Curious to know:
What is it?
Why is it any better/worse than regular seam putty (ie: Squadron Green etc.)?
How much should one expect to pay for it?
Where’s a good place to find it? (I haven’t seen it at the LHS.)
Thanks!
Bri~
milliput is a two part epoxy putty. I cant compare it to any of the squadron products since I have never used them before. I like it because it gives you so much time to fill your seam before drying, you can mold, sculpt it like clay and it air dries. I think I saw it at www.scalehobby.com for around 8 dollars or so but im not positive. I have never seen it in any hobby shop or satore for that matter, I beleive this is because its produced in Europe. Hope this helps.
Casey
I have some but haven’t had an opportunity to use it yet. It’s available at many hobby stores around here, and is available in (at least) two grades; “Standard” and “Fine”. The “Fine” grade is about 50% higher than the “Standard” grade. I think Casey is right in that the standard grade is around $8 and I think the fine is about $12
Even the “Standard” grade is supposed to be much finer and smoother than Squadron Green, but again, I haven’t used it yet.
One thing that is supposedly different is that since it is an epoxy putty it does have some inherent strength. Whereas some puttys just sort of “Sit There” and don’t provide any real strength to the puttied joint, Milliput supposedly does.
I’m not really interested in strength in my application - just raw filling power. My F-117A kit has panel lines scribed ALL over the bloody thing and I have to fill all of them to achieve the proper appearance for the finished kit. Squadron works fairly well I suppose, but it shrinks a lot and it’s somewhat difficult for me to apply to all those lines and then have to sand it down once it’s dry.
For those who have used milliput, would you estimate that it might be worth t to pick up a tube of milliput and see if it affords any better results without the shrinkage?
Thanks
Bri~
Several MAJOR difference between Milliput and Squarona nad other “filler” putties is the complosition. Squadron (et al) are solvent based and if you use too much, you’ll melt your model. You can’t sculpt with Squadron, it is strictly a filler to be used in small amounts. Milliput can be used as a filler, a very expensive filler, and can be smoothed down with water before it cures. You can make whole parts and scupt figures with Milliput. This is no put down of Squadron, it’s just they are two different products with differnt tasks, sort of like a Ferrari and Peterbuilt.
Just so you’ll be aware of it, even though it doesn’t affect your question, Milliput isn’t in a tube. It’s a two-part epoxy, and each one has about the consistency of stiff Play Dough and is wrapped separately in cellophane (or something like that). You actually cut off however much you need of both of them, and then knead them together.
Now, since we are on the subject, I have a question for those who have actually used the stuff … I mixed some up once and it was pretty “Stiff”; not hard, just “Stiff”. Is there something that can be added while you are kneading the two parts together to soften it some? I thought about trying some nail polish remover (acetone) but since it was a small application decided to just go with the Squadron that time and find out later.
I’ve also used some of the Tamiya two part epoxy that seems to me to be a simmilar product to the milliput from what I hear. It comes in two strips about the consistancy of slightly dried out playdoh. You mix them together and you get a substance that takes several hours to cure and is moldable etc.
This didn’t seem like I would be able to get it thin enough to use well in filling small seams or in my case panel lines. So it appears it’s Squadron or nothing. 
Milliput is sort of like clay that dries hard at room temperature. It has a fairly long working time and can be drilled, sanded, carved, etc. when hard. I’ve used it to hand form parts and as a backing for major plastic surgery, although I’m back to experimenting with epoxy resin for that. Its surface workability is greatly enhanced by water; I haven’t tried mixing anything with it to make it more liquid. Milliput doesn’t stick to plastic so it really isn’t useful as a seam filler - if it were that big you’d be better off using sheet plastic.
I’ve tried using CA with accelerator for seams and panel lines but haven’t had much success with it - it is still too hard to get a smooth surface. I keep going back to lacquer based glazing putty for automobiles. It doesn’t shrink much if at all, dries reasonably fast, and sands easily to a smooth finish. Since it’s lacquer based, it sticks really well. Napa has it in light gray, but I’m sure something like it can be found in any automotive store.
Milliput is, gram for gram, way less expenssive than Tamiya’s epoxy and I found it much more mixable and user friendly.
To Scott : as to soften, did you try mere water ?
Another thing : we talked of Vallejo/Andrea paints here and there; their paints are very good, but they also produce a two component putty; as to me, it is pure crap, just opposite of Milliput. By the way, there was once a shortage of Milliput in France in hobby shops
( someone in Brussels- European Commission- may have considered that hobby shops were to be considered as toy shops, that toy shops are for kids, and that kids could collapse after having swallowed a big chunk of well mixed Milliput, so…) but we could nevertheless find it in art supplies shops; just a path to explore…
I haven’t tried anything yet. I mixed a little piece just to see what it was like, but didn’t use it at the time. I just noticed that it felt awful “Stiff” and would have been hard to use as a filler. After reading this post I understand now that it wasn’t meant as a filler.
I will try the water though [:)] Thanks Jose!
For filling engraved panel lines, have you tried Tippex, or other brands of typewriter correction fluid? I use it all the time for small seams. You can smooth it before it dries with a Q-tip dampened with isopropanol, and sand it smooth with wet & dry paper. You might have to repeat once or twice to fully fill a join or panel line,but it works, it’s cheap, and hey, it’s not a race, remember