I just got a scribing tool yesterday, I tried it out today on my Revell F-15E and nearly ruined the foward fuselage. No matter how hard I concentrate, the scriber will never go in a straight line, it just curves whenever it wants. I am ecspecially having trouble with the nose cone line. Are there any tips you guys could give me?
I use a needle for scribing, but it would do the same thing, without a straight edge. I use a piece of PE that is about 1/4" wide as my straight edge. For something like a nosecone (really tough to hold the straight edge around and scribe at the same time), I recommend using a blade to score the line, then scribe, very lightly at first, in the scored line. As the line gets deeper and a little wider, you can start applying more pressure.
Two suggestions. Use it with a template. And, with any new tool or technique, generally some practice is needed. Do not use it on a good model until you have practiced on scrap material. This is particularly true with airbrushes, but almost any tool needs some practice to get the feel of it.
Get yourself a PE scribing template, Eduard makes a decent one among others, you can get one that has circles, squares, etc which are really usefull. Another trick is to use label tape, though this is quite time consuming compared to using the template. Label tape (used for label makers) is very thick and can provide a guide for doing straight lines, doesnt work for shapes and curves though.
Most importantly is to be patient, take your time, and practice, it takes time to get good at, how long I cant tell you since I dont consider myself good yet- just average.
Lastly, get something to repair those wayward scratches, as long as they arent too deep Tamiya’s Liquid Surface primer (in the bottle) works well.
One last note- not sure what type of scribing tool you got but after much experimentation (needles, pins, x-acto blade, etc) I HIGHLY recommend the UMM scribing tool… for straight lines it cant be beat!
http://umm-usa.com/onlinestore/product_info.php?products_id=474
RULE # ONE! NEVER use a tool, technique or process you haven’t yet mastered on a project you don’t want ruined!!!
PRACTICE PRACTICE and more practice before implementation.
Unless you have a CNC arm and hand, you’ll need to use some sort of guide. There are scribing templates available which are essentially the same material as PE frets are made of. There are other materials such as Dymo Tape which can also be used.
What scribe did you get?
I use various scribing tools, some I purchased and some I made. Here is a sampling of some of my older ones.
!(http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t320/hawkeyes_bucket/Modeling Tools/scibingtools.jpg)
[quote user=“MikeS71”]
One last note- not sure what type of scribing tool you got but after much experimentation (needles, pins, x-acto blade, etc) I HIGHLY recommend the UMM scribing tool… for straight lines it cant be beat!
http://umm-usa.com/onlinestore/product_info.php?products_i
I’ve been eyeballing the UMM Universal scribing tool and I’m curious to hear some further advantages to it.
John Vojtech’s scribing tool is one he designed to meet his personal needs as a master modeler…it is an excellent tool. Again one has to practice with it as with any tool it takes time to master.
[quote user=“JOE RIX”]
I have this tool and is great. You can push or pull with one end. Use the other end as a carving tool to undercut details in figure clothing and equiptment. You can scrape parts, or even clean out details. It has multiple uses. The secret to scribing is lots of practice on a sacrificial model. Panel lines in real aircraft are very light so go easy with the pressure on the tool. The use scribing templates will help with tough panels. You can also use dymo tape as a guide on hard to scribe areas like that nose cone. I even use plain masking tape as a guide. It takes several very light passes, not one heavy one. I also have the UMM razor saw which has fine and med teeth. It produces clean smooth cuts on plastic parts, many times not needing sanding at all.
I purchased and just recieved the UMM Scriber and I must say I am impressed with my initial tests. I also have the micro saw and it was well worth getting. Overall I am very pleased with the UMM products. Thanks for all the tips.
Joe
Good purchase Joe, as you are now experiencing its worth every penny!
Aong with allthe other suggestions, get some DYMO tape. Nice edge to use as a guide.
thanks for the UMM link …lots of nice tools there
I’ll echo wing-nut’s comments. Get the DYMO or any label making tape. It’s got some tack and is heavy duty enough to keep your scriber where it’s supposed to go. It’s great for anything with a curve to it.
While I do not a lot of scribing experience and this trick has only limited uses, it may be of some help. I save almost anything and everything that might have some use, some day in some way, so I have a boxful of round things, like the cores of transparent tape rolls, washers, etc. For painting bands on bombs, i find the appropriate sized round thing, slip it over the nose of the bomb, lightly scribe a line along the edge of my make-shift guide using a sharp needle (to contain the paint applied with a brush), then find (or sand out the hole a little) another round thing to make the second scribed line. I suspect that this technique might very well work for scribing panel lines on larger round surfaces as well. The advantage here is that the resulting line will be true all around the work piece. A hole template is probably a better idea, but I have not had to resort to that obvious approach yet.
Note:
When you scribe using a needle or other pointy object like a scribe you are plowing through the plastic and any other materials (CA and putty) used to assemble the model. When you do this the surface heats up and is shoved aside leaving a trough in the material. If the material is brittle it will chip and splinter leaving a nasty looking line.
The better scribing tools are those that cut and remove the material without chipping and cracking. I like to use scribing tools that do just that such as the one from John Vojtech at UMM-USA. I also use the pieces from broken micro razor saw blades whether they are mounted to a popsicle stick or some other handle. These cut and remove material leaving a cleaner more defined line.
Even when you use a guide such as Dymo tape or a scribing ruler/template an object that plows its way through the material tends to leave a jagged and not so straight line. Another added benefit of using a tool to scribe panel lines that cuts and removes is…it takes less effort so the task is less fatiguing.
After posting the previous post I quickly snapped some images and wrote this to better illustrate my points.
Part II is live
I use a stainless steel scribe with a ruler. This keeps the edge from waning, and it makes perfectly straight lines with little effort. You don’t need to push real hard - just PULL the scribe toward you gently with it butted up against the rulers’ edge. I take an Ex-acto knife, and scrape away the edges that raise up along the scribed line, then I use an old ink pen and run it along to widen the scribe line once it has about four passes. This makes a perfecly smooth, and even edge with professional results. Practice on scrap first - I did this for the first time in a long time on a project that will be a master for a model I’ve been making from scratch - not a good idea since I scribed a few lines in the wrong places, OOOPPPSS!! I use superglue gel to fill in my mistakes, so it’ll be as durable as it once was, and then some since I’m using styrene as my medium of choice for model building. Just draw your line where it needs to be, then gently run your scribe in one direction - pulling towards you. Do this in the same direction everytime - NEVER go backwards! This can cause you to slip, and cut into an area that you don’t want damaged. I hope this will help someone else on their next project that requires scribe lines.
~ Cobra Chris