Pendraken Miniatures Forum

Wider Wargaming => Painting & Modelling => Topic started by: Duke Speedy of Leighton on 23 March 2014, 08:56:03 AM

Title: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Duke Speedy of Leighton on 23 March 2014, 08:56:03 AM
When it comes to painting I find certain tools getting used for certain jobs.
For example, I have a brown, Humbrol number 2 brush that only ever gets used for brushing excess flock off figures. It has never been used for painting, and it went missing this week (youngest daughter) and it didn't feel right, hmmm... Pass the pills FSN!

Anyone else have 'tools' that do odd jobs?

(wiats for various tool comments)
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: FierceKitty on 23 March 2014, 10:21:12 AM
i usually keep a pack of bamboo skewers for reaming, fine pointy work, etc. Also two bits of hardboard for rolling out home-made spears and staves.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Hertsblue on 23 March 2014, 10:52:58 AM
I have an old scalpel blade set into a length of dowel that I use for easing Polyfilla between figures on close-order bases. 
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: fsn on 23 March 2014, 11:08:18 AM
I have a pin mounted on a paint brush handle. Used to use it for bullet holes in Airfix kits. Now use it for poking things. 
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: FierceKitty on 23 March 2014, 11:13:28 AM
Like opps who roll too many 6s?
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Fenton on 23 March 2014, 11:14:26 AM
Quote from: fsn on 23 March 2014, 11:08:18 AM
I have a pin mounted on a paint brush handle. Used to use it for bullet holes in Airfix kits. Now use it for poking things. 

What do you poke with it?   
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: petercooman on 23 March 2014, 11:35:49 AM
I have a paintbrush handle cut in half with a little plastic star on it (cut it out a plastic toy from the child)

I use it to stamp stars on models. Originally i made it to stamp the stars on a LOTR gondor banner.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: ronan on 23 March 2014, 11:49:00 AM
I use a porcupine pike for ages. Helpful to put some drops here or here. And to put a kind of polyfilla  between figs.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: FierceKitty on 23 March 2014, 11:58:52 AM
Quote from: ronan on 23 March 2014, 11:49:00 AM
I use a porcupine pike for ages. Helpful to put some drops here or here. And to put a kind of polyfilla  between figs.

Porcupine pikemen! There's a fantasy army to think about, for those who have a problem with reality.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: fsn on 23 March 2014, 12:40:36 PM
Quote from: Fenton on 23 March 2014, 11:14:26 AM
What do you poke with it?   

Things that need poking.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Ithoriel on 23 March 2014, 12:57:50 PM
Biology pin (half-inched from school when I was about 13 or 14) mounted in a champagne cork. Heat the pin in the flame on the hob and use it to "sculpt" plastic or resin. Mostly used to make or enlarge holes for flying stands/ supporting pins/ etc; to add additional texture to hair or fur or, as above, to add bullet holes.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Techno on 23 March 2014, 01:29:15 PM
Syringe needles in different sizes 'blagged' form our horsey vet.....I take the point off them so they're basically tiny tubes
They make nice neat little circles in the putty when the putty's nearly set..

Different sized brass tubing....'sharpened' on the inside to make different sized 'pastry cutters' for helping make round shields etc.

My home made 'micro' dental tools for doing the 10 (&6) mm sculpting.....Basically large shaped needles knocked into shape and then ground down.....Fixed in pieces of dowel.
Ground down Swann Morton No.15 blade to make the 'halberd end' of a mini wax 5.....Held in some old handle. (Which i think was a small Xacto type knife .)

Ironically.....One of my old dental tools that I used to use a lot when I did 25/30 mm stuff was borrowed by the aforementioned horse vet to lever out a bit of broken tooth from one of the ponies last week......Actually used for something for what it was originally intended for......Sort of.
I hadn't used it for years.

Cheers - Phil





Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Fenton on 23 March 2014, 01:30:49 PM
Thinking about this I think I could be described as an 'odd tool' at times, as we all have our moments
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Techno on 23 March 2014, 01:34:49 PM
I'll leave the reply to that to Gareth. ;)
Cheers - Phil
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: get2grips on 23 March 2014, 03:32:14 PM
Quote from: Techno on 23 March 2014, 01:34:49 PM
I'll leave the reply to that to Gareth. ;)
Cheers - Phil


;D ;D ;D

Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Subedai on 23 March 2014, 03:49:26 PM
I have several b & p's. Back in the '70's I was making a leather pouch for my SK days. To put the holes in the leather a friend got a large sewing needle, wrapped some wire around the top half and then ran solder all down the spiral to seal it. Back in the day I used it to melt plastic Airfix horses to the bases but it's most common use now is to unblock the pouring holes on Vallejo paint bottles. (It's nearly 30 years old!)
I also made myself a set of modelling chisels from 1-10mm and a small brass hammer.
Ground down hacksaw blades (large), put a nut in between the two as a separator and you have a pair of tweezers.
Like Mad Lemmey, I also have a very soft artists brush that only ever gets used to remove flock.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: get2grips on 23 March 2014, 07:02:35 PM
Children's medicine dispenders for dripping single drops of water in to paint.

Brushes that have lost all their bristles for poking filler in between bases.

An old pillow case as a painting mat: lovely for wiping paint off a brush to just the right consistency.

A pack of those very small screwdrivers (pound shop) for poking, pushing, removing flash etc.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Duke Speedy of Leighton on 23 March 2014, 07:43:01 PM
Phew, and I thought is was just me! Can't believe this got to a second page, but then again...
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Matt J on 23 March 2014, 10:03:10 PM
old contact lense cases used for mixing paint in. After a while I need to pull the old acrylic paint out and give them to the kids as crazy looking buttons.
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Womble67 on 23 March 2014, 11:06:32 PM
I've got a couple of old paint brushes that I've converted by putting those small crocodile clips on, I also use syringes for measuring paint

Take care

Andy
Title: Re: Odd tools for odd painting jobs!
Post by: Ace of Spades on 24 March 2014, 01:07:19 PM
I also use a syringe; I replaced the needle with a bit of plastic tubing that fits just right and I use it to drip dilluted pva-glue onto the sand on the bases. Sometimes mix in some paint too. Keeps me from fiddling with filler, glue and paint in between freshly painted figures.
The dilluted glue will soak into the sand without staining the figures. When it starts to set you can still shape it quite well.
Okay; keeping the right amount of pressure on the syringe is quite important!

Cheers,
Rob