Using slate on bases

[slah]

I´m doing a base where I have to pin a mini to a piece of slate, but I can´t seem to get it to work.

My normal drillbits doesn´t work, and the only stonedrills I can get around where I live are 4mm and up, and will most likely obliterate both the mini and the slate.

Anybody who has a solution?

 

[green stuff]

Either use something softer like plaster of Paris instead, or position the slate arround the pin and use sand to fill the gap.

I used slate, plaster, and sand for these:

http://www.coolminiornot.com/192255
http://www.coolminiornot.com/184585

 

[Dragonsreach]

Slate is drillable but will blunt your drill bits faster than you can spend money at GW.
Couple of tips I\'ve learned from others on here;
Cover the tips of your drill in some candle wax.
Use an Archimedies Screw type drill, at least to start off with.
Have a beer chilling in the fridge for when you\'re finished.

 

[freakinacage]

Originally posted by Dragonsreach
Slate is drillable but will blunt your drill bits faster than you can spend money at GW.
Couple of tips I\'ve learned from others on here;
Cover the tips of your drill in some candle wax.
Use an Archimedies Screw type drill, at least to start off with.
Have a beer chilling in the fridge for when you\'re finished.

aye beeswax works well

 

[Dragonsreach]

Originally posted by freakinacage

Originally posted by Dragonsreach
Slate is drillable but will blunt your drill bits faster than you can spend money at GW.
Couple of tips I\'ve learned from others on here;
Cover the tips of your drill in some candle wax.
Use an Archimedies Screw type drill, at least to start off with.
Have a beer chilling in the fridge for when you\'re finished.

aye beeswax works well

What chilling in the fridge?

 

[sivousplay]

what does the wax on the drill bit do? sorry, i\'m a noob

jim

 

[mickc22]

talk nicely to your dentist, ask them if you can have there old bits and burrs.
they come in a variety of shapes and sizes and the good thing is half of them are covered in diamonds
I\'ve found if you provide the box they are quite happy to put them in there, they\'d only go in the bin otherwise
if you\'re lucky, they change their tools on occasion too, not often tho, you can come away with some excellent sculpting tools too

 

[GreenOne]

I would break said slate in two using a chisel, then fit the pin between and fill with GS, Plaster, whatever.

 

[freakinacage]

Originally posted by sivousplay
what does the wax on the drill bit do? sorry, i\'m a noob

jim

its a good lubricant
@dr - yes

 

[Aliengod3]

I have pinned minis to slate rock and it is no picnic. I recently posted a topic similar to this and I received a response that was very helpful. Buy either plaster paris or vatican art casting stone and make small sheets of either material and break it up to make rock formations. I have not used the vatican art casting stuff yet but I was told that is sands well and breaks apart with texture very similar to rocks so give that a whirl. They are also easy to pin mini to as they are not as dense as rocks.

 

[ScottRadom]

Would not a Dremel and the appropriate bit work like a charm? Or would the torque ruin the slate?

 

[Legacy Account]

Cast pieces in plaster. Way easier than buggering about trying to drill the stuff.

Try this as well:

Brushthralls tute...

You could texture the top of the Milliput by pressing slate into it...

 

[Amazon warrior]

I thought you could get a slate-like effect by folding and rolling some types of putty many times, letting them cure and them breaking them so the thin layers were revealed. Can\'t remeber which putty, though.

 

[mickc22]

Originally posted by ScottRadom
Would not a Dremel and the appropriate bit work like a charm? Or would the torque ruin the slate?

no, I\'ve drilled a slate with my \"dremmel\" but I did use the diamond dentist bit I mentioned previously

 

[ScottRadom]

Originally posted by mickc22

Originally posted by ScottRadom
Would not a Dremel and the appropriate bit work like a charm? Or would the torque ruin the slate?

no, I\'ve drilled a slate with my \"dremmel\" but I did use the diamond dentist bit I mentioned previously

It sounds like casting is the way to go but I am curious how the drilling with a dremel or other brand motor tool (Happy now) would work vs. the slate? It was one of the reason\'s I bought my newer dremel, to pin models and perhaps even into slate.

 

[TAB Studio]

Dremmel
Great for drilling slate for me, you can buy regular bits for ceramic/pottery drilling that work. I find larger 54mm etc mini pinning with one at a low speed is comfortable.
The handy tool is able to slice wood display bases and give a cliff effect when you use the cutting wheel. (Hey Jim good to see you posting.)

 

[green stuff]

Message original : Amazon warrior
I thought you could get a slate-like effect by folding and rolling some types of putty many times, letting them cure and them breaking them so the thin layers were revealed. Can\'t remeber which putty, though.

Green stuff can get that effect if you cut it with a blade. That\'s how I made the rock part :

http://www.coolminiornot.com/171992

 

[freakinacage]

i don\'t see how the slate is difficult. a decent drill and a new drill bit (that will blunt pretty quick) will do fine

 

[Mourner]

a simple alternative would be woodchips....i did the rocks under the water on this base by breaking up woodchips and painting them.
The woodchips are easy to work with and shape. you should at least give it a try sometime.

 

[slah]

Thanks for all the advice.

Unfortunately after using my old bits some new bits, my hand vice, my dremmel, my powerdrill and the function on my powerdrill for drilling stone that makes an awful racket (I forget what it´s called in english), I have decided to pack it in with drilling slate.....

I´m fixing them in place with some GS instead and a lot of superglue, and hope that´ll do the trick (otherwise I´m buggered as to what to do).

Next time I think I´ll look into the bark/woodchips thing - it looks quite convincing, didnt have the time/couldn´t be arsed this time around