Hi all:
I am starting a list of essential tools everyone should have and want to know if I missed anything:
Pin vise for drilling small holes
Track cutters Xuron makes the best.
Small Jewelers file for cleaning up said track cuts
Tweezers for holding small parts like track nails.
Set of small screwdrivers numerous uses. Even the dollar store variety seem to work.
Soldering Iron.
Multimeter for testing Mine came From Lot-Less and works fine.
Trip pin pliers
Kadee coupler height gauge
NMRA gauge
Cordless drill.
Needle nose pliers
Wire cutters
Exacto knife with sharp blades
Scissors
Paper Cutter (I use a lot of photos from Textures.Com) for fences manhole covers sewers etc.
White glue
CA glue I buy it in a plastic bottle not the messy squeeze tubes.
There is one tool I have that has gotten little use but might be handy a Dremel tool.
Ok what am I missing?
Joe Staten Island West
Pin vise for drilling small holes - check
Track cutters Xuron makes the best - check plus Demel w/ cut-off wheel
Small Jewelers file for cleaning up said track cuts - check
Tweezers for holding small parts like track nails - check
Set of small screwdrivers numerous uses. Even the dollar store variety seem to work - check
Soldering Iron - check
Multimeter for testing Mine came From Lot-Less and works fine - check
Trip pin pliers - don't have but needle nose get the job done.
Kadee coupler height gauge - check
NMRA gauge - check
Cordless drill - for benchwork mainly (built mine with cordless drill and sabre saw only)
Needle nose pliers - check
Wire cutters - use wirecutter, stripper tool
Exacto knife with sharp blades - check
Scissors - check
Paper Cutter (I use a lot of photos from Textures.Com) for fences manhole covers sewers etc. - you mean like chopper?
White glue - check
CA glue I buy it in a plastic bottle not the messy squeeze tubes - check
also Tenax 7R for building and Testors liquid cement, add on Testors canopy cement
There is one tool I have that has gotten little use but might be handy a Dremel tool - Demel is my primary track trimming tool - I use Xuron to cut rail quickly to size but then trim for a precise fit with the dremal always. It also comes in handy for grinding off sharp drywall screws that stick through benchwork wood, and grinding wood down in places with appropriate attachments.
more tools:
Heat sinks and flux for soldering wires and rail.
Yard Stick, Trammel, rulers etc.
Bubble level for bencwork and square.
Hot Glue gun for various things, scenery, attaching wood in places etc.
Box Cutter
Sanding blocks for evening subroadbed track surfaces.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
Optivisor for geezers like me.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
My number one tool is a cordless Dremel it just about replaced my pin vise for drilling holes.
My tool box contains modeling tools including a Xacto saw,small side cutters,pliers and jewelers files and hammer..I also have sprue cutters.
I never found much need to yard sticks,heat sinks,wire cutters and other like tools. I do use a level and cordless drill though.
Ya just don't need those tools when you build small ISLs with a small fascia and bracing that is set up on a 8' folding table. I don't need blocks even on a 12' long ISL.
I "eyeball" my track to ensure its straight. That may be old school but,it still works.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
It took me three tries to finally get a pin vice that works with the teeny drills.
I'd add a "truck tuner" to the list if not there.
On the nice to have additions, I'd include a digital caliper, for measuring wheel axle lengths, about $24 or less (check HF on sale). And if you're into soldering loco wiring (e.g., for DCC) a soldering station (about $55) is a real treat worth considering.
For heat sinks with rail soldering, I use alligator clips, so a supply of them is handy for several reasons. And clothespins for simple clamps.
Paul
Modeling HO with a transition era UP bent
A scale ruler and a regular ruler.
A pair of desk lamps with the adjustable arms so you have plenty of light and no shadows.
Enjoy
riogrande5761 Pin vise for drilling small holes - check Track cutters Xuron makes the best - check plus Demel w/ cut-off wheel Small Jewelers file for cleaning up said track cuts - check Tweezers for holding small parts like track nails - check Set of small screwdrivers numerous uses. Even the dollar store variety seem to work - check Soldering Iron - check Multimeter for testing Mine came From Lot-Less and works fine - check Trip pin pliers - don't have but needle nose get the job done. Kadee coupler height gauge - check NMRA gauge - check Cordless drill - for benchwork mainly (built mine with cordless drill and sabre saw only) Needle nose pliers - check Wire cutters - use wirecutter, stripper tool Exacto knife with sharp blades - check Scissors - check Paper Cutter (I use a lot of photos from Textures.Com) for fences manhole covers sewers etc. - you mean like chopper? White glue - check CA glue I buy it in a plastic bottle not the messy squeeze tubes - check also Tenax 7R for building and Testors liquid cement, add on Testors canopy cement There is one tool I have that has gotten little use but might be handy a Dremel tool - Demel is my primary track trimming tool - I use Xuron to cut rail quickly to size but then trim for a precise fit with the dremal always. It also comes in handy for grinding off sharp drywall screws that stick through benchwork wood, and grinding wood down in places with appropriate attachments. more tools: Heat sinks and flux for soldering wires and rail. Yard Stick, Trammel, rulers etc. Bubble level for bencwork and square. Hot Glue gun for various things, scenery, attaching wood in places etc. Box Cutter Sanding blocks for evening subroadbed track surfaces.
paper cutter not the guillotine type. I meant the small type with a ruler and slide across blade for making straight cuts.
Hi all
I would add
magnet corner clamps very handy for structure building.
a 3"engineer's square
The NMRA and kadee gauge I think need grouping together,
and given a different name as while essential for US modelling.
Are no use if modelling European trains, but the equivelent std gauges would be needed to match the Euro standard or any other set standard being used
on the nice to have list put track setta gauges.
Has anyone said apropriate scale rule I would put that on the definate must list.
The one I personaly want and can't find is a steel set square I know some one must make one, but I can only find plastic ones and you can't cut square corners with a plastic one.
regards John
I would make that 2 sets of files, one set for track work, and include a flat mill file, one set for plastic model use only... Nothing will kill the nice file job on a plastic model like a bit of metal shaving getting stuck into it.
And, in addition to the model glues, if using Tenax 7 (or similar) a touch&flow applicator.
Add, a quality air compressor and airbrush, for both clear coating and painting and weathering effects. (Harbor Freight has a very good quality airbrush for well under $100, if on sale you can get it and a good quality compressor for the cost of one of the name brand airbrushes sold elsewhere.) Even if you only use it for sealing and clear coating, it will be worth it. (You may start doing other things once you have it.) Along these lines, if you will be doing lots of airbrush work, a quality spray booth, to Evac fumes from your work area. (Or, do like me, spray into a old cardboard box to contain overspray, outside where there is plenty of fresh air.
Good quality paint brushes would allow for hand painting of small details, and for application of weathering washes as well. So both a set of small, detail brushes, and at least a 1/2 inch brush for washes. Disposable foam brushes work well for scenery/ballasting jobs.
Also, good quality wire cutters/strippers. These are essential for any wiring/electrical work and repair. If you do DCC, not only a regular sized set, but also the miniature wire strippers from Micro-Mark.
And, biggest one, has anyone mentioned the most essential tools, PPE? (Personal Protective Equipment.) You need safety glasses, and good quality gloves as a bare minimum. Gloves to protect from moving parts (Dremel and drill guns) and from glues/chemicals/paints. (These can be disposable, but make sure they are correct kind for the chemical/cleaner/paint you are using.) Additions beyond bare essentials mentioned, would be a quality repsperator (when airbrushing) and any other safety gear you might need. (Such as Knee pads, etc... When working on benchwork, etc...)
Ricky W.
HO scale Proto-freelancer.
My Railroad rules:
1: It's my railroad, my rules.
2: It's for having fun and enjoyment.
3: Any objections, consult above rules.
Great list! Been going thru it and checking off items. I have most of them but not a cordess dremel. I have a dremel tool but not a cordless one and its not so convenient, so that does it, I'm going to buy one.
Another "tool" I use all the time is a digital postage scale. Amazon has a wide selection and you can get them for under $20.
Tim
Tools accualy needed to build layout like mine 15x30' are 1: begining cordless tool set (mine is Ryobi, for $80 you can get circular saw, drill, battery and charger 2: framing square 3: regular square 4: 4' level 5: utillity knife 6: caulk gun. With this you can build any regular benchwork you can think of. Now for track laying you need a track cutter and an NMRA tool (other things are extra or are from list 1. Scenery is too involved to make a list.
Fantastic list! Perhaps the moderators can consider putting this as a 'sticky' to help anyone interested in the hobby. I would add the following few things:
- sponge brushes
- 1" brushes (removing plaster pieces or ballast)
- drywall saw (cutting foam)
- wood glue
- liquid nails
- spray bottles
riogrande5761Sanding blocks for evening subroadbed track surfaces.
What do you use for morning and afternoon roadbed?
Clamps
A power screw driver in additoon to the drill
I have the right to remain silent. By posting here I have given up that right and accept that anything I say can and will be used as evidence to critique me.
A file-card.
Xuron track cutters for cutting installed track. they cut vertically
A small straight edge-could double as a scale ruler.
A tack hammer.
Rail spike pliers.
I think a lot of stuff has been posted more than once, but anyway, I bought what I need, when I needed it, if I didn't have it already. Kind of like the tool accomulation that happens in the garage.
Working on, and restoring old garden tractors, the list never ends. And the same goes with my modeling. I think in the movie by Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino, when he told the kid next door, when the kid asked how did he got so many tools, and Clint, playing Walt Kowaltski, said that you "accumunlate them over time".
Start with what you need to do the benchwork, and move on, while thinking about "what's next".
Mike
My You Tube
I would add one of these to the list. They are great for applying glue to small points, making a starting point for drilling, scribing a line and the handle obviously comes in handy for several abusive uses:
Be warned, they are terribly expensive to make (requires one whole sewing needle and a piece of scrap wood), and will take about 30 seconds to assemble.
When the glue builds up on the tip, just file it off once it is dry.
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Well plenty of tools showing up for the list.
I think we have all forgoten something a suitable box or rack to put them all in so the next time we need one we can find it.
A lot of the tools tend to be bought as required.
John:
Excellent point!
I lucked out on this tool holder many years ago at Canadian Tire. Sorry I can't provide a current source. It is mounted to a plywood frame that sits on my workbench:
The other thing in the picture that is really handy is the simple slab of wood that is drilled to hold my most commonly used Dremel bits.
Pardon the (usual) mess! I think there are about three projects on the go in this picture.
Micro-Mark makes (or has made for them):
spiking pliers for lots of uses beside spiking
flush-cutting sheers
sprue-cutting sheers (very helpful for clipping plastic parts off sprues
ONE set of needle files? I have seven, including the first ones I bought nearly 60 years ago. I have regular 5" needle files and 3" mini-files, in both regular and diamond types (I build O scale locos)
I also have two sizes of jewelers drill presses and a micro-lathe, but I worked for 40 years with a Moto-Tool in a drill press frame--with foot rheostat and small bit adapter check
I was lucky enough to buy a 'Monster' mini hand drill and scroll saw, but if you're going to drill a lot of holes, be kind to yourself and buy a cordless screwdriver and adapter drill chuck(s), MM has several kinds
BTW, I solved the problem of organizing modeling files 20 years ago by buying one of those 3-arm kitchen towel racks, filing grooves in the arms, and forming double-sided hooks out of wire handles from Chinese take-out containers
Model Railroading is Fun! Enjoy yourself!
Deano
I sure can't argue with the list of tools, and I have most all of them and used and valued them for years. That said, there are some things we must have that are not something you can buy.
To get the most of the hobby, you have to have patience and perseverence. Whether its building a kit, or wiring a layout, or especially (in my case) working with decoders, P&P are a must.
Also, Planning is a must as well. Getting some of the Kalmbach or RMC primer type books and studying them and drawing out your layout, roster, etc. beforehand will do nothing but serve you well for the actual building.
ENJOY !
Mobilman44
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
Mobilman youare right. When I startEd this thread it was because I had bought a pin vise ad began using it to drill little holes in track to spike it down. So I Got to thinking what else might I be missing? One of those tools every MR should read is track planning for realistic operations.
My suggestion is a good supply of disposable micro brushes. Useful for paint, weathering powders and glue.
Deano, Sounds interesting, but I am having trouble picturing it in my mind. How about a photo? Deano said: "BTW, I solved the problem of organizing modeling files 20 years ago by buying one of those 3-arm kitchen towel racks, filing grooves in the arms, and forming double-sided hooks out of wire handles from Chinese take-out containers"
A foam cradle so that you can work on detailed models without damaging them. They also often have a little foam depression or "tray" for the screws so that you don't lose them.
I believe it's Bowser part number 1, or another very low number, but other manufacturers do also sell very nearly the exact same item.
John
Perhaps the most obvious tool of all on the above lists is the hobby knife. Xacto is a popular brand but there are others.
Far less obvious but no less a "tool" is the strength of will necessary to discard and replace the blades really often so that the knife is always at optimal sharpness. This strength of will is not so easily acquired, but it helps to buy and have handy replacement blades in bulk, as well as an easy and safe way to dispose of the old blades (don't even think about keeping them "in reserve").
I do keep handy a "junk knife" - the cheapest Xacto makes - for all the many functions such as scraping molding seams or stubborn bits of paint and such that prematurely dull the blade yet do not require the best sharpness. The kind of functions where you might be tempted to use a fingernail, in other words. This too calls for strength of will: put down the knife already in your hand and take up the junk knife for the next step, and resist the temptation to use the junk knife for any but the most crude actual cutting, even if it does not seem like precision cutting. Again the actual "tool" is the strength of will to do this.
Years ago I bought a digital calipers that reads out in actual HO feet and inches. I use that a lot and I am not sure why General stopped making them.
Dave Nelson
How about some high end tools for scratchbuilding, kitbashing and modification of motive power, like a Sherline lathe and mill?
Bernd
New York, Vermont & Northern Rwy. - Route of the Black Diamonds
protolancer(at)kingstonemodelworks(dot)com
1-2-3 blocks for structure building. Perfect 90s everytime. Useful for lots of things. Amazon. $15 a pair.
Cash? ;-)
Microtrains Coupler Gauge (instead of the Kadee gauge)
Strength in diversity!
Bernd How about some high end tools for scratchbuilding, kitbashing and modification of motive power, like a Sherline lathe and mill? Bernd
We all have our price limits and hobby budgets, but a Sherline lathe suitable for model railroading can be had for the price some are willing to pay for 3 or so DCC-sound locomotives. If you like to build and modify locomotives, and can afford one, it's a great piece of equipment. I use mine a LOT!
One item not mentioned, but could be labeled a tool; As long a test track on your work bench as space will allow for, and a separate power pack,with volt and ammeters if you run DC. Ammeters should be able to measure milliamps these days. An old 5 amp ammeter is useless on modern motors.
I don't run DCC, but anyone experienced in it could add their advice on powering a bench test track.
You'll be amazed how useful this is for locomotive work. Dan