Materials to use for customizing

[thestrongest]

Hello, I am a beginner in the art of lego customizing and I would like to ask any "professional" or experienced MOCer about how they would customize their lego. How would you use sandpaper? Exactly how does Brasso work and how should one apply it? What types of scissors or cutting materials would you recommend? Where should my workstation be? What other materials do you use to customize lego? What kind of glue do you use, if any? Where do you buy all these materials, and how much would it cost?

Thanks to anyone who can help me with these questions.

[LuxorV]

Hi thestrongest, and welcome to the Minifig Customisation Workshop

For starters, I'd suggest you to check the MCW Index thread, and especially the Tutorials section, where you'll find many useful answers to your questions.

Of course, other, more active, customisers will be able to give you further insight on specific techniques

[Omicron]

I'll speak on brasso since that is my personal niche when it comes to customizing. Brasso is a type of metal polish (which can be bought in regular stores like Wal-Mart). It removes the printing on parts, but will not alter the color of the piece (but will remove the sheen, which isn't a big deal). A piece of cloth works well when using brasso to rub print off. I personally just cut up a shirt I don't wear anymore. If you want to remove certain parts of a head or torso, use scotch tape to cover up what I want to keep (this is a repetitive process), and just rub off the rest. Do it right, and you can turn things like this into this.

As for glue, you can't go wrong with industrial strength super glue. If you want a part to stay on, make sure it stays on.

I use small thread scissors to cut fabric to make close cuts.

When I get serious with cutting and drilling, I use a dremel tool for all that. Can also be found at Wal-Mart and other stores.

And for workstation, garage, basement, or your own room is best. I do all my stuff on the floor in my room. :P

All the necessary tools are cheap and can be found at any retail store with a hardware section.

-Omi