Modelling putty

[Golden 169]

Please could someone recommend some putty to patch up an abs shell for paint, and also for smoothing over the join on driver’s heads/helmets before painting. 
 

There seem to be various Tamiya options - or could I just use any old diy two part epoxy putty?

 

Many thanks!

[Lee76 638]

There’s a few options, for the small details I prefer using the abs offcuts and dissolving it in liquid cement, chop up into tiny pieces and drop it in a small glass jar (with lid) with some regular agitation it will make a paste that can be brushed or applied with a spatula. It takes a few days to dry properly but will give you a filler that performs just as well as the base material. Perfect for the split lines. I have mixed results with the adhesion of miliput, but would still use it for the drivers heads screw  hole fill, it can be polished with a wet finger so requires little sanding. I also use revell plasto, its not the easiest to work with, but adheres well and can be sanded. Will crack though if used on flexible sections. Ive used it to fill big gaps then painted the abs paste on to stop the cracking.

[Lee76 638]

Re the body filler, i tried a two part car body filler that was labelled soft, easy work... it was still way harder than the base plastic and impossible to sand down without messing it all up... it set really quickly too so difficult to get a smooth finish.

[Golden 169]

Thanks very much for this - In order to make a paste using old bits of sprue, is there any particular modelling cement to use, or are they all much of a much mess. The last time I bought any it was in a black and yellow Beatties bottle!

[Lee76 638]

6 minutes ago, Golden said:

The last time I bought any it was in a black and yellow Beatties bottle!

Ha, I remember that when I used to make model airplanes.. that and the humbrol enamel tins.. 

speaking of humbrol, the last time I made a paste was with humbrol liquid poly. Think any liquid cement will do, they are all solvents. Watch a few vids on YouTube, lots of gundam moddlers showing its uses.

[jonboy1 2943]

I can't fault Milliput putty personally. They are 2 part puttys that are easy to mix and apply, especially when done with a wet finger or applicator. Drys rock solid and easy to sand, file or carve. I mainly use the white fine version.

For melting sprue I find Plastruct Plastic Weld really good.