Safe Modelling - it's easy

Safer Modelling
The good news is that our hobby is not as dangerous as some hobbies.
There's no danger of for example a broken ankle, or the chute not opening properly, you won't be likely to get bitten by snakes, or held up by bandits.

But there are a few things you should be aware of to ensure a lifetime of happy and more importantly healthy modelling.

So - what's the most dangerous thing in our hobby?
I think most people would immediately say knives, followed by glue. Now the fact is that nobody was ever accidentally injured by a sharp knife blade. Most injuries occur with blunt blades, where the user struggles and slips, or uses the wrong type of knife for the job. In general a sharp blade will not cause injury if it's used properly, and put away where it can't cut any unwary fingers.

I have 4 different types of knives to hand - to suit different jobs.
· a fine light weight Swann Morton with a tiny no. 15 blade for really fine paring
· a heavier one - again a Swann Morton handle, this time with a curved no. 10 blade for general work.
· An x-acto handle with a heavy duty cutting blade, that can also take my two razor saw blades.
· A lightweight pen style with a fine no. 6 blade.

And they all have really sharp, new blades in them. Now that is another danger of course, so I've saved the plastic sleeves from old Stanley throwaway DIY knives, these fit a treat over most of our modelling blades. If you don't have any - don't despair, get an A4 folio strip from a Stationers - this is designed to hold paper together, and a length can be sawn off and makes quite a useful blade guard. If it's too loose wrap a bit of sellotape around it.

And just because it isn't a knife it may still have sharp edges… We can't do without good photo etch like this Part one for the T-34-85, but the edges can be sharp.

My lightweight knife has another possible danger - it's round, so it rolls when I put it down, and it 'always' falls point down. Like a lot of people I don't wear any slippers either… To stop me having pierced toes I've glued a short piece of square section tube over the 'blunt' end of my knife. Now it stays where its been put !

Glues
We've all been warned about the dangers of sniffing glue - fortunately the manufacturers have come to our aid and reformatted a lot of the glues we use to make them a lot less dangerous.
There are what's called 'aromatic hydrocarbons' in our glues - that's the sweet smell that makes it such fun to open your tool box after a few days. If you have a well ventilated work area, with a window open a bit nearby that will give you some fresh air you should be safe. Do remember children and pets have less resistance that you do, so check they are ok if they are using these glues, or even in the same room! (The Children, not the pets ok..?:-) )

Fillers now are much safer than they were when they had Toluene in them - that's a poison. But, we've moaned ever since that we can't find a decent model filler - sometimes improvements in safety work against us! Here it's still a good idea not to get too much filler on your skin, and wash your hands before eating.

Resin models and conversion parts have increased in popularity down the years, it now seems like you can't be a real Hairy Chested He-Man Modeller if you don't use a resin insert in every model.

The trouble is these Hairy Chested Modellers might have something else on their chest too. Resins need a lot of sanding, and the dust can be harmful if inhaled. I use latex rubber gloves and a dust mask while sanding and I make sure that any dust is mopped up with a damp cloth rather than being left to wander about. Another thing I do is to saw as much of the moulding plug off as I can to reduce the amount of dust that would otherwise be created. 'Wet-sanding' can reduce the dust floating in the air, but it does actually slow down the speed the resin is removed - although sometimes this can be an advantage.

Candles - No not for lights… stretching sprue. Obvious really, use a stable candle holder, don't put it away still lit, and use black headed matches from the box…

Drinking beer - obviously for over eighteens only (!) This can increase slips, trips and errors in itself, but it is possible that the effects of some chemicals can be accelerated if you are already drinking alcohol.
Talking of alcohol, if you have a bottle of Isopropyl Alcohol or some brands of Windex (window washer bottle fluid to us) or any other thinners or additives that you use be aware of what's in the bottle. They will need to be taken care of, re-corked and put in a safe place, as it can add to the chemical soup on your desk.

Hobby drills - if you are lucky enough to have a model drill it will probably have a mains transformer sitting on your desk - they don't drink coffee as I discovered once… So now I have a splash screen made from an old margarine tub that 'Doesn't' block the cooling vents.

I also have some fiendish gadgets that I need to keep my fingers clear of - my slitting saw for one.

Model paints - Acrylics, oils and enamels all have their own safety instruction leaflets - do read them as they contain lots of useful info.
The main problem is likely to be injuries from Wife or Mother caused by spilling paint on clothes or carpet. But, there is a way to reduce this - It's my life saver - it holds bottles securely, and comes with me to shows to make sure I don't spill things there either!

It's simply a block of wood, with two different sized holes drilled in it - just big enough for a bottle or tin to sit in and stay upright :-)

From Model paints to Airbrushing - I'm lucky enough to have a good Badger airbrush (not that I can use it properly yet…) So I've got a proper respirator with replaceable air canisters to air brush with. I use latex gloves again, and I also have a corner of the garage set-up specially with a small bench where my compressor lives. The trailing power cables are fixed to the wall with proper cable clips too.
Airborne aerosol paint droplets don't mix with pets or furnishings!

First Aid kit - I have a small tin on my desk with a few plasters and things in. It comes with me to shows just in case it's needed.

All the products featured here meet all the safety standards required by law - that's why I choose them. All we need to do is apply just a bit more care to make modelling a safe and enjoyable hobby - so we can live to a ripe old age and actually BUILD that stack of kits in the loft!

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