Scale Modeling: We do it for the inhalants

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Hobbies, Crafts, & Houses > Scale Modeling: We do it for the inhalants

MyronMulch: Nov 12, 2006

I use the Xurons I first bought for hacking up old sprues before putting them in the trash. I upgraded to Tamiya 74123 cutters and they are quite good. At some point I splashed out for Godhands because you always need more tools, right? They are nice, but I could get by without them. Now I cut parts of the sprue using the Tamiya cutters far away from the part, basically at the sprue end of the gate. Then I use the Godhands nippers to get the nibs off, close to but not completely flush to the part. I still sometimes get little divots next the gate location, but I don't know if that is because of the cutting action or because there is a little bit of plastic sinkage at that location from when the hot sprue is ejected from the mold. I'll use a razor saw to take clear parts off their sprue because I'm afraid of them shattering.

If the kit engineering puts a sprue nib someplace that will be hidden, I'll leave it on to be something for my alligator clip sticks to grab onto for painting. (If there isn't a mating tab or pin that can be used.) Then clean it off after painting.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 00:52

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# ? May 29, 2024 18:37

Charliegrs: Aug 10, 2009

So what other tools are not recommended to cheap out on? Ive tried a few different El cheapo panel line scribers and wasn't too happy with them so I splurged and got the Tamiya panel scriber and even though it cost about $50 for the handle and blade the difference is night and day.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 00:57

Chuck_D: Aug 25, 2003

Vaporware posted:

Don't forget to watch the tip. You can just snap that sucker off if you get it stuck in plastic. Keep your cut as close to the back of the jaws as you can.

They're sharp because they're brittle

Can confirm. My godhands or whatever the stupid gently caress marketing name for them was broke within about 6 weeks of getting them.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 01:56

The Locator: Sep 12, 2004; Out here, everything hurts.

Charliegrs posted:

So what other tools are not recommended to cheap out on? Ive tried a few different El cheapo panel line scribers and wasn't too happy with them so I splurged and got the Tamiya panel scriber and even though it cost about $50 for the handle and blade the difference is night and day.

For me, files. But for plastic it may not be nearly as important. For working with wood, a single time using a good swiss file made me spend way to much money and throw all my 'hobby shop' files in the trash (well, not really, they are probably buried at the bottom of a drawer somewhere).

# ? Oct 28, 2022 03:33

Cthulu Carl: Apr 16, 2006

This talk of what tools to not cheap out on remind me that yesterday I was watching a show that had a segment on Roman dodecahedra and one expert was poo-pooing the hypothesis that they were used for glove-knitting templates because "Gloves are commonplace items and these dodecahedra would have been expensive!" and I could only think "Wow, this person does not have hobby where she needs tools to make or build things."

# ? Oct 28, 2022 04:00

grassy gnoll: Aug 27, 2006; The pawsting business is tough work.

Turns out my partner used my nice Tamiya nippers to cut some hard wire and now I need a replacement set, so talking about tools is kinda convenient for me. Is there an appreciable difference between the Dspiae EN-A and the ST-A?

# ? Oct 28, 2022 04:07

Raskolnikov38: Mar 3, 2007; We were somewhere around Manila when the drugs began to take hold

grassy gnoll posted:

Turns out my partner used my nice Tamiya nippers to cut some hard wire and now I need a replacement set, so talking about tools is kinda convenient for me. Is there an appreciable difference between the Dspiae EN-A and the ST-A?

as far as i can tell with the EN-A you don't get the hard plastic case, screwdriver or wrench to change the adjusting screw

# ? Oct 28, 2022 04:17

Bloody Hedgehog: Dec 12, 2003; 💥💥🤯💥💥
Gotta nuke something

grassy gnoll posted:

Turns out my partner used my nice Tamiya nippers to cut some hard wire and now I need a replacement set, so talking about tools is kinda convenient for me. Is there an appreciable difference between the Dspiae EN-A and the ST-A?

And if you want to get your partner some really nice hard-wire cutters, Knipex makes some amazing product. Pricey, but quality german engineering.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 04:20

Blue Footed Booby: Oct 4, 2006; got those happy feet

Cthulu Carl posted:

This talk of what tools to not cheap out on remind me that yesterday I was watching a show that had a segment on Roman dodecahedra and one expert was poo-pooing the hypothesis that they were used for glove-knitting templates because "Gloves are commonplace items and these dodecahedra would have been expensive!" and I could only think "Wow, this person does not have hobby where she needs tools to make or build things."

Lol yeah. That's one of those areas where you need experimental history. Does it work well enough to pay for itself? If yes, the cost doesn't matter.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 04:55

tidal wave emulator: Aug 7, 2007

Charliegrs posted:

So what other tools are not recommended to cheap out on? Ive tried a few different El cheapo panel line scribers and wasn't too happy with them so I splurged and got the Tamiya panel scriber and even though it cost about $50 for the handle and blade the difference is night and day.

While you don't need to spend crazy money on them, avoid buying bargain basement tweezers because the tips will misalign or the metal will be too soft for the tips to join neatly and they'll sort of bow in the middle when you squeeze them.

I find it hard to recommend any masking tape other than Tamiya's.

One tool which I didn't even know existed before I had it recommended is Trumpeter/Master Tools' seam scraper. You can scrape off seams/nubs with a lot more accuracy than using a sander (and without destroying nearby detail) and without the danger of accidentally gouging into the plastic like if you'd use a hobby knife. I have the one with the slightly curved blade (09976) so I can't speak for the straight-bladed one but I'm sure that's decent too.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 11:25

Fors Yard: Feb 15, 2008; Aside from getting shot in the head, David, what have you done with yourself?

Maschinen Krieger S.F.3.D doesn't get much mention here but I've been putting together some new and old models.

Left to Right it's a Racoon, the original 1984 SAFS, Krachenvogel, Fireball SG 1/35 and the Gro�er Hund

I've been working on a Prowler from the 1980s which is the space reconnaissance version of the SAFS and the plastic is the worst I've ever dealt with. I use Tamiya Extra Thin and this white tinted plastic will not fuse unless it sits forever. This is not too big a deal but the two halves of the main body part were not aligned. The back had one side bent a couple mm too high. I held it in place for 40 minutes while watching a youtube video and it still wouldn't hold. All the other pieces have lined up so it's not a problem to just wait but I don't know why it is so awful. The original SAFS above wasn't bad and that was 1984 and a different plastic color. The Prowler was a later kit in 1985 but does color of plastic effect the glue usually? In the 90s they reissued the S.F.3.D kits with the Maschinen Krieger name (lawsuit with Hobby Japan magazine over ownership) and I have read the plastic for those kits was not as good as the original Nitto kits. I might try the quick setting extra thin to see if that works or some other type that is more viscous and will hold in place better but it is terrible. Luckily the Prowler has tanks on the back that should cover up any flaws but I'll need to putty that and sand it down as close as I can.

I kinda prefer the old Nitto kits since they have more springs and wires for things like antennas and the power cables. Feels more interesting than just the soft grey rubber for tubes.

If anyone had been looking for kits, this ebay seller has a bunch of NOS Nitto S.F.3.D kits for sale that are priced well (on sale now too $30-40)
https://www.ebay.com/str/wiseguyshobbiesllc

# ? Oct 28, 2022 18:20

Arquinsiel: Jun 1, 2006; "There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first."

God Bless Margaret Thatcher
God Bless England
RIP My Iron Lady

Cthulu Carl posted:

This talk of what tools to not cheap out on remind me that yesterday I was watching a show that had a segment on Roman dodecahedra and one expert was poo-pooing the hypothesis that they were used for glove-knitting templates because "Gloves are commonplace items and these dodecahedra would have been expensive!" and I could only think "Wow, this person does not have hobby where she needs tools to make or build things."

That's just the most :allears:

logic. Sure gloves are commonplace now but two thousand years ago they took a fuckton of work. Literally any tool that makes mass production faster is worth having when you can be the dude who is selling thousands of pairs of gloves to a legion being sent to Hadrian's Wall or something.

tidal wave emulator posted:

While you don't need to spend crazy money on them, avoid buying bargain basement tweezers because the tips will misalign or the metal will be too soft for the tips to join neatly and they'll sort of bow in the middle when you squeeze them.

I find it hard to recommend any masking tape other than Tamiya's.

One tool which I didn't even know existed before I had it recommended is Trumpeter/Master Tools' seam scraper. You can scrape off seams/nubs with a lot more accuracy than using a sander (and without destroying nearby detail) and without the danger of accidentally gouging into the plastic like if you'd use a hobby knife. I have the one with the slightly curved blade (09976) so I can't speak for the straight-bladed one but I'm sure that's decent too.

I was told that GW's seam scraper was really good so I got one to test out. I was surprised at how effective it was, but it's still nowhere near good enough to actually do what I wanted it to do. These look like a way better iteration of the same broad concept.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 21:20

Cthulu Carl: Apr 16, 2006

Arquinsiel posted:

That's just the most logic. Sure gloves are commonplace now but two thousand years ago they took a fuckton of work. Literally any tool that makes mass production faster is worth having when you can be the dude who is selling thousands of pairs of gloves to a legion being sent to Hadrian's Wall or something.

I mean, to be fair, I have no idea how clothing manufacture was run in ancient Rome and the dodecahedra exist with absolutely zero documentation we know about, but yeah, that segment just seemed to be her saying "I don't WANT it to be fore glove-making" and proceeding from there.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 21:36

Arquinsiel: Jun 1, 2006; "There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first."

God Bless Margaret Thatcher
God Bless England
RIP My Iron Lady

Every now and then I entertain myself by sitting down and trying to work out the tool-making process that I need to go through to make something like a screwdriver. It's something I recommend people do at least once, because it's interesting to start working out how much incremental precision is needed. Alterantively just visit the Science Museum in London and look at the water-wheel workshop model.

ETA: In fact, I should take some pictures of that for the thread next time I'm in, it's one hell of a thing.

# ? Oct 28, 2022 22:02

grassy gnoll: Aug 27, 2006; The pawsting business is tough work.

Due to its unusual but detailed shaping, and the large cairns in which we find them, anthropologists believe these large stacks of polystyrene material were used for ritual purposes.

# ? Oct 29, 2022 00:01

Pierzak: Oct 30, 2010

Arquinsiel posted:

I was told that GW's seam scraper was really good so I got one to test out. I was surprised at how effective it was, but it's still nowhere near good enough to actually do what I wanted it to do. These look like a way better iteration of the same broad concept.

I have the GW scraper, bought it at a strong recommendation as a game changer from a person whose opinions I personally trusted, ended up ranting at them for making me buy this piece of poo poo. The only reason I haven't chucked it in the trash is that someone might want it.

# ? Oct 29, 2022 00:04

Arquinsiel: Jun 1, 2006; "There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first."

God Bless Margaret Thatcher
God Bless England
RIP My Iron Lady

For what I wanted it for it... did not work well. I could see it cleaning up GW sprues reasonably well though. I'll give it a whirl next time I build some Space Marines and see how it goes, but TBH I will just go back to my diamond files and scalpel anyway out of sheer convenience.

grassy gnoll posted:

Due to its unusual but detailed shaping, and the large cairns in which we find them, anthropologists believe these large stacks of polystyrene material were used for ritual purposes.

Based on how anthropologists define "ritual" that's pretty accurate TBH.

# ? Oct 29, 2022 00:42

SoylentCola: Mar 21, 2001; Ultra Carp

Does anyone have a kit that has just defeated you?

I have a 1/32 Revell Mosquito that i brought on a whim. I used to make kits a lot when I was young and the longing to do so again hit me in lock-down. Did a couple of Airfix kits and enjoyed my inept skills, then came the Mosquito. It's just not fun, it's too big and it's a lovely kit. I'm not sure where I am going with this or the kit, any advice?

# ? Oct 30, 2022 13:52

Bloody Hedgehog: Dec 12, 2003; 💥💥🤯💥💥
Gotta nuke something

When I first got back into the hobby way back, I bought a Dragon tank kit that was like 1500 pieces. Too drat many, never finished it.

If a kit stops being fun, just ditch it. Maybe roughly assemble the fuselage and throw a coat of primer on it. Then if you ever want to test a new paint, or some new technique for rust or chipping or whatever, you can try it out on the plane body to see how it looks.

# ? Oct 30, 2022 14:03

Smoke: Mar 12, 2005; I am NOT a red Bumblebee for god's sake!; Gun Saliva

SoylentCola posted:

Does anyone have a kit that has just defeated you?

I have a 1/32 Revell Mosquito that i brought on a whim. I used to make kits a lot when I was young and the longing to do so again hit me in lock-down. Did a couple of Airfix kits and enjoyed my inept skills, then came the Mosquito. It's just not fun, it's too big and it's a lovely kit. I'm not sure where I am going with this or the kit, any advice?

This 1:72 helicopter, also from Revell. The only one I ever just stopped working on because it was becoming a chore and the windshield just didn't want to fit. Along with that, the side windows kept popping in every time I handled it despite being glued on in the same manner and with the same glue I've used for many other windows. I still have it in a drawer with all the parts and decals, but I doubt it's ever coming out.

Maybe someday I'll buy it again and restart and perhaps even finish it, could just be a QA issue causing the bad fit or something I may have done wrong during construction.

I have stopped working on kits before because part of the build was just no fun but eventually I went back and finished them a few months later. This one I pulled out after a similar amount of time, looked at it and its ill-fitting windshield and tossed it back in.

# ? Oct 30, 2022 15:32

grassy gnoll: Aug 27, 2006; The pawsting business is tough work.

I've never quit on a kit I've started, but I've definitely opened a box, looked at the instructions and the sprues, and decided to trash it. There was some horrible Russian biplane I bought because it came in a Spanish Republican scheme, and I could have carved something better out of a bar of soap.

Kits that I've hated have definitely taken me a long time - lookin' at you, RFM Firefly - but I finish them because I refuse to be owned by a chunk of plastic

# ? Oct 30, 2022 19:38

Chuck_D: Aug 25, 2003

SoylentCola posted:

Does anyone have a kit that has just defeated you?

Many. I echo Hedgehog's sentiment that if a kit sucks, it gets tossed. Life is too short and the stash is too big to build lovely kits.

But, it's coincidental you ask that question because this motherfucker almost ended up in the trash at multiple points. It's the Great Wall Hobby 1/32 Hawk 81-A2 (P-40B) kit and it's a bear. My frustration is not entirely the kit's fault. It's largely due to the fact that I opted to do a natural metal finish and to do that type of finish justice, it's a complete pain in the rear end to get the surface prep right. That said though, this was just one of those builds that was plagued by gremlins all throughout. Just stupid poo poo over and over and over and over again ad nauseum.

I'm happy with the finish in the end, but goddrat am I glad this loving thing is done and on the shelf.

Full gallery: https://postimg.cc/gallery/phBhdYt

# ? Oct 30, 2022 22:40

Slugworth: Feb 18, 2001; If two grown men can't make a pervert happy for a few minutes in order to watch a film about zombies, then maybe we should all just move to Iran!

SoylentCola posted:

Does anyone have a kit that has just defeated you?

I have a 1/32 Revell Mosquito that i brought on a whim. I used to make kits a lot when I was young and the longing to do so again hit me in lock-down. Did a couple of Airfix kits and enjoyed my inept skills, then came the Mosquito. It's just not fun, it's too big and it's a lovely kit. I'm not sure where I am going with this or the kit, any advice?

# ? Oct 30, 2022 23:44

PriorMarcus: Oct 17, 2008; ASK ME ABOUT BEING ALLERGIC TO POSITIVITY

I've tried searching for them but I'm not turning up any results. What are the little nub hoovers called that people have to tidy up their desk? I believe they themselves are a model kit?

I swear I've seen them in this thread.

# ? Oct 31, 2022 00:43

Blue Footed Booby: Oct 4, 2006; got those happy feet

A broom?

# ? Oct 31, 2022 02:36

mllaneza: Apr 28, 2007; Veteran, Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force, 1993-1952

Gewehr 43 posted:

It was worth it.

# ? Oct 31, 2022 02:56

Bloody Hedgehog: Dec 12, 2003; 💥💥🤯💥💥
Gotta nuke something

PriorMarcus posted:

I've tried searching for them but I'm not turning up any results. What are the little nub hoovers called that people have to tidy up their desk? I believe they themselves are a model kit?

I swear I've seen them in this thread.

A nub hoover? Like... a vacuum?

# ? Oct 31, 2022 04:33

grassy gnoll: Aug 27, 2006; The pawsting business is tough work.

Gewehr 43 posted:

Natural metal

So what all did you have to do to this thing? I think the finishes came out quite well.

# ? Oct 31, 2022 04:57

Fearless: Sep 3, 2003; DRINK MORE MOXIE

SoylentCola posted:

Does anyone have a kit that has just defeated you?

I have a 1/32 Revell Mosquito that i brought on a whim. I used to make kits a lot when I was young and the longing to do so again hit me in lock-down. Did a couple of Airfix kits and enjoyed my inept skills, then came the Mosquito. It's just not fun, it's too big and it's a lovely kit. I'm not sure where I am going with this or the kit, any advice?

The first time I attempted a wooden ship model. I lacked a lot of the skills and most of the patience required to complete it. The lack of skill can be overcome, but not without adequate patience. It was an Artesania Latina Bluenose kit that my ex got me for a birthday present... we broke up not long after and I think that also had something to do with my lack of interest in finishing it.

# ? Oct 31, 2022 10:43

Cooked Auto: Aug 4, 2007

SoylentCola posted:

Does anyone have a kit that has just defeated you?

I have a 1/32 Revell Mosquito that i brought on a whim. I used to make kits a lot when I was young and the longing to do so again hit me in lock-down. Did a couple of Airfix kits and enjoyed my inept skills, then came the Mosquito. It's just not fun, it's too big and it's a lovely kit. I'm not sure where I am going with this or the kit, any advice?

An MV-22 I worked on years back, at some point I realised I was painting it really badly, covering up details and so on, tried to remove some of it by sandpapering it with fine grit paper before I gave up. Now it's in a box in the wardrobe taunting me whenever I see it, alongside the other kits I bought during my model kit phase.

Maybe one day I'll strip it in some giant bath of simple green to restart. but nowadays I just don't have room to display them anyway.

# ? Oct 31, 2022 15:46

Chuck_D: Aug 25, 2003

grassy gnoll posted:

So what all did you have to do to this thing? I think the finishes came out quite well.

Thank you.

Doing a natural metal finish is all about the surface prep. So, I had to go through about 4 or 5 rounds of sanding and polishing, priming, and so on to get it where it needed to be. The paints themselves are finicky and even though you only spray them at ~12psi, they get overspray everywhere. In the end, I *am* happy with the end result, but it was too much effort for what it was worth. The real killer for me was the fact that the national insignias almost all peeled to some degree or another as I was masking them. I just don't think paint sticks well to the smooth surface of the metallic paints. If I do it again (which I won't for a long time) I will put a layer of primer down before I lay down the masks.

# ? Oct 31, 2022 17:45

FrozenVent: May 1, 2009; The Boeing 737-200QC is the undisputed workhorse of the skies.

That loving container ship has been on and off the bench for a few years now. Nothing wrong with the kit, just so many loving containers to paint.

# ? Nov 1, 2022 14:20

MyronMulch: Nov 12, 2006

PriorMarcus posted:

I've tried searching for them but I'm not turning up any results. What are the little nub hoovers called that people have to tidy up their desk? I believe they themselves are a model kit?

I swear I've seen them in this thread.

Search for "desktop vacuum" or "mini vacuum"? Amazon has a ton of these from such well-known brands as ASKLMO and IUJJRE and CVBHUUO.

# ? Nov 2, 2022 00:19

tidal wave emulator: Aug 7, 2007

My local club had a Falklands War themed group build, the culmination of which was a club competition this evening. I came first place with my just-finished Starling Models 1/700 HMS Glamorgan. It was my first resin kit, which was an interesting challenge (lots of superglue mishaps), and I made a scratch-built base, stretched-sprue antennae and had to do a lot of photoetch - the best part was probably the crazy-intricate radar array. I also used some of Starling Models' 3D printed 1/700 royal navy figures and posed them on the deck.

Painted using Sovereign Hobbies enamels, weathered with AK ship enamel washes and AK's weathering pencils.

# ? Nov 2, 2022 00:51

FPyat: Jan 17, 2020

I'm going to be spraying my models with gray for less than 30 seconds total, just to make the PE parts look the same color as the rest. I'll be fine if I do it outside with the N95 masks I got for covid, right?

# ? Nov 2, 2022 02:11

Arquinsiel: Jun 1, 2006; "There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first."

God Bless Margaret Thatcher
God Bless England
RIP My Iron Lady

Yup, totally fine.

# ? Nov 2, 2022 02:23

FPyat: Jan 17, 2020

As it is, I'm smelling the emanations of the plastic cement a lot. Maybe I should do assembly by the open dining room window instead?

# ? Nov 2, 2022 03:27

mllaneza: Apr 28, 2007; Veteran, Bermuda Triangle Expeditionary Force, 1993-1952

FPyat posted:

As it is, I'm smelling the emanations of the plastic cement a lot. Maybe I should do assembly by the open dining room window instead?

Yes. And you want a respirator rated for solvents, not ~~particulants~~ particles.

e.

tidal wave emulator posted:

My local club had a Falklands War themed group build, the culmination of which was a club competition this evening. I came first place with my just-finished Starling Models 1/700 HMS Glamorgan.

You're goddamn right you did. Splendid build and paintjob.

# ? Nov 2, 2022 03:33