I need some help from the more experienced out there. I bought some 3/32" by 1/16" magnet disks. My plan was to drill out a small hole in the figure where the stand collar was ( snapped that off easily) then put a magnet in there and do the same in top of the support stick. The figure side is very easy and I love it. But the support stick side is very difficult to get the hole lined up just right so as not to drill through the side or slip and puncture my hand. Any ideas for the stand side? I have seen some ball and collar type setups on here but I don't know where you would get that type of thing.

I just cut the male part of the stand off, shaved it flat, and superglued a magnet to the top to that rather than drill it out and sink a magnet in there.

Tip: Keep your magnets stacked and make sure you're gluing the same polarity from the stack as you work so your stands are interchangeable. I worked my way through a bunch of WH40k Terminator arms only to discover that I mixing and matching the polarity of my magnets. Cutting them all out was annoying.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tDQlmZT93bU/U4deLj_wpfI/AAAAAAAAACs/kq4TZALEFns/s1600/image.jpg

http://sanchezgaming.blogspot.com/2014/05/x-wing-flying-sideways.html

Ya I tryed that first. Not real happy with the finished look for it. With drilling out I also don't need glue. So it's a lot less messy to put together. Haven't done my bwings yet. Was thinking about leaving the magnet where the stand linkage currently is and permanently attaching that linkage to a stand with magnets. Stare. The linkage and the model. Not sure yet. Have only finished the x-wings so far

What are you using to do the drilling?

Coming from a wargaming background, I can say with confidence that a pin vise is the best thing to use for precision drilling. It allows you much finer control over positioning, angle, and pressure than a big electric drill would. Those little cordless Dremels are also handy, but I think a manual pin vise is the most precise option, particularly when you're drilling into something as skinny as an X-Wing flight stand.

If you're already using a hand drill and still having trouble with lining up the hole, all I can recommend is more practise.

There are a couple of other little tips, but most of them are somewhat obvious. For example, instead of just drilling right into the stand with no preparation, try using the tip of a thick needle to gouge a pilot divot into the centre of the stand. It will keep your drill bit from slipping off-centre at the beginning of the drilling procedure. Along the same lines, it can be helpful to drill a pilot hole with a smaller bit, and then gradually move up in size to get the hole to the diameter of your chosen magnets. Puts less stress on the plastic rod, and makes it easier to get a clean, straight, 90 degree hole.

I put a small ring magnet on the underside of the ship and a small steel ball bearing on the post (after removing the mounting nub). Works well and allows ship to bank, climb, dive, etc. (just for aesthetics).

Yeah, I'm planning on magnetic rings, bearings, and painting it all black.

You should have no problem using two REM's between the ship and post.

the cockpit rotates also.

That's really cool, but I could never be bothered to rotate the cockpit unless I was trying to take glamour shots...

i love that but in the case the back is what I really want to see. I am using a pin vise. But the size of the magnets is very close to the size of the post. Just not much room to play with. And my bit keep sliding around before I get a good divot going in the post. I have been filing off the top to make sure its flat before I start. And I think I will take the suggestion about the pilot hole or some variation of that.

Baphomet69, do you have a picture of what you use or somewhere that shows you how it looks?

I don't. I could take a couple iPhone pics, but nowhere to post them...I could email them to someone, I guess.