About to finally dive into my F4U Corsair using my Eduard PE parts for the pit. Anyone found the best way to get those perfect bends. Thought about using the back end of my hobby knife. Ideas?
Mark
Mark…look at Chukw’s Helldiver thread here…or check the Tools or Techniques topics…lots of stuff there. I haven’t used any PE…so HTH
Flat surface combined with a flat steel ruler and a safey razor blade.
Otherwise if you can shop at your LHS for a pair of Xuron PE Pliers. If those are not readily available or affordable, try looking for a pair of cheapos that have a good squared jaw that allows you to hold the part snuggly while you bend it.
Again you can use a safety razor blade or steel rule to assist with a nice square even fold.
For doing rounded curved bends, find the appropriate diameter drill bit, bullet casing, tubing and some masking tape. The masking tape allows you to not only hold the PE part but gives you leverage to achieve the bend.
You might have to bend it past the curvature you desire to get it to hold the shape you want. If it is too tight, just flatten it back out slightly.
Hope this helps.
Thanks guys…that helps. Ready to get at it!!
Mark
I love PE and the pliers ive used for all the stuff ive ever built were Tamiyas PE pliers. Cheap and chearfull and on Eb#y.
…Guy
For smaller parts I usually use a pair of tweezers to hold the part and a #11 blade to make the bend. Pliers for medium sized pieces work well as described by other responders. For larger PE parts like flaps (for example the complex flaps that Eduard produces for many different kits) I used an EtchMate 3C that I purchased from MicroMark. It’s perfect for getting sharp crisp bends. On anything longer than 3/4 inch or so it’s the only way to go in order to avoid small “wiggles” along the bend line that can occur if you try to make multiple smaller bends along the length.
My FW-190A-8 article that appeared in the March 2008 issue of Scale Aircraft Modeller shows these flaps in some detail.