SCISSORS STRAIGHT – SPECIAL PHOTOETCHED

Scissors with straight jaws for photo-etched parts

This is a tool, not a kit and not an accessory for a model. AK interactive lists these straight scissors in a version meant for photo-etched parts. Thin etched sheet cuts badly with ordinary scissors: the jaws lift it as they close, the part twists along the cut, and getting it flat again is only possible at the cost of damaging the etched detail. Short straight jaws with precisely meeting edges, by contrast, let you separate a part right at the tag, with a minimum of remainder to sand away.

Use

• Separating photo-etched parts from the fret right at the holder.
• Shortening photo-etched strips, grilles, chains and bands to the length needed.
• A straight cut where a knife would slip on smooth sheet.
• Preparing parts before bending - a clean edge behaves predictably in a bending tool.
• Work with thin film and self-adhesive material, where a straight edge matters.

What to watch out for

Keep the scissors for sheet and film only. Hard wire, needles, steel strings and thick cast plastic do not belong in them - a nick in the edge shows on every subsequent cut, because the sheet then folds instead of being cut. Hold a separated part with tweezers or cut over a small box; photo-etched parts fly off and looking for them on a carpet is futile. The same range also includes a version meant for decals and paper: that is a different product with a different purpose, and for photo-etched parts this is the one to reach for.

Who they are for

For modelers who regularly build with photo-etched sets - whether aircraft interiors, railings and ladders on ships or grilles and side panels on vehicles. Anyone who has so far separated photo-etched parts with a knife on a cutting mat will appreciate above all that the part stays flat.

The tool is supplied on its own; photo-etched sets and other tools are not included in the package, unless stated otherwise.