Mini-Scissors: a great tool to have on your bench. After a long search, we’ve found quality, stainless-steel, mini-scissors that are ideal for modelers.

I use mine primarily for cutting small strips of Aizu Micro Masking Tape while masking canopies.

For masking canopies and clear parts I usually use a small set of tools:

1) A Tempered Glass Cutting Surface

2) A New #11 X-Acto Blade

3) Quality Tweezers

4) Toothpicks

5) Aizu Micro-Masking Tapes

6) Quality Mini-Scissors

To mask the wing landing light covers on the new 1/72 Arma Hobby Hurricane Mk.I, I started with an appropriately thin Aizu Masking Tape. With this small scale, I opted for 0.40mm.

Using a glass cutting surface, lengths of 0.4mm tape were cut to match the upper and lower horizontal portions of the cover (Blue Arrow). These were applied with the model immobilized on the bench. Tweezers (in my right hand) and a toothpick (in the left) were used to place the tapes and burnish them down: a very important step.

Additional pieces of tape (Yellow Arrows) were applied in the same manner by first aligning their ends flush with the horizontal tapes (White Arrow). This is shown in the accompanying photograph taken from above the starboard wing.

The long ends of each tape were then wrapped around the cover and burnished down with the end of a toothpick. The excess tapes were cut in place and flush with the horizontal tape using mini-scissors (White Arrow).

Being able to precisely cut a small piece of masking tape in place permits this kind of masking job to be done quicker, easier, and with cleaner results.

The same methods were used to mask the Navigation lights on each wingtip with the excess tape cut with mini-scissors. Note that the tapes are pinched around the curved shape of the light to ensure a tight seal (Blue Arrows).

Once the landing light covers and navigation lights were outlined with lengths of Aizu Masking Tape, the clear areas were filled in with Mr. Hobby Masking Sol R.

Note: Mr. Hobby Masking Sol R is the best liquid mask to use if the canopy has been dipped in Future or a similar clear coat. Sol R contains little-to-no ammonia that can mar clear coats even when dry. Many liquid masks use ammonia so be aware.

Using the same methods and tools as above, the canopy of the new Arma Hurricane was masked. This is a handy trick when aftermarket masks aren’t available.

A pair of Mini-Scissors have been on my workbench long time. Their one of my most-used tools so I’m quite jazzed about adding these quality scissors to the MPS tool selection.

Thanks for reading along 🙂

–John

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