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  • Find those parts you dropped

    Whenever I lose a small part to the carpet monster, I break out my sticky lint roller. Simply roll it around on the ground. It picks up small modeling parts (and hair) right away!

  • A flexible brace for sandpaper

    A flexible brace for sandpaper

    First, I cut the rubber piece into different widths. Next, I cut my sandpaper to match the rubber’s width and long enough to wrap around the piece 1.5 times — the extra bit of length helps me hold the sandpaper in place.

  • Dental floss saves gums and windows

    Dental floss saves gums and windows

    Have you ever worked on a model with a window that had fallen inside and wondered how you’d ever reglue it from the inside again? This happened to me recently while working on a 1/72 scale B-25. The window right behind the cockpit fell in while I was masking it. Fortunately, I had not installed…

  • Detail painting with a Sharpie

    Recently, I discovered a unique and easier way to accomplish this task: A fine-point Sharpie black permanent marker easily details the small trim. All of my canopies look great, thanks to this pen.

  • Masking with foam

    For those oddly shaped openings that need to be masked, try using foam from the fabric section of your local craft store.

  • Use a monitor as photo backdrop

    Use a monitor as photo backdrop

    I use a 27.5-inch by 15.5-inch flat screen computer monitor as a photo backdrop for my models. This simple six-step process makes it easy:

  • Recycle e-juice bottles

    Hold onto the bottles that once held e-vapor/juice/liquid for electronic cigarettes and use them for mixing and storing paint for airbrushes.

  • Install a 20ma LED driver

    Recently, I discovered a product that made lighting LEDs a cakewalk: a 20ma LED driver. It’s about the size of two grains of rice.

  • Enhance your dioramas

    I have found that home décor catalogs and magazines that feature open rooms are an excellent source for diorama enhancements.

  • Plastic backing from condiments containers

    Plastic backing from condiments containers

    Many restaurants will give out small black plastic containers so you can take condiments home. I cut these up to use as backing against see-through grilles and hatches on armor models.