Electro Files:  I did buy one of those  Electro Files.   It is by Precision Hobby Tools and I must tell you - it is a hoot!  It is about the size of a Dremel rotary tool but it saws and files and does small finishing work. Mind you this was not cheap (starts at around $90!) but with my hands becoming temperamental some days, I find that I can work longer with this tool and still do small finishing work.  At any rate I would recommend it for at least the top of a wish list!  http://www.precisionhobby.com/

Renee

Heavy Duty Chopper ll  The other tool I got - I think it was from MicroMark is a very small and sturdy chopper. It is the heavy Duty Chopper ll - it was about $40  and I like it MUCH better than any other chopper I have ever used.   It has miter markings - the blade - even though the same razor blade the chopper uses - it seems better.  It really is a nice working space too.  Much more of a substantial feel to it.

Renee

Chopper:   I have used a chopper since they first came out (we're not talking antique here) and wouldn't be without one.  I have recently bought the heavy duty chopper that has the replaceable cutting mat! Terrific invention.  Someone should have thought of this before.  You can turn the mat around as it wears in one place and replace it when it finally dies.   Although that will take some time.  I do recommend this tool even if you have mitre boxes and mitre cutters.

Fannye in TX

Airbrush Advice: I have the Tamiya spray work system - which is more of a spray gun that an air brush.  They also do an air brush that I think can be used with the compressor. I have not used it much - it tends to live in cupboards.  I think it would be ideal for painting bigger things - specially 1:24 scale cars - which is obviously the main market, and houses or roomboxes - anywhere you could use a spray can to paint.

I tend to stain furniture and it's overkill for smaller items  (although I'm tempted to try out the air brush attachment).

Sandra in Wellington New Zealand

Dremel: I could not work without my Dremel - I use it for practically everything. If I could only have one bit I think a fiber cut off wheel might be the choice because I could use it to saw and sand.  Of course I wouldn't give up any of my bits and I have tons - from diamond to router bits - - I NEED them all. if you are chipping wood or gouging it, you may be putting too much pressure.   I was taught a long time ago to always use gentle pressure with any cutting tool (Sanders included) to allow the tool to do the work. Otherwise you will wear out the tool and the bits rather than sand or cut your work piece.  Don't give up on that tool though - it is probably the most valuable one you have!

Jacqui in Hilo, Goddess of Chaos

The bucking Dremel (not a Western tale): Any rotating bit will buck when it is applied to a surface when it rotating at too high a speed. If you are going to use the rotating bit at a high speed to start with, then you must very slowly apply it to the surface it is going to work on. Occasionally I also will have a bit buck on me and I immediately move it off the surface it is bucking on and gently place it back on the surface I also may slow down the speed.

Sanding drums will hardly buck, the bits that mostly will buck are the ones that bite into the wood. The are the ones that work by removing very small chunks of the wood while a sanding wheel or drum abrades the wood. If you are using a side cutting bit and this is the one that is bucking or stuttering (that is the phrase used) sometimes you just have to hold the drill tighter and put more pressure onto the bit until it is removing those tiny chunks of wood. The wood that is being worked on has to be firmly held in place.   This loose wood will also cause the stuttering (sorry but it is also referred to as chattering. (both stuttering and chattering are very descriptive words for what we are discussing.)

The loose stock is also a good example of why the wood in a scroll saw has to be firmly held against the "table" of the saw. The teeth of the saw blade in the scroll saw must always face down so they are pulling the wood to be cut down against the "table". If the wood is not held firmly, it will be lifter up by the up stroke of the blade and slammed down on the down stroke, considering the speed of the scroll saw the wood chatters. Like every thing else; experience and hands on practice smooth out the problems attendant with any new procedure or tool experience.

Bob

Dremel: Scorching occurs when the teeth, grit or cutters fill up and can't get rid of the chips or saw dust fast enough then they act as a friction wheel, sort of like when you sand or saw too fast and burn the wood. If the teeth aren't cutting then they must be sliding, which creates heat. Slow it down or move the wood past the cutter, faster.

I have had Dremels for many years and have just picked up a never used, still in the original box, a UNiMAT Lathe & Mill, with tools. I plan to do some serious turning this summer. I control my Dremels' and other motor tool speed with an old sewing machine, foot pedal, speed control unit.  AC motor speed is control two ways, which we can control,  by varying the current (not the voltage) to the motor or varying the number of motor field windings which use a switch to select different speeds. For those who care, the formula is: RPM= 120 x freq./no. of poles.

When drilling, the speed should vary in different metal and wood.  Some   exotic wood have to be drilled with metal cutting bits while others can be drilled with regular wood bits. I ask my dentist for his "throw away bits" when he's through with them, they'll still work on wood and are great for drilling pilot holes for nails or screws. It take a lot of practice to control a Dremel in one hand and apiece of wood in the other. I usually anchor one or the other down. I find it easier if I strap the Dremel down and move the wood past the cutter. I do the reverse for drilling. Others will have different methods, but these are mine,

Dan in IL

Dremel:   Home Depot gives Dremel lessons.   They will even do a group class for your mini club; just call them if there's one near you.   Or, try their website:  http://www.dremel.com/html/started/started.html

Stacey Torres

Dremel: If you visit their web site http://www.dremel.com/html/home_fr.html  you will find a wealth of information there.   If you go to the Customer Service page, Literature request, you can order a product catalog and a copy of "Projects for the Imagination Uses Guide for Rotary Tools" for free.  They also have an owners' club and hundreds of projects on their "Project Finder" page, complete with photo instructions and a list of everything you need to do the project.  It is probably one of the best web sites I have ever run across.

David

Dremels:   I couldn't live without my Dremel. I bought the flexible shaft for my Dremel, it makes it much easier to use, it's like holding a pen and it's much easier to control. I saw that someone else is having a problem with scorching, I think that your rotary tool may be too fast.  My Dremel has 5 speeds and if I am shaping or sanding a piece with the speed too high the wood scorches.

Kathy

The Dremel: This is a high speed low torque motor. "Low torque" means that it has not got brute power and if you apply too much pressure to the accessory in the tool you can stall the motor. The Dremel is made to get its work done by the use of the high speed capabilities. Light touch and high speed gets the job done. Caress the work with the drill functioning at the best speed for the job being done. Sanding can be high speed and light touch. Drilling if too slow a speed will stall the motor, too high a speed and you may burn the wood and lose the temper of the steel in the drill bit. Just like driving a car or cooking, the more experience the better you get, hopefully.

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL.

Post-it notes. You just put one on your table & put your glue on it and you can work with a toothpick for fine gluing and when done throw it away. They stay put and are inexpensive. I also use them for mixing small amounts of paint. The paint doesn't soak through and it doesn't slide off the table. Toss when done. I also do the same with epoxy paint but do this a little different. I put a dab of epoxy in one upper corner and a dab of hardener in the other corner. I then take a toothpick to bring down some epoxy. another toothpick to bring down the hardener and a third toothpick to mix it. As long as you don't get the toothpicks together they won't harden and you can mix just what you need and they will stay usable for hours until mixed. I hope this is clear, it is a big help to me.

Irene

Tip: to make a marking gauge and have 2 tools in 1 here is what I did. I took an angle gauge. One of those inexpensive tool that has a wing nut and a sliding metal arm so you can duplicate angles. Using the open channel that permits you to move the arm to the angle being duplicated; take a small bolt and put a nut onto it (with a washer if needed between the nut and the open end of the bolt. Slip the bolt thru the channel of the arm. Thread on an other nut with a washer. (the washer facing the head of the bolt). Clamp the metal arm of the gauge between the two nuts and washers. Sharpen the free end of the bolt to a point.   By sliding the metal angle arm so that he bolt gets closer to the wing nut and measuring the distance from the point of the bolt to the body of the angle gauge; you can set the distance from the point of the bolt and the main arm of the device so that you now have a marking gauge and an angle gauge at the same time.

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL.

Splintering of wood on the scroll saw. If you want to prevent splintering of the wood you are cutting; clamp it between two pieces of scrap wood. that way all the splintering will be on the scrap wood.

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL.

Glue: I have found that in many of my craft projects, JB WELD, Quick, is great stuff to glue with. It is a 2 part, sets up fast, and they even recommend it to replace nuts on small bolts... Am sure it has its limits, but worth a try.

Margie Smith

"Strapping" down the Dremel: I hope by "strapping down" the Dremel you mean to hold it securely so you have two hands free. I will assume that is your intention. I have done this. The method I used is as follows;

I obtained a piece of channel metal; the channel wide enough for the Dremel to rest in but still sit higher then the edges of the channel. I clamped it in place with a steel hose clamp. Then the channel was C clamped to the work bench. I had two hand free after that. I hope this is what you intended.

Drbob...Delray Beach FL.

Dremel choices: I have both the mini mite and the regular corded Dremel. I got the mini first and use it all the time. If you get it order or buy an extra battery. My hardware store will order anything I need for Dremel and other tools. They got me a velcro pad attachment for my black and decker palm sander for instance. I use the corded Dremel for the router table and heavier work, or if both batteries are being charged on the mini. You can get more info on Dremel on their site.

For the mini carpenter doing pin door hinges; I mini drill (pin vice) the door top and bottom, glue in pins, clip excess with a side cutter (dikes) drill hole in upper door frame, then hole in door sill. I glue the door sill in after inserting top pin and then bottom pin in doorsill, tipped out and slide doorsill in to line where glue is positioned for sill, takes some cutting and fitting sometimes. My doors always seem to need a little more fitting here and there, Mini Dremel with a sanding drum does great for this work, then repaint, insert with glue on sill, voila! I do not glue the pins in the door frame, just in the door, that way I get a longer pin, stability, and can use a larger pin (read nail)

I have a large collection of bits and attachments for Dremel, collected over many years. You can even etch with a diamond point. (I found some second hand.)Carbide bits can be used for sharpening everything. I sharpen knives for friends occasionally. Scissors, exacto knives, etc. I use a cuttoff wheel for cutting new window or stairway holes, with a pilot hole drilled first of course.

Rhoda, Whidbey Island WA

Dremel: I recently bought an accessories kit for my Dremel (I have everything,   but you can never have too many bits!).   I had a list of each bit along with the usual use for each one.   I shall try to describe them here, for those of you who asked.

Grinding wheel - aluminum oxide ~ used for cleaning, deburring, grinding and polishing of most metals, castings, welded joints, rivets, rust.

Grinding wheel - silicon carbide ~ stone, glass, ceramics, porcelain, non-ferrous metals Sanding bands (barrel-shaped), flap wheel, sanding disks ~ different grits - obvious use for sanding.   Different shapes get into different places more easily.

Diamond cutters ~ fine detail work on jade, ceramic, glass, wood (I would not use these on wood).   There are hundreds of shapes and sizes. American Scientific and Surplus has some very inexpensive sets similar to what I have and they are most useful).   They need to be cooled when used.   I keep a sponge handy and periodically cool the bit and the work piece.  Light touch is mandatory.

Carbide cutter ~ hardened steel, cast-iron, stainless steel, ceramics HSS cutter (not sure what that means - high something steel) ~ soft steel, soft metals, plastics, fiber glass, wood (Last two are metal file type bits)

Fiber glass cut off wheel, general purpose cut off wheels heavy duty and regular ~ slicing and cutting metals, wood, plastics (and I also carefully use the flat areas to sand with - they break easily though)

Rubber emery wheel (Cratex) ~ light deburring (metals, jewelry work, plastics)

Bristle brushes ~ cleaning and polishing silverware, jewelry.  Also nice for getting into corners to clean.

Axial or Radial stainless steel brushes ~ removing rust, corrosion, polish metals (also texturing wood)

Brass brushes ~ clean electrical components

Felt wheels ~ used with various polishes on metals and plastics (can also be used on stone).  For high polished objects, do not mix different polishes on same wheel.  Store used wheel in plastic bag and label what polish is on it.  Tiny grit can contaminate these and ruin a piece.

Cloth layered wheel ~ also for polishing

Twist drills - obvious

Mandrels ~ hold various types of grinding and sanding disks and saws

Screw point mandrel ~ hold pointed felt and cratex bits

Collet ~ various sizes to hold various shanks in Dremel tool

I finally bought an adjustable adaptor for the dremel that avoids a lot of switching.   See MicroMark

Dressing stone ~ cleans grinding wheels.

Other things I use and find handy ~ router attachment with router bits to make mini moldings, chanels, etc.

Right angle head helps me get to places I can't with the straight tool.

Flex shaft

Metal saw blades ~ best if you set the dremel in a clamp base and make a table to fit over it so it can be used like a table saw.   Can be quite dangerous.

1/4" shank mini chain saw bit ~ very dangerous - use with shield (which I shall soon purchase) for wood carving.

I am sure I am leaving something out, but this is such a versatile tool that I could do most of my work with just this one tool and all of the attachments.

Jacqui in Hilo

Dremel accessories: Jacqui in Hilo made some very good postings regarding the use of Dremel accessories. I feel I should put in my 2 cents.

I have used the Dremel metal circular saw blade and it has a problem in that it is so thin that it meanders all over the place and follows the wood grain instead of the cut line. Dremel has two new wood cutting circular blades. One is thin and rigid with diamond dust on it. It does a good job. The other is a much thicker kerf but rips and cross cuts like a gem The wide kerf mandates cutting on the waste side of the cut line.

For cleaning out sanding drums and files. I use the metal wire wheel that is a metal brush. I hold it in my fat little hand while the sanding drum is rotated and it does a fairly good unclogging job. Same for files. I use the wire brush in the Dremel for files. I have yet in all my years used the dressing stone. May be it's just old habits die hard.

DrBob...Delray Beach, FL.

Dremel: I haven't figured out why those people haven't even tried to use their Dremel tool.   I am on my second one and this one is cordless.   I dearly love it.   I use it to drill holes to start screws, to lightly sand the "feathers" from my Dremel jig-saw. I have been making the 1/4" Debbie Young stores and use the cutting wheel to cut out the doors and windows.   Much easier than trying to use and X-Acto knife.   I buy the sanding discs from MicroMark because I can buy the peel and stick.   In fact, you   had better move when I have the little Dremel in my hand because you either get sanded, or holed.   I couldn't live without it.  Just start using it, you'll love it.

Mary Ann