Hi Marty depends on what you want to use it for... I have several minidrills a hand brace and a pin vice the pin vice gets used for plastic model making most..
Hi, cordless drills will let you down in the end. Buy one of the bigger models, if you want a smaller tool you can get a shaft driven kit with the model 300 and 400, or purhase a shaft drive as a seperate item.
BTW rotay tools are a great bit of kit, I am always reaching for mine.
Does anyone use rotary tools in particular the Dremel Mini-Mite, to aid in their modelling?
I don't have a Dremel, but I do have a cheap knock-off copy of a Dremel. It has a power cord, and it is quite heavy, but you can hang it on a hook and use a long (2 feet) flexible head, which makes it very lightweight and handy.
I have used it for cutting off large pouring stubs on resin models, and for cutting brass tube.
But its main use so far has been doing some delicate cutting of the bathroom tiles (around the pipes for the taps) and cutting some compound mitre joints on the chrome tile edging strip. And the odd nail head, and broken screw, here and there.
But the Mini-Mite being battery operated was lite, had two reasonably low RPM speeds. Problem was the batteries died in a short time, and recharge was three hours. It does take four double-a (AA) batteries which are soldered into "series" I think the term is. Anyway it is two sets of two batteries.
What I did was remove the batteries completely and used speaker wire and a 120 v / low 6 vdc transformer, and now have endless power, but only have one speed. The one speed I do not mind as it is low speed that I want off of this tool. Great for removing flashings and yet not overpowering to where it will catch and gouge. And I do not mind being tethered to a wire, as my other two power tools are corded.
The system does not overheat the motor as it is a low voltage transformer, and the bonus is it is even lighter yet than when it had batteries in it. Not that it was that heavy to begin with. I have worked steady for 15 minutes with it in this mode, and it reaches a compfortable operating temperature, no sign of overheating or power surging.
I do caution anyone from trying this tho. I did consult with an individual who is experienced with electric motors and ensured me what I had by way of a transformer would be safe for the motor size. Always seek the advise of qualified people before venturing forth. Don't just use anything you may have without ensuring that it is safe.
Just thought this may be of interest to anyone who had a battery powered tool, and was tired of waiting for charge times, or tired of replacing batteries. Or -- now when you see these beat up things in garage sales for 6 bucks, just wink with your inner eye and buy it for your arsenol of tools.
my favourite is a Proxxon. The motor running very smooth, which is one of the flaws of cheaper mini drills. There are a few models, but even the lightest performs well. And they are strong, mine has a few hours on the clock and still no wear. They are not that cheap but at the end quality pays. The bit holders are good quality too, much better than the cheap 'one slot' types.
