tools page

The tools required for working with New England Brownstone's cut stone strips and wall sections are minimal. The basic tools that we recommend are listed below. If you are a seasoned modeler then you should have these already.

A razor knife is the primary tool for working with our stone strips. It is used for scoring the strips prior to snapping, but is also used to dress the snapped edges into ones that look finished by a mason. Whatever you do, stock up on blades. Plaster is rough on knife edges. No. 11 blades are by far the most common and work quite well. If you have a cutting mat to work on, use it, but a piece of wood will work fine.

Straight edges come in about every type of material. However, since you will be using one to guide a razor knife the edge should be metal. They are reasonably priced and can be bought at any home improvement or art store. We recommend a scale rule for obvious reasons, but a short 6 inch machinist's rule comes in quite handy because it is just the right size for our strips.

A small square is very helpful. The ones we use are miniature machinist's squares. These have one edge that overhangs the reference edge and keeps the square form shifting. Carpenter squares are too clumsy. Micro Mark sells these types of squares.

Cyanoacrylate glue, commonly referred to as super glues. These work quite well. The brand doesn't really matter. All hobby shops carry these. What you want is a slow curing type to allow for a little adjustment time. You will want to purchase some accelerator to cure the glue once you like the placement. A bottle of fingernail polish remover should also be on hand just to keep you from going to work with scale stones glued to the ends of your fingers. Better yet, wear surgical type of gloves. That way you can still glue your fingers together and still get them apart with out too much undue stress, or an acetone buzz..

Carpenter's Glue can be used if you are not worried about drying time. It is recommended that you use fiberglass wallboard tape when fitting and gluing a bunch of sections to keep all of the pieces together while drying. Check out Dave Emery's blog Down by the New Mill Stream for a step by step custom installation.

Paints or stains are necessary, unless you are modeling chalk or marble stones, which is highly unlikely. Woodland Scenics sells a nice kit with basic earth tones, but don't rely on their colors alone. Your best bet is to check out our Resource Pics page or your own pictures and head on down to the local crafts store like Michaels or Hobby Lobby and check out their paint department. We use a variety of basic earth colors like burnt umber, sienna, raw umber, and neutral grey, which cover most of our needs. You'll have to experiment. Just remember to start with your light colors first and work darker.

Paint brushes. You can buy the cheap set and they will work fine, but you may end up with dislodged bristles sticking to your model. The craft stores are always having sales. Check to see if they are having any deals on brushes. You don't need a super selection. A few broad brushes (vary the size) for laying on base washes and some fine pointed ones for detailing.

Tile cutting pliers are not necessary, but will reduce "wild" breaks. Home Depot or Lowes sells them for a reasonable price. We modified ours by cutting the "v" block down a little bit in order to be able to score and snap closer to the edge of our strips. When using them, always do so over a towel so that the longer part of the strip won't break (where you don't want it to) when it drops onto your table top.

Magnifying loupes or desk lamp. We can't stress the importance of magnification enough. We didn't put this up in the top list because it is not necessary to work with our strips, but it is a luxury that we highly recommend. "Cheap" headset loupes are your best bet and run anywhere between $25-$50 with 2-3x magnification can be bought at hobby shops or online. Check eBay. Desk lamps with lenses can get in the way, but are better than straining your eyes. Working through either one of them is an acquired thing. Some people just can't get used to them. If you do get used to them, you'll never model without them again. Definitely a workbench asset.

A sanding rig with squaring edge is mandatory if you plan on doing some serious stone laying. We don't recommended using sandpaper alone because it is very easy to end up with a rounded edges, which don't make good tight joints. A strip wood sander works best because the paper is attached to a square block and the strip is up against a squaring edge. Sand on the stroke moving towards the squaring edge, only. Like you're supposed to do when using a file.

Files. The absolute best file for working with plaster is the Vixen file. It has single curved teeth across it's working face and is normally used for filing non-ferrous metals like brass and aluminum because the teeth don't get choked up with material as quick. They are not cheap, but worth it for cutting flat smooth surfaces. We understand that body shops use them too.

An airbrush is also not necessary, but it is a definite asset to any modeler. A "single action" airbrush is quite sufficient for most painting jobs. however, a double action model is the preferred type by seasoned modelers.