Oval windows

jamstraz

jamstraz

Active Member
I've been trying to figure out windows in a lot of my models but I'm not sure how oval windows are made. Short of finding a file smaller than I've ever seen, I can't double drill on a hole with a .5mm pin vise bit without it slipping into the first hole and use the bit like a file will most likely break it.
 
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DeLano80 said:
What exactly are you working on? I have a small oval file I once used on a u-boat model that yielded good results.
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Various models. AMT K'T'Inga, polar Lights D7, AMT Romulan Bird of Prey. All have in some places ovaloid windows. I have used a pin vise to open them but that just leaves me a tiny .5mm or in some places .7mm circle, which is great for fiber. But some of the larger models like the K and Rom BOP should really have oval openings
 
How about drilling your hole and then using your drill bit as a side cutter? I've done that but only for a couple holes at a time. Not sure if that would be practical for your application.
 
DeLano80 said:
How about drilling your hole and then using your drill bit as a side cutter? I've done that but only for a couple holes at a time. Not sure if that would be practical for your application.
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I tried last night. The bits are too fine to do it unless I find a much smaller collar or chuck for my rotary . And then I'd need like a photo etch guide so it doesn't go wonky.
 
I think the best solution for areas like that is either photo etch or 3-D printed parts. If no photo-etch exists, it is possible to create you own

It may be possible to use something dental floss/string to change the shape of the drilled hole to more oval like. You won't have much control over making uniform shapes if doing a row of windows though
 
The only way I know to do it is to drill two hole carefully (slow speed on the rotary tool). Then drill hole sin between the two ends until they touch then cut the remaining bits out with an exacto then file. They make really small files. IIRC tamiya makes a "model" of a drill, that is really made for drilling out windows... it runs at a slow speed for better control. just a thought. you can find it with a quick google for "tamiya drill model"

Jedi Dade
 
Jedi Dade said:
The only way I know to do it is to drill two hole carefully (slow speed on the rotary tool). Then drill hole sin between the two ends until they touch then cut the remaining bits out with an exacto then file. They make really small files. IIRC tamiya makes a "model" of a drill, that is really made for drilling out windows... it runs at a slow speed for better control. just a thought. you can find it with a quick google for "tamiya drill model"

Jedi Dade
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My pin vise works well for drilling out a single hole. I can't bring them too close or it "jumps" into the other one. I'm toying with dental files which are ridiculously fine tipped but my sister (who is a dentist) isn't sure they would be able to file plastic without "fraying" as she put it. Dentin =/= Plastic. And using my rotary tool...I guess I'm far more tactile about this hobby despite being new. I would prefer to do all crafting by hand, e.g. sanding, puttying, drilling, shaping. Painting is airbrush, I don't see me really botching that up too badly but even a split second on a power tool with one wrong move and you could really screw things up, and by you I mean me, I could really screw things up.

.5mm holes are hard enough to drill without rotary. I have used it for some things here in there like opening up large pieced of plastic but for delicate work I would trust my hands over the rotary tool.
 
Analyzer said:
I think the best solution for areas like that is either photo etch or 3-D printed parts. If no photo-etch exists, it is possible to create you own

It may be possible to use something dental floss/string to change the shape of the drilled hole to more oval like. You won't have much control over making uniform shapes if doing a row of windows though
Click to expand...
That's why I'm hoping I can find someone else who's used dental filed (specifically K type) to do this. Otherwise I'm going to have to toss 7.00 and hope it works right. My sister is dubious about the efficacy of such tools being used for this purpose. Not that I doubt my own manual dexterity but I am far from reticent about my own egregious errors.
 
Using a dremel or similar tool is a blessing and a curse. It make short work of plastic... which is great for cutting windows etc, but also a really quick way to screw up your build. It takes a while to get use to it. use a low speed - or pick up that Tamiya drill kit I mentioned. I've seen it used for exactly what you're trying to do.

Jedi Dade
 
Jedi Dade said:
Using a dremel or similar tool is a blessing and a curse. It make short work of plastic... which is great for cutting windows etc, but also a really quick way to screw up your build. It takes a while to get use to it. use a low speed - or pick up that Tamiya drill kit I mentioned. I've seen it used for exactly what you're trying to do.

Jedi Dade
Click to expand...
I saw it. Just want to try to do this by hand before I try to find a collar small enough to latch onto my .5mm bits or make another tool purchase that might not work: on both accounts.
 
Look up jeweler's files, I have a set from when I took a jewelry making class in college and they're pretty small. The set I got had a mix of files shapes from rat tails, to rectangular, half rounded, to triangular.

These look closest to what I have but I'm not sure if they're exactly what I have. You'll probably want to look around Amazon and read or ask questions about the size because the ones I have a really small, the rat tail is probably no more than half the width/diameter of a regular pencil and that might be a bit too large. If you want, I can snap a pic of them and post it here.

 
I did a ton of oval windows on my 1/1400 Ambassador/Enterprise C model only in 1/32". The easiest way I found was to make a center mark with a needle in a pin vise and drill it out with the above mentioned Tamiya drill. Drill the top half first and use a second bit in a pin vise to saw gently(and I mean gently!) downward. It also really helped to thin out the back side with a dremel first. I broke my first bit rather quickly, but the second got me through the rest. I tried using the drill bit chucked up in the dremel to cut downward, but got some kidney bean shaped windows!
 
I am going to try the microbroach idea . I just don't trust power tools in my incapable hands. Despite the earlier posts about sticker shock I've come into a minor windfall due to taxes and a recent death. Plus with the stimulus I know have almost everything needed ordered or already here to finish every model I have (except my Arduino and 1mm fiber I've been waiting on for over a month). And of course paint. I will see how the broaches work on my junk hull and if they work well I will try to oval up some windows on my K'T'Inga which are already drilled to .7mm
 
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