Modeling Resources

[ET2SN]

I talked to Neal about it and we'd like to start this thread where we can list sources for some of the harder-to-find modeling and hobby supplies.

In order to avoid its best if this thread is moderated such that:

-URL links must be cleared by a moderator.
-Any posts containing URL links must be held "in limbo" until the URL(s) is/are verified by a moderator to be free of SPAM or malicious code.

This will be a dumb idea if its just me posting random links. If you have either an on-line or physical source, "Mom and Pop" store, or just a good, but unconsidered, source for your go-to hobby supplies or kits- this is your thread.

In other words, PLEASE share where you find your go-to stuff. Just be aware that all posts that contain URLs will be "held up" until they are verified. Its also a good idea if you state why you use a source, instead of just posting links. A little description can go a long way. For example, where is this source located? Is it half way around the world from me or is it local to you? How was the service? Did you have to wait a long time before anyone took your order or it was shipped? This info shouldn't be considered "good or bad", it just helps the rest of us figure out if we would want to use it.

As an example to kick off this thread, here's one of my favorite secret weapons:


Prototype wire, AKA "wire wrap".

Wire wrap is a very fine-gauge coated wire. The usual size is "30 gauge" or 0.25 mm diameter. Its main use is in designing and testing I/C boards and assemblies. Yes, its great for adding LEDs to a project, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Its also available in a multitude of colors, when you can find it. The ideal insulation colors for modeling are white, black, yellow, and red. One full roll will last you for a lifetime but if you see it around, buy it.

- Ignition and engine wiring. Wire wrap is thin enough that you can accidently poke it into your finger. Its also much more accurate for 1/25th to 1/20th scale car models unless your car uses ignition wires that are as thick as your arm. Wire wrap bends nicely and holds it shape. You can easily wrap it around anything from a dowel to a sewing pin to create your own coil springs to CB radio mic cords.

-Towed arrays and mooring line. For 1/350th scale subs and ships, wire wrap is what you use to take it to the next level. Black wire is ideal for a towed array, streamed behind the boat or "faked" on the deck. White wire is great for mooring lines (modern Navy) in a pier-side diorama or coiled on the deck.

-You get the idea. There are hundreds of uses for this stuff.

-This sounds great, where can I get some? Yeah, that's a great question. I checked my link this morning, an online electrical supply store on the west coast. They no longer stock it. In the good old days, you could just wander into your local Radio Shack and buy a 100 foot roll in your choice of 10 different colors. Wire wrap isn't "unobtainium" yet, but its getting tougher to find. I did spot a small roll on Amazon this morning, so its still available. Hit up Google and try search words like "wire wrap", "prototype", and "breadboard" but be careful with breadboard, that wire is much thicker than what you're looking for.

Next post will be my standard "go to" links for modeling supplies in the USA.

[mapuc]

I like yours idea

I have a few links Which I know is clean.

One of them is
Wonderland Models
and
premium hobbies
Then there is this
axel's modellbau shop

People can search for these by them self

Markus

[ET2SN]

Markus, did you read the first post?

Originally Posted by ET2SN

This info shouldn't be considered "good or bad", it just helps the rest of us figure out if we would want to use it.

Why would I want to look up those sites? Do they sell stuff? Where are they located? Do they only accept Bitcoin and PayPal?

The idea is to list stuff we found by accident or sellers we would never have considered if left to our own devices.


Here's another example:


F Toys. No, not those kinds of "F toys". These are mostly 1/144th scale fighter jet models. Why have we never heard of them?

That's a good question and its a rabbit hole I've recently fallen into.

As it turns out, PLATZ F Toys are made in Japan and sold in Asian and Australian markets. Literally. We're talking grocery stores and 7-11s.
Confused yet? It gets better.

Buying an F Toy in Asia means you wind up with a pre-painted, snap together fighter plane with decals. And a piece of chewing gum...
Remember those old Topps baseball cards? If you do, you're getting warmer.

So, these are really cheap toys for kids and what the heck are they doing in this thread? OK, in their home market they are cheap and they are designed for kids to play with and collect. Their home market also happens to be Japan, so what you get is easy to assemble but also finely molded and accurate for what it is. The paint used is, well, top notch by 1/144th scale collectable standards.

Here comes the kicker. F Toys are also one of the few kit makers that still molds pilot figures in 1/144th scale.
Read that again, I'm not making it up. Try to find seated pilot figures in that scale. You're going to find bupkis.
That bomber or fighter you built "in flight" with the gear up? The seats are empty. There are no figures available from Shapeways, not in that scale. No resin, either. Here's the best part, what you get isn't half bad. These things build up looking really close to their counterparts from Revell, especially if you take the time to clean and test fit the parts before hitting them with some glue.

I found a nice F Toys Su-30 on EBay (minus the chewing gum). The kit was surprisingly good, even though the two pilots quickly defected to fly a B-52 I'm building.

Outside of Asia, EBay is your one shot at finding these kits. Just be careful. I just bought an F-14 model last week ( $9 with $7 shipping) before I realized it's shipping from China, with their latest flu lockdowns this might take a while.

[mapuc]

I read it two times more.

I posted these as I have used them to buy tools and couple of models by wonderland models.

Why I didn't put them up with url was this

"-URL links must be cleared by a moderator.
-Any posts containing URL links must be held "in limbo" until the URL(s) is/are verified by a moderator to be free of SPAM or malicious code."

Wonderland Models are located in Scotland
Wonderland Models has been established for over 50 years as Scotland's leading model shop and hobby store in Edinburgh.

Here is what Premium hobbies are located in UK
Premium Hobbies is a new small business established on February the 9th 2018, located in North Somerset.

Axel's Modellbau Shop is located in Bodenfelde, Germany

Markus

[ET2SN]

Don't concentrate on the URL stuff, at least not yet.
I'm waiting to hear from Neal on how he wants to handle them.

Meanwhile, I've heard of Axel's but suppose I haven't.
Why would I want to check out their web site?

Are we talking about kits? Paint and tools? Decals and P/E? I'm guessing you've had good experiences with them???

See where I'm going?

If I mention "Hannants" with no context, just the name, its a little confusing.

[mapuc]

Originally Posted by ET2SN

Don't concentrate on the URL stuff, at least not yet.
I'm waiting to hear from Neal on how he wants to handle them.

Meanwhile, I've heard of Axel's but suppose I haven't.
Why would I want to check out their web site?

Are we talking about kits? Paint and tools? Decals and P/E? I'm guessing you've had good experiences with them???

See where I'm going?

If I mention "Hannants" with no context, just the name, its a little confusing.

I have had good experience with Wonderland Models.
Model kits and tools bought from them came within a week.

Premium Here I have only ordered a few things from them tools from the category painting supplies
Secondly this Online store has been recommended by Nigel on yt.

Axel well I made a search for some tools to see if there were some hobby store inside EU.. I thought they have a lot of tools and models why not recommend this store.
I have payed the online store a visit and been lurking around.

I think you know me by now and would understand I would not post info about online hobby shop, if there weren't a possibility to buy al type of model working tools or models in every scale. I would not give advise to homepages that "Sucks" NEVER.

Edit
Forgot something...I copied the name you posted Hannants and found their online hobby store.
End edit

Markus

[Onkel Neal]

I think this is a great idea, we can allow posts with links to resources; if we come across spam we can handle that on a case-by-case basis.

So far, I have been utilizing https://www.scalehobbyist.com/ for supplies and models, and https://evandesigns.com/ for electrical stuff.

[ET2SN]

This will be a test for the URL's.

Its only a single link and its my Big Kahuna in the US.

http://www.hobbylinc.com/

EDIT- This is NOT the same company as "Hobby Link Japan", who also has a good selection but prices, shipping fees, and shipping times may be a turn off for North American customers.

Hobbylinc can best be described as your local (US) hobby store's warehouse and distributor. If its sold as retail in the US, they probably have it in stock.

This includes parts for RC and trains, wooden ship kits and accessories, current-issue plastic models, most of the plastic model aftermarket parts and scratch building supplies , glues and paints, what ever you can think of.

I'm not kidding. Their front page looks like most other online hobby stores BUT start digging and you'll get an idea of how deep their selection goes.

As an example, you know that display in your hobby store for Evergreen plastic sheets? Hobbylinc carries the ENTIRE Evergreen line and Evergreen started out as a supplier for structural models (like, you want to build an entire factory in 1/48th scale to test the lay-out). They also have the entire line of K+S metal tubing and shapes.

As another example, let's say you're a happy guy in Texas building a 1/350th scale Ohio class SSBN. Let's say you break some of the blades off the prop. In your rage, you wonder why no one ever made one of these props out of real metal- for Pete's sake! As it turns out, someone did.

Dig deep enough and you'll find a solid brass copy of that part, warts and all but in solid brass. I had to buy one just to put it on the shelf near my spare parts drawer. Its much too heavy to attach to the plastic kit and it would take days to clean and polish it out, but its there.. If I had to guess, its meant for one of those carved mahogany wood models.

This brings up the downside of HobbyLinc.. They probably have "it" in stock, you just need to find "it". Pack a big lunch and settle down for a long session of searching, better yet- wait for a three day weekend.
Don't let that generic looking front page fool you. They most likely have what you're looking for. To put this in perspective, most of my more oddball gizmos I use to scratch build, I found by mistake at HobbyLinc.
I have a long-term project to build a heavy duty, operational trailer hitch in 1/18th scale, using as many metal parts as I can find. The tough part was to find an accurate-sized hitch ball. This is where RC came to the rescue, I actually found the right sized ball for the main part of the hitch in the "servos" parts section. I'm just waiting to find the smaller ball for a sway control.
The only other thing to watch out for is HobbyLinc's "backorder" status. I'm guessing HobbyLinc's definition of "backorder" is "This company still exists and we're assuming they will produce this kit or part again sometime in the future". Always check the availability status and use common sense. Order stuff ONLY if its listed as "in stock". While they have a strong selection of European and Asian kits, they don't carry everything. This also includes many of those "short run" kits. Remember what HobbyLinc's "bread and butter" is, selling wholesale to the hobby stores.

Service on-line is great, you'll get e-mail updates as your order gets packed and shipped. Packing is done well and prices overall are very fair with shipping prices (mostly UPS) in the "low to middle" category. Service outside the US is unknown on my part, although you'll find comments from Canadian buyers that are positive.

[ET2SN]

Something else we should get out of the way, early.

When I refer to a company as "Mom and Pop", I'm talking about a small business (including a tax number) that is run out of a small store or home. A "Mom and Pop" is run as a business. They may run a store for the love of the hobby, but they have to generate some kind of profit and pay taxes as a business.

A term I won't be using a lot is "Cottage Industry". They are out there and its up to you if you want to go down that path. For the most part, in my definition, cottage industries aren't a true business and do not have a tax number or any of the paper work it takes to define a business. They may be sellers on EBay or even Amazon but for the most part I'm talking about the folks who can't accept payment by a credit card or personal check. You can mail them cash or use PayPal, Crypto, Patreon, etc. and take your chances.

In short, my feeling is that if someone wants to pretend to be in business- I'll happily pretend to be a customer. But they aren't getting any of my money.

This is a can of worms and can be a very gray area. In my opinion, we should not post URL's or links to Facebook, etc. unless we're sure its a legit business.

[mapuc]

Let me first start with a recommendation It's ET2SN link and description of hobbylinc. I have ordered two wooden boat models from them some years ago. So for my American friends who like to build wooden models hobbylinc is the place.
(But since I had to pay double for these two models-VAT a.s.o I have stopped ordering from USA.)

My own Recommendation.

This hobbystore has it's location in Edinburgh Scotland.

https://www.wonderlandmodels.com/

I have placed more than a few orders and the thing came within a week.

They have models that is hard to find and tools for any model works.

I haven't been ordering after UK left EU, so I don't know if there will be extra VAT for us who lives in EU ?

For the UK resident I recommend it.

I also recommend these online stores for those who don't care if they have to pay double for a model or tool(s)

(If I have made something wrong with this comment then erase it.)

Markus

[ET2SN]

Originally Posted by mapuc

If I have made something wrong with this comment

Markus

Yeah, you're going to make me spend some money.

That is a GOOD link.

And, yeah, that's why I try to list the country of where the store is.
If its on a different continent than you are, its usually a hassle of some kind.

-Update. Dang you, Markus!



I have this plane, in THIS livery installed in FS2004, and its a shame they don't show a side view.

[mapuc]

When I recommend an online hobby store it will one who ships world wide and not some local who don't ship outside country/outside EU or outside USA.

By the way I have a F/A-18 E Super Hornet in Scale 1:32. about 2/3-finished have made some mistake on the plane so I don't know if I'm going to finish her.

Markus

[ET2SN]

Some "honorable mention" links.
Not where you go most of the time, but very handy when they are needed.

https://www.modelroundup.com/Default.asp

Model Roundup has been around for a while and mostly concentrates on 1/25th scale cars. As I recall, they started out as a source for old NASCAR kits and resin bodies. Located in Atlanta, Ga (US) their stock of "aftermarket" items (photo etch, decals, building supplies) has increased over the years and tends to be very complete and stable. I think of MR as that old hobby shop in town that has stuff stacked up to the rafters. Take your time and dig around, you'll find what you were looking for. One sideline is old, vintage, and out of production kits, although these kits carry a slight premium MR keeps their prices reasonable. We're not talking about EBay where old kits get bid into the stratosphere, but the prices can be high. Service and packing is good, but their shipping rates can feel high. Its best to think of MR as a stable source for your 1/25th scale auto jones, but you will pay a premium at some point.




https://upscalehobbies.com/

A kind of a snootier, more oddball version Model Roundup located in Indiana. Upscale has a good handle on Japanese and German kits but military kits could be thought of as a sideline, at best. I'll use them if they have what I'm looking for and I'm out of options. This isn't their fault, I'm just not that into anime and gundam.


https://www.detailmaster.com/
and
https://www.modelcargarage.com/eshop/pc/home.asp

I'm putting these two together because its mostly the same stuff, also located in the US. Aftermarket parts and P/E for 1/25th scale model cars. Detail Master did it first, they were the GOAT in terms of finding stuff to glue to your contest entry. In many ways, DM and Model Car Garage work together so you'll find a lot of cross-over between the two sites. Both sites tend to go through their ups and downs, so try one first and if you can't find what you wanted try the other.
Just because you aren't working in 1/25th scale, don't be afraid to think outside the box. Their photo etch hood pins for muscle cars can easily migrate over to a 1/350th scale nuclear sub as MSW/ASW inlets and outlets.




One link I almost forgot, but this was something I never thought I would see:

https://www.ebay.com/sch/mulsannemik...1&_ipg=&_from=

I stumbled across Mulsanne Mike while I was looking for a good kit review for that Delta IV. No big deal, printed resin screws in 1/350th scale for various classes of nuke and conventional subs.
Without going into details, these screws are very accurate and I wonder how he got this idea and where he got the information.
What you get will drop your jaw. To put this in context, the screw for Neal's Ohio is less than 1 inch in diameter and it is probably the largest part he offers. Mike had to figure out a way to print these parts at this level of detail and to provide some way of shipping them without damage. The blades/flukes of these screws are very delicate and molded in scale thickness. That's good and bad, you may want to "cheat" a little and add a bead of thin CA glue on both sides of each blade where they join to the hub.
What you'll get will look almost like a hairball or a crumbled up page of a newspaper. You'll see a kind of a sprue at the base and "runners" going to the hub plus three runners for each blade. TAKE YOUR TIME with these parts. Gently wash the whole assembly in warm soapy water and rinse. Cutting the screw free from its runners takes patience and either your best pair of sprue nippers or your finest saw blade. Work from the outside in, after you cut the join between the blade and sprue cut the bottom of the sprue loose from its base to get it out of the way. DO NOT TRY TO CUT THE SPRUE FLUSH TO WHERE IT MOUNTS ON THE BLADE. Leave a small nub of material and move on. Once the screw is free of the sprue, come back with a very fine file (I use a Tamiya diamond file for photo etch) and gently file down the nub. This part sounds very labor intensive but you'll be happy with the results. Don't try to set a speed record getting this into paint and you'll do fine.
In the Delta IV thread I wrote something I want to repeat. IF YOU BUILD 1/350th SCALE SHIPS AND SUBS, WE NEED TO SUPPORT THIS GUY. Think of your best source for aftermarket parts, they have NOTHING close to this level of detail.
If you're ordering from Mike for the first time, order two or even three of his screws for your build. Like I stressed before, these parts are very delicate due to their level of detail. Expect to break a blade by accident, it just happens.
With painting, try to keep it simple. One light coat of primer and one normal color coat, you don't want to bury anything under layers of paint.
For assembly, I do something that sounds counter productive but has worked so far. I use just a dot of white glue to attach the part. My logic is that I'd rather have the whole thing break loose from the model instead of snapping a blade.
Mike is located on the east coast of the US. If that is normally an issue for you, bite the bullet and order anyway. You'll understand when your package arrives.
Recommended highly as long as you have experience working with small parts, resin, and a fair collection of modeling tools.

[ET2SN]

Slightly off the beaten path models:


I'm including two web sites from north eastern Pennsylvania that I've found but have not ordered from (yet). Both offer kits you may have heard of but never seen. Two nice sources that are physically located within a stone's throw from each other. If you're tired of building Tamiya and Revell "same old same old" kits, grab a cup of coffee and settle back for some deep dives of kits you never expected to find.



https://redstarhobbies.com/

Red Star offers model kits based on a theme. Models made in Russia or Eastern Europe and models of old Soviet hardware. I've mentioned Red Star in the Delta IV thread. Be ready to spend some time paging through what they have on the shelves. They offer a very solid selection of Eduard photo etch and resin that stays in stock.

[mapuc]

^ I see only a picture of some racing car a jpg picture in your last link.

Markus