Basic Tools
Following is a selection of tools that are necessary to complete the projects that will be shown.

Safety glasses are an important tool that you should use when working on miniatures. It is very important that you take safety precautions when doing this type of work.　

There are many different types of modeling knife and a large variety of blades. It is best to use a modeling knife that has replaceable blades. Generally I use the modeling knife for lighter cutting, as the blades are not designed for heavier cutting. Make sure to have a supply of blades in order to keep the cutting edge sharp.

Clippers are used for a variety of tasks such as removing plastic parts from sprues to cutting sheet metal, plastic and wire.This is the most useful tool that you will have and you will probably use it on every project that you undertake.

Needle files come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. You can use them for a variety of tasks such as removing mold lines from metal or plastic miniatures, smoothing the material you are working with, or eliminating burs from metal or plastic. It is recommended that you have a variety of shapes for filing.

The pin vice is a small hand held vice that is designed to hold drill bits. Some pin vices come with a set chuck size and can only accommodate a small range of the drill bits while others come with different sized chucks which each can accommodate a small range of drill bits. The drill bits come in a variety of sizes and great care must be taken in using them, as they are quite fragile.

Pliers come in a variety of sizes and shapes. You will probably use different types of pliers in your projects.
You can find modeling saws in hobby stores or Do-it-yourself stores. It is very important to have a variety of blades, but the blades must be fine or very fine.

A razor saw is similar to a backsaw but the blade is very fine. Usually, there is a handle that the blade fits into. Razor saws can be bought in DIY stores, hobby stores, and department stores.A modeling saw is similar to a coping saw but the blade is very fine.

Tweezers are very important in working with miniatures. They come in a variety of types and sizes.

Files are larger versions of needle files. They come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and coarsenesses.
Sandpaper is a heavy paper coated on one side with coarse material. The grit of sandpaper is the fineness of the coarse material. You will most likely use a variety of grits of sandpaper.

A craft knife is a utility knife used to cut various materials. In many ways, a craft knife is much like a modeling knife, only bigger.

Usually metal rulers are made of stainless steel.A metal ruler is quite simply a ruler that is made of metal. You can buy metal rulers at hobby stores, DIY stores, and possibly get one free as an advertisement. The metal ruler that I use the most was a free advertisement from a printing company.

Sculpting tools are tools that you can use to sculpt epoxy putty and other materials. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes. You can purchase them at DIY stores and hobby stores.