Just thought I would stop by and introduce myself. I just got into building models recently and have found this site and the Fine Scale Modeler to be an excellent source of information. I wish I had known some of this stuff before and I would have saved myself some heartache.
I recently bought a Hasegawa 1/48 A6M2 zero. This will be the first plane I have sucessfully put togather other than a cheap revell i bought and threw togather in a day. There was that JU-87…but we wont speak about that abomination. Along the way I have managed to pick up a nice set of hobby knives, some tweezers, emory boards, about 20 colors of flat paint, some gun metal finish, some nice small brushes, an Aztek airbrush (I wish i would have known better but it seems to work ok), and some canned air.
Can anyone tell me what I need to complete my tool list? I know that I will probably be adding stuff to it for a long time but I am wanting to make my life easier now. I REALLY REALLY want to make this A6M2 look nice but I have little to no model building experience. So does anyone have some suggestions to a noob?
Welcome to the forum, Ben! Hmmm… What else do you need for your tool kit? Here goes: mixing palatte, stirrer, lots of thinner, Putty, fine grit sandpaper, Xacto Knife (this is a must), tamiya masking tape (the brand i use), a compressor for your airbrush, future floor polish, and lots of household items: Acetone, Twistie-wire, electrical wire, “metal” instant cup noodle covers, and anything that you can make into something that ought to be on a plane!
Modeling is an expensive hobby,but you can still have fun with the essentials! Don’t worry about having the right tools, you’ll accumulate them over time. I’ll see you around the aircraft forum, then! [:D]
[#welcome]to the forums Embark…[#welcome]
imo the first tools you’ll always refer to are FSM’s collection of “How To…” books…a plethora of hints, tips, suggestions and more than a listing of the other tools you’ll eventually find yourself reaching for…
AND of course this forum and it’s many, many most excellent builders and kindred spirit…[:D]
Welcome to the forums embark. for the tools, i think shrikes almost covered everything there. also, buy some decal setting solution like the micro set/sol or solvaset.
welcome to the forums. the above posts have you pretty well covered. anything you need that is not mentioned would be things you will see and then think “hey that would work for…” but you get the idea. good luck with the zero. post some pics when you build it.
welcome friend!! man, it is impossible to list what you’ll need for this crazy hobby!! just do as i did, buy kits and work on them and build your tool collection as you feel you need the tool. you’ll end up with about 30,000 assorted do-dads lying around your workbench in a year or so, and everyone of them will give you that extra umph you need to get that certain task done it seems!! [:D] later.
Hi Ben, I’m in a similar position to you, in the process of painting my first model (Lancaster 1/72), putting together my second (Tamiya Spitfire 1/48), and eagerly anticipating the arrival of my third (Tamiya Corsair 1/48)!
And I’ve already got my eye on my fourth, fifth, sixth…
You’re ahead of my tool-wise, as I’ve not got an airbrush as yet. I’ll see how the Lancaster turns out first. So far, with the lighter camouflage colour on, it looks sligtly patchy, but no discernable brushmarks.