PK Tinyland

Flexible ruler

5 Euro

Review Article by Peter Kormos

 

For airplane modelers, maybe one of the most difficult things to do when scribing panel lines or adding rivet detail onto difficult, complex surfaces is to

use a tool, some sort of a guide that can be used to drive the scribing or the riveting tool with confidence.
Usually, the literature suggests to use Dymo tape, a self adhesive tape, that has a rather hard plastic strip, but doesn't solve two problems.

1. In corners or on small radius surfaces, it is hard to use,
2. When riveting, it gives no help for measuring the distances between the actual rivet lines.
For helping these above shortcomings, I invented this flexible-ruler. This is a 0,2 millimeter thick copper strip with photo-etched millimeter or inch scale on it.
Because of the properties of sheet copper, the ruler doesn't want to straighten out unlike etched steel rulers. If bent in corners or in angled places, the copper strip can easily be straightened with the back of a knife or a wooden stick and this is also a benefit over the steel rulers that are instantly ruined after a serious bent. If one uses it on a certain complex surface, it can even be used to copy the actual outline onto another location - for scribing, measuring, or riveting to mention a few possible uses.

Click on images below to see larger images

  

  

The flexible ruler is made in 15-centimeters or in 6-inches long versions with millimeter or inch scales accordingly.

NOTE: The flexible ruler may crack in, or even break when bent a number of times back and forth into small angles especially at the at the scale part of the ruler. But when used with care, I think it can be a handy tool in your modeling inventory for years!

The Flexible ruler is available via http://www.pktinyland.tk/

Peter Kormos

Photos and text © by Peter Kormos