Best fillers?

I'd recommend (in order): super glue, 3M Acryl Blue putty, Squadron White putty. HTH.

Dave

I always used Squadron Green Putty (and then later the white putty because it's finer) until one day I stumbled upon Tamiya's putty. I like it much, much better than Squadron's putty. Squadron putty dries very fast when exposed to air. Within seconds it forms a skin on the outside, which makes it difficult to work with. Tamiya putty is finer to begin with and doesn't dry so fast. Of course, it's also more expensive, but I think it's worth it.

For large gaps or major remodelling, the two Tamiya epoxy fillers and Tamiya Putty are ok (although in my opinion, the Tamiya Putty dries a bit too fast). For tiny gaps, joints and scratches, I use Prince August's Acrylic Filler.

My current favorite is Tamiya putty.

I have to agree - Squadron green used to be just perfect until they changed the formula some years ago. Now it isn't nearly fine grained enough to feather, and I've also seen it prone to bubbling.

Squadron withe putty is fine grained enough, but I can't seem to get it to stick...and when I do, it's so brittle that it falls off the model with minor handling.

Used to love Dr. Microtools red putty, but I can't seem to get it anymore...

Tamiya putty - that's the ticket. Fine grained, quick drying, easy sanding, stays put, minimal (if any) shrinkage...can't say enough good things about it.

I like the Squadron "red" putty. To me, it seemed to be finer than the "green", and much more robust than the "white". Plus, any putty that can be thinned with Testor's Liquid Cement is a "can't do without". Is the "red" even still available? If not, is it the same (more or less) as the familiar "red" auto putties?

Also, epoxy putties, such as "A&B", "Atlas", "Duro/Knead-A-Tite"; also all have useful applications.

AAaahhh, Men! I am on my last tube of Dr. Microtool. When that runs out I will shed a few tears. I guess I will keep an eye out for the Tamiya stuff when the time comes.

Bill Shuey

I'm working on the same tube for at least five years now. I like Dr. Microtools for tiny flaws, where CA is overkill, but CA is my primary filler these days, accelerated with microballoons (teeny tiny polyurethane spheres like dust ). I am presently pounding away on the Sword Sikorsky S-43--nice kit, but I'm using a lot of CA to fill joins, correct minor flaws, and so on. Like a chemical accelerator, the microballoons harden the CA RIGHT NOW, meaning I can sand out the area immediately. With Dr. Microtools, I have to wait at least half an hour, and there is also a shrinkage issue with large amounts. The only other putty I've ever used was Squadron Green, but I gave up on that years ago.

I still see the Testors' red in the stores--isn't it essentially the same as Dr. Microtool. And I know there is a Bondo product that is the same--glazing putty?

Mark Schynert

Yep.

Spot and Glaze putty. They are in fact exactly the same, both being manufactured by RPM. The Testors is, of course, considerably more expensive.....

Tamiya putty. (Solvent based). Very little (if any) shrinkage and outstanding adhesion. The other puttys shrink too much unless you wait forever before painting it (unless you use acrylic paints). Super glue is good but that stuff dries VERY hard and is a bear to carve on.

-John

I bought a tube of the Testors putty thinking just that - that it was really repackaged Dr. Microtools, but the tube I got was exceptionally runny - either I got a badly mixed tube, or it had just been on the shelves long enough to settle out. From the look of it, I might have liked it if it weren't so runny.

But I found the Tamiya stuff and all has been right with the world since.

Don Stauffer wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@usfamily.net:

I dunno - the vote so far has been overwhelmingly in favor of Tamiya.

cd

Correct. The red putty is "Glazing & Spot Putty" found at any auto parts store (NAPA, Auto Zone, etc.). The particular brand I have is "Swiss" and it comes in a red tube. The only drawback is that a small tube only contains enough for about three lifetimes of modeling.

I thin it with Testors liquid glue. After sanding it, I will sometimes go back over the putty surface with a coat of Mr. Surfacer 500 and then sand again after it dries.

Art

Thanks, I just found some "Glazing and Spot Putty" under the Bondo brand name. I think it was Ron who pointed out that they are all actually made by RPM. This particular "three-lifetime supply" tube was a whopping $1.98! A "slightly" better deal than Testor's.

:o)

in article snipped-for-privacy@earthNOSPAMlink.net, Greg Heilers at snipped-for-privacy@earthNOSPAMlink.net wrote on 11/10/03 6:22 AM:

I have a tube of Acryl Blue that's about 8 years old. I'm finally making a dent in it. Don't remember the price but it was under $5. I'll probably have to replace it in another 20 years.

MB

Yeah - I tried that and my tube still has the runs. Like I postulated, I may have just gotten a bad one.