And the question is - who here uses polymer-based, not metallic, tweezers for modelling?
My thought process here is:
I have several metal tweezers of varying quality, and the ones I need to use the most are the “needle point style” (both straight and angled tips - oddly, the MicroMark on-line catalog doesn’t have cool names for these styles) for small detail parts (I also have the flat bladed ones for decals, and locking ones which work OK for holding large detail parts). The problem, as many other may have, is too darn often small parts + shiny SS needle = Boing! Regardless of walls surround the workbench or the gutter at the bench end, such parts can readily vanish.
So…I’ve tried the rubber tipped tweezers and they were a joke (clumsy and awkward), and the serrated tweezers (mauled soft detail plastic parts). I look up plastic tweezers on-line - there are needle nose styles - and I am thinking that hard plastic would have some grip to prevent Boing! (never make light of boing!) without damage to the part.
So, before I splurge a whole 4.99 or so on a pair of plastic tweezers, who uses them, what kind, do they grip, and are they relatively resistant to MEK/solvent/paint etc.
I’ve had my share of the boing’s for several years with and without tweezers. If it’s a metal part my grandson bought me a 3” diameter magnet with handle that extends to 4’. But for non magnet stuff I’m at a loss.
As for tweezers I have a plastic pair but I do much better with the metal tweezers. I can’t remember what I paid for them but it was well over $5 and not worth $5. The metal small rounded point long nose tweezers work much better for me.
My wife picked me up a pair of metal non slip 7” tweezers at Walmart about five years ago that do a really good job.
Mel
Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951
I bought a pair of plastic tweezers and hated them.
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In fact, I rarely use any tweezers anymore at all since I bought this pair of needle nose pliers. They are wonderful. You can see in the picture the tips are about the same size as needle nose tweezers.
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They are made by Snap-On, part number E703BCG. They are pricey, but 100% worth it. The spring is just tight enough to give good tactile feedback, I rarely drop anything I am holding with them, and the inside of the tips had the lightest serration to help with the grip.
