Testors Contour Putty/ Iosopropyl Alcohol Question

BERT aka MODEL MAKER · Sun Dec 02, 2007 5:03 pm

I will be puttying the seams of a kit using testors contour putty. I know that using rubbing alcohol with a Q-tip helps smooth out the putty. I have 2 bottles of ISOPROPYL alcohol, the first being 70% and the second being 91% I have never used the testors contour putty and would like to know which of these alcohols would be the best to use.

rpauly · Post by **rpauly** » Sun Dec 02, 2007 5:56 pm

Use the 91%. The 70% contains oils as a moisturizer to avoid overdrying the skin in topical applications.

BERT aka MODEL MAKER · Sun Dec 02, 2007 7:48 pm

Thanks Rpauly

BERT aka MODEL MAKER · Mon Dec 03, 2007 5:05 pm

How about nail polish remover ? maybe that is what i was thinking

Post by **TER-OR** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 10:34 pm

The biggest reason there's a 70% is that the 70:30 IPA:Water ratio is the most antibiotic ratio. It kills microbes better than pure alcohol.

Lt. Z0mBe · Post by **Lt. Z0mBe** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 11:03 pm

TER-OR wrote:The biggest reason there's a 70% is that the 70:30 IPA:Water ratio is the most antibiotic ratio. It kills microbes better than pure alcohol.

Holy crap! I didn't know that.

Thanks!! As usual Terry, you both a gentleman and a scholar.

Kenny

Post by **TER-OR** » Thu Dec 06, 2007 8:34 pm

I didn't know it until college microbiology. Lots of fun, playing with "bugs."

USS Atlantis · Post by **USS Atlantis** » Thu Dec 06, 2007 8:46 pm

BERT aka MODEL MAKER wrote:How about nail polish remover ? maybe that is what i was thinking

Nail polish remover is mostly Acetone, which is a different animal. Great for removing paint, don't know how it'd react with the putty

Atlantis

BERT aka MODEL MAKER · Fri Dec 07, 2007 2:26 am

Thanks for the info.

Drac Blau · Post by **Drac Blau** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 12:44 pm

I would avoid Testors contour Putty. Unless they've changed the formula in the last few years, it has the most shrinking of any putty I've used and it tends to be crumbly compaired to others on the market. I would also avoid Sq

For filling of fine lines and cracks, I would use Gunze Mr. Surfacer 500 or 1000. It is a liquid filler that can be applied with a brush and can be removed with 91% alcolhol before and after it dries. It works great for hard to reach places and can be built up in layers.

There are also the two part polyester fillers for the automotive industry such as Eurosoft that work great for filling, although they don't smooth out with alcohol.

For medium sized gaps that are easy to reach, gap filling super glue or super glue with a filler such as micro-baloons or baking soda work well.

For large gaps, I use two part epoxy putty. There are many brands out there to choose from. Milliput comes to mind.

I know this is more info than you asked for, I just got a little carried away with ideas.

DB

BERT aka MODEL MAKER · Wed Dec 19, 2007 1:55 pm

Thank you, & I appreciate your advice and now i know more about the testors putty.

I am going to get something better.

Drac Blau · Post by **Drac Blau** » Wed Dec 19, 2007 6:38 pm

I'm glad I could help.

Sorry, I seem to have forgotten to finish the last sentence on the first paragraph on my post above. I was going to say that Squadron green putty is okay for small seams and such, but it tends to shrink, so I wouldn't recommend it either.

For epoxy putty, if you're on a budget as I usually am, I've used the two part putties made for repairing gas tanks. It works great and you can get a small strip of it for as low as $1. It's the same as what people in miniature figure modelling call "brown stuff". It sands and drills well and is great for the larger gaps. you can smooth it and shape it with a finger wet with water before it cures. It usually cures overnite. A small strip usually does quite a few projects.

DB

BERT aka MODEL MAKER · Thu Dec 20, 2007 2:36 pm

the seams i am thinking about are the small if any, gaps between the sub body and the fins. The cement may fill the gaps the first time but if not i will try the testors. I will buy some better stuff for any future projects though.

seam-filler · Post by **seam-filler** » Fri Dec 21, 2007 5:35 am

Any solvent-based filler will shrink - this includes the acrylic fillers where water is the solvent. This is because the solvent evaporates in order to dry the filler and this means that the filler loses part of its volume.

Epoxy fillers cure because of a chemical reaction between the resin and the hardener. This means that epoxy fillers shrink less.