I thought I'd go over some of the sculpting tools I use when working with greenstuff. While it's nothing earth shattering, it might be interesting to some folks to see what I use to get the detail I do on my models. I figure I use the same things everyone else does, the standard GW sculpting tool, an X-Acto blade and various other odds and ends for making or pressing shapes into greenstuff.
Let's start with the odds and ends
A good number of the things I use are from discoveries while trying to figure out how to make a particular thing or shape.
I'll use the end of a paintbrush, the top of a nail or the end of a piece of tubular stock to create shapes when sculpting. I'll use whatever I have on hand to make the shape I need. After that, I set it aside and keep it for next time.
I have a small collection of "things" I use like this. Sometimes it works, sometimes it only gets me close and I have to go from there. I've found it's much easier to press in the shape than it is to try and sculpt it from scratch if possible. I even have a small collection of rocks I use to press into greenstuff so that I can add some great, natural texture when I need to.
All kinds of sculpting tools
I bought a pack of these a little while ago after damaging my GW tool.
The thing is though, none of these have the same qualities as the GW one and I find myself continuing to use it and leaving these untouched. They aren't bad, just a bit too big here or there to get the details I want.
A set of clay shapers
These are a fairly recent purchase for me and I love them. They are great for smoothing out the surface of your greenstuff and pressing in fine details (relatively speaking for their size).
I bought these online and you can pick them up any number of places These are a number 2 and 0 (large and small respectively) Flat Chisel Firm. They are also great for pressing greenstuff into molds and clearing away the excess material. They take a little getting used to since they are much more flexible than the standard GW sculpting tool.
The workhorse of sculpting tools
These two are my go to tools. The bog standard GW Sculpting tool and a fine point X-Acto blade.
I use these two tools for 99.999 percent of my sculpting work. They're what I pick up first. The X-Acto blade is for super fine detail and working in tight spaces.
Above an beyond that, I use specific tools like tube tools for making tubes or a particular bit and then I make a mold of it. Then you've got other sculpting extras like liquid greenstuff and files and so on. While most of my work is with greenstuff, I use these same tools when it comes to using other materials like milliput too.
I really do need to buy myself a new GW sculpting tool, it's been a while now that I've been using the one I have and it's seen better days.
Make sure to check out these posts as they might help:
Green Stuff Industries Tentacle Maker
Masq-Mini Ultimate Tube Tool
Using liquid greenstuff... if you have to
