Here's a thought provoking Question -

I know I find myself On the lookout everywhere for supplies & scratchbuilding bits...... Tools i tend to think outside the box sometimes.... I have a good Hardware & Surplus Store in town so, there;s always interesting bits and things in there....... So,
Where do you look for you're Supplies & Tools (that may or may not be for the hobby?

Everywhere and anywhere! Around the house, at someone else's house (for ideas only, of course), the local Target or drug store, and definitely at the local home improvement store.

My 2.5 year old daughter was chiding me just the other day for having to make a pass through the ladies cosmetics aisle at Target, but hey, those nail and emery boards are MUCH cheaper than their Squadron equivalents!

- Frank

I guess the most recent "odd" place is the jewelry, scrap book and knitting sections of the local craft store.

They have great tweezers, wire stock, puches, cutters, matts, and string in these sections.

I'll admit I hit the cosmetics section when i need Emry boards and some types of brushes. I had cut down a Ash tree out front. the trunk had some interesting sections near the grouns so i cut some of it off and have it drying in the garage for some "unique" figure bases once it dry's out......

Jewelers' supply stores online. The quality of their pliers, cutters, files, &c. is higher and the price lower than equivalent tools I've gotten from hobby suppliers.

My wifes pockets.......
Now before anyone gets any dirty thoughts in their twisted little minds, I should point out that my wife is a cardiac nurse, and as such, has all sorts of hemostats, scissors, gauze and stuff to pilfer. Unused syringe sets make awesome glue applicators once you file the point down on the needle.

I built a nifty work holder out of spare parts from an offset press we were canibalizing at work to make another press work, and got some really nice gears for use in a dio sometime in the future (I have a Stalingrad scene in mind). I search construction sites for things to use too. Found a decent sized piece of PVC to hold all my wire and balasa wood strips that way (Those of you with children can testifyt to the need to have these things stored as securely as possible!).

To tell you the truth, I got the Micro Mark catalog a while back, found the stuff that I wanted or need, and have been trying to make tools before I buy them.

I am an electrician so I can always find neat little things kicking around on various sites I work on. I think I have a bit of every type of wire there is.

My wife is a nurse so I too can sometimes scrounge a few things here and there. One of her jobs is in public health where she gives grade 7's their shots in the spring and fall. I have a whole bunch of unused syringes that are great for measuring paint and the needles themselves are useful too.

However some of my best scores have come at garage sales. I got a whole bunch of dental tools, clamps and other assorted stuff for 3 bucks!
We usually go every Saturday morning and its not very often I don't find some great deal on tools not just for the hobby but for my garage too.

Jeff

I love the cosmetic counters at stores for alot of little things, going to the flea markets for dental picks (I also get them from my dentist), checking out the dollar stores. I have "borrowed" a number of items from work, when I was working, after making sure they were not really the last of the kind there.
If there are odds and ends to get, I check out where ever I am shopping for them. Most of the time, they're cheaper than getting them at the LHS.

How many of you guys have searched a watch maker? Very similar to jewelry, but they do have some really really small files and tweezers.

i have also found flyfishing tackle box a very good sorce for lead wire for cable and tinsel makes great seat belts

Micromark for ideas, then buy somewhere else. Micromark is great but pricey.

More like Micromark for ideas.... then Start machining...for me anyway.....

thin picture framing wire works good for tow cables on tanks.

I was shocked the other day to discover we have a Harbor Freight store not a mile down the road from where I work. I thought they were just mail order! :-)

Jim

Over the years I have found that at least 80% of the tools I need or use are available for cheaper prices in any other place than those specializing in Plastic model building.

I even managed to pick up 150 #11 scalpel blades for under 30 dollars, just by searching on line. I jumped on a bunch of cross action tweezers for 2 bucks apiece from the same place.

The advent of the web, and taking time doing a few searches will save a lot of money.

Unfortunately no harbor freight around me that I know of, other wise I would surely pay them a friendly visit.

Dave,

NJ isn't that Big!!! Harbor Freight Store List

Thanks Matt, Brick is a good 90 minute drive, and Vineland is even farther, but I'll surely hit the Saddle Brook store when it opens, as it's only about 30 minutes away.

My wife teaches Interior Design so I can salvage foam core, balsa, and some other nifty items from her past classes.

keep old stereos and break the attena it is conductive so modell rr can make signals (or if you want that streetlight or building interior to light up)

In anywhere and in the hobbie shops and if I can´t find what I need I look for it in Micromark.