|
Years ago, when I was heavily into scratch building details, I would look for ways to shape products I needed. One of the most difficult was forming plastic into cylinders. To this end, I scrounged anything that could suit the purpose from wooden pencils to kitchen utensil handles. Then, with the advent of photo-etched detail sets, I applied these ‘tools’ to the new medium.
The Small Shop, makers of one of the first photo-etched bending brakes, has released their second version of their own rolling set. The first version had a PVC plastic base. On one side were five semicircular recesses and a step onto which there was a nicely rounded edge. The second version has replaced this base with an anodized aluminum version which has a heftier feel.
As in the first version, there are eight wooden dowels and four steel rods. The dowels have their ends slightly tapered to minimize splintering. I like the fact that the grains of the wood acts like a gripper holding the item to be rolled better than the metal rods.
Note that if you use the wooden dowels to impart a cylindrical shape into plastic sheet by dipping into hot water, the wooden dowels will warp.
The sizes included in this set are:
.750" Wooden dowel
.652" Wooden dowel
.500" Wooden dowel (fits in base recess)
.425" Wooden dowel
.375" Wooden dowel (fits in base recess)
.300" Wooden dowel
.250" Wooden dowel (fits in base recess)
.175" Wooden dowel (fits in base recess)
.125" Metal Rod (fits in base recess)
.100" Metal Rod
.075" Metal Rod
.055" Metal Rod
The backside is flat, smooth, and does not wobble so it can be used for rolling. However, this works best with the wooden dowels. I prefer to put a piece of Styrofoam, cut from an egg carton, on the backside when using the metal rods. Now, I use the Brass Assist tool’s backside (also available from The Small Shop) since that has a rubber backing.
To roll an item, I usually cut a piece of Styrofoam and use a dowel or rod larger than needed. Roll from the center out. Depending on the items size, I could use the semi-circular cut outs and move to a smaller one until I am close to closing the cylinder. I prefer to finish by using the dowel or rod on a surface like the aforementioned Styrofoam to avoid a pear shape.
At the price, this is an excellent value considering the quality of the parts and its uses. It is highly recommended as an addition to the tool box.
|
