Customer Reviews

Woodland Scenics Hot Wire Foam Cutter

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I had one of these back when I was a kid. My mother was big into arts and crafts and I have done everything under the sun. I mean everything. We used a similar device to cut foam for some art project that I was required to do. It was not as nice. It was plastic, not as versatile and ran on batteries.

Last October I had the need to cut large panels of foam to use as tombstones. I had originally thought of using a knife but what a mess that makes.

This tool is great for cutting foam. No mess. Easy to use.
It has a small power supply which plugs into the handle. It has a trigger which sends a low voltage to the wire which gets hot and melts the foam. As soon as you let go of the trigger the wire cools quickly to the touch.

I did purchase the add-on Foam Cutter Bow & Guide and extra wire. The bow allows you to work on larger pieces of foam. The extra wire is in case I break it while working....which didn't happen.

I would suggest this tool to anyone working with and cutting foam.

This has been "The" foam cutter for decades now. If you are a model railroader, table-top wargamer, or diorama maker. Or for that matter if you do foam work for arts and crafts projects then this is the foam cutter to get. It works well and gives you good heat and good control over what you are cutting. The design of it is also great because it allows you to make very straight cuts by running the fork along a flat surface like the table top (see my picture of this process in the user submitted pics) . You can also get the Foam Cutter Bow & Guidefor more detailed and accurate work. There is no need to order a replacement wire for this cutter. When you install the wire you will be able to use only 1/3rd of it and you can set aside the rest of the wire as replacements.

This is awsome, I love using it, its easy and fun to do. A must have for modeling.

I purchased this item from Amazon as well as a different foam cutter from my local Hobby Lobby, and I have to say I like this one much better than the alternative. I am a hobbyist who makes wargaming terrain, and this cutter is my favorite so far. The one I purchased from hobby lobby has just a single metal rod that is heated, unfortunately it is too wide and does not heat up enough to get a really clean cut. The only thing I like about that cutter over this one is it has a toggle switch that you don't have to hold down.
I am unsure of how hot this cutter gets exactly, but I think the small surface area of the wire helps it cut through foam with ease. The momentary switch as I mentioned before is a bit of a pain, but only if you use it for 'extended' periods of time. Once you press the switch, it takes about 2-4 seconds to warm up to where it can start to cut. Wait a little longer for the heat to build, and it gets even better. Once I am finished, I just get two or three paper towels, hold it on to heat it up for a few seconds, and what little styrofoam residue that is left on the wire I just quickly wipe off. Be careful to fold the paper towels over a few times, otherwise the heat can catch you off guard.
Other than the switch, the handle is a little flimsy which would normally not be a problem except you attach the two metal rods into the handle with thumb screws.
In summary it is not the highest quality item, but I would recommend this to a friend, and I would purchase it again myself.

Got this to cut the foam in my Pelican case so my AR would have that "custom fit" look. Worked much better than I expected it to, cause for the low price compared to a lot of the other foam cutters, I wasn't expecting much. Pleased to say I was surprised. After a few practice cuts to get the hang of it, it seems to work reasonably well, extremely well if you factor in the cost advantage.

Wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to a friend looking for something to cut their gun case foam with.

Hard to hold down the heating knob while cutting. Heating is uneven making the wire difficult to pull through the foam. Sorry I bought it. Could have done better with a kitchen knife!

This product is useless for cutting larger/thicker sizes of foam.
The wire cuts very slowly since its so thin and the bow design can
limit what type of cut you can do. So I bought a HOT KNIFE which easily
plunges thru foam and makes a quick job of hollowing it out.

Spend the extra money and get HOT KNIFE instead!

I normally use a razor in a jigsaw to cut foam for my scenic needs. I bought both this saw and a hotwire bow. While this does cut quickly it creates way more smoke (and smell) than I want to work with.

It does what it says - cuts foam quickly and easily. However, there's a design decision that makes it difficult to recommend: To wit, you need to continually push the spring-loading trigger forward in order to make it work. This is apparently a safety feature to prevent it from burning down your house, but it's hard on the thumb when you're doing extended cutting. An option to "lock" the trigger would be appreciated.

As other reviewers have noted, you have to hold the trigger for it to work, it doesn't cut very fast, the cut is a little jagged, and it can only cut as deep as the bow. However, for cutting foam pieces for my herbicide applicator it works better than a scissors or a knife or a razor. It could probably make complex shapes if I wanted to. The low price makes it worth buying.