Dremel

 The Dremel is a must have tool. It helps cut down carving time in half. Before I bought my Dremel, I was using an X-Acto knife to do all my carving (what a fool I was). Used on one of the two lowest speeds, (out of a five speed Dremel) you're able to carve off unwanted detail to your base figure. For example: Say I wanted to customize a Homer Simpson figure, but I did not want his collar. Sure I could just carve it off with my trusty X-Acto knife, if I had tons of time to waste. But I don't. I set my Dremel on low speed and slowly carve away his collar. Then I would use sandpaper and my putty to smooth out or sculpt the area into the desired shape. Another item you will need are Dremel heads. Some sets are sold with a few heads, others don't. They're not expensive, so don't be afraid to buy a few and experiment. I mainly use two styles. A long narrow tip, with a round end. For those tight spots. And a rounded "bullet" shape for my general carving of large areas. Since these are for light carving on plastic, do not buy heads with large "teeth". Buy the ones that look like rough sandpaper texture. Make sure you use the heads that fit your Dremel, some may require an adapter. There are many styles of Dremel tools. You don't have to buy "Dremel" brand. I use a Craftsman "Dremel" tool. Whichever brand you choose, just make sure it's a multi-speed.