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If you are going to construct an
indoor layout, you will absolutely need a power drill and power
screwdriver. This Makita battery powered drill will do both. I
built the entire GIRR Mountain Division with two of these, one set
up as a drill and one set up as a screwdriver. These tools are
powerful and rugged and have amazing battery endurance. I even
drilled the 1/2" by 7" deep holes for the masonry anchors with
these drills.
A screwdriver
bit kit is handy as well as several spare #2 Phillips bits for
drywall screws.
For all around modeling work, a Dremel Motor Tool is
indispensable. It can be used to drill, cut, grind, gouge, route
and polish. Get a collection of cutting and grinding tools, you'll
soon discover which tools works best in any application. A flexible
extension shaft is also handy to allow the bit to be positioned in
some places where the motor body gets in the way.
A Sabre or Jig saw like this one can be used for most
heavy cutting during layout construction. It does fine on material
up to 2" thick and will allow intricate shapes to be cut from sheet
material such as plywood and Homosote.
I bought this Makita battery powered
reciprocating saw to do one specific job because buying the tool
was actually cheaper than renting a SawsAll for a weekend. With an
extended length blade, I actually did cut grooves into a 4 x 10
header beam, two layers of drywall and the metal corner strips.
When I was done, I though that the tool was probably not going to
be used much anymore. Boy, was I wrong. I use this thing for
cutting almost everything. I have used it to cut wood of all
shapes, steel reinforcing bar, iron, copper and plastic pipe, tree
limbs and roots and firewood. I even cut some tile with it. You can
stick it in a hole in the ground and cut out broken sprinkler pipe.
Anywhere you might use a keyhole saw, this thing works better and
faster. Further, it uses the same batteries as the Makita
drills.
© 1999 George Schreyer
Created Dec 4, 1999
Last Updated Dec 4, 1999