Enchantra Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 Well, a couple months ago I had purchased a pin drill. I finally was able to put it to use today and used it to pin the lower arms onto a Kelt Fianna Confrontation Miniature. Man I wish I had found this tool sooner. Man the possibilities I see before me now for conversions are almost endless. *makes an altar to her Xacto Pin Drill* I normally don't paint miniatures other than Reapers, but my BF loved this one so I am slowly getting it together to paint up as part of his Hanukkah gift. First I tried small balls of kneadatite. This worked fine till I picked up the mini and one of the arms fell off :( So I got to thinking of what I could do and then remembered I had my pin drill and man, that is a wonderful little tool. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Page Posted August 23, 2003 Share Posted August 23, 2003 Use cxaution with the smallest drill bits, as they break easily and can then be driven into one's thumb quite easily .....not that I've done that or anything Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kheprera Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 Yes, the small ones are the size of a needle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Froggy the Great Posted August 24, 2003 Moderator Share Posted August 24, 2003 Use cxaution with the smallest drill bits, as they break easily and can then be driven into one's thumb quite easily .....not that I've done that or anything Speak for yourself... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kheprera Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 Ouch. My biggest fear is dropping the exacto knife point first into my foot... or slicing off a finger, which I desperately need to do my job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enchantra Posted August 24, 2003 Author Share Posted August 24, 2003 Use cxaution with the smallest drill bits, as they break easily and can then be driven into one's thumb quite easily .....not that I've done that or anything Point well taken. I try not to put to much pressure into the drill when hand turning it. I'm hoping this will extend the life of the drill bit and my fingers.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kheprera Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 Oh, "One More Thing!" Be aware of how long the bit is in relation to the piece you're drilling. There might be times when you don't want to drill All The Way Through the mini. I did this on one of the pegasus's. I had to fill the gap with some green putty, but I think it will be okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hells_Clown Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 Also beware of friction. Wet the bit before doing any serious drilling, it's amazing how quickly those things heat up. I was quite frustrated when I first got my pin vise. Then one day while I was using it I noticed that when I spun it so that the spiral was moving up that little ribbons of metal would be "spat out". I had been using it so that the spiral went down into the hole I was trying to drill. After this discovery my drilling became much easier. I'm less put off by having to use my vise now than I was at first. Now if I can only get my glue to co-operate... :oo: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enchantra Posted August 24, 2003 Author Share Posted August 24, 2003 I was quite frustrated when I first got my pin vise. Then one day while I was using it I noticed that when I spun it so that the spiral was moving up that little ribbons of metal would be "spat out". I had been using it so that the spiral went down into the hole I was trying to drill. After this discovery my drilling became much easier. I was more amazed that such a small thing COULD drill into lead or pewter. Now I use small pieces of brass jewelry wire for my pins. What do the rest of you suggest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oracle Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 I use several different sizes of the smaller diameter brass wire usually available in hobby or better craft stores. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archaon Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 paper clips, if they are big enough Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator Froggy the Great Posted August 24, 2003 Moderator Share Posted August 24, 2003 Yeah, paper clips here too, to the point that I buy bits to match the paperclips I have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hells_Clown Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 I was more amazed that such a small thing COULD drill into lead or pewter. Now I use small pieces of brass jewelry wire for my pins. What do the rest of you suggest? Remember, pewter is a soft metal, so it's not toooo difficult with a lil elbow grease. As for what I use: stick pins. Found a pack of a thousand at a dollar store. For larger pieces, paper clips. I've considered brass rod, is it really any better? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Errex Posted August 24, 2003 Share Posted August 24, 2003 Well, brass is even easier to work with, since it is somewhat softer than regular pins or paperclips. I have noticed that sometimes, when I cut the paperclips with my clippers, the edges of the cut are somewhat distorted, and sometimes this makes it a bit more difficult to insert into the hole in the mini, or to the base. Brass usually cuts cleaner, with almost no deformation to speak of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Trapspringer Posted August 25, 2003 Share Posted August 25, 2003 Ahhhhhhh those Fiannas... I had one break off at the ankles, so tell me they're not top-heavy I go with paper clips too, I get the jagged edges sometimes but you can file 'em down and the clips are so cheap and available I don't mind throwing a segment out and starting over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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