Hi all,
I'm in HO Scale here, and this took me two hours. It was fun, but are there alternatives to a hobby knife?
By the way, I took some shots of my layout in low light, they can be seen here
http://bluetombstone.smugmug.com/Twilight-Images/
See my models by clicking on the link below
Blue Tombstone Gallery
MicroMark makes a corner punch:
http://www.micromark.com/3and16-inch-corner-punch,8013.html
It's actually a drill-press bit, but if you've already got a drill press and do a lot of this, it might be worth it.
As for me, I use a knife. I don't cut out window openings all that often.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
I find cutting styrene very painful. I have a Pike Stuff "Kitbash Series" kit and it has corrugated styrene sheets 1/8" thick that need straight and long cuts. It's been sitting half-done for a year. I tried hobby knife, Dremels (tends to melt the edge and deform it).
Just not having good luck with styrene.
NP.
I don't use a "hobby knife." Instead, I've got a "utility knife," which has a much thicker handle. Mine is a Nack Knife, made by Ryobi. The bigger handle lets you get a good grip on the knife without having to close down your hand as much.
A standard utlity knife requires a screwdriver to open it up and change blades. I find that it holds the blades very securely, which isn't always the case with hobby knives. My Ryobi has a multi-blade cartridge for blades, which makes it easier to change to a fresh blade. More important, I don't have to hunt all over my workshop for blades. (Now, where did I put those spare cartridges?)
X-acto makes a mini saw blade that fits in the hobby knife handle. I've drilled a hole and started the blade (the end is narrower than the main part so 1/8"-3/16" will get you started) to cut Kibri and the original Modular DPM window openings easily. I'm pretty sure I bought it at Hobby Lobby or my LHS. Check it out:
http://xacto.com/products/cutting-solutions/blades/classic-blades/Keyhole-Saw-Blade-15.aspx
Mine doesn't move.......it's at the station!!!
One thing that I have tried and it works (but requires you to be in a very focused state) is to clearly mark the window openings to be made (of course), and then use a hot X-acto chisel blades (heated by candle flame) to burn/melt thru inside of the window marking line, and then file to the window line.There are some obvious potential failure points (melting outside the line, burning yourself, not having a fan to blow away reeking melted plastic smell), which is why you need to carefully plan the steps - but it does save a boatload of time over the repeated knife scoring till open.I've used the drill many holes and cut thru the remainder option too, but that seems to require much more filing than the hot chisel method.
I have cut a number of window and door openings in box cars and structures. What I find helpful is to mask the cut area (generally on the inside of the item) and, with a very fine pencil lead, draw the cut lines. If you are doing a series of cuts, make a styrene template (cut from scrap or sheet material) to size and draw the set of cuts on the masking tape, using another piece of tape or small ruler to align and array them properly.
I use the back side of a standard Xacto blade to then scribe the intial cut lines and carefully repeat the scribing process until I have cut thru the material. The remaining scribed (but as yet not cut completely through) sides and corners may then be cut thru carefully with an Xacto small saw blade (the parallelogram- shaped small one you insert into a holder. That way, you will minimize the risk of continuing to use a blade that might cut past where you want to stop and the saw blade is better controlled in that regard.
Use a high number grit or sandpaper (or even an emery board, which provides a built-in straight backing) to gently remove cutting debris and burrs from both sides of the cut.
Anytime you are cutting small stuff like this, patience is a virtue!
Cedarwoodron
What you need is a knibler.
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
I bought one of those corner punches (Veritas)), supposedly for use with either a drill press or hammer, but I can say for certain that the hammer-powered version does not work on those cast styrene wall sections from Walthers or DPM - the punch cut the corner well enough, but shattered the brittle sheet. It may work better on the soft sheet-type styrene, such as that offered by Evergreen.As suggested, a utility knife is easier to handle, with stronger (and cheaper) blades. The X-Acto saw (fits in the standard X-Acto handle) is probably the easier to use, though, and cuts fairly quickly.I'd guess that you might also have success with a variable-speed jigsaw with a fine blade - perhaps the one meant for laminate-type countertops. The saw should be used on slow speed to avoid melting the plastic.
Wayne
Thanks to all the great replies.... I've heard two votes for the nibbler. I think I'll try one.
Nibbler is the thing. There is an article by Jack Burgess in last month's Model Railroad Hobbyist on using one.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Nibbler takes surprisingly more skill than I'd have thought (although its actual operation is about as straightforward as you can get) and is...shall we say time consuming.
Also my apartment is full of tiny little blue grains of rice that I've been cleaning up for two weeks now.
You could build a small CNC machine out of old printer parts. It wouldn't have to as big or as powerful as the ones you generally see at CNCZone. You can scavange parts from old non-working dot matrix printers. Consumer-grade inkjet printers probably aren't suitable.
http://www.engadget.com/2006/06/29/how-to-build-your-own-cnc-machine-part-1/
Steve S
I've used a Nibbler and it works pretty well. It is easy to control your cuts but I found it being pretty time intensive.
My technique is to first, print out the window openings on a piece of gummy label-type material from Avery. I always extend the cut marks beyond the opening so that the finished drawing looks like this #. Next, position the label where you want to cut the window; it seems to work best working from the inside of back side of the stock. Omce the label is in position, I use a straight edge & a hobby knife and score the cut lines repeatedly but not with muc pressure. When I make a nice scribe mark, I get a single-dege razor blade in a blade holder and use the corner of the blade to gently but firmly push the corner along the line through the material, completing the cut. I do this going each way on the line so I get eight "cuts" per opening.
The advantage of the razor blade (to me) is that it is thinner than the Xacto blade and is easier to push through the plastic stock. This works particularly well in plastic like Evergreen Styrene.
dlm
engineerkyle:
In case nobody has said it already, to the forum!
Your work looks to be very accurate!
I think the first thing you need to recognize is that your chosen wall material for this project is rather thick. As you discovered it takes some work to make the cuts with a blade in material that thick. (I noticed that you didn't complain about how sore your fingers got!)
I will also vote for using a nibbler with material like that, but I wouldn't try to make the finished cut with that tool. Use the nibbler to open up the space but leave just a bit of material inside the edge of the opening. You can then use a file to get the opening to the exact size required. Test fit your windows/doors as you file so you don't take out too much material. In your case there was exterior trim on the windows and door which allows for some flexibility. However, if you are working with masonary windows (no exterior trim) you have to get things really close.
For thinner material using a blade will be a bit faster but I would still cut slightly undersize and then finish with a file.
No matter how accurately you measure and lay out your cut lines they will likely not be a perfect match for the windows/doors if you are relying on using a knife or a nibbler only. I learned this the hard way when I was first in the hobby. I scratch built some interesting structures but I didn't get the window/door openings close enough. Fixing that turned into a disaster to the point that I will have to start from scratch with at least one major structure. It only has about 30 large windows and half a dozen doors so its no big deal - NOT!
You are off to a good start! Please show us more of your completed projects.
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Dave,
First, thanks for the kind words. This seems like a very good forum indeed. Regarding the material for this project, the Walthers brick sheets. I find a real advantange to cutting these from the front. It was easy for me to follow the mortar lines to get nice square window openings and near perfect fits for the frames.
I will always try to comply with a photo request...
... and many more photos can be see at my website.
My technique is to start with a pin vise to drill a pilot hole, then turn to a jeweler's saw and some Fine and Xtra Fine blades. Using hobby knives and box cutters won't cut straight enough lines and require too much pressure.
Rich
Alton Junction
The photos are great!