ColonelKrypton

That is always the struggle. I know of gentleman who builds fabulous scratch built 1/144 scale Great War and early era aeroplanes;. They are real tiny gems. He uses polystyrene but also uses acrylic especially for carving out the wings for these tiny models. I have only dabbled with a bit but now having broached the idea in this topic I think it is about I time I did some experimenting and testing. Feeling newly invigorated with a fresh idea in my big rattling head, I am off to the workshop to have a play. ( and a search online for some small size acrylic rods and what not and will have another look around the Dollar store later today when I am out and about ) cheers, Graham

That is one of my concerns with using polystyrene or ABS hence my fall back to using something like brass or aluminum. Perhaps I should be exploring a more hybrid approach of mixing plastic and metal more often. Polystyrene and ABS is soft and easy to work with but leaves me worrying about the strength of small glued joints. Perhaps I worry too much. Acrylic is much harder but more difficult to work with few choices in raw materials other than sheets and small rods and doesn't always play well gluing to polystyrene or ABS Brass is strong, perhaps too strong for some tasks, easy to work, can be soldered. It is not easy to break old habits and break away from old comfortable ways of doing something. I will make it a point of using more plastic tiny bits - nothing ventured, nothing gained and perhaps I will find a new comfortable place with a more hybrid approach. cheers, Graham

I will have to look more closely at the train bits and pieces. Train stores around here ( Canada in general ) are not as well stocked of such detailing parts as they once were. I use K&S brass and Albion Alloys in thick and thin wall types and in imperial and metric sizes.. Albion Alloys is UK based and not as common in North America but if you look you can find a few suppliers, for example https://flex-i-file.com/en-ca/products/brass-rod I see the imperial and metric sizes as complimentary. 1mm, 1.5mm, 1/16" ( 1.6mm ), 2.0mm, 3/32" (2.38mm), 2.5mm, 3mm, 1/8 (3.12mm) and so on. You can mix and match so you don't end up with everything the same size and you can get some subtle differences. Tie rod ends I have been making from a 1mm slice of 1/16" or 1.5mm tube soldered on the end of a suitable size tie tube ( i.e. 1mm for approx a 1" tie rod ). I drill a 0.020" hole in the side of the 1mm slice of tube and use a 0.020" rod in the tube and into that hole to align and hold together for soldering. The slice of tube is then cleaned out for a rod end needing a hole or I will have already soldered a short length of rod in hole ( if you follow my ramblings ). King pins are made in a similar manner with a short length of rod having a slice of tube soldered on the end and then filed to size. There are examples in the photos I posted earlier. Lots of different ways to make similar items. Lots of interesting and suitable bits and pieces to found in jewellery findings as has already been suggested.

Very nice. cheers, Graham

Very nice indeed. cheers, Graham

I am a fan of many of Bill's @Ace-Garageguy postings, particularly all of the many containing how-to's. It is always good to be able to see how someone else has done something as there is always something more to learn or how to improve upon something that you already do. I recently started a topic on wire gauge number drills and commented that I like to use brass in my builds. My current build is a Revell '29 Ford roadster for which I have made a poseable front using some of Bill's ideas but made primarily from brass. The dropped forged I beam axles is the one from from the kit were the spindles, steering arms, tie rod, king pins - just to name a few of the bits - have been rendered in brass. The steering arms still need to be bent to shape, trimmed to size, and have their ends soldered in place plus there is still a bit of clean up to do before paint; all in good time. I thought I would share a few pictures: Made using 1mm and 1/16 brass tube, 0.020" and 1/32 brass rod, soft soldered with Stay Brite silver bearing solder. Something I have found very useful for making small bits is my make do watchmakers lathe. Nothing more than a Foredom #30 handpiece mounted in rifle hardware to mount a tactical flashlight holder which coincidentally had a diameter of 1" ( same as the Foredom ) mounted on a chunk of ( 3/4" ? ) aluminum. I use hand gravers and a number of small blocks of wood as tool rests to turn brass, plastic, and aluminum. I will leave it there for fear of hi-jacking Bill's topic and skewing it off in another direction. Was there ever a part 2 ( or 3 or ? )? cheers, Graham

Just to put a period and end of chapter on this topic, I did some work in the shop today and made a couple more pieces for the poseable front end of my recent Revell '29 roadster build. I took the liberty of posting a few pictures to one of Bill's @Ace-Garageguy old topics on the the subject of poseable front ends. I noted that topic was titled as part 1 - was there ever a part 2? In any case, I took a chance on some 0.55mm and 0.85mm HSS drill bits found on Amazon CoCud was the seller which have after measuring with my micrometer, close inspection with a loupe and drilling a few holes have proven to be decent bits and are good substitutes size wise for #75 and #66 wire gauge bits which were two of the sizes that headed me down this bunny hole. In the short term I am all sorted for now. As @Bugatti Fan suggested earlier There are indeed close matches but sometimes you need to look a bit harder. I knew that there were metric drills in 0.01mm increments but failed to remember to look that closely. Surprising I found several such listings on Amazon and eBay would as well. Of course your well stocked local industrial supplier would or at least should have as well. Cheers everyone, thank you for your input. Graham

Indeed, close but sometimes close isn't close enough. I like to work a lot with brass usually soft soldered usually with Stay Brite silver bearing solder and occasionally hard soldered ( or brazed if you prefer ). Brass is a nice material to work with BUT the cutting tools geometry, for best results, is different from that for ferrous materials and even the likes of polystyrene. https://handycrowd.medium.com/drilling-brass-the-easy-and-safe-way-f1494d449d3a https://kdmfab.com/brass-drilling/ https://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/18286-drilling-brass-not-as-easy-as-youd-think/ I have a drill set of 1/16" through 1/2" drills in 1/64" steps that I use exclusively for brass and each bit has been modified like that shown in the first link above. I have not had much luck modifying bits smaller than 1/16" in a similar manner hence the reason I occasionally break these smaller size bits when working brass. My compromise is to use decent quality HSS bits. Those very nice, sharp, and brittle carbide PCB bits tend to break far to easily so it's a good thing they are inexpensive and work in a pinch - they are too sharp and grab too easily in brass. Interestingly, carbon steel bits, at least good quality ones, are less expensive, harder ( hence more brittle) and sharper than HSS types but carbon steel bits are subject to work annealing if used heavily and allowed to overheat whereas HSS are not. There are even drill bits having tip geometry for softer materials like aluminum and plastics. They have tip geometry with a smaller included angle ( i.e. pointier ) https://www.fine-tools.com/aluminiumbohrer.html But for our use the compromise is to use the more common types and in that they work just fine. cheers, Graham

I searched this forum using it's own search feature and using Google but failed to stumble on either of the two topics you noted. Thank you for posting, I will have a read. cheers, Graham

I think the same thing when I see the name Gyros. Apparently, at least according to their web site https://gyrostools.com/index.php/ Gyros Quality Miniature Tools and Accessories has been round since 1921. cheers, Graham

Good news indeed. cheers, Graham

Industrial suppliers, carbon steel vs HSS vs carbide vs cobalt - no name supplier stock vs US brand name vs German brand name vs Swiss brand name. Same size drill bits just targeted for different users ( high use production machine shop vs occasional use home workshop ). Godhand markets good stuff as does Tamiya - these are all re-branded products from good Japanese suppliers. I have a likeness for the 3/32 shank metric drills used by the jewellery bunch. I have a set of Busch in vandium steel from 0.5mm through 2.3mm and I will continue to use these over the Chinese 1/8" shank carbide PCB drills which I will not be replacing as I use them up. All that said however, my hunt was on for some good quality wire guage size number drills between #60 and #80. Speaking of wire gauge - Do you know where these number drills get their # from? I don't and it seems that detail has been lost through the years. It seems however that this start in the UK in mid to late 1800's based on the Stubs iron wire and Stubs steel wire gauges which are somewhat different and these in turn relate to the later Birmingham wire gauge system. Confused? Confusing? I am. Thanks for all the replies. cheers, Graham

I have been thinking the same thing. I imagine they can just like their clear red/orange/yellow/blue. It might produce a neat effect. Smoke over a dark grey ? Smoke over a bright or off white? I was thinking of picking some up the next time I am at the local hobby store and give it a try. I wouldn't be surprised if someone hasn't already given it a try. cheers, Graham

I was going to suggest the same thing. cheers, Graham

Never tried that but hypodermic needles are good substitutes for small drills when used in poly styrene 25g needle is approx 0.5mm / #76 drill and 21g 0.8mm / #67 drill They don't work for material harder than poly styrene however.

I just tossed a bunch of cheap Asian sourced ( eBay or Amazon I forget which ) bits that I bought to try. Good for a hole and after bending half a dozen in half ( rather than break as a good HSS bit would do ) - the bunch went into the bin. Don't have Harbor Freight here in Canada but we do have Canadian Tire and Princess auto which sell similar quality products ( Princess Auto has a "Power Fist" brand ). Consumers have been led down the garden path of the "Walmart mentality" - price is everything. Cheaper prices so that the consumer can buy more ( "The more you spend, the more you save" ) drives down the quality of the product. It is not the manufacturers that are driving the price and quality of products, it is the retailer pandering to consumers that simply want more ( quantity vs quality ). ( now I am irked at having spent too much time online and working myself into a bit of rant - time to get off my butt and get some productive work done ) Have a great day and a wonderful weekend; -15C ( 5F ) this morning but sunny - I'm going to head outside and soak up some vitamin D and warm sunshine. cheers, Graham

Recently, while working on a project, I broke my last #67 and #66 size wire gauge number drills which prompted me to sort through my collection of spare drill bits. To my frustration I discovered that I had in some way screwed up and found that a number of the drills in my small wire gauge number drill stand ( one of those round one with the clear plastic dome top ) had gotten mixed up - wrong size in the wrong place, duplicates of the same size all or some of which where in the wrong place (etc) - seems that I had just gotten lazy and careless Out with the micrometer and an hour later the set from #60 though #80 has been sorted out, now complete with several holes needing replacements. I am a bit fussy about tools, especially cutting tools that I come to rely on. I have 6 sets of drills, fractional sizes to 1/2", number drills #1 through #59, letter drills, and an assortment of larger and smaller metric. I don't mind spending money on good quality tools - buy cheap, replace many times. I have a good selection of the popular 1/8" shank carbide PCB drills in metric size 0.3mm up to ( I think ) 3mm. These are typically good quality, sharp, work well for model building, but are brittle and the smaller sizes are easy to break - sometimes too easy. These drills are handy and good value BUT not always the best choice. My bunny hunt over the last few days has been to find some suitable decent quality replacement wire gauge number drills. There are still quite a number of quality US drill makers ( Triumph, Precision Twist Drill, Titex, and others ) but these are high end products with prices to match often $5 ( low end ) to $20+ ( high end ) prices per drill bit. That is not what I need. There are common small drills to had on eBay, Amazon, and your local hobby store some seem OK, but many are just a waste of time. A recent purchase of some Asian source number drills was disappointing as the drills were good for one hole and were so soft they easily bent - into the bin whey went, not even worth using once then tossing out. Which brings me around to my question - in the middle between the cheap Asian and the very expensive industrial drill bits, two brands seem the most common, Excel and Gyros. Price wise they are about the same but before I give one or the other a try I was looking for any nay, yay, or meh from the learned Model Car Mag forum members? cheers, Graham

Spending much of today ( and yesterday, and the day before ) sorting out my set of small number drills and trying to find decent replacements. I have tried to consolidate to using metric size drills in 1/10 of a millimeter sizes i.e 0.3, 0.4, 0.5 ... ( etc ) but sometime they just won't do. Had to get out a micrometer to sort out the similar size wire gauge number drills that I have, what I need to fill holes from missing or long past dull bits. Searching for suitable replacements led me down a twisty frustrating bunny hole. Lots of suitable sizes on eBay, Amazon, hobby stores, industrial suppliers (etc) with prices from dead cheap to eye watering expensive. Bahh! Sounds simple to find some decent wire gauge number drills but it isn't always done. cheers, Graham

the size of the part ( i.e. diameter if round ) is set by whatever punch tool you use to make your disc. You could use a simple 1/4" paper punch or round hole or leather punches (as seen in the first post of this topic) or you could even use a jewellers disc cutter ( often from about 3mm up in size in 1mm steps ) The curvature given to your disc is made from using the dapping block. You do not need to use the 5mm size depression for a 5mm diameter disc. For example, you could impart a shallow curvature by using the 20mm or 30mm size depression with your 5mm disc - smaller depression greater the curvature to your piece, larger depression the shallower your curvature. These dapping blocks are quite handy. I have cast resin in one to make parts, even made some bits using heated sprue pushed into one of the depressions. Moon discs are quite easily made too - a 15mm ( or whatever size suits your needs ) aluminum disc, dapped into one of the larger depressions ( i.e. 35mm, 40mm, or 45mm ) and voila, a nice moon disc. You don't the matching dapping punches although they are handy and easy to use, you can use ball bearings of the appropriate size as well. cheers, Graham

Got my '29 roadster to the point that it's up on wheels, at least as a simple mock up, so that I can start to visualize and adjust whatever bits need persuading to get the stance I want keeping in mind that this is one of Backyard Bob's builds and he lives in rural Canada where the roads are not always the nicest- the aim is for a nice low channeled look but not too low so that it would be a practical daily errand runner driver. Gotta get the front end down some as well as the front end and firewall area of the body. cheers, Graham

All very nice. I do like the gassers but the one that caught my eye is the sectioned convertible in red primer, might even look as good as a chopped hard top coupe. cheers, Graham

Indeed. The fuselages should never have gone past Spirit Aerospace if QA/QC was working how it should. Boggles the mind when I read stuff like this. cheers, Graham

It's been a since the last update to this community build and I figured it was about time I posted something on my build. Plans are to build a 29 Ford Model A roadster based on Revell's kit but with a flathead for power. As usual I just can't leave well enough alone and I start down many paths kitbashing. This build will, at least for the moment include some parts from the Revell 29 Ford Roadster, Revell 37 Ford pickup, and the AMT 34 Ford pickup. I wanted my build to be something more long the lines that a backyard builder in the 60's might have built and would have been used for a nice weather daily driver errand runner. Flathead for power would match up nicely with quick change rear end but not having one handy and likely that backyard Bob didn't have the cash for one then a banjo rear end would do. The banjo rear ends from the 37 pickup where OK but I settle on the banjo rear end from the 34 pickup as a better fit but it suffered from warpage and mold mis-alignment when it was made. This necessitated a bit of scratch building to sort out. The torque tube was replaced with a piece of Evergreen poly styrene tube with a piece of brass tubing and sanded to shape. The wishbone was replaced with brass tubing squished to an oval shape, filed and sanded to shape. Once the read end was sorted I decided that I would make the front end posable and went to work making spindles from brass. I am still working on the front end. It has taken quite a bit of time fussing with small bits of brass but I have gotten close. Still, I am considering digging out another front axle from another kit and just assembling as the kit intended just so I can get on with the build. The posable front end would be set aside for another build however. I won't describe all the wee details of how these pieces were made unless someone wants some details; it takes longer to write about those details than it does to just do it. I do like fussing over small details and quite enjoy using brass for these small details. However, with age and arthritis rearing it's head I struggle a bit some days hence the thought of digging out another axle from another kit and just getting on with the build. I have what looks like a really nice flathead V8 from VCG resins on the way which will find a home in this build. cheers, Graham

You can selectively anneal small sections or the whole piece. I use K&S brass tubing exclusively. I don't use a mandrel, just my fingers or section of wood dowel or whatever is handy and the near the correct size and shape. Annealed K&S brass tubing can be very soft, easy to bend, but also easy to squish if not careful. Sometimes I don't even anneal the tubing. No, I don't put anything inside the tubing to keep from collapsing. Gentle curves and bends, annealing, slow careful work and I have never had much of problem. However, in those cases were a really sharp bend is needed and tubing might kink I have resorted to using rod. K&S does sell a bendable brass rod as part of their lineup. cheers, Graham

I wonder if that Plas-T-Rod was ABS plastic? I don't recall ever encountering this particular product before but I do recall that many years ago Plastruct products were primarily ABS and their styrene products were a more recent addition to their line. ABS plastic does require a different cement than what is typically used for poly styrene. I have used a variety of materials and techniques for making things like roll cages and chassis bits, mostly poly styrene and in particular model kit sprues when I had or couldn't find anything else. Now however, I tend to use brass tubing and rod along with some poly styrene. It is easily bent and formed particularly if you anneal it first ( heat to near red hot and let air cool ). It really doesn't matte what you use as long as it something you are comfortable working with and the end results are what you want. cheers, Graham