I am currently Using Revell’s own brand putty, but it dosen’t seem to be that great, as much fluid (oily stuff) is coming out of the tube as Putty, and it seems to dry overly hard - I would like something which will dry to an easy sandable finish so that i can finish without causing to much damage to the surrounding palstic.
I notice most of you guys seem to use Squadron putty, is this likley to suit me any better or am I just making a backside of using the Revell stuff?
3M brand spot putty you can pick it up at wallmart dries nice and sands easy.
3M Acryl Blue, Green, and Red. Everything else of that sort is an “also ran,” IMHO. Auto body supply places have it too. One tube will last a lifetime. Thin with 90% isopropyl alcohol.
Seems to be a 100% hit rate for 3M, thanks guys.
I like the red Bondo, m’self…
Tell me more HvH, I can’t find any place locally (including Wal*Mart and every auto parts shop) that carries any 3M spot putty. Does red Bondo work better (than Mr. Surfacer, etc.)? I can get that stuff.
Rich [8D]
Check with your local automotive dealerships and body repair shops…they must use the stuff.
Check your local yellow pages under Auto Body Shop Equipment & Supplies. You’ll find someone who carries 3M products.
In addition to the body putties & fillers these shops also carry some fine vinyl tape by 3M. This stuff is great for masking compound curves like under the stern counter on ships. Set your line with the narrow vinyl tape - then fill the field with blue painters tape.
Bondo Red spot glazing putty is good stuff. Like Squadron putty, it is a solvent-based material which hardens by evaporation. It may take overnight to do so. Too much can warp plastic. Bondo Red is fine grained and sands & feathers well. It is less expensive than a product with a model manufacturer’s logo.
Another Bondo product to look for in the auto body section is their 2-part catalyzed putty. This is an epoxy putty. Mix a quarter-sized spot of putty with a pea-sized dot of cream hardener then apply It will start hardening in a few minutes & be workable in as few as 15. It is good for filling large/deep areas where a solvent putty would warp the surrounding plastic. It sands & feathers well. Bondo 2-part putty cuts, saws & drills with most modeling tools.
I’ve found Bondo Spot Glazing Putty and 2-part catalyzed putty in the local Pep-Boys & O’reilly auto stores. The local Lowes carries a product similar to the catalyzed putty, called Evercoat, in their paint & adhesives aisle.
What Ed and Hawkeye said… I get mine at O’Reilly’s Auto Parts, but it’s at Auto Zone, and NAPA as well… If a place carries Bondo brand stuff, it’ll be there. I don’t know about other chains and Mom & Pop Auto stores… I like it better and it’s a way better buy than “hobby” putties, although I use Testor’s for a lot of figure kitbashing… “Bondo” is the brand name, BTW… Some folks call everything that comes outta tube or can, “Bondo”… Same with the body filler. I use it as well, from mold-making to mud and water sculpting for dioramas… It’s ready to sand in 30 minutes in most applications… It generates a lot of heat though, so watch out when you use it… It’s better to use too little hardener than too much. As always, use in a well-ventilated area… THAT part ain’t a joke… The filler is a powerful fume-generator. The glazing putty, not so much…
I worked in a body shop for a couple years as a teenage-motorhead before I joined the Army, so I learned about the automotive stuff (Primers, primer-surfacers, paints, putties, fillers, etc) before I ever used hobby stuff) and I even painted my model cars with the pro-equipment and materials, lol (Yes, you CAN use laquer on polystyrene, but you better know what you’re doing with it and be prepared to melt at least ONE kit to learn how)… There wasn’t any such thing as a hobby shop within a hundred miles of my home back then in the 70’s, so I used the real-world alternatives, lol… After I started using the hobby-brands, I noticed that they didn’t work any better than most automotive products, and were WAY more expensive in price-per-ounce, so I went back to the automotive materials…
I’ve looked all over town for the 3M Blue, green, Red. O’Reilly, Autozone, Napa, auto body supply, no go. All but one auto body shop gave any indication they knew what the heck I was talking about
Guess I’ll have to do online ordering. Any suggestions?
Smokinguns said earlier here he got his 3M putty at Wal-Mart, rather than an auto parts store… Can’t help ya, m’self… I don’t use 3M or Wal-Mart (outside their pharmacy, that is)… I’m pretty well sold on Bondo, so I quit lookin’ a long time ago… I figger as long as my wife keeps drivin’, they’ll keep makin’ Bondo…
Hans, if your wife reads that post, you may need the Bondo! [(-D]
Hear! Hear!
Here in the greater Phoenix area I purchase Acryl Blue at Space Age Paints in Mesa. This product is a glazing putty, so auto body houses might not have it. Maybe an auto glass store can help. The chain auto supply stores are pretty much useless.
ha rright on country club dr you going to the modelzona this sat?
Can’t make it this time.
You know I always hear it poo- pooed but Squadron green is still my #1 for kits. I can thin it and paint new facial features on figs, apply it thick open it up w/ course paper, let it rest a half hour and its dry. It’s ghost,(That wierd plastic putty plastic texture thing.) goes away with one coat of primer, many need fine sanding between several coats to lose those marks. I’ve had bad experiances with 3m bad cracking and interminal drying times. At work we use Nitro Stan some ghosting but otherwise very good. Plus it’s name sound like some psychotic demolitions man from the “Dirty dozen”.