Cutting for kitbashing recommendations

[Kaede45]

I have been kitbashing a bit & had cut a few pieces to do so. I cut the chained skull & bone from a Grey Knight torso, which came off alright & cut the Imperium symbol from a Mystic’s staff, though it wasn’t as clean as I’d hoped. In both instances I used the clippers that I use for cutting the pieces out of the sprues, but I’m wondering if anyone knows of a better way that may not be as “destructive” so to speak?

 

As always, any & all help & advice is greatly appreciated, thank you for your time & God bless!

[Commissar Greif]

Do you have an X-acto knife? I find them great for cutting off more delicate pieces for kitbashing, plus they're good for trimming off flash, mould lines, and bits of sprue.

[jaxom]

Scalpel style blade (x acto) and a Jewelers saw from a craft store.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piercing_saw

 

I use it for anything where I want to preserve material. It makes very fine cuts and is less likely to slip off line compared to pressing down with a scalpel style blade. You may want a simple mask because the plastic dust is pretty fine.

 

[Dr_Ruminahui]

I second the use of the jeweler's saw, which is particularly good for separating larger portions (arms, legs, heads, etc) from models.  So, for example, with today's dynamic but monopose models, I find for reposing them its often easiest to build them then cut off their limbs and reposition them.   Perhaps my project that made the most extensive use of my saw was giving my noise marines capes from the Fantasy Battles Chaos warriors - my tutorial for that is here.  It is also by far the best tool for cutting metal models.  Personally, my jeweler's saw is probably my best hobby tool.

 

There are some things that an exacto style knife is better at, such as removing small details or relatively shallow portions of a model (for example, cutting a symbol off of a shoulder pad for use elsewhere).  So, in other words, where the cut is parallels to the main surface of the model rather than perpendicular.  The exacto knife is also easier (with a metal straightedge) for cutting long straight lines, so is usually better for cutting things like plasticard.

 

Personally, I never use clippers except where I know I don't have any use for the remaining part, or to remove large chunks from a model where likewise I have no desire to reuse the removed portions.

Edited 16 hours ago by Dr_Ruminahui

[Firedrake Cordova]

Clippers are great for cutting models out and separating things, but they often fail to leave a clean cut (requiring clean-up) or are a little inexact when looking at larger items. I'd second the suggestions for a scalpel/Xacto knife for small items, and a jewellers- or razor saw for larger items.

[Grotsmasha]

When looking at Razor/Jewelers/Hobby Saws, get one of the smaller ones that fit the xacto knife handle, this'll allow you to cut thicker pieces, as the larger saws are folded at the top for rigidity, and limit the depth you can saw through.

[Lord_Ikka]

The best razor saw that I've ever used is the JLC razor saw. It has a very thin, precise blade with two different sized teeth sides. I believe it is made in the Czech republic so it can be hard to find, but there are a few sites around that sell it, like this one. The replacement blades are actually pretty easy to order as even Amazon carries them, though not the saw itself last time I checked.