"Body putty" for models

[Noah Hofrichter]

This summer I'm planning to do a few kitbashes of some HO diesels that aren't commercially avalible, and so I'll be combining different parts of long hoods, short hoods, roofs, cabs, ect. I also plan on doing some structure scratchbuilding as well. What I'm wondering though is if there is any sort of commercial "body putty" so to speak to help smooth out rough areas on hoods and walls, and that will make smooth seams when sanded and painted over. Can anyone point me in the right direction on what is avalible out there for putty for models?

Thanks,
Noah Hofrichter
Reedsburg, Wisconsin

[pcarrell]

Bondo brand automotive spot putty (in the orange toothpaste like tube) available at WalMart (or just about anywhere else for that matter) works great. It's cheap (one tube (couple of bucks) will do hundreds of jobs), like I said, it's available just about anyplace, it sands well, doesn't shrink, dries in a few hous depending on humidity, and it works easily. I've used it for years.

[GAPPLEG]

Squadron Putty, available in most shops. best all around modeling putty, takes a good set, sandable, will hold a crisp edge. paints well.

[CSX_road_slug]

Noah,

One thing I've been using a lot for my structure models is a metal-based epoxy sold under the brand name 'J-B Weld', available at Home Depot, Lowes, or any hardware store. I like it because (1) it doesn't shrink and (2) it is [relatively] easy to carve and/or sand. It accepts paint quite nicely too.

(I avoid 'squadron' putty like the plague because of the way it shrinks)

Can't wait to see your creations!

[nbrodar]

I use Squadron White putty.

Nick

[pcarrell]

I found that the squadron shrinks too. And it doesn't care for humidity much either.

[bogp40]

The Squadron putty and auto body (Bondo) sand the best with wet or dry paper. Large seams and small holes are better filled w/ the Squadron putty for the first coat, sand lightly and then use the Bondo. Initial sanding is done with #300, styrene sanding blocks can be fabricated for any job. A drop of water or dipping the sandpaper allows for the best wet sanding and keeps scratching to a minimum. After sanding with the #400 the reapaired area is actually smoother than the surrounding factory paint or plastic.
Bob K.

[orsonroy]

Squadron Green putty is great. Yes, it shrinks, but I just add multiple coats. One of the nicest things about Squadron is that it's easily thinnable with any MEK based liquid plastic cement, making it easy to make a slurry to fill in hard to reach cracks.

[trolleyboy]

Noah it's a bot harder to find, but back in my tank and airplane modelling days, I swore by Tamiya's body putty. It shrinks a bit but not as much as the squadron.Though I have found over the years that the squadron white putty is a bit less prone to shrinkage. Again it's finding it though. I've had some luck with regular polyfilla brand on structure models. I'm not sure that I would use it on a locomotive ba***hough.

Rob

[Anonymous]

I think the rule of thumb for use of body putty is, "use sparingly."

The larger volume of body putty present, the larger amount of shrinkage. So the trick to minimizing shrinkage is simply to minimize the amount of body putty used as much as possible.

That's why for really large gaps, body putty should not be used alone. Rather, one should cut some styrene to roughly fit the gap to be filled, glue it in, then fill the remaining small cracks with body putty, let cure, then sand smooth.

That's the technique I use, and I have never had a problem with shrinkage.

[csmith9474]

I am going to jump on the Squadron bandwagon here. Just be careful as the putty will attack plastics. They also sell several specialized sanding accessories.

[rbturner]

Noah, I go along with Phil Carroll. Get the orange tube of Bondo stuff at Wal-Mart.

Randy

[Anonymous]

You can also use gap filling CA sold in hobby shops. I usually use a combination of Squadron putty and when it's cured cover it with a thin layer of CA.

[Noah Hofrichter]

Wow guys, I really appreciate all the responses. I'll have to do a little looking into each of the products recomended and see what I can come up with.

Thanks again for all the responses.

Noah

[jeffrey-wimberly]

The Bondo works for me. Another product I use is Testor's contour putty. It's made for use on plastics.

[Anonymous]

I use the testors for large gaps, that are too small to plug with scrap styrene. I don't like the surface it leaves, after sanding. I use Mr.Surfacer over it, and over minor imperfections, like seams and scratches.

[BigRusty]

No matter what you use. FIRST test it to be sure it is compatible with the paint you are going to use. Some of them are SOLUBLE in some paints. I used Squadron Greem to modify my Athearn PA units and they were GORGEOUS until I painted them with Accupaint. They ended looking like they were in a crossing accident a coal truck.

[AltonFan]

A cheap and useful putty can be made by dissolving plastic sprue into a bottle of liquid model cement. I cut up the sprues into small grandules with a wire cutter and add to the solvent until I get a tarry substance.

Needless to say, this will probably only work well on styrene models.