hi guys i’m new to plastic modelling here, i just want to know how manyy types of putty there are, i’m trying to close gaps on my P-47D and the putty i bought is cleaning putty :-S
[#welcome] to FSM…
hopefully at your LHS or a good modelling mail order site…
Stucco in a yellow and blue tube
Revell in a blue tube
Squadron green in a green tube…(thick stuff)
Squadron white in a white tube…(thin stuff)
some folks like using an auto body filler but, i know not it’s brand name…
aussie,
There so many different types of putty. The size of the area you want to fill will probably determine the type of filler you want to use. Go to this web sit as he is one of our premier modelers and there is a section that talks about filling seams etc. Good luck.
Richard
Rick, you are going to make me blush. Seriously though, I prefer the Squadron White putty because it has a fine texture and is easier to feather in. Some modelers like to use Milliputty and I have heard many good things about it but have not used it. Here is a direct link to an article on seam work … http://www.swannysmodels.com/Seams.html
ok do i have to glue all the parts first before putting seam and putty on it?
Swanny you are a premier builder…glad we got ya.
Aussie welcome aboard and to agreat many years of building ahead of you. You have come to the right place.
just checked out the link you posted swanny but i have a question for you it’s about the first picture of the seaming tutorial on your site. Did the seam go into the gap after you glued both sides of the fuselage together or did you put the seam on the edes of the both sides of the fuselarge when you were putting them together?
I, too, would listen to Swanny before I would listen to me. I, too, prefer Squadron white putty for filling gaps and larger seams. But until today I didn’t know the difference between the green and the white. I’ve been around so long I remember when we only had two choices. Testors and Squadron Green, the latter being considered exotic because it was harder to get. One thing to keep in mind, and I have to always remind myself when using these putties made specifically for plastic modeling: They are mixed with the one of the same solvents that make up plastic cements. The reason is that it caused the putty to bond well to plastic, but you have to remember when applying that they shrink quite a bit as the solvent evaporates. And, as many of us learned the hard way, like super glue, many putties used in modeling, Squadron included, seem to continue hardening on into infinity. So if you putty it, and put it aside for a month, what would have been an easy sanding job on day two, is tough as granite on day 28.
Swanny, would you, with your background in chemistry, either validate or correct me on this. I don’t want to send him down the wrong road right off the bat.
And welcome to a fine, friendly site.
You put the putty into the gap after both sides are glued. Sometimes just gluing the parts together closes the gap such that you don’t need putty. I’ve tried putting a little putty in where I think the gap will be before gluing just as a test, and all that did was squish the putty around, making a mess.
Good luck,
Dan
is the putty you’re talking about a cleaning putty or is it a different putty? cause the one i got is a cleaning putty, it says ton he box… RC tamiya cleaning putty… did buy the wrong one??
I’ve never heard of the cleaning putty. I’d guess you got the wrong kind. Look for Squadron white or green putty.
HTH,
Dan
Modelling is an interesting thing aint it Aussie.
Ok you build and paint what needs to be paint first, things like the cockpit and engines and wheels ahead. When you get to the main building sequence Aussie, that would be the fuelage and wings, thats noramlly when you get seams that you need to fill.
Do you have a Local Hobby Store (LHS) near ya Aussie? If ya do thats where youll find SQuadron White putty. They have green putty too. If they have both go for the white…otherwise whatever they have will do. Use Swanny’s link to the proper way to “fence” that seam in.
Make sure you have fine grit sand papers to sand them, I usually wait 24 hours to sand and smooth. Now when you think you have it all done and ready to paint, spray some primer on… usually I use a medium gray Acrylic to do this. It will show all the little mistakes you make and stuff ya missed. Fix it at this point…apply more putty (filler), sand some more or smooth it all out. then spray with the primer again. Repeat both those steps till its all good. Are ya using an air brush or paint brush. If its an airbrush use light coats with the pressure dialed down. If youre using a paintbrush someone else will have to tell ya how because I dont paint brush the big stuff, rarely the small stuff either.
This advice should get you going. Remember models are a pain in the butt when you start, but you have to stay with it, and keep building more kits. Experience is youre best friend, but you have to screw up a few models to get experience…so have fun with it and leave aggrevation at the door.
-Jeff
I use regular Tamiya putty (it’s all that’s available at the LHS)… It seems to work just fine using the directions on Swanny’s site. I used masking tamiya masking tape, and some acetone. Hardly any sanding required if i did it right.
Matt: Your site has been one of my motivations to keep pushing the limit of what I think I can do, becuase you make it look so easy! Keep up the good work, Buddy! [:D]
Aussie,
Most putties are thick primer, some thicker or thinner than others. Automotive “spot” putty will also work, such as 3Ms acrylic spot putty. This, and other brands are available at automotive parts stores. The problem is that it comes in large quantities (big tubes). Some minor seams can be filled with a couple of coats of primer.
Sqaudron’s putties work well and come in reasonable quantiies. You can thin them, as Swammy does, with acetone (or laquer thinner). They bond well with the plastic and are easy to sand to a smooth finish, and feather or shape.
You can fill larger seams with sheet plastic, such as Evergreen sheets of various thicknesses. You can also use streached sprue (plastic trees the parts come on).
Using plactic to fill will not crack like large amounts of putty.
The best thing to do is make the parts fit as well as they can before you glue them together. File or sand as necessary to get the parts to fit as best they can before applying glue. “Dry fit” every part before you commit to glue.
As any modeler will tell you no matter how hard you try there are going to be seams or other spots that need filling, sanding, etc. So, find a brand of puty that works well for you, is available to you, and gets the job done with a reasonable amount of effort. Like anything else it takes practice. rangerj
Tamiyas regular putty works well for me. It should be available anywhere you can buy Tamiya paints. I’ve never used squadron putty but these blokes seem to like it. The only problem with Tamiya putty is that it shrinks a fair bit, but you get that with most puttys. I did try the Revel stuff once, its called plasto, and it did a fair job.
hope this helps
Indeed plastic modelling is pretty interesting woodbeck3 and no the LHS near my house does not have squadron putty nor green putty believe it or not. I’m not in Australia at the moment. I’m living in Bangkok, Thailand but I’m originally from Perth, Australia. Things here are pretty poor, shops don’t have things they should have. I went to the LHS about 2 weeks ago asking them if they had putty or not and they didn’t understand a word I said. Very few people know English here. So they showed me everything they had and the only putties they had were RC cleaning putties as I mentioned in my last post. I bought it cause I thought it was the right one but it wasn’t.
Anyways, I found a revell dealer here. Now if they’re a big dealer they got to have squadron putties or revell putties. I’ll have a look ! [tup]
I’m enjoying plastic modelling so far, haven’t been frustrated by the P-47D kit i’m working on at the moment. It’s going really well. I’m not quite a newbie I’ve made alot of models but just never made them good. I’m very surprised by how good my P-47D is turning out ! lol
By the way Daniel I love your signature mate… unpossible… is that even English?? lol