Post by Christian on May 23, 2020 10:27:36 GMT -8
I moved this comment to it's own thread. It is an addition to the discussion on the Hasegawa chisel buried waaaaay down on another thread.
Let me jump in on this a bit since SOMEONE has let out the secrets of military, ship, and aircraft model building tools. Darn!
Trumpeter has a vast line of tools, only a few on Amazon. But a Google search for "Trumpeter Tools" will turn up lots. I actually use the Google image search because some of these tools are so weird that a text description isn't helpful. Of interest would be the grab iron tools and the sander. As well as the same line of chisels as this discussion is already framed on Hasegawa. Not copies, but the same sizes which are actually "real world" industry sizes. Trumpeter's focus is on highly detailed and complex ship models of dubious authenticity. If you are into ships you have to go one by one and read reviews. USN aircraft carrier models suck for prototypicality but are beautiful. HMS Hood is a great model and accurate according to the Hood Association. (Train guys aren't the only ones who have prototype groups.)
A smaller line is Citadel which focuses on figure and game models. I use their rather strange seam scraper for all sorts of scraping activities. On The Econo-Stack From HeckRM I sorta forgot to fill some of the knockout pine divots when the pieces were nice and flat on the table. The darned divots are too visible to ignore on the evolving model so I have started filling them. (Tamiya white putty for those who care about such things!) But there is no room for a vigorous file and sanding. I can reach in with a skinny riffler and get the cleaning started, but it takes the Hasegawa chisel and the Citadel scraper to get the divots good enough. (It's a great spot for grimy weathering. Or, at least, it will be on my models!)
Speaking of Tamiya - there are a lot of finishing materials, abrasives, and tools other than paint in this line that is focused on military model building. Some actually appear in train shops. Tamiya masking tape is the end-all of any masking tape discussion. The only guys that use something "better" are the guys that haven't used Tamiya tape.
Finally, let me flog another of those Zeni SelectTM tools that I have mentioned before, I think. The JLC saw which is like a single-edged razor blade with a bazillion teeth per inch on one edge and more bazillions on the other. Zona; I loved you my friend, but you just don't cut it anymore.
In the photo below note the water stone that comes with the Hasegawa chisel. Plastic is murder on sharp edges. You will need that bity stone. Also, the much-maligned Micro Mark chisel. I've maligned it my self. I bought it when it was really cheap last century. Then I reground the end on a wet wheel. Remade, it is another tool I frequently use. But the price is now really too high to recommend it to anyone and besides that, that anyone must have the tools and skills to regrind the working end of the tool.
Let me jump in on this a bit since SOMEONE has let out the secrets of military, ship, and aircraft model building tools. Darn!
Trumpeter has a vast line of tools, only a few on Amazon. But a Google search for "Trumpeter Tools" will turn up lots. I actually use the Google image search because some of these tools are so weird that a text description isn't helpful. Of interest would be the grab iron tools and the sander. As well as the same line of chisels as this discussion is already framed on Hasegawa. Not copies, but the same sizes which are actually "real world" industry sizes. Trumpeter's focus is on highly detailed and complex ship models of dubious authenticity. If you are into ships you have to go one by one and read reviews. USN aircraft carrier models suck for prototypicality but are beautiful. HMS Hood is a great model and accurate according to the Hood Association. (Train guys aren't the only ones who have prototype groups.)
A smaller line is Citadel which focuses on figure and game models. I use their rather strange seam scraper for all sorts of scraping activities. On The Econo-Stack From HeckRM I sorta forgot to fill some of the knockout pine divots when the pieces were nice and flat on the table. The darned divots are too visible to ignore on the evolving model so I have started filling them. (Tamiya white putty for those who care about such things!) But there is no room for a vigorous file and sanding. I can reach in with a skinny riffler and get the cleaning started, but it takes the Hasegawa chisel and the Citadel scraper to get the divots good enough. (It's a great spot for grimy weathering. Or, at least, it will be on my models!)
Speaking of Tamiya - there are a lot of finishing materials, abrasives, and tools other than paint in this line that is focused on military model building. Some actually appear in train shops. Tamiya masking tape is the end-all of any masking tape discussion. The only guys that use something "better" are the guys that haven't used Tamiya tape.
Finally, let me flog another of those Zeni SelectTM tools that I have mentioned before, I think. The JLC saw which is like a single-edged razor blade with a bazillion teeth per inch on one edge and more bazillions on the other. Zona; I loved you my friend, but you just don't cut it anymore.
In the photo below note the water stone that comes with the Hasegawa chisel. Plastic is murder on sharp edges. You will need that bity stone. Also, the much-maligned Micro Mark chisel. I've maligned it my self. I bought it when it was really cheap last century. Then I reground the end on a wet wheel. Remade, it is another tool I frequently use. But the price is now really too high to recommend it to anyone and besides that, that anyone must have the tools and skills to regrind the working end of the tool.