Everything you wanted to know about plastic body filler, but were afraid to ask.

[Dark Rogue]

I remember seeing the stuff Spase used; I actually still have some of it.

It's a lot smoother than Bondo more liquidy than bondo, more like thick syrup and not batter.

 

[Humungotron]

I remember seeing the stuff Spase used; I actually still have some of it.

It's a lot smoother than Bondo more liquidy than bondo, more like thick syrup and not batter.

Spot putty. same thing as adding thinner to PBF, just more expensive. True, it has a finer grain, but thats simply so it can fill tiny scratches and pinholes. Its also much more brittle than regular filler.

And actually, the more I think about it, if spot putty works for you, then use it. The parts being made here dont take near hte abuse that a car takes. As long as you do your prep work, and don't go overboard with thickness and the like, it should work fine. If you're gonna use it though, try brushing it on, as it's a bitch to get it where you want it before it kicks off.

 

[FinnishSpartan]

There is actually 3 types of spreaders:
(the 2 you already mentioned):
Plastic spreaders, and Metallic spreaders.
And the 3rd one you forgot is... RUBBER spreaders!!
Rubber spreaders are really good because you can get the bondo perfectly smooth on smaller areas..

-Finish

 

[Dark Rogue]

Now that I think about it, it is kind of like spot putty, although I used it in place of bondo for smoothing. It was sort of like the store-bought version of mud, I guess.

 

[Humungotron]

And the 3rd one you forgot is... RUBBER spreaders!!
Rubber spreaders are really good because you can get the bondo perfectly smooth on smaller areas..

-Finish

Well, yes, you can use rubber, such as a spatula or the like. The plastic spreaders I use, which are available pretty much everywhere, are a rubberized plastic. I can bend one into a 2 inch radius without the plastic breaking or tearing.
Again, go with what works. I've had to use little bits of a spreader, cut up with a knife, in order to get to some spots. This isn't a 'do it in this order or it won't come out right' kind of process, the way fiberglass can be. Even then, fiberglass is a pretty flexible process in and of itself. Consider the idiot that someone posted the video of, who glassed in his living room. I think the thread name was 'how NOT to do fiberglass'. Yes, he did everything wrong, and his suit looked like poo, but he was able to get it to work without killing himself. Even though, in the long run, I'm sure natural selection will catch up to him.


Like everything in life, the more information you have on something, the better. You're not going to wake up one day and decide to fix your car without bothering to read a few manuals, ask a few more experienced people, etc etc. If you're getting ready to do your filler and fiberglass work, ask around. Obviously, this is a good place to start, but don't take what people here say as the end-all-be-all of how this is done. The 501st has done similar things, theres a billion and a half forums on auto restoration, fiberglass boats building and repair, canoe building, automotive customization, and the like. And that's not even taking into account the local public library.

Edit: I was right... its here.

 

[Dark Rogue]

Sorry for the super-bump, but this needs to be stickied because there's a lot of good info in here that people need to know, along with not being lost in the depths of the noob forum.

 

[Humungotron]

while I appreciate the ego boost, please don't sticky this thread yet. I'm almost to the point of resining my pep'd helmet, at which point I'll redo this tut, with relevant pics and probably a revamp of the info.

 

[leegrisham]

This is very good info - very good and important to know!
Thanks for writing.
btw... "Here"

 

[Humungotron]

self imposed bump. if this is gonna get stickied, better to do it now, as I've got my hands full with other projects, and it'll be a while before I get to redoing this. By a while, I mean 3 to 6 months. The steel mk VI is taking longer than expected.

 

[rvb4life]

call it a bump for great justice.


all you really need to do is read the directions on the can, its pretty self explanatory, the detailing part is the confusing portion.