Model Tool Musings

We have all held a model tool in our hands at one time or another. So I thought it might be fun to share with you how it came about and how it's now part of product.  I have a few really good modeling buddies that I pal around with. One such friend is Tom Buesgen. Tom and I go way back and by chance, re-met at a model car meeting ages ago. We re-met because in the course of our friendship, I borrowed Tom's drag racing photo albums and spotted a picture he took of me years prior.

To alert and introduce customers to the inclusion and purpsoe of the Model Tool, this care and handling document was created by the talented FM collateral design department. Upon seeing the picture, I recall talking to him when he took the shot of me with the race car I posed with. One Saturday afternoon we had got together in one of our basements for a "fun" model session. These were just show and bull sessions that involved lunch, dinner and beverage. During one of these sessions, Tom had trouble opening a hood on a model. He coined the terms, "ham-hocken" and "sausage fingers", as well as a few choice expletives. The voices in my head started to talk and said a "tool" would be just the ticket for Ham Hocken Buesgen.  During a shopping trip with my wife, I spotted a nail cuticle tool as we were checking out in the drug store line. It was one of those non-chain super stores that had all kinds of stuff in the check out isle. I picked up the clear tool which had a red flexible, baloney cut, soft tipped end. It was all of 25 cents.  It came home with me. I took it to a few model meetings and it garnered the attention of similarly pudgy fingered afflicted modelers. Even picked up a few of the "tools" for fellow modelers. Fate dealt me a unique hand when I landed the job at FM. It was a dream job and certainly a pleasure to go to every day. At meetings I noticed people looking at cars, breaking nails, chipping paint and just plain fumbling with the functional aspects of the model. Lynda Resnick chipped the front hood edge of Frank Sinatra concept model with her nail, not realizing that the hood opened from the cowl. Tom's face popped into my mind and during the right moment, I suggested the use of a tool. I was asked what I had in mind so I drew a very quick, sketch of the tool. The idea seemed to gain traction and I was asked to go forward with some formal ideas and sketches.

I met with a really neat Russian designer at FM who listened to my idea and gave it the Las Vegas treatment. He turned my little tool into a piece of FM Bordello Art. This was an affectionate term we used to the FM process of "product enhancement". The resulting designs were unbelievable. In his best broken English, he told me how we could develop nice mahogany or burlwood cases that were lined with red velvet. I stood there during his presentation to me, stunned. All I wanted was a soft tipped tool to open model doors with, not an heirloom! I went back to my superiors and expressed my concerns.

From top to bottom: my original  model tool sketch and 4 preliminary  concept renderings.

We opted to just start work on a simple design. An outside vendor made some scaled prototypes and we passed them around for review and comment. Some people picked their teeth, cleaned their ears and whatever. I took a serious beating in that one meeting. However, there was a glimmer of hope that came out of the meeting...the idea was not dead. The next step was to decide on one of the two designs and have a 2x prototype made. Once that was done, it was reviewed and sent to China for their evaluation. They gave us costing, which involved packaging (tissue and clamshell placement) and texturing. I had suggested that we do some nice engraving on the tool with a specific model name on it and match the color of the tool to the car.

 In the early days of FM, this type of thinking was very welcomed. Any enhancement to the product or FM name was encouraged. So work began on the very first model tool. The Chinese engineers asked me what type of materials, I wanted, so I spec'd a firm but soft Delrin. It was hard enough to open an operable part but soft enough not to scratch. When I got my first samples I was thrilled. I distributed a bunch of them around the office. It was pretty cool to see people actually use the tool. Even my harshest critics were using the tool at design approval meetings. At one meeting, I recall Lynda Resnick picking up the tool and saying, "Now this was a good idea. It's simple yet effective."

Top: first model tool prototypes. Bottom: first production model tool.

Soon after that comment, the design studio came up with a Care and Handling document for the Model Tool (see image on page one). I recall the thrill of being called into the studio to review the document. The designer working on the project, even presented me with a display board of the new insert. I was very honored by his gesture. The tool was introduced with the 1930 Model A Ford.  We even had a blue tool made for one of the FM car show events. I recall giving the tool out and having people look at me and query, "What the hell am I supposed to do with this?"  It really was amusing. Eventually, the tool had the etched slide removed in favor of gold or silver heat stamping for the wording. Then they went to the ubiquitous FM blue and gold stamping. The wording was standardized, so every car received the same tool. A Multi-Tool was introduced with the 1:12 Corvette, but some of the functional features that the tool was designed for, were deleted. However, the tool was not changed.

Top: the angle-cut end of the acrylic rod model tool used to lift an operable fuel door. Bottom: the vacuum cap end of the same tool used to safely operate a models door.

When I left FM, I carried this concept with me to GMP. They included a variant of the tool, first with their GT-40 Series that I had the pleasure of working on. I made the prototype out of angle-cut acrylic rod and the opposite end had a soft vacuum cap on it. Simple, but effective. They did not have the money to invest in Model Tool hard tooling, so this was the next best alternative that I could come up with. It worked! I have to honestly say that this accomplishment was probably one of my "most secret" finest hours. It went from a laughing stock to mandatory inclusion with every FM car. Even to this day! Now, I only wish I had a buck for every model tool produced! One of the biggest compliments paid to me was by a factory worker in China, at a competing factory, who I saw using a tool on the line. When he was told that I came up with it, a broad smile came across his face and he said he used it all the time. Sometimes it takes only these little things to really pay big rewards.