Here I am my first weekend off in a month and I settle down to finish the little PE detail stuff on the Tamiya Stug III I've been working on. Man, this stuff is kicking my butt!! I don't know if I have the patience for it. I'm ready to finish this darn thing and move to something else out of my kit stash. How good can the kits get without spending hours on PE stuff?? Am I over doing this? This is my first real build in basically 20 years. Help me out guys I need some guidance before I put this thing on a skeet thrower, "Pull"!!

Well, ofcourse you don't have to use PE, but it makes a lot of difference!! Much more to look at in a competition.

If you have a PE etch, makes it a lot more easier to bend PE.

Take your time and don't overstress

Greetz hilbert

I've seen the PE stuff but being in the same boat as you (learning to build) I have decided to hold off on that stuff as it looks a bit involved and delicate. I'm afraid my fumble fingers won't do well with it until I'm a bit better. lol It's all up to you I would think, depending on how detailed you want the model to be. I'm sure you will get plenty of PE advice from other builders here. If it's driving you crazy right now, put it down and go to something else and come back to it fresh.

Andrew:
You'll find many answers on this. While PE does enhance the model (See some of Ex-Royal's work) it's not a must.
I'm perfectly happy building kits with out it -- heck, I'm happy building stuff out of the box.

However, I will admit PE zim paste -- when purchased from the right makers -- is a super product!

Actually I have bought on of those photo etch bendy mandrel thingys. I'm not sure I know how to use it properly because everytime I start to bend something the bends come out rounded???

I'm not a big PE fan either, unless the kit I'm working on really has a big lack of detail.....

I do like things like engine grills for on a Tiger or something like that....but that's about the PE I use!

You don't NEED it......it can improve your kit if you've got the patience to work with it! I like my models and they almost don't have PE, only engine grills if possible or if there comes any PE with the kit (like on my M88 on which I'm working now....some PE parts in the kit)

Martin

The only thing I can tell you about P/E is practice make perfect ...the firrst time I tried an Aber set I thought it was completly nuts ,but now I can use about 3/4 of the stuff without going crazy... A magnifing lamp and a box on my knees (to catch the pieces I drop ) and things are getting easier ..Hey I even get my clamps to work for real !!

Rick

I don't think I've ever used more than about 50% of any PE set I've bought, and then only the larger pieces.
My vehicles get plenty of compliments from the rest of the gang here so I guess the answer has to be that you definitely don't need to use PE - it really comes down to personal preference. Most modern kits are pretty good without the stuff. If it came to the crunch I'd rather spend the money on a metal gun barrel than a PE set.

PE is ok but, as has been said before, I would rather spend my money on a metal gun barrel or, even better, metal tracks. I am using PE when it is in the kit. I am just not a lover of all those little tiny brass things! Darn that Aber stuff is so pretty it is a shame not to learn to use it. Well mabye.....
capnjock

You sir are a glutton for punishment! lol Man, you have some serious patience, best of luck with that build!

In a word YES. Sure you can build OTB, nothing wrong with that, but to truly experience the hobby, you should give everything a fair shake. If you were happy with crawling why did you try to walk?, If your happy with walking why try to run? Get it? Don't give up the rewards are well worth it.

As said before ... NO you dont need PE. Has anybody ever used 100% of a full Aber set yet? Now that you´ve got it, use the parts that are easy at least. Grills look so much better when they get the extra detail. Some small pieces with no bending can be used easily. Even parts with simple folds can be done and added. Its like anything else in this hobby ... the more you use it the easier and better it will get. But theres no point in getting stressed trying to use it all.

Photo etch can come in handy with, lets say a bt-5 i just got. The kit is nice but it has a horibble grill. just look at it.

most definatly needs to be replaced with photo etch. :-) . anyways how much are one of those etch bender thingys.

Whats a foldoer bar thingy? Does it save me money? :-) . No really can you post a pic of what your talkin bout.

I find the whole point to this modelling is to have FUN, if something is that frustrating that it's removing the joy of the hobby then I say why bother. I do like to add detail to my models but one step at a time (keep the frustation level to a minimum).
Maybe put a couple of peices on then move on to big a better projects. Models ootb can be great and very satisfiying when completed.

It sounds like you aren't enjoying it ~ if that's the case, then I say put the PE away for now. You're doing this for fun & relaxation, right?

Like other folks have said, PE is a matter of preference.

Having said that, I like using it for the extra 'scale detail' effect. But never use an entire set on any one kit. 85% or more, but I am not so insane as to make a working Panther travel lock bicycle style chain out of 47quadrillion individual links!

For me, PE bending tools like etch mate of the hold and fold turn bending most PE into a tv tray, laptop, sitcom sort of activity on the same level with building and cleaning up roadwheels. And makes bending the finer stuff a lot like painting roadwheels, a benchtop exercise, but nothing too stressful.

But they are not cheap. You can make your own, as well. There is a link in armorama somewhere..

I have the Etchmate and prefer it bacause it has a groove in front of the clamping head. This way you can slide the razor blade in until it is in that groove and then lift for an additional level of certainty you are bending at the right place.

Prior to this I used a set of flat jawed (no teeth) pliers and then 2x razor blades on a sheet of glass. That worked very well fro most applications, but it was definately a semi-stressful benchtop operation.

With more practice you'll begin to see where the folds are going to go, and be able to visualize which to fold first so as not to get in your own way later.

remember , it is a hobby and is supposed to be fun!
if you are not having fun, do something else.

Mike

My two cents;
No, you don't have to use pe.
There is nothing wrong with building out of the box.
If you like building models, and you like how your finished product looks, than great!! Are you building it to please other people, or you??
If you don't like it don't use it-or don't use it all, just use the larger pieces until you get use to it.
If you like it-take baby steps. PE is hard to get use to. But like everything else, the more you work with it the easier it gets.
The first time I used pe-I was in over my head. Now I can't get enough of it.

Like stated before, PE enhances the look of your model, but most important, it enhances your modelling experience. I would say to start off with just a very simple PE set such as grills or so. This way you'll see how it is to work with PE on a small scale then, if you like it, you can move slowly on the more complicated sets. Don't forget, that a metal barel and a set of Friul tracks will add that much more realism to your model. If you can afford, get the barrel (Eduard and Aber make very nice barrels;Jordi Rubio is OK), the Friul tracks and the PE (Aber is awesome) for whatever model you have. So it is a matter of personal choice. Personally, I like to get everything and see from there how much of the PE frets I am using. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the input guys. As usual you fellows are tremendous. I don't know what I'd do without you.

I usually don't do PE unless it comes with the kit. I have yet to purchase an aftermarket set. In general I am not really into "replacing" parts. I have done a few Fruils for my German tanks and that's it.

Whats P.E? Photo - Etch?

Whats Photo - Etch anyway?



Commandosolo