What's Your Putty Of Choice?

[RAFF-35]

As the title may suggest, please could you tell me what your modelling putty of choice is? I used to use Miliput, but I stopped using it because it would always clog my sanding pads ant took a while to set.
I currently use P-40 car body repair filler, but this is rather pungent smelling and I have the opposite problem to the Miliput where I can't apply the P-40 fast enough before it begins setting.
I also use Vallejo plastic putty for smaller jobs like filling in panel gaps. But I'm not really a fan because it seems to sink and shrink into the gaps, leaving trenches behind. Plus it doesn't have very good sanding properties either.

Any better recommendations?

[PR19_Kit]

I've used Presto for years now, a German car body putty that I came across when I was in Berlin. There are no stockists for it in the UK, but thanks to the good offices of Thomas (Dizzyfugu on here) who also uses the same stuff, I've had a couple of shipments sent over. These should keep me in stock for as long I'll need them I think. 

[kerick]

I use Bondo spot putty for just about everything. It's great for thin layers and for thick areas just build it up in layers. Drying time is a few hours which can be a long time compared to epoxies. The only thing I can see as a problem is that it is softer than the surrounding plastic so you have to stop before you sand away too much. No shrinkage in my experience with it.

[seadude]

What I use depends on the size of the gap/hole/crack I'm trying to fill.
Gap filling super glue
Perfect Plastic Putty
Squadron Green Putty
Bondo automotive filler (But I rarely use this due to the strong odor.)

[PFJN]

Hi,
My thoughts are very similar to SeaDude above.  Recently I have taken to use Perfect Plastic Putty for filling small seems and gaps because it is very easy to use and clean up.  Whereas in the past I have tended to use Squadron Green or White putty where I needed to address larger areas.  However, because my closest hobby shop is about 35-45 minutes away and they don't always have Squadron putty in stock I have more recently been using Bondo, since it seems to have relatively similar capabilities.  Other than this I also have some Vallejo putty and a tube of something else similar that I will sometimes use, especially for areas where I might be worried that Perfect Plastic Putty might not be resilient enough, though I tend to use it sparingly since it seems harder to clean up and/or sand to me than the other options available.

Regards

Pat

[Rick Lowe]

Various options:

Revell Plasto is very nice and sets/sands nicely
Have just got some Hobby Mie, so still new to me but appears good so far
Superglue and Talc slurry (thick or thin as you like) works well, but is a bit of a faff to mix up - but it files and sands much more easily than straight superglue
2-part Builders epoxy for bulk filling and bulking out shapes - sets really quickly, but also like granite and will clog files very quickly

Green Stuff 2-part epoxy is good for sculpting

Have used auto green putty, but can be easily overworked and start to set as you're working it

Agree Milliput is good, but sets sooo slowly and clogs files/paper very quickly

HTH

[zenrat]

I use Perfect Plastic Putty unless I need to fill a big hole and am worried about shrinking in which case I use Tamiya Polyester Putty (AKA Stinky Yellow) which is a two part putty that smells very strongly like fibreglass resin.

[buzzbomb]

As with most above.. horses for courses.

Vallejo or perfect plastic filler for small jobs
Ye olde Tamiya Grey filler
Various two part apoxy like Aves Apoxie Sculpt, my go to for filling around gaps in figures and spaces that need bulk as it can be formed/worked with various tools and cleans up with a damp cloth/Cotton Bud and dries rock hard.

and a very, very old lot of milliput from time to time

[Old Wombat]

1: Aves Apoxy sculpt

2: Tamiya Basic (grey) & Tamiya White

3: Perfect Plastic Putty

[PR19_Kit]

We really need to know each other's countries of residence for this thread to have any relevance. Many of the various putties are available only in limited markets.

[NARSES2]

Currently use :-

Perfect Plastic Putty for narrow seams etc
Humbrol for more general work
Miliput for serious work.

I'm in the UK and as my nearest hobby shop is either Hannants at Colindale (2 hours minimum by public transport) or a place in Guildford I've never been to (again 2 hours or more) I tend to stock up on what I can get at shows and that will vary.

[Weaver]

Squadron White, but I tend to avoid using putty like the plague. I'd rather spend hours sanding something to a perfect fit than put putty in the gap. My tube of Squadron White is old enough to have a Modelzone price sticker on it...

[Dizzyfugu]

I have various favorites, for different jobs.
First choice is Presto putty, a nitrous compound material for car bodies, as a final finish filler before primer. It bonds very well with plastic and resin, even with PVC, is easy to (wet) sand, great for bigger surface areas.
An alternative to that is an acrylic painter's putty by a company called Albrecht; it can do similar jobs but has very different properties: It's more viscuos, dries faster, is more suited to fill big(ger) gaps and holes, and is softer when dry, what makes it possible to sculpt it with a knife when dry (Presto is more brittle). It is, however, quite soft, and sanding can be complicated because the Albrecht putty tends to clog sandpaper, and it does not bond as well with the ground as Presto. Both putties supplement each other well, though, and both come from tubes. However, I prefer them to any dedicated modelers' putty that I have tried over more than 40 years.
Furthermore, there is Tamiya's 2C putty (and its variants) for true sculpting jobs. It's the best stuff I have found for this type of work over the years, and so easy to work with. However, it has become hard to get in the EU, so that I frequently replace it with a much rougher 2C repair putty, esp. when no delicate work is required and it's just a "combine these things, no matter what" job.

[HarryPhishnuts]

- For small gaps and seams I like Vallejo Putty as it's easy to clean up with water. Especially useful for things like wing-fuselage gaps.
- Larger gaps and seams I really like black "rubberized" CA. There are different brands, I'm currently using Mig Ammo's. It seems a bit softer than regular CA when it dries and so easier to sand. Also being black it's easier to see.
- For really large gaps it's Miliput. I've tried a couple of other 2part fillers but Miliput is still the easiest, for me at least to use.

[frank2056]

I like the Vallejo putty since it comes in colors and it's very easy to use. I use denatured alcohol (methylated spirits) to remove it. For big gaps I'll sometimes mix superglue with talc to make a putty and apply that. I'll also use Apoxie 2 part epoxy.

I think Perfect Putty (and most other acrylic putties) are just repackaged ultra fine artists acrylic medium/gel (like Golden) or even wall repair acrylic putties, but I haven't tested this out.