained glass business. I use it for a place to cut parts, and as a paint pallette. I don't what I did before I grabbed this.

4. Fingernail sanders. I felt a little funny going into the "beauty" section of Wally World but it was worth it.

5. Exacto knife. Absolutely essential. I use it for EVERYTHING, up to and includding cleaning all the junk from under my fingernails. It's most important use? Scrapping away excess glue for when I get messy.

Here's mine

1. X-Acto Knife
2. Sandpapers (120, 220, 400, 600 , 800)
3. Paints
4. Airbrush
5.Brushes

- baby food jars (to mix pigments/washes/filters, thinner, water, etc.)
- clothepins (to hold toothpicks holding on blue-tack small parts or parts to be painted)
- syringes (to measure paints)
- cotton buds (for decal application)
- steel spheres/screws to be put in the paint jars to better mix them when shaked
Ciao

Thanks all..I have one heck of a list going..Very interesting to see what everyone cant do without. TY