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I have trouble getting plasticard in my area so I order from Hobbylinc.com
http://www.hobbylinc.com/Model_Scratch_Building_Plastic_Supplies

I have found a few things that work.

First I have given up on trying to cut all the way through... instead I score partially and snap it.
Cut along a steel ruler, then bend the card along the line of the cut and it will snap easily.

for working with templates..
I place the paper template on the platicard and the use the point of a hobby knife to mark the corners of the pattern. I then remove the template use a metal ruler and hobby knife to score the lines between the marks. (connect the dots). Finally I carefully flex and bend until it pops out.


For perfect circles I use a tip I found on dakka... I forget who..
This 9 piece die set made for punching sheet metal works perfect(harbor freight)


For bigger circles I have had some success with one of these circle cutters i picked up at a craft store for 4 dollars.


for very small circles and big rivets I use a leather punch...


Anybody have any other tips? I would especially like to hear ideas on how your transfer your design from a paper template to the plasticard.

Good topic, I shall subcribe.

Where is a good place to find a leather punch? I have not been able to find one lo these many years.

Here's a quick tip for the cash strapped. 2 cheap sources of plastic card and plastic rods: old bank cards /those useless plastic membership cards that get mailed out all the time (I think this is 1 or 2 MM, very easy to cut, very ridged). For rods, QTips come with a hollow plastic tube between the cotton parts.

I've seen leather punches at Hobby Lobby and Michaels. Most craft stores should have them.

For cutting plasticard, I certainly subscribe to the score-and-snap line of thought. For scoring very straight lines though, I picked up something very similar to this: http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/836650/Fiskars-9-Personal-Paper-Trimmer/ It was cheap and it works pretty darn well. It certainly won't cut all the way through though, so don't expect miracles out of it.

Look at home improvement stores, or wal-mart type stores for the signs that you can buy "for sale" "beware of the dog" etc. They are often printed on good thick plastic like .020" or .030" (take that, metric system) Easily stiff enough to do good scratch building with, then you can also use the plastic bank cards, gift cards whatever to make your thin pieces out of.
For largish tubing to make gun barrels and things go to the hardware or home improvement store and get plastic plumbing pipe like you'd run water in your kitchen with, Menards in my town had 1/2" and 3/4" tubing for about $3 per 5 foot section last I looked

You Americans and your pick-up-anything wal-mart! *frowns in jealousy*

*Subscribed*

Please notice that we never ever are able to find exactly what we need at wal-mart and are always improvising with something we found there. I have access to print shop tools and materials, and the heavy duty "paper" cutters that they have cut very clean, straight lines through very thick card stock and fairly thick polyester plates, as well as thin aluminum sheets. Just a heads up, even though everyone may not have access to such things.