When one pins the figure's feet to the base via pegs or rods drilled in, is it preferable to use metal rods, or can plastic styrene rods also suffice?

Thanks in advance.

I would use metal as the plastic rod could still snap.

Metal definitely. I prefer brass because it can be bent if you need to make adjustments because the hole in the base is off a bit. Al

Brass rods

I buy a box of the smallest finishing nails - they're short and very fine (as far as nails go) and the heads are practically non-existent. Drill a hole through the figure's heel and up his ankle then super-glue the nail in place. The ends of the nails are already pointy, and my bases are usually made of Celluclay covered insulation foam, so sticking the figures into the base is easy.

For 1/35 scale figures I use straight pins. As every one states for drilling I then insert the pin point first and get an eyeball measurement of how long it is and add however much you need to pin it it. The points go the plaster I cover my bases with. For up to 1/16 I use thick copper single strand. Then of course for resin bust and heavy solid figures I use stainless steel radio antenna parts.

I don't drill holes into 1/35 scale figure boots anymore — too easy for me to slip with the drill bit.😖 As far as pinning them to the base... I could never really get them positioned to my satisfaction using that method. Not to mention, the base would usually take on the appearance of Swiss cheese by the time I was done!🧀

Instead, I position my figures onto the base and/or vehicle temporarily using a tiny piece of BluTack aka Fun-Tak putty. When I'm happy with my composition, I’ll then clear-out a bit of surface detail and apply a dab of CA glue for the final attachment. I find this method much easier for correcting position mistakes and it's less time-consuming as well. ... just my 2¢

Cheers!🍺
—mike

As I said in an earlier post, I prefer brass for strength. A plastic rod will break too easily. My method for mounting a figure to a base is to insert a brass rod in each leg, one slightly longer than the other. This will help when positioning the figure. I dab a bit of white paint on the end of the longer rod, then touch it to the base where I want the figure to be. This gives me a mark to drill the hole. I then dab paint on the shorter rod, insert the longer one in the first hole and touch the short rod to base were I need to drill the second hole. A little bit of epoxy on each rod, insert, done. One other thing about inserting a metal rod into a figure, it gives you something to grasp while painting said figure. I use a pin-vise as a handle while painting. Al