Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

Using a #78 bit on styrene in a Dremel is probably your problem. You can easily drill through plastic by hand with a pin vise, with a lot more control and probably never break a bit. And the holes will be nice a and clean when you're done. If you really need to use a power tool, try chucking a strai...

My two favorites are the Monogram 1/48 F-18- usually found as a "blue Angels", and the old Revell V-2 and launcher. Lots of not easy to identify parts, and both can be cheap. Cheap is good. I just picked up a box scale USS Nimitz at a yard sale for $1.00. It's a little big to turn into an ...

I've seen some really nice scale sheets of water done with thin plastic film, like dry cleaner bags, dipped in clear resin. Something like that could work- check out model railroad sources for waterfall how-tos, and model ship sources for "green sea". No need for a real death ray, just the...

There's a well illustrated article on building a large scale autogyro at ModelingMadness. I really like several of the engine tricks!
http://s3.zetaboards.com/readersforum/topic/7249985/1/
Model is still in progress, so keep tuning in.

Lots of engine colors are available- take a peek at http://search.eastwood.com/search?p=Q&srid=S1-2&lbc=eastwood&ts=custom&w=engine%20paint&uid=429252837&method=and&isort=score&view=grid&srt=0 Antique car suppliers will have Packard and Ford Model A dark green pai...

Go to an autobody supply store and get some white glazing putty if you like the white stuff.

I've experimented with Hammerite paint. It gives a nice texture, color and highlights but is a little unpredictable. My conclusion was that it would work pretty well, and it is cheap and easy.

If anyone is near San Francisco, an art gallery is is running some free classes on toy modification. I like the idea, since I've been using a lot of toy parts for the past couple of years. Here's an interview with the artist, and a few pictures down at the bottom of the page: http://1amsf.com/catego...

How large an area do you need to scrape the paint off of? You don't have to do a perfect job, just get some bare plastic on either side so the solvents can get to work.

I'd scrap the idea of using plastic tubing and substitute aluminum or brass. There are plenty of little tubing benders available from Micro Mark, et. al., BUT at 90 degree bend is a hard one to make, The Plastruct piping is easy to use, and you might want to re-engineer your wiring routes.

It's not so much hard as just plain boring. Stick well-engineered tab A into equally well engineered slot B... The last kit I bought to build was the Miyazaki tank, and it flew together in about 3 evenings. I have so little invested in it, it will probably never get painted. For me, most of the fun ...

Yes, fill it from the outside of the model with a drop of clear enamel after the white glue has dried. Looks glossier and glassier.

Elmer's glue makes great windows up to about 1/4 inch around. Swirl it into place, let dry until clear, and then fill the meniscus with a drop of clear enamel.

Toothpaste has always done a good job for me, the cheaper and grittier the better!

I've used a cheap Indian dapping block and punch set for making all kinds of shallow domes, and it works pretty well. Very thin plastic can be formed cold, but thicker material works better after being hit with a heat gun. The lids of fast food to-go cups often have nice little 1cm or so dishes mold...

Any restaurant supply store will have them for next to nothing, usually in styrene but sometimes in PETE. Or even paper.

For thicker plastic I'll cut parts out with a little bench saw. Works great, everything comes out flat and I can cut multiple identical pieces if I layer several sheets of plastic together with double stick tape. I have a Proxxon that I got years ago at some insanely discounted price from Model Expo...

20th Century technology, but you can buy that light off the shelf:
http://www.micromark.com/ELECTRONIC-BEA ... ,7888.html

The veterinary supply aisle of the local farm store if you live in the country has lots of big bore horse needles in useful sizes.

Sandbags have worked for me for some parts. Just fill a ziploc with sand and drop it on top. Layer the parts between two sandbags for more even clamping. The drawback is it's hard to see if (or when) the parts slip out of alignment.

From the MSDS:
http://www.zepcommercial.com/msds/ZU0856.pdf
Looks like just the ticket for stripping paint- an unholy combination of lye, as in Easy-Off and butoxyethanol like Super Clean. Just to be safe, try it on something you don't really care about first.

Or, if you like a quick drying solvent putty, head down to the auto parts store for some Bondo Glazing Putty. Not the two-part bondo, the Bondo Glazing putty in a tube. Cheaper and much better than the squadron putties.

AB?

Why not just use half of a tube? I think I have a styrene wasp trap that is about 3" in diameter, or if you can jimmy the size a little bit ABS plumbing pipe is easy to glue. OR make a framework and skin it over with sheet stock. Frankly, either of these would give more predictable results than...

1/8 or 3/16 bore should be easy to find and could work.

I'd go to a good old fashioned hardware store and see what they had in the way of stock bushings or sleeve bearings. If your dimensions aren't set in stone there should be something that will work in steel, bronze, or nylon.

If 12 will work, print out a bunch of appropriately sized clock faces and use them to mark the locations. Just a suggestion!

Lacquer thinner will usually do the trick. Put your old paint bottles in an old Mason jar, cover them with lacquer thinner, screw on the lid and soak for a couple of days. Fish out the bottles and they should only need a good rinsing. If you can find some "brush cleaner" at a paint store, ...

You could make your pattern out of Balsa, and then vacuform a styrene shell over it. Leave the Balsa inside for strength, and glue away!

I've also had good luck with "scratch filling primer" from the car parts store for filling a lot of fine panel lines, scratches and gaps. Comes in a spray can, but can be squirted into a cup to thicken even more and to be brushed on.