5 Marxist Art Supplies

June 2nd, 2005 · 2 Comments · Tools and Tech

Make Lenin proud! Here are five art supplies available to everyone:

Marx_wire

1) Tie wire, aka bailing wire, is less than $5 and available at most hardware stores. Think of it as permanent, trustworthy duct tape. Great for holding/connecting installations to their environment.

Marx_card

2) Cardboard. Cheap skin for large scale environments (available in 3’x50′ rolls for $45). accepts paint well and easily secures with staples (see next).

Marx_staple

3) Arrow T-50 Staple Gun. A classic. Accepts a variety of staple lengths to match the job (even better when you have a variety of lengths ready to use).

Marx_glue
Marx_paf

4) Hot Glue. A million and one uses. For marxist snobs who need a more secure material attachment tool: try a Remington 490 Powder Actuated .22 Caliber Power Driver–this is basically a .22 rifle that drives nails through wood, steel and concrete (starts at $20, available at home depot). Lots of fun.

Marx_pc
Marx_thomas

5) Porter Cable BN200a 18 gauge “pin nailer” brad nail gun with Thomas “mini hot-dog” air compressor. Ok, artists, you gotta spend money some time and this is the thing to blow it on. Brad nailers make anything quickly and efficiently, frames to installations. Once you go pneumatic there is no turning back. The BN200a is $100, don’t get anything less. The Thomas compressor mentioned is wonderful because it’s unusually quiet (but that makes it twice as expensive). Whichever compressor you choose, go “mini-hot-dog” over a “pancake style” compressor: you’ll appreciate the improved portability and nail guns don’t need much air.

Category: Tools and Tech

2 Comments so far ↓

  • David

    Murray, good list! Certainly things that any good Groucho Marxist needs to have. I’m definitely gonna look into the Porter Cable nail gun. I’ve gotten alot of miles out of their orbital sander.

  • Murray

    David, it’s the best bang for the buck out there. I’ve actually done an embarrassing amount of research on brad nailers. I’ve been around them for years. Also check out the Senco Slp20 ($120)–it’s a tad lighter, but has less flexibility in brad lengths. The best one on the market is the italian made Omer 12.40 ($270), which is worth it if you either A) use it a lot or B) are a tool snob (er, like me).

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