For those of you that don't already know how to do this,
I'm going to try to show you the basics of Cutting with thread.
For making fine line cuts in plastic, using sewing thread has always been my favorite method, Here's what your going to need to get started.
1 spool of thread.
1 sewing needle.
1 roll of masking tape.
1 nice clean flat board.
2 hands (Yes you have to use your hand's, If you are afraid of working with you hands please leave now!)
And last but not lest, What ever it is you decided you want to cut apart.
Hear I will be cutting the hood out of a Clod body using,You guest it, Thread!
First you want to position the body over the board so that you have access to the back of where your making your cut.
Next grab that roll of masking tape and tape that sucker down to the board so that it can't move around on you.
Now position the board so that the piece to be cut is overhanging your, workbench\ dinning room table.
Some times it helps to clamp the board down,Or put something heavy on it.
Here I got lucky and was able to fish the thread above the grill for my starting point. (It's easier to have the spool on the top side of the cut)
If not so lucky and you don't have a leading edge to start on,
Grab that needle up in a pair of vice grips and heat it up with a heat gun,
Or a lighter, It does not have to be red hot.
" WARNING" DO NOT POKE YOUR SELF WITH THE NEEDLE!
FOR IT IS HOT AND HURTS ALLOT MORE THAN A POKE WITH ONE THAT IS NOT HOT!!
Now just make a hole in line with what your going to cut.
And put your thread through the hole you just made
Next Grab the spool in one hand,
And grab the piece coming out the bottom with the other,
Give your self about a foot of cutting thread between your hands.
To start your cut, apply light pressure in the direction you want to cut,
At the same time move your hands up and down making the thread like a scroll saw blade.
As your doing your cutting, Every dozen strokes or so feed off a bit of thread from the spool and take up the slack on the bottom,
It's like putting a new blade in all the time your cutting.
So if your doing it right it you should be about here by now,
If your not, Than Your staring at a pile of thread on the floor,and your wondering why your truck is taped to board siting on your bench.
Well, Keep trying.
All right! Your 2/3 the way done!
So how many times did the thread snap on you?
I told you, just keep feeding in new, You'll get the hang of it.
The plus side for all you young builders, If you lose control of the thread,
It's not going to take a chunk out of your finger or worse..The fender!!
So there you have it, You just cut up a perfectly good Hard body!
As you can see it leaves a nice clean edge.
Now that a straight factory hood line!
I'm not knocking using a X-Acto to do this job, But besides the fact that the hood now opens you can't tell i did anything, No nick's in the paint
(That it did not already have)
Or OOP's I slipped and cut to far back and now the hood opens all the way to the windshield.
And i still have my finger tip's!!!
So now that your a Pro at Cutting with sewing thread, Don't stop now!
go ahead and make those doors open like you have always imagined,
See what you can come up with, after all, It's just plastic"thumbsup"
Ryan.
I'm going to try to show you the basics of Cutting with thread.
For making fine line cuts in plastic, using sewing thread has always been my favorite method, Here's what your going to need to get started.
1 spool of thread.
1 sewing needle.
1 roll of masking tape.
1 nice clean flat board.
2 hands (Yes you have to use your hand's, If you are afraid of working with you hands please leave now!)
And last but not lest, What ever it is you decided you want to cut apart.
Hear I will be cutting the hood out of a Clod body using,You guest it, Thread!
First you want to position the body over the board so that you have access to the back of where your making your cut.
Next grab that roll of masking tape and tape that sucker down to the board so that it can't move around on you.
Now position the board so that the piece to be cut is overhanging your, workbench\ dinning room table.
Some times it helps to clamp the board down,Or put something heavy on it.
Here I got lucky and was able to fish the thread above the grill for my starting point. (It's easier to have the spool on the top side of the cut)
If not so lucky and you don't have a leading edge to start on,
Grab that needle up in a pair of vice grips and heat it up with a heat gun,
Or a lighter, It does not have to be red hot.
" WARNING" DO NOT POKE YOUR SELF WITH THE NEEDLE!
FOR IT IS HOT AND HURTS ALLOT MORE THAN A POKE WITH ONE THAT IS NOT HOT!!
Now just make a hole in line with what your going to cut.
And put your thread through the hole you just made
Next Grab the spool in one hand,
And grab the piece coming out the bottom with the other,
Give your self about a foot of cutting thread between your hands.
To start your cut, apply light pressure in the direction you want to cut,
At the same time move your hands up and down making the thread like a scroll saw blade.
As your doing your cutting, Every dozen strokes or so feed off a bit of thread from the spool and take up the slack on the bottom,
It's like putting a new blade in all the time your cutting.
So if your doing it right it you should be about here by now,
If your not, Than Your staring at a pile of thread on the floor,and your wondering why your truck is taped to board siting on your bench.
Well, Keep trying.
All right! Your 2/3 the way done!
So how many times did the thread snap on you?
I told you, just keep feeding in new, You'll get the hang of it.
The plus side for all you young builders, If you lose control of the thread,
It's not going to take a chunk out of your finger or worse..The fender!!
So there you have it, You just cut up a perfectly good Hard body!
As you can see it leaves a nice clean edge.
Now that a straight factory hood line!
I'm not knocking using a X-Acto to do this job, But besides the fact that the hood now opens you can't tell i did anything, No nick's in the paint
(That it did not already have)
Or OOP's I slipped and cut to far back and now the hood opens all the way to the windshield.
And i still have my finger tip's!!!
So now that your a Pro at Cutting with sewing thread, Don't stop now!
go ahead and make those doors open like you have always imagined,
See what you can come up with, after all, It's just plastic"thumbsup"
Ryan.
Last edited:
Good work.
