Workshop Practice for Ship Modelers: A Complete Practical Guide for the Occasional Engineer

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Summary: Picture book of common tools
Review: If you like looking at pictures and descriptions of common wood and metal working tools this book is for you...otherwise useless.

Rating:
Summary: Open your modeling mind to new tools for new techniques
Review: Published by Conway in the UK and distributed by the Naval Institute Press in the US, the book "Workshop Practice for Ship Modelers - A Complete Practical Guide for the Occasional Engineer" by Brian King, is a fascinating, in-depth guide to building ship models - both display and floating/operating ships.

But it's much more than just a book for ship modelers - it is a detailed step-by-step guide to using hand and power tools in working with wood, metal and plastic. It has lots of uses for diorama builders, scratch-builders, RC modelers and much more. It has information useful to armor modelers who want to turn their own barrels, detail fanatics who want to custom-build tiny add-on parts - basically, it has something for everybody who does more than build straight out-of-the-box.

The biggest part of the book is a point-by-point discussion of specific tools and how they're used - from a plethora of saws to soldering irons. It gets into photo-etched, too, but it's real strength is in the realm of using tools (especially hobby-shop power tools).

I admit I'm a tool nut. I've got Dremels out the kazoo, and every kind of hand tool I can buy, steal, or beg from my dentist. Yet this was an eye-opener, and has me lusting after my next Micro-Mart catalog so I can try out some new ideas and new approaches.

Recommended!

Ned Barnett