Starting off.

[Del640]

As promised!!

I've been perusing the store with a view to purchase some essentials..
I started with brushes then sandpaper at this point I couldn't work out what the grit of the paper was...40 yrs ago I recall finishing off with something around a 600grit?

Anyway, I digress...in a nutshell if you were like me, reinventing yourself as such what would you recommend as a foundation for a good standard modelling outlay...paint,brushes,adhesive the lot!
I'm not loaded so something modest to give me a good starter.

Again, thank you in advance!

Del

[AlanG]

Del.

Essential stuff to make a model. Paint, glue, time. I can recommend two of them but not the third :smiling3:

Most people these days use acrylic paints. I prefer Vallejo but others like AK Interactive. They are safer than the old enamel (Humbrol/Revell) paints but are a little more delicate.

Paint brushes i would say start of with a multi-size pack of Humbrol/Revell brushes. These aren't fantastic brushes but will get you started again. And once you move up/if you move up, to an airbrush then you can use these old brushes as cleaning brushes.

Sand paper grit grades. The higher the number the finer the sander is. I only tend to use sanding sticks that are medium and fine. I also have one of those nail polishing things that have three difference grades on it.

Glue. You can still get the old stringy type glues (if you want them). Revell Contacta is a decent glue. I love my Tamiya extra thin as it's great for quick bonding.

Blades. Try and get a blade holder that can accommodate a few different size blades.

[Guest]

Good advice from Alan. I agree that you actually don't need much to get started - glue, sandpaper, filler, a sharp knife, paint and brushes, tweezers, which is pretty much all I use now. The industry will try and sell you just about every modelling aid they think you need (including the kitchen sink) but these can be added to your work-box as and if you feel you need them.

[Tim Marlow]

I would add a sprue cutter, (decent sharp wire cutters will do) for ease of cutting parts off of the runners, tweezers for placing small parts, and if you’re an old git like me, some form of magnifying glasses to see the small bits...you don’t need an all singing all dancing optiviser to start with, 3.0 magnifying reading glasses from a Tesco’s or similar will get you going.

[PaulTRose]

cocktail sticks......thousands of them!.....universal modelling tool!

[PaulTRose]

blutac.............use it with cocktail sticks to hold parts whilst you paint them.....use for masking when doing camo

block of wood with rows of holes in to hold the cocktail sticks, that has the blutac on that holds the parts whilst you are painting them

[Guest]

Great advice by everyone.
I’d consider this list the basics.

• snips
• glue - suggest both super glue and cement
• files
• craft knife
• masking tape
• cocktail sticks
• cotton buds
• paint brushes
• tweezers
• blutac

You’ll achieve a very reasonable level of model with very little, and it’s in these basics that investment should be made.
As Peter says, there is a lot of gear out there that will separate you from your money, all of it useful but not necessarily essential.

You’ll also develop an eye for stuff to pick up for free, such as coffee stirrers, sauce pots, tin foil...

[Dave Ward]

Cotton buds, along with cocktail sticks, items that you already have at home, nail clippers, emery boards ( nail care ), nail files, clothes pegs.
Find which is most important to you before splashing the cash on fancy bespoke items. The only tools you really need to buy are a craft knife, and paint brushes - aside from the obvious paint & glue!.
Once you get a model ( or two ) under your belt, you can get a better appreciation of what you really need. In my case, these would be tweezers, filler, masking tape, sanding sticks. Of course by this time you're hooked, and you must have that airbrush, compressor, miniature drill..............................
It can be quite a test, making models with minimal tools. At one time, I carried an old glasses case when I was away from home, with a small collection of tools, so I could make a model wherever I was ( Matchbox models were ideal )
Concentrate on techniques, rather tham amassing tools ( yes, I'm really guilty of that )!!!
Dave

[Del640]

Brilliant!
I have the cocktail sticks (some things never change!)
Right, I'm off to the shop!
Thanks guys.
Del

[Jim R]

Hi Del
Very sound advice from the guys. All I would add is, after you have the basic kit, only buy "stuff" as you need it not because you think it might be useful sometime. I speak from experience as I have drawers full of "stuff" gathering dust that I bought 'cause I thought it might, maybe, perhaps be useful :rolling:
Jim

[Del640]

Looks like quite a lot of places are running low on stock, I've gone to the shop here (will always be my first port of call/loyalty) but they are temporarily out of stock of certain items and this appears to be the norm everywhere else (understandable under the circumstances)
I have a few days wait now until everything I need is at my disposal, thanks again!

[Guest]

Looks like quite a lot of places are running low on stock, I've gone to the shop here (will always be my first port of call/loyalty) but they are temporarily out of stock of certain items and this appears to be the norm everywhere else (understandable under the circumstances)
I have a few days wait now until everything I need is at my disposal, thanks again!

Check ebay, emodels for straters for stuff you cannot get from this shop.

[Guest]

Very sound advice from the guys. All I would add is, after you have the basic kit, only buy "stuff" as you need it not because you think it might be useful sometime.

Also: don’t make the mistake that expensive tools automatically mean you’ll make better models — a good workman will achieve a lot more with poor tools than a poor workman with good tools. Of course, good tools are better than poor tools, but a lot of people these days (not just in modelbuilding) appear to have the idea that if they just buy the most expensive gear they can afford, they’ll automatically be good at their chosen hobby.

[BattleshipBob]

Swear box and headache tabs are popular with me :tongue-out3:

[AlanG]

I'm thinking of getting rid of my swear box. It seems to get full up to quickly and i have to empty it by buying another model