Tcoupe
06-13-2004, 08:10 PM
There has been a few post lately about mills and lathes, which would come in handy if you build and detail scale models but, if you dont see working one of these tools into your budget here is a simple way to machine your parts with some ordinary solder, some heat, x-acto, file and a dremel tool.
First I heat up an old frying pan, cut some 2 inch lengths of solder and straighten them (very important). Next I grip on end of the solder with some smooth jaw pliers and press it straight down to the frying pan surface, the trick is to mushroom the end of it. This step takes some skill as you will want to keep the stem centered, the size of the part you want to make will dictat the size of the "shroom", once I am satisfied with the "shroom" end I turn off the heat while the piece of solder is still on the pan, this will let it cure so it will not distort. Note it took me quite a few trys to get this down...the solder usually has some uneven areas and craters that can be filled with a soldering iron and small solder.
Now, once I have a nice piece to work with, I gently file off any rough areas and try to even it out so it will be balanced. Next I chuck the piece into my dremel tool, this is where the balancing comes in handy, an unbalaced part will take flight rather quickly at 12,000rpm. Now I take some 100 grit sandpaper and smooth out the spinning solder, then with the tip of the x-acto blade I begin to shape the part..solder is soft so it shapes easily, after I get a general outline, I use small files to finish out the shape (moving the file back and forth with the spinning part will keep it from loading up)...constantly turning the dremel on and off to check progress. Here is a pic of a "shroomed" and slighly filed part......This will take a couple of post...so PLEASE do not reply till I say "DONE" Thanks.
First I heat up an old frying pan, cut some 2 inch lengths of solder and straighten them (very important). Next I grip on end of the solder with some smooth jaw pliers and press it straight down to the frying pan surface, the trick is to mushroom the end of it. This step takes some skill as you will want to keep the stem centered, the size of the part you want to make will dictat the size of the "shroom", once I am satisfied with the "shroom" end I turn off the heat while the piece of solder is still on the pan, this will let it cure so it will not distort. Note it took me quite a few trys to get this down...the solder usually has some uneven areas and craters that can be filled with a soldering iron and small solder.
Now, once I have a nice piece to work with, I gently file off any rough areas and try to even it out so it will be balanced. Next I chuck the piece into my dremel tool, this is where the balancing comes in handy, an unbalaced part will take flight rather quickly at 12,000rpm. Now I take some 100 grit sandpaper and smooth out the spinning solder, then with the tip of the x-acto blade I begin to shape the part..solder is soft so it shapes easily, after I get a general outline, I use small files to finish out the shape (moving the file back and forth with the spinning part will keep it from loading up)...constantly turning the dremel on and off to check progress. Here is a pic of a "shroomed" and slighly filed part......This will take a couple of post...so PLEASE do not reply till I say "DONE" Thanks.