$50.00 tool kit

fleetsailor1981 said:
As the title says what tools would you buy if you only had $50 dollars to spend. I am new to the hobby and working on a budget so any advice would be helpful. Thanks
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I take it you already have paper and printer.
I suggest:

- a cutting mat;
- a good cutting knife (like xacto or similar) with some spare blades;
- a metal ruler (20cm - 8in to 30cm - 12in);
- tweezers, straight and angled (like the ones for electronics); and
- a good glue.

Some good scissors are in order, but I preffer a sharp knife (careful!). If you want, you can get some wood sticks (like the ones you get for barbecues/kebabs), for pre-shaping round pieces, like masts and cannons.
If you have a very dull knife, you can use it to score the paper before folding. I use the metal ruler.
You can buy some color pens to color edges, too. I also use double-sided tape to reinforce edge-glueing.
Some metal clamps, like the ones they use to hold a lot of sheets togeter can be used to hold parts in place while glueing, or just to have it in a more comfortable position to work. That's what I work with.
Anyway, you CAN'T buy, but DEVELOP:

- patience;
- persistance;
- curiosity;
- an open mind;
- the will to help and ask for help;
- good relationships with other members in the forum;
- polite, constructive criticism.

All the best,

Rogério
 
That covers it. On the knifes, I prefer X-acto blades, but in all honesty, I cut most of my parts with sharp scissors. If there is a Michael's Craft Stores near you, you can find UHU brand glues, and another called ZIP-DRY that will take care of your gluing needs. :)
 
Just browze this forum a bit more, and you will find that many of us use whatever is available. in my case, I use sockets to shape cylinders in different sizes, The same for round tip (Star tip) phillips screwdrivers, especially the micro ones which can be bought at the dollar store, in fact, there are many items at the dollars store that can assist in helping make a better model. Scrap wood which can help in shaping box shapes. Ear swabs with the paper sticks. ornamental oval shape bulbs for the plastic casing for making canopies. Other than the nessecities like glue, blades, paper and scissors, let your imagination go and look at everything with a question, "Can I use that for paper modeling?" Before you trash, see if you can recycle some of the scrap paper or other items. (Don't become a hoarder.) Enjoy and see you around the forum.
 
I recently bought a cheap sharpening stone (Arkansas brand, 6000 / 8000 grains) because I got fed up with having to throw my knife blades away. Especially when your model consists partly of cardboard (and mine do), razorsharp edges go blunt after a few cuts. Normally I would have to toss my blade away, now I will resharpen them and save money :-)
 
emery boards that women use on their nails, you will have to file certain areas after gluing, and those are great for it, and disposable, and make great struts for interior supports!
 
zathros said:
That covers it. On the knifes, I prefer X-acto blades, but in all honesty, I cut most of my parts with sharp scissors. If there is a Michael's Craft Stores near you, you can find UHU brand glues, and another called ZIP-DRY that will take care of your gluing needs. :)
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It pains me to report that Micheal's craft stores (at least in the NW) no longer carry UHU glues. :curse:
 
So far, the best glue I've ever used on paper models is Aileen's Turbo Tacky glue. It's incredible, but if you need to glue a piece that requires adjusting, use their regular tacky glue... I would also recommend using scalpel blades to cut parts out, they are far superior to x-acto blades, and stay sharper much longer too. I use Swann-Morton #10a blades in an inexpensive handle, but if you snip off the bottom back part, they fit in x-Acto # 1 handles. In the long run, a $20 box has lasted for several years, so pretty economical! I ordered them from contenti.com, and also gesswein.com, two suppliers of sculpture and jewelry supplies. And of course, a couple of small scissors and a cutting mat with a metal ruler come in handy. If your Wallmart has a decent craft section, check there, as they sell stuff for scrapbooking, and are cheaper than Michaels- Man, I hate that store! You can even get 110 lb cardstock there as well, I think it's Georgia - Pacific that I use, nice and bright, and stiff. I would also reccomend sealing your printed sheets with Krylon Triple Thick Clear Gloss, or Testors clear finishes before starting. Hope this helps! And you're also in the nicest place here with incredibly generous people who are always glad to help :) Never be afraid to ask!
Mike
 
You'll have a lot of change left out of $50! The expensive kit in this hobby is really your printer and the ink, after that you don't have to spend much at all.

I went into my local department store and just bought the cheapest stuff and it's served me well. My crafting knife is just a Blue Spot soft grip one. It was only a fiver but it's got a nice soft grip and I find it more comfortable than my metal Xacto I used to use. Don't stint on blades though.

I like to use some detail scissors to cut the parts out after scoring as I find I'm much quicker and more accurate than I can be with a blade. With practice you wont really need a ruler for scoring except for really long sections, just learn to lock your wrist and move your elbow and you can be very accurate.

I use Brian Clegg Blue Label glue. I bought it because it was the cheapest one they had but I'll hunt for it went this bottle runs out because it's perfect. I squirt a dollop into an old ashtray and use a little hair paint brush to apply it to the tabs and I get a good bond really quickly. Because it's so washable you can just rinse the brush in warm water later (or next week if you forget) and your brush is good to go.

Also I'd recommend getting some reverse action tweezers. They're the ones where you squeeze them to open and they spring shut. My ones have a fine, angled head and you can use them to squeeze tricky flaps on the inside of a model or leave them on as a clamp while the glue dries and you work on getting the next part ready.
 
Thanks for the input everyone. I am sure that other newbys can also use this as a guide. Had already bought some of my tools before posting my question. I will post a photo of my tool kit Tuesday evening as I have a 15 hour work shift today. Just one more question. Where can I get A4 card stock in the US? What I have now I had to get from Kinko's and have them cut to size. About $35.00
 
Well here are some photos of my tool kit, the cutting mats I got at Hobby Lobby with some 40% off coupons. some of the items come from my other modeling hobbies. I have just over $50.00 dollars invested
 

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Great news, and I'm glad I could help! About the paper: I don't live in America, but I've seen some posts with people saying they bought cartstock paper (even A4) in Walmart. If not, I think you'll be able to get it in a good stationery store.
All the best,

Rogério
 
fleetsailor1981 said:
Thanks for the input everyone. I am sure that other newbys can also use this as a guide. Had already bought some of my tools before posting my question. I will post a photo of my tool kit Tuesday evening as I have a 15 hour work shift today. Just one more question. Where can I get A4 card stock in the US? What I have now I had to get from Kinko's and have them cut to size. About $35.00
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As far as the paper, I've been using 8-1/2" x 11" is there an advantage to A4?
 
A4 would just be bigger. For me it's not worth the extra cost trying to find A4 cardstock when it scales down just fine.
 
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