PE Tool Suggestion

[Tigerdvr]

I'm getting into some PE projects to gain some positive experience. I'm building 40mm Bofors quads by Veterans Models.

Even though I have a good selection of tweezers, I wonder if you folks with experience with the tiny stuff have anything

special you find helps handling very small parts without going crazy.

Thanks, Harley 

[druxey]

Watchmakers' tweezers, perhaps?

[Jaager]

A blob of Silly Putty or modelers clay - on a stick - or not - to hold or pick up small stuff?

[Dan Vadas]

Cut a flat angle in the end of a toothpick and lick it. This works well for parts that are a bit small for tweezers.

 

Use one or two tiny drops of PVA glue to position the part, allow to dry for a few minutes, then apply CA glue. A sewing needle with the end of the eye ground off, held in an Xacto handle, makes neat work of applying a small amount of CA.

 

Danny

[Richard Griffith]

Dan's half needle idea is good - I also use a very small loop of wire held in a dowel.  Duff

[Moab]

Dan’s needle idea works great. 

What I’d like to know is where to get “really great quality” tools.  Most of the online suppliers offer good stuff but not great stuff. For example the tweasers you get from most of them are good but not great. I’m sure a great pair from a good jewelry supply store would cost more but I’d like to have choice to buy great products.....Moab/Allan

[Tigerdvr]

Thanks very much for all the good ideas. Time to experiment.

[Canute]

One place I'm a happy customer of is UMM-USA. They cater to the armor and aircraft modelers, but good tools are universal. Check their site: http://www.umm-usa.com/

At the least, you'll get an idea of tools you "might" need.

[kurtvd19]

Ken beat me to mentioning UMM-USA.  John was a vendor at the NRG's St. Louis Conference and his tables were always crowded and doing a brisk business.  I have a whole bunch of his tweezers - g\very good quality at a good price.  His tools are all of good quality and he has a bunch related to photo etch bending and handling.

Kurt

[Bob Cleek]

Good sources of quality tools are medical and dental supply houses. Many jeweler's supply houses do carry good stuff, as well, but at a seriously high price. eBay can also be a promising hunting ground, if you know what to look for. Outfits like Micro-Mark have many hard-to-find tools, but sometimes at hugely inflated prices (wait for their sales) and often at a much lower quality. For example, MicroMark sells a cheaply made pair of 6" proportional dividers made by Tasco for around $100, or as low as around $60 on sale, but you can often find a cased 10" German silver Keuffel and Esser "Paragon" model with rack and pinion adjustment (their top of the line) on eBay for the same price, and seven and a half inch dividers of similar professional quality for much less. Notably, the K&E Paragon model 10" dividers have "universal decimal scaling," accurate to, IIRC, .005 using its Vernier scale adjustment.

 

Micro Mark 6" chromed steel:

 

 

Keuffel and Esser "Paragon" 10" proportional dividers:

 

 

 

[Bob Blarney]

You might try some jewelers' supply houses.  Here's one that I visit occasionally.

 

crhill.com

 

tweezers - the Dumont are excellent.  The tips are very fine, and they should always be covered when not in use.

 

http://www.crhill.com/tweezers.aspx

Edited June 26, 2018 by Bob Blarney

[Altduck]

Otto Frei lists a wide selection of tweezers, too - high end to low end, you gets what you pays for.

 

http://www.ottofrei.com/jewelry-tools-equipment/bench-tools/tweezers

[Bill Tuttle]

I will second Bob's comments.  The Dumont tweezers are beyond compare.  You can keep them sharpened on a stone when necessary and every time I buy one of the cheaper versions I am always disappointed.  They can be bought on ebay for fairly competitive prices.

 

Bob Cleek also mentioned the Proportional Dividers with rack and pinion which are also available on ebay for very reasonable prices at times.  I find myself reaching for these constantly to transfer dimensions for different plans which are not drawn to the same scale.

[exwafoo]

for small bits  -  http://www.radubstore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=77_122&products_id=434

 

for PE tools in general   -  http://www.radubstore.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=77_79

 

Alan

[Jolley Roger]

The Small Shop https://thesmallshop.com/collections/photo-etch-bending-tools also have some tools available