What are your top 3 must-have modeling tools?

[Anonymous]

Variable speed motor tool, with about as many accesories as you can stand.
Good airbrush and compressor set up.
As for hand tools...
Mini-screwdrivers,
Razor blades,
Sprue nippers, I have a set that seems to be lost in the abyss known as my work bench.
NMRA gauge,
Some really good lighting,
rubber gloves, goggles, and a respirator are useful too.

Oh yeah, healthy bank account, and internet access are pretty handy too.

Alvie.

[Anonymous]

Magnifying Light
Surgical lockable tweezers
Jewelers screwdriver set

Mac

[Nieuweboer]

screwdrivers-tweezers-calipers-soldering gun-dremel-hacksaw-small pliers.
IMO these are THE ESSENTIALS. and as Gordon said wits, intelligence and patience and I'd like to add creative thinking.

[RMax1]

In order:

1. The Internet
2: My digital camera
3: The library

RMax

[cwclark]

1. hobby knife
2. rotory tool with bits especially cut off wheels,
3. needle nose pliers

you really can't stop at just three tools...there are too many jobs that require all kinds of different tools but the ones above are the ones I use the most...Chuck[:D]

all tools? hobby knife, rotory tool, needle nose pliers, pin vices with bits, screwdrivers, pliers, razor saws, miter boxes, C clamps, wire strippers, wire cutters, drill bits, wood bits, sand paper, circular saws, hack saws, paint brushes, jig saws, power screw drivers, vices, AC glue, model glue, taps, dies, pencils, NMRA gauges, rail gauges, hammers, punches, scale rulers, wood glue, nails, screws, nuts, bolts, electronic parts (that's in a catagory all it's own,) paint, air brush, compressor and regulators, extension cords, levels, wood chisels, wire, toggle switches, jars, plaster, styrafoam, coupler height gauges, springs, wrenches, soldering guns (high and low wattage) solder, flux, potable lighting, lubricants, squares, styrene plastic, tweezers, utility knives, hemastats, syringes, wire, brass, balsa wood, epoxies, liqiud nails, JB weld and more i can't think of now just to name a few....Chuck[:D]

[Anonymous]

1. Enough prototype pictures to build a credible model
2. The cojones to saw into $300 of plastic (I kitbash locos)
3. Yuengling Lager for clean-up time

[Anonymous]

My 3 must have modeling tools are: one a dremel tool, two a hammer with a few nails and three a wire cutter.

[Anonymous]

Decent knives

Pliers

Pin vice and small drills

Small screwdrivers

Kadee height gauge

That's the basic kit, layout building requires power tools and sometimes other things are handy for certain jobs - I've found a micrometer to be the best thing for checking wheelset gauges with for example.

[Anonymous]

I already posted here but i thought of another.

A soldering iron. It also helps to have some solder to go with it, which I found out the hard way....

[Anonymous]

Cmdr.WedgeAntilles,
Man, don't you hate when that happens? Unsoldering old joints to gather enough to use. Serreptiosusly taking soldered joints from your kids toys. Hey' buddy, got some spare solder? Sorry, It was a long week.

[BRAKIE]

For me it would be
1.My Dremel tool.I use this on many projects
2.NMRA Gauge
3.Kd Coupler gauge.
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Small screw drivers,a Three prong tool,pin vice and long needle nose pliers, modeling knives,tweezers and sprue nippers. And of course my KD knuckle spring holder made out of a tooth pick.[:D]

[Fergmiester]

1. Hammer
2. Bigger Hammer
3. Sledge Hammer[:D]

Actually I would recommend:

1> Dremel Tool with full set of bits and discs ( the first serious hobby tool I ever bought )
2>Full set of blades and ergonomic handle
3> Rifle and fine files

and if there's a need for brute force there's always a wall near by!

[AggroJones]

By the original rules....

Needle nose pliers, Xacto knive w/ #11 blades, Mini flat-head screw driver.