Here's another fun one.

An aspect of modelling I really like is using tools/materials which are intended for other purposes to model with.

Here's some of my faves:

1. Vacuum cleaner - this gets used constantly after drilling into the baseboard, laying scatter, general cleaning. Occasionally I even use it to vacuum the flat afterwards (ok I'm kidding I never actually do that  )!

2. Large yoghurt beakers - always being used for paint brushes and the lids as palettes for glue or paint.

3. Hairspray - good to help fix scrim style flocking to deciduous trees.

4. Blu-tac - to test position things on the layout, prior to gluing.

5. Giottos camera sensor-cleaning air bomb - this squeezy rubber 'bomb' lets you blast dust etc. off the layout when you don't want to vacuum. Or you can blow particles into the vacuum cleaner hose with it.

Any of your tips most welcome!

Jam/pickle jars - used for storing PVA, diluted PVA, flock in "virgin" colours and mixed, ballast, diluted/mixed emulsion paint, paintbrush holders, the uses are almost endless.
Since I have several identical jars holding my flock or ballast, I sacrificed one by punching holes in the lid to use for scattering said materials.

On a similar vein, I use ready meal plastic trays for holding all sorts of things.

I use an old teastrainer for scattering small amounts of scatter materials.

M8 Headboard Bolts - used for holding all my baseboards together. With captive nuts at the other end of the holes, it saves having to remember to take (and not misplace) a spanner.

In addition to test positioning, I also use Blutac for holding small objects while painting, e.g. people, and animals. In fact, my current stock is better described as a mix of blacktac, whitetac, greentac and greytac, with the odd bit of blue still visible here and there 

Cocktail sticks - brilliant for applying small amounts of glue. 9V batteries for testing 12v bulbs etc., before permanent connection to supply. Bunches of grapes, (after the grapes have been eaten!) - once dried out make nice trees when suitably covered. (This last one was mentioned by a forumite a long time ago - thank you whoever you are  ).

Dental pick, for uncoupling (that's an old one I learned from other N gaugers)

Cheeseboard knives. (the small ones that look like mini plastering knives) Turns out they're rather handy for working with small amounts of plaster on a layout.

Drinking Straws. handy for holding models while airbrushing (stick them to the model with a bit of blu-tac or tape a mini crocodile clip to the end as a gripper). Also handy for making wire-in-tube control for points.

Plasticine, just about everything. Holding models on straws for airbrushing/drying, filling in bits on the layout, weighting down wagons.

SWMBO's makeup brushes - nice and soft for dusting roads and roofs, arranging ballast before gluing etc.   

She got so fed up with me borrowing them I have my own full set now ("middle of Lidl" of course)

Quote from: ntpntpntp on April 05, 2020, 08:44:12 PM
SWMBO's makeup brushes - nice and soft for dusting roads and roofs, arranging ballast before gluing etc.   

She got so fed up with me borrowing them I have my own full set now ("middle of Lidl" of course)

Kate Moss might argue that they were intended for modelling.

Coffee stirrers and disposable chopsticks for lightweight scenic supporting frameworks


rear-left-scenery-2019-10-01_01 by Rail Squid, on Flickr

Bottle caps for holding a small amount of solvent for cleaning enamel paint off brushes. Dressmaker pins (with small bead on one end) also for glue spot application. Cordless hand vacuum cleaner for small cleanup jobs on train table. Pieces of hard plastic packaging to be used as glue palettes. Mascara applicators/eyelash swabs for cleaning turnout rails. Their handles also make excellent paint pot stirrers. Needle syringes for ballast glue application and for accurately mixing small amounts of paint.

And the most useful tool of all is the hammer for when things go wrong.

Webbo

Quote from: Webbo on April 06, 2020, 02:43:40 AM
And the most useful tool of all is the hammer for when things go wrong.

Toffee or sledge?

Prescription pill bottles for acrylic thinner; the tops for mixing the paint

Ornate wooden cocktail sticks - the ornate bit for chimneys, the rest for superglue operations

Make-up brushes for weathering powders and for laying ballast

Fridge magnets, and the fridge, for holding kit components square while the glue dries

Extremely sharp tweezers (intended to deal with ingrown hairs) to pick up tiny stuff. And everything in "N" is tiny

Guitar picks (best are Fender Thin) for easing bodies off locomotives prior to chipping for DCC

The coffee grinder for making scatter or foliage from dried leaves.

The electric toothbrush for laying on the rails when in the dry ballasting stage to vibrate the loose ballast away

There's more, I'm sure

The electric toothbrush for laying on the rails when in the dry ballasting stage to vibrate the loose ballast away

Nice one! I shall store that one away for the future!

Donald

 Prosecco/Champagne corks for track cleaning, spans both running rails, fits the hand comfortably and non abrasive.

No need to mention that once removed from the bottle the contents must be drunk before it goes flat!

Quote from: colpatben on April 06, 2020, 07:49:47 AM
Prosecco/Champagne corks for track cleaning, spans both running rails, fits the hand comfortably and non abrasive.

No need to mention that once removed from the bottle the contents must be drunk before it goes flat!

And drinking the bottle of Prosecco helps loosening up all joints and muscles before crawling into impossible positions under and beneath the layout

Some items I use...

1. Milk bottle tops to hold glue, paint etc.

2. Wooden kebab sticks - useful to stir paint.

3. Plastic food containers from Poundland to store disassembled stock.  Each piece of rolling stock has its own tub.

4. I do not personally use this but found it out when I was intending to ballast my track.  Break open a used Britta water filter and dry the contents.  Can be used for ballast, wagon loads etc.

5. Plastic from blister packs makes good glazing.

6. The magnifying spectacles that you can get in Home Bargains, B&M etc. are great when doing fiddly stuff.

7. Vaseline to grease rolling stock wheel bearings.

8. Crushed coal for er... coal.

Kind regards

Paddy

Nylon tights in conjunction with the vacuum cleaner when vacuuming up scatter materials.  Also useful when general vacuuming to make sure you don't lose anything vital.  You need to let some of the tights go into the hose, rather than stretching it across the mouth.