I did a search here for a small low speed powered drill and did not get anything, so, here is my question:
Where I can find a reasonable priced powered drill to be used to make holes in model plastic ships? I have a dremel, but it spins very fast at its lower speed, which means it melts the plastic, I also have a "el chipo” manual drill, but is hard for me to drill with it while maintaining the proper angle, with the result of broken bits.
I have been looking in the Internet and I so far I have no found anything that could fit the bill.
I also have some EXPO and Minicraft brand 12V drills, key with them is I have both brand TRANSFORMERS so I can go 0-20,000 revs. Because of the way they work, they do ‘pulse’ at the lowest speeds, but they work.
I use my trusty Dewalt DC0710 for my modeling. Small and well-balanced, so its been just as easy to handle as a Dremel. Smooth, variable-speed so you don’t overheat things or over-drill.
I have used one of those Tamiya drills for a couple of years now, and find it works quite well. Speed is not variable, and it is not reversible, but it’s just right for plastic model work. Putting it together was just like building a plastic model, but I had no difficulty.
I had tried a few before, but never liked them. Now I have one I love. It is from Michaels, and is from their beading section. I
The brand is Bead Landing. Lets see if I can copy the image from a previous thread.
Hey, that worked. Only problem with it is that the chuck is 3/32 rather than 1/8, but I fortunately had several bits with 3/32 shaft in my Dremel tool collection, and they have worked so far. If I need to get some other grinder, I know that several places sell 3/32 accessories (my dremels all came with 3/32 chucks as optional accessories.
This is not a battery tool, but comes with an AC power supply. I think the lack of battery is what makes it so light and handy. There is a speed control, and the speed range is just right for working with styrene. It is a bit too whimpy to handle wood or brass, but is a neat option to my more powerful dremels.
Proxxon makes a good variable speed "Dremel " type tool that slows down nicely for plastic work. BUT it’s rather pricey , as all their stuff is, at Micro Mark
I have seen this drill Amazon, the problem I have with it is its size, I would prefer a pencil shaped drill small in size, so I can be sure to be able to use it in tight places.
I went to Michael’s yesterday looking for paint, they did not have any, in fact, their selection of model building supplies is limited. I did not search for the drill, it looks interesting so next time I go the Michael’s I will look for it.
Joe, your Dremel tool, does it have the internal speed control or external speed control as sounds like internal? when i got my Dremel tool back in the mid to late 70’s, it did not have a speed control so it will break 1/4"x 1/2" balsa with no problem when i want to cut it instead. once i got the external speed control the following Christmas, it can go from 0 rpm all the way to 28000 rpm depending on the dial position. with the flex shaft from a dremel clone, i’ll be able to get into somewhat cramped spaces i can’t get into without that shaft. the bulges, sterns & bows was done with knive, sandpaper & dremel tool on plastic. http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=165105
Don’t laugh! Please. I got a small flat topped drill at Harbor Freight. You charge it with the type of cord and fixture you use on a Kindle. The only difference is the charging wire has a pin rather than a flat connector to the drill. Even at full charge I can drill .010 with it.The trigger is that sensitive.
It’s actually not much bigger than a Childs squirt gun. ( The small Space ray gun model)
My Dremel is an old unit, at least 20 years old, it has a small level on the side that allows the user to control the speed, but, its lower speed still fast to the point of melting the plastic. It looks like that the lower speed is near 5,000 RPM, in addition is a relative big unit and a bit heavy.
get an external speed controller to allow you go from a few rpm’s to full speed & get a flex shaft. my Dremel is about 42yrs old while the external speed controller is about a yr or 2 younger.
My Dremel came with a flexible shaft that I have never had the need to use, so I have to figure out how to attach it, I may have to buy a new collect for it, not a big deal. I will check on the external speed controller.
Unfortunately, my chuck is 1/8 shank. I suppose I could look for a 3/32 chuck. However, I don’t particularly like running small hand grinders with heavy chucks. I don’t think the bearings are very good. Even my battery Dremel seems to go out of balance and vibrate when I put the chuck in it.
I have been looking at more 3/32 accessories. I think the ones I would like are a cutoff wheel and a drum sander.
I checked about the speed controller in the Dremel web site, they do not recommend a speed controller on a Dremel that has, like my, a build in controller, they claim that it may damage the controller in the unit.
if you leave the internal speed controll at full then external speed controll should not affect it. will try it on 1 of my Dremel clones to see if any problems or not.
I have a pin vice with a hex drive shank which fits in my battery powered electric screwdriver. With fresh batteries it turns at 30-50 RPM, slower than my Dremel knockoff. Good torque for drilling plastic/resin. Look on Amazon
The downside is that the screwdriver is a bit unweildy for drilling a bunch of repetitive holes in a line, such as a line of portholes on irregular surfaces
