FANTASTIC ADVICE! The wet cotton swab for finishing putty, the sparing application of super glue using a needle, and the recommendation of a half hour being the sweet spot to sand is just invaluable advice! THANK YOU!!!
Those methods you use are handy for any modeler. I’m a model railroad builder and one of the methods I use was from an article from the December 1967 issue in Model Railroader magazine. The author was scratch building a Baldwin Locomotive Works diesel engine using sheet styrene. He made his own putty by saving shavings and small scraps of the styrene and putting them in a glass jar and adding liquid cement. It’s worked for me but I like your method too.
An excellent video on filling gaps. Im new to this hobby and im currently building a Tamiya sea harrier, which is a very old tooling and some of the gaps - especially in small parts like the thrust nozzles - are hellish. I'll definitely be getting some of that putty and ca glue.
For filling joints, try putting masking tape on both sides of the joint about a millimetre or less on each side of the joint. Thin out the putty with some Tamiya liquid glue in a plastic milk carton cap and then brush it on. This way you loose no panel lines or rivets! I have always had problems with CA glue.
K.I.S.S.!!! Especially in this hobby! Very Refreshing to SEE a LOGICAL solution to open GAPS! WOW, sheet styrene, or styrene rod or stretched sprue! Then (CA/Super glue). But the other ingredient is Taking your time. Don't rush it as you showed without broadcasting TAKE YOUR TIME. Folks, Real School here! Simple filling gaps....Don't make the mistake of shoving Putty, Spackle, Concrete, Asphalt, Mud, Dirt, Sprue GOO (Never really dries) Just Thank You!!! Build as you like, but hopefully don't become a Lemming just to be cool. Make model building FUN Not more complicated. Blessings Darrell Killingsworth
I like the idea of using styrene to fill larger gaps; I've used that a few times. I build 1/24 and 1/25 cars and trucks. I've also found good luck with sprue goo, using Testor's glue in the red tube and sprues from the manufacturer/kit I'm working on. I've found that the various manufacturers use slightly different plastics - Moebius, for example is quite different from AMT, which itself is slightly different from Revell. If I use a Revell goo on a Moebius kit, it doesn't set as well. Truck is to use as little glue as possible that will melt the sprue, and you get a high sprue-to-glue ratio - doing this, it sands and shapes as easily as regular styrene. And I love the Corsair in your logo! The explanation and the logo have earned a subscribe! 👍🏻
Filling a gap with styrene is a good way to get red of it and it will not schrink in time. I'm always applying putty like I'm doing painting : I'm putting masking tape and only getting the area I want to fill. Some other way is to fill gapes with a mix of plastic dust and CA glue. Depending on the gap that needs to be fill. Sometimes, I'm even sanding areas with masking tape still on model to avoid sanding off important details. It's up to every modeler to find his way to do things. Yours are very instructive ! Thanks for sharing.
If you want to give the filled gap the same material properties as the rest of the part (e.g., to keep some translucency), you can also dissolve some of the sprue in Tamiya airbrush cleaner (only one percent difference in the mixture from their extra thin cement) to get a 100$ compatible putty to be spread with a toothpick or something similar.
For small reasonable size joints, especially on new models, I find that super thin cement also helps a lot. I think it's melting the primer (enamel) or something, but it really helps to smooth things out. I've experienced this with Ammo's glue at least, haven't noticed using others yet.
I find useful to mix some graphite powder (from ground down pencils) to my c.a. glue as small gaps filler: this has the advantage of making the c.a. glue a little bit softer and easier to sand down. Also, it actually strenghtens the gap and, as the mix is usually darker than the surrounding plastic, it's visually easier to check your sanding job as it progresses and the overall final result. My 2 cents, anyway.😅
Regarding the irregular gap in the motor cowling. You could take a fine saw and extend the groove up to the end of the gap. This would ensure a square end and consistent gap to the end. At this paint you could fill the gap with the thickness of styrene of your choice. You are guaranteed to not use much filler putty.
That's nice tips indeed. I use this putty from Vallejo, and also sometimes... some wall surfacer that you can find at DIY stores! Modeler friends were skeptical, but it did not shrink since. (and you get a new subscriber :-)
That super glue applicator from a sewing needle is very clever. I’ve been using toothpicks for ages and have almost never been happy with the results. It always seems to be too much or too little. I’m off to the wife’s sewing box to steal a couple of needles.
An alternative to Vallejo putty that doesn’t shrink as much. Use testors putty. Let it dry for an hour or more. Then smooth it out using rubbing alcohol. Learned this from another RUclips modeler.
Whenever I have to use putty I leave it for at least 24 hours to cure, no matter what kind of it. But filling gaps with styrene works better almost always. I also started using styrene bits to shape some joints before glueing them into place. It is very handy when you have a model with mid wing configuration or upper wing with engine necceles hanging below. This way you can paint them much easier and you have better control on certain areas.
Y E S !!!! Vallejo putty!! I purchased this recently and this stuff is wonderful..... no more bad, smelly, gooey putty that flakes off!! BUT, don't 'wet-sand' this Vallejo putty.....did that once to a kit and all that putty simply faded a w a y ........... Was a bit disappointed, but Now I know better.....what I know NOW is that using a moisten Q-tip helps placing the putty....very Cool!!!👍👍👍 And of course adding that styrene before the putty makes perfect sense as well Good Show! But EVEN Better, adding the CA glue on top of your sanded/polished V-putty makes a Lot of sense as well, because V-putty will shrink as well as other putties.
been a modeller for 50 ish years dont know what the American equivalent is but polyfilla fine surface for walls always works for me , wipes off with a wet cotton bud and is a fraction of the cost of model filler .
Switching out your regular glue with sprue goo sorts alot of these sorts of gaps, Especially if you use a thicker glue with more plastic in the mix. This is a good shout though, I use this technique fairly often.
@@ModelAirplaneMaker Old school thick tooth paste style glue intentionally applied too generously is also sometimes quite good. The kind you get in airfix starter sets.
I've had good luck with Testor's tube glue (red tubes) and sprues from the kit or manufacturer I'm working on. For instance, Moebius uses a slightly different plastic than AMT, which is slightly different from Revell. By using the sprue from the manufacturer, the goo seems to set in better with the kit. (This has been my experience; I'm still relatively new to the hobby.)
Thanks old boy. I've been at this modelmaking caper forever and gap filling remains a horror for me. I can fill the gaps, but the edges of my filler material *always* seem to be slightly visible.
Thanks, simple and effective with care and patience. I've seen modelers put Tamiya tape either side of the line as further protection for the surrounding surface detail. Have you tried this?
I had to fill a gap on a tank chassis, where the corners just didn't line up...used sprue material since it was same color and composition as the rest of model...a bit of Vallejo putty and it is nearly indistinguishable
An alternative to using plain CA glue is to add mig gun metal pigment in the glue. Then add kicker to dry it. Sand and repeat as needed. The pigment makes the glue more sand able. Plus it’s black so you can see what your sanding. This tip works with gun metal pigment from Mig or artist pure graphite powder. Found this from another RUclips aircraft modeler.
Sprinkling ordinary household flour over CA will basically do the same thing. The flour chemically bounds with the CA and gives you a nice surface to sand.
Yep I like that putty too. I used to use Elmers filler putty the same way. I also use a 2 part epoxy putty like Tamiya or A&B putty ( I get from a pool supply store ) in the same way . I feel I can get a smoother finish with the A&B with a little wetness and re-touching as it sets . I find Tamiya 's epoxy a little trickier to use but it can work too. Thanks. How do you save/fix rivets?
My technique on styrene filling: when we come across 'non-parallel' gaps, we have a few ways to deal with this. 1) Should this tapered gap appear after joining, we can use a technique that draws on a Japanese Woodworking technique known as 'doing aiba'; take your favorite razor saw and 'open up' the gap so you have parallel edges - obviously from here we can insert that thickness of styrene and we're good (my fav razor saw for this is a shade under 10thou (or is it 20thou ???) sheet, so i also need to deburr and ever-so-slightly thin the sheet on a file or whatever. 2) Should we discover this gap before bonding, I like to go back to some of my old Vacuform techniques; in this case, we dry fit as best we can, identify the gap, and then bond styrene to the mating edge. Once cured, take the styrene down on some sandpaper on a hard surface (I'm a big fan of using a FLAT tile with sandpaper a top) to get close and refine with files until you're happy with your dry fit. I TRY and focus this sort of work on the locator HOLES side of the part (as opposed to the PIN side), but sometimes you just got to bite the bullet and remove locator pins. Honestly, performing work like this is often best done before bonding if at all possible - you will lose far less detail, and you have much less chance of introducing longer term tension into the join (as you would if you REALLY wedge styrene into a gap). Plus, it always feels nicer when you bond those parts, and all you need to do is maybe run a tool down the joint to establish a panel line, and then hit it with 800 or 1200 grit as the FIRST step! Putty is a LAST resort tool. I trust the above makes sense?
As a case study, many years ago I acquired (ie: was gifted) a 'previously started' short run kit, that the previous owner had butchered. The kit in question was the HPM Hawk 127LIF in 1/48 The instructions called for the low-pressure injection styrene parts to be prepared by sanding much the same way you would with a vacuform part - however they had failed to used a hard enough surface OR had allowed the edges of the sandpaper to curl up. Thus we were left with two fuselage sides who's mating surfaces were banana'd away from each other... Think "left )( right", with the brackets in place of what was supposed to be a "left || right" join. Enough plastic had been removed to render remediation...challenging. So out came the 25 and 50 thou sheet (no word of a lie, i estimated the nose tip and fuselage rear 'gap' to be about 2mm, while the centre of the halves were in contact) - these were cut into strips, and with some mitre'ing I built up an entirely new mating surface with 25 thou through the centre section and 50 thou for the end quarters. I did NOT try and trim the styrene at this point, simply coloured the mating surfaces with blue marker, flat-sanded until the blue was all gone, and the centre fuselage styrene was 'translucently thin'. At this point we had two parallel surfaces, and with some minor work (adding some internal strips to help with alignment of the cockpit and nose gear bay (my 'alignment reference items'), and taking a shade more off each side til the cockpit and nose gear bay were snug) we were ready to bond. If I remember right, I may have added a bead of CA on the inside flat of the styrene to reinforce it while working on the mating surfaces, but once the sides were together, everything was rigid. The lower fuselage where it was to be covered by wings, was opened and got a sprue spreader to ensure a really snug fit for the wing upper surfaces (which were also discovered to have been 'worked on' and needed maybe 10 thou at worst on each side), BUT it all came together, rescribed nicely and looked awesome under a coat of micro-filler primer. Admittedly then it spent a LONG time on the shelf of doom, likely because all that work to get the build to that state had just taken some of the excitement out of it (and i ended up building another one, this time starting with a pristine example) - but the repair job was admired a number of times at club meets and I was really happy that I all-but saved what was otherwise a basket case. It eventually was polished and painted and then before decaling, donated to a friend who wanted one of those kits to build into a jet his brother had flown solo ... so it got a minor repaint, different decals, and eventually found a good home.
oh and why did I give it away after so much work? well a) I had three or four more of these things in the stash, so was using the basket case as my 'prototype build', b) my friend was on a time frame re: the build and presentation, so it saved him weeks, and c) good karma... I'd had my fun with it... From what I could tell, when I got the kit, it was from its 'at least' second owner - he'd butchered it after having bought it from a guy who wasn't confident enough to take on a short run kit, once he saw it... So best case we have 1) person who said it was too hard, 2) person who butchered it, 3) person who saved it and refined his techniques on it, 4) person who finally finished it, and 5) person who solo'd in the 1:1 version of the jet. The kit and build has a pretty cool story. :)
@ModelAirplaneMaker Awesome! That makes it all the more easier. My Son (16yrs old) and I, have just gotten into scale modeling. I built several kits when I was a kid. But wanted to do something together with him that would be time well spent. We're still getting up to speed with tools and adhesives, etc. I appreciate you responding to my question. And Thanks again for the videos! Keep them coming. I'll DEFINITELY stay tuned in. Have a great weekend! Regards, Jeff Jones
Its easier than that! Just go to the dollar store, grab some sewing needles and pick one. Then just cut the eye of the needle in half. You can adjust the 'gap' and when it all gets gummed up with dried CA, just burn it off with a match.
Oh no - that's unfortunate. The only other Eduard kit I've built was their Hellcat and that fit together very nicely. I have their newer kits (Wildcat, Zero) so I hope they go together just as nicely.
They are not triangular (that would be cool though!) These are run-of-the-mill sanding sticks and I think I got them at my local hobby store or at a model show.
I need to do more experiments with goo. When I did I found some good advantages such as the ease of sanding down and re-scribing. But then I found that the stuff was inconsistent and sometimes led to 'sinking'. Now if I have a gap big enough for goo, it is the right size for using evergreen and I get more consistent results.
too much time wasted ...nobody will realize the whole process offered especially once painted ...the putty is enough and once smoothed you're ready to go ahead.
Putty has a nasty habit of off gassing after you complete the model.... then the gaps and ghost seams reappear some time later. Putting styrene in the gap will completely eliminate that risk.
Been using this method for years. Glad to see the younger generation carrying on. Got ya subbed.
Oh man. Decades of scale modelling and I'm still learning. Wet (!) Q-Tip! That's great, thank's a lot from Germany.😊
FANTASTIC ADVICE! The wet cotton swab for finishing putty, the sparing application of super glue using a needle, and the recommendation of a half hour being the sweet spot to sand is just invaluable advice! THANK YOU!!!
Those methods you use are handy for any modeler. I’m a model railroad builder and one of the methods I use was from an article from the December 1967 issue in Model Railroader magazine. The author was scratch building a Baldwin Locomotive Works diesel engine using sheet styrene. He made his own putty by saving shavings and small scraps of the styrene and putting them in a glass jar and adding liquid cement. It’s worked for me but I like your method too.
An excellent video on filling gaps.
Im new to this hobby and im currently building a Tamiya sea harrier, which is a very old tooling and some of the gaps - especially in small parts like the thrust nozzles - are hellish.
I'll definitely be getting some of that putty and ca glue.
For filling joints, try putting masking tape on both sides of the joint about a millimetre or less on each side of the joint. Thin out the putty with some Tamiya liquid glue in a plastic milk carton cap and then brush it on. This way you loose no panel lines or rivets! I have always had problems with CA glue.
Was going to say the exact same thing 👍
I completely forgot about the masking tape trick. Thanks.
K.I.S.S.!!! Especially in this hobby! Very Refreshing to SEE a LOGICAL solution to open GAPS! WOW, sheet styrene, or styrene rod or stretched sprue! Then (CA/Super glue).
But the other ingredient is Taking your time. Don't rush it as you showed without broadcasting TAKE YOUR TIME.
Folks, Real School here! Simple filling gaps....Don't make the mistake of shoving Putty, Spackle, Concrete, Asphalt,
Mud, Dirt, Sprue GOO (Never really dries)
Just Thank You!!! Build as you like, but hopefully don't become a Lemming just to be cool. Make model building FUN Not
more complicated.
Blessings
Darrell Killingsworth
K.I.S.S.! It’s been a long time since I heard someone say that!
All the best,
Ian
I like the idea of using styrene to fill larger gaps; I've used that a few times. I build 1/24 and 1/25 cars and trucks.
I've also found good luck with sprue goo, using Testor's glue in the red tube and sprues from the manufacturer/kit I'm working on. I've found that the various manufacturers use slightly different plastics - Moebius, for example is quite different from AMT, which itself is slightly different from Revell. If I use a Revell goo on a Moebius kit, it doesn't set as well. Truck is to use as little glue as possible that will melt the sprue, and you get a high sprue-to-glue ratio - doing this, it sands and shapes as easily as regular styrene.
And I love the Corsair in your logo! The explanation and the logo have earned a subscribe! 👍🏻
Excellent tutorial, professionally done. My protégé picked this up after one session. Where was this 40 years ago? Ha ha.
Filling a gap with styrene is a good way to get red of it and it will not schrink in time. I'm always applying putty like I'm doing painting : I'm putting masking tape and only getting the area I want to fill. Some other way is to fill gapes with a mix of plastic dust and CA glue. Depending on the gap that needs to be fill. Sometimes, I'm even sanding areas with masking tape still on model to avoid sanding off important details. It's up to every modeler to find his way to do things. Yours are very instructive ! Thanks for sharing.
Great tip! I have been using stretched spruce to fill my gaps. A little tamiya cement and toothpick to shape it. Works wonders.
Spruce or sprues?
@@georgschenkfilm 🤷 School system in this country failed me🤷
If you want to give the filled gap the same material properties as the rest of the part (e.g., to keep some translucency), you can also dissolve some of the sprue in Tamiya airbrush cleaner (only one percent difference in the mixture from their extra thin cement) to get a 100$ compatible putty to be spread with a toothpick or something similar.
I love the method of using the sewing needle, I use it to fill the small gaps on my models.
For small reasonable size joints, especially on new models, I find that super thin cement also helps a lot. I think it's melting the primer (enamel) or something, but it really helps to smooth things out. I've experienced this with Ammo's glue at least, haven't noticed using others yet.
I find useful to mix some graphite powder (from ground down pencils) to my c.a. glue as small gaps filler: this has the advantage of making the c.a. glue a little bit softer and easier to sand down. Also, it actually strenghtens the gap and, as the mix is usually darker than the surrounding plastic, it's visually easier to check your sanding job as it progresses and the overall final result.
My 2 cents, anyway.😅
Interesting, I will keep it in mind the next time. Thank you for the info.
Regarding the irregular gap in the motor cowling. You could take a fine saw and extend the groove up to the end of the gap. This would ensure a square end and consistent gap to the end. At this paint you could fill the gap with the thickness of styrene of your choice. You are guaranteed to not use much filler putty.
I use similar sanding sticks, they are made by Alpha Abrasives and I get them at HobbyLobby stores. And great demonstration of technique, thanks.
Gday,
Thanks for sharing your solution to filling gaps! I will be definitely using this technique for sure.
Kindest Regards,
Ray form Sydney Australia
Great tips, mate, but more on that green cap styrene glue micro brush , please!
This is genius! Thanks for the great advice, it’ll help me quite a bit.
That's nice tips indeed. I use this putty from Vallejo, and also sometimes... some wall surfacer that you can find at DIY stores! Modeler friends were skeptical, but it did not shrink since.
(and you get a new subscriber :-)
"Wall surfacer" - like spackle for drywall? Interesting thought!
That super glue applicator from a sewing needle is very clever.
I’ve been using toothpicks for ages and have almost never been happy with the results. It always seems to be too much or too little. I’m off to the wife’s sewing box to steal a couple of needles.
An alternative to Vallejo putty that doesn’t shrink as much. Use testors putty. Let it dry for an hour or more. Then smooth it out using rubbing alcohol. Learned this from another RUclips modeler.
Whenever I have to use putty I leave it for at least 24 hours to cure, no matter what kind of it. But filling gaps with styrene works better almost always. I also started using styrene bits to shape some joints before glueing them into place. It is very handy when you have a model with mid wing configuration or upper wing with engine necceles hanging below. This way you can paint them much easier and you have better control on certain areas.
Excellent. Thanks for the video. Best regards, EBD.
I use Miliput for most of the gaps. The stuff is amazing.
Excellent tutorial, really like yr videos and tips and techniques , will definitely be watching yr channel
Regards Howard
Thanks 👍
I use liquid styrene for gaps. Works great and it's possible to do it without sanding.
Y E S !!!! Vallejo putty!!
I purchased this recently and this stuff is wonderful..... no more bad, smelly, gooey putty that flakes off!!
BUT, don't 'wet-sand' this Vallejo putty.....did that once to a kit and all that putty simply faded a w a y ...........
Was a bit disappointed, but Now I know better.....what I know NOW is that using a moisten Q-tip helps placing the putty....very Cool!!!👍👍👍 And of course adding that styrene before the putty makes perfect sense as well Good Show! But EVEN Better, adding the CA glue on top of your sanded/polished V-putty makes a Lot of sense as well, because V-putty will shrink as well as other putties.
been a modeller for 50 ish years dont know what the American equivalent is but polyfilla fine surface for walls always works for me , wipes off with a wet cotton bud and is a fraction of the cost of model filler .
Thank you for posting this. Spectacular technique. I am tossing my squadron putty.
Nice technique. I’ll try that out, probably all too soon!!
Awesome trick. Thank you very much for sharing.
Nice. I do the same thing except I cut my plasticard into a thin wedge and fit it into the gap as tight as possible.Then I glue and sand.
I use water-based corrective liquid to fill my gaps. It's super easy to use, and any mess can be cleaned up with a wet cotton swab.
Revell glue and sprue. Mix so it melts the sprue then fill the gaps. No shrinkage and just as easy to sand as the rest of the model
Switching out your regular glue with sprue goo sorts alot of these sorts of gaps, Especially if you use a thicker glue with more plastic in the mix. This is a good shout though, I use this technique fairly often.
Great tip!
@@ModelAirplaneMaker Old school thick tooth paste style glue intentionally applied too generously is also sometimes quite good. The kind you get in airfix starter sets.
I've had good luck with Testor's tube glue (red tubes) and sprues from the kit or manufacturer I'm working on. For instance, Moebius uses a slightly different plastic than AMT, which is slightly different from Revell. By using the sprue from the manufacturer, the goo seems to set in better with the kit. (This has been my experience; I'm still relatively new to the hobby.)
Thanks old boy. I've been at this modelmaking caper forever and gap filling remains a horror for me. I can fill the gaps, but the edges of my filler material *always* seem to be slightly visible.
Thanks, simple and effective with care and patience. I've seen modelers put Tamiya tape either side of the line as further protection for the surrounding surface detail. Have you tried this?
Good tip!
Using plastic from the kit and Tamiya liquid glue, I stretch sprue to fill gaps and then sand flush.
I've used the Vallejo putty, but I find more often than not I go straight to the superglue/CA (I'm a Brit!).
I had to fill a gap on a tank chassis, where the corners just didn't line up...used sprue material since it was same color and composition as the rest of model...a bit of Vallejo putty and it is nearly indistinguishable
Outstanding Sir. Thank You!
Excelent tip! thanks for posting the video. By the way you did a beautiful work in that 1:72 Nakajima I believe it is?
Brill, thank you for this excellent tip. 🙏🏻😊
Great technique, thanks.
An alternative to using plain CA glue is to add mig gun metal pigment in the glue. Then add kicker to dry it. Sand and repeat as needed. The pigment makes the glue more sand able. Plus it’s black so you can see what your sanding. This tip works with gun metal pigment from Mig or artist pure graphite powder. Found this from another RUclips aircraft modeler.
Sprinkling ordinary household flour over CA will basically do the same thing. The flour chemically bounds with the CA and gives you a nice surface to sand.
Yep I like that putty too. I used to use Elmers filler putty the same way. I also use a 2 part epoxy putty like Tamiya or A&B putty ( I get from a pool supply store ) in the same way . I feel I can get a smoother finish with the A&B with a little wetness and re-touching as it sets . I find Tamiya 's epoxy a little trickier to use but it can work too. Thanks. How do you save/fix rivets?
I save rivets by lightly pushing a needle tip in each one. Tedious and time consuming but it works
Amazing tutorial. Thanks
My technique on styrene filling: when we come across 'non-parallel' gaps, we have a few ways to deal with this.
1) Should this tapered gap appear after joining, we can use a technique that draws on a Japanese Woodworking technique known as 'doing aiba'; take your favorite razor saw and 'open up' the gap so you have parallel edges - obviously from here we can insert that thickness of styrene and we're good (my fav razor saw for this is a shade under 10thou (or is it 20thou ???) sheet, so i also need to deburr and ever-so-slightly thin the sheet on a file or whatever.
2) Should we discover this gap before bonding, I like to go back to some of my old Vacuform techniques; in this case, we dry fit as best we can, identify the gap, and then bond styrene to the mating edge. Once cured, take the styrene down on some sandpaper on a hard surface (I'm a big fan of using a FLAT tile with sandpaper a top) to get close and refine with files until you're happy with your dry fit. I TRY and focus this sort of work on the locator HOLES side of the part (as opposed to the PIN side), but sometimes you just got to bite the bullet and remove locator pins.
Honestly, performing work like this is often best done before bonding if at all possible - you will lose far less detail, and you have much less chance of introducing longer term tension into the join (as you would if you REALLY wedge styrene into a gap). Plus, it always feels nicer when you bond those parts, and all you need to do is maybe run a tool down the joint to establish a panel line, and then hit it with 800 or 1200 grit as the FIRST step! Putty is a LAST resort tool.
I trust the above makes sense?
As a case study, many years ago I acquired (ie: was gifted) a 'previously started' short run kit, that the previous owner had butchered. The kit in question was the HPM Hawk 127LIF in 1/48
The instructions called for the low-pressure injection styrene parts to be prepared by sanding much the same way you would with a vacuform part - however they had failed to used a hard enough surface OR had allowed the edges of the sandpaper to curl up. Thus we were left with two fuselage sides who's mating surfaces were banana'd away from each other...
Think "left )( right", with the brackets in place of what was supposed to be a "left || right" join.
Enough plastic had been removed to render remediation...challenging. So out came the 25 and 50 thou sheet (no word of a lie, i estimated the nose tip and fuselage rear 'gap' to be about 2mm, while the centre of the halves were in contact) - these were cut into strips, and with some mitre'ing I built up an entirely new mating surface with 25 thou through the centre section and 50 thou for the end quarters.
I did NOT try and trim the styrene at this point, simply coloured the mating surfaces with blue marker, flat-sanded until the blue was all gone, and the centre fuselage styrene was 'translucently thin'. At this point we had two parallel surfaces, and with some minor work (adding some internal strips to help with alignment of the cockpit and nose gear bay (my 'alignment reference items'), and taking a shade more off each side til the cockpit and nose gear bay were snug) we were ready to bond.
If I remember right, I may have added a bead of CA on the inside flat of the styrene to reinforce it while working on the mating surfaces, but once the sides were together, everything was rigid. The lower fuselage where it was to be covered by wings, was opened and got a sprue spreader to ensure a really snug fit for the wing upper surfaces (which were also discovered to have been 'worked on' and needed maybe 10 thou at worst on each side), BUT it all came together, rescribed nicely and looked awesome under a coat of micro-filler primer.
Admittedly then it spent a LONG time on the shelf of doom, likely because all that work to get the build to that state had just taken some of the excitement out of it (and i ended up building another one, this time starting with a pristine example) - but the repair job was admired a number of times at club meets and I was really happy that I all-but saved what was otherwise a basket case. It eventually was polished and painted and then before decaling, donated to a friend who wanted one of those kits to build into a jet his brother had flown solo ... so it got a minor repaint, different decals, and eventually found a good home.
oh and why did I give it away after so much work? well a) I had three or four more of these things in the stash, so was using the basket case as my 'prototype build', b) my friend was on a time frame re: the build and presentation, so it saved him weeks, and c) good karma...
I'd had my fun with it...
From what I could tell, when I got the kit, it was from its 'at least' second owner - he'd butchered it after having bought it from a guy who wasn't confident enough to take on a short run kit, once he saw it... So best case we have 1) person who said it was too hard, 2) person who butchered it, 3) person who saved it and refined his techniques on it, 4) person who finally finished it, and 5) person who solo'd in the 1:1 version of the jet.
The kit and build has a pretty cool story. :)
Thanks for sharing. Yes agreed. Best way.
Came feeling hollow and empty. Left fulfilled.
Thank you for the tip!
Are you using "thin", or "Medium " CA on the joint? THANKS in advance for you help and advice! Thanks also for a great tutorial on fixing gaps/seams!
In this case I used regular CA from the dollar store. Definitely thin.
@ModelAirplaneMaker
Awesome! That makes it all the more easier.
My Son (16yrs old) and I, have just gotten into scale modeling. I built several kits when I was a kid. But wanted to do something together with him that would be time well spent. We're still getting up to speed with tools and adhesives, etc.
I appreciate you responding to my question. And Thanks again for the videos!
Keep them coming. I'll DEFINITELY stay tuned in.
Have a great weekend!
Regards,
Jeff Jones
Great job
Vallejo putty is basically acrylic caulk. I tried it once and didn't care for it. To each his own.
great tips...
Brilliant. Subscribed.
Great tip, Chris. What brand is the thin sanding stick you're using. I always learn something from your videos.
As generic as they come - I don't think they had a brand name. I got them either at a hobby show or at my hobby store
I always found putty to be the worst option in almost every situation. I mostly use cyanoacrylate glue in varying viscosities.
I love that needle CA applicator, I'm making one, did you use a sewing machine needle?
Its easier than that! Just go to the dollar store, grab some sewing needles and pick one. Then just cut the eye of the needle in half. You can adjust the 'gap' and when it all gets gummed up with dried CA, just burn it off with a match.
Great video
Wouldn't it be easier/safer to address that gap before assembling it. Work on it raw?
Very clever👍 But try 1mm not 5mm 🤙
Actually it would be .5mm l reckon👍
Seeing the same crazy gaps in a brand new eduard kit
Oh no - that's unfortunate. The only other Eduard kit I've built was their Hellcat and that fit together very nicely. I have their newer kits (Wildcat, Zero) so I hope they go together just as nicely.
never seen those triangular sanding sticks? Where do I get some?
They are not triangular (that would be cool though!) These are run-of-the-mill sanding sticks and I think I got them at my local hobby store or at a model show.
Yes pun therapy is good.
Why not mask off the joint and fill in w sprue goo a layer at a time?
Probably because of the wait time for the goo to cure and withstand sanding.
I need to do more experiments with goo. When I did I found some good advantages such as the ease of sanding down and re-scribing. But then I found that the stuff was inconsistent and sometimes led to 'sinking'. Now if I have a gap big enough for goo, it is the right size for using evergreen and I get more consistent results.
I fill it only with glue
George costanza shrinkage?😳
Jman
But it was such cold water Jerry!
Thanks for the tips.
5mm!!! More like 0.5mm.
You are aware that they make putty & sandpaper for gaps, right?
too much time wasted ...nobody will realize the whole process offered especially once painted ...the putty is enough and once smoothed you're ready to go ahead.
Putty has a nasty habit of off gassing after you complete the model.... then the gaps and ghost seams reappear some time later. Putting styrene in the gap will completely eliminate that risk.
Use super smooth car filler, wet flat it, then clear laquer to seal.
any thoughts on the use of 'sprue goo'?
@@daveyjones5702 I’ve tried it with one model with some success but I find using styrene and ca to be more precise.
Masking tape: have you heard about me?
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