Model Forum / General / Models / April 2008

There are two ways of dealing with the seam.  If, after filling and rubbing
down, there is a still a very fine seam line, then fill it with the sludge
from the buttom of an enamel paint tin. Let it dry and rub down with a fine
grade of wet-and-dry.  In the seam is slightly wider, run a very thin line
of Superglue down the seam. When it is dry, rub down again, but this will
take a bit more work than with the enamel paint.

Don't forget to rescribe the transerse panel lines where they have been
lost.  Oh, and as an afterthought, check your references. Some aircraft were
actually built in halves and so have a real panel line in that position.

i glue and align half the fuselage at a time. top, the bottom.
or use putty, a flexi file or a hammer.

Check this link:
http://www.aeroscale.co.uk/modules.php?op=modload&name=SquawkBox&file=index&req=
viewtopic&topic_id=111677&page=1

If you are lucky, the seam does not need leveling, only filling.  That
is, there is no bump, just a slight crack.  Then you merely apply
putty in the crack, sand, and prime.

However, usually you need to level the seam.  This occurs because the
two pieces do not fit precisely at the same level and leave a little
step.  I scrape seams that need leveling, by drawing an Xacto knife
along the seam with the blade held at 90 degrees.  This dulls the
blade quickly, so I keep a second handle on my bench with an old blade
I only use for scraping..

Then I go to the putty, although sometimes the scaping gives a good
enough surface that primer fills the residual crack. I use a very full
bodied primer with a lot of filler in it (Krylon).

In article
<lalaw44-1B82F8.09344209042008@netmask218-233-240-128.youiwe.co.kr>,

[snip]

When you glue it together, wait a moment for the glue to soften the
plastic, then firmly squeeze the parts together so that a bit of glue &
plastic oozes out of the seam.  Wait for it to harden before you trim &
sand it flush.  The seam should be a lot less noticeable.

If you didn't align the halves perfectly, you'll have to use putty to
smooth out the transition.  You can apply masking tape first to protect
areas you don't want touched by putty.  Find something you can use as a
spatula to spread the putty.  When it's hard, remove the tape and sand
it flush.

Whether you used putty or not, the next step is to apply a coat of
sandable primer or filling primer.  It will fill any remaining hairline
gaps, not to mention the pinhole bubbles in the surface of the putty.  
When it's dry and hard, wet-sand with very fine sandpaper.  If done
right, you should end up with a smooth surface with no visible seams.

in article
lalaw44-1B82F8.09344209042008@netmask218-233-240-128.youiwe.co.kr, jal at
lalaw44@hotmail.com wrote on 4/9/08 4:34 AM:

You should be prepared to redo the filling process one or more times before
the seam is finally rendered invisible. In addition to what others have
said, I like the following products (better than Squadron putty) for
filling:

Bondo Glazing & Spot Putty (an automotive product). Dunno if it's available
in the UK, but any auto supply store ought at least to have a product like
it. It's sort of orange. Doesn't shrink as badly as Squadron putty, and
doesn't attack the plastic as much either. I use it for first fillings of
large gaps.

Gap-filling CA glule. This works really well when you need a filling
material at least as hard as the surrounding plastic, e.g. when you're going
to apply a natural metal finish over it. If you use an accellerator, you can
sand it almost immediately (and don't wait very long before sanding because
it gets REALLY hard after 30 minutes or so).

Mr. Surfacer products. If you can find these, they're great for small gaps
and as a final putty/primer. Mr. S 500 is good for applying to gaps with a
brush. Mr. S 1000 and 1200 can be sprayed over hairline gaps with no need to
sand. They all dry hard enough to re-scribe, unlike Bondo (or Squadron
putty).

HTH
Pip Moss