Let's see if this post gets me flamed

[willimo]

Originally Posted by GTmike400

Why the hell do you care the process people take to modify their models?

I use putty because I have toruble with depth using styrene, if I were able to see how people create their body kits with a majority of styrene than yes I would use more styrene.

That's why it's such a shame Ratdat disappeared. He haid a pair of just beautiful progress threads that would have showed you pretty much exactly how to do it. Search his 300Z thread, and you'll get a good idea how to start. That thread, and his Auster, are impressive as hell.

Putty by definition is just to fill gaps and smooth contours, but everyone here has their own style of building. I know I can't claim either way, I sort of lay in the middle, indeed I use a lot of styrene for the basic shape, but I also use gobs of putty to finish it up. I do, however, try to form it in the right shape so I won't be sanding all week.

The only reall troubles I can find, really, with using a lot of putty is how frustrating it can be to shape, and the pile of unfinished models that it leads to. And putty is more likely to crack, sag and shrink than styrene.

[pcmodeler]

I'm not saying don't use any putty, but I see a lot of guys throwing huge globs on. Heck, most of that will probably get sanded anyway.

The big problem is that putty shrinks. Over time, that bodywork is going to collapse, crack and break.

I'm not trying to preach as some self proclaimed expert but offer an observation. Before you start slinging putty, look at what you are working with and what you are trying to accomplish and remember that the best method isn't always the easiest.

[mike@af]

In all my time of using putty I have never had it shrink, or become brittle. Perhaps it is because I use Filler putties that are made for large jobs on real cars (body fillers).

I find fillers much easier to sand into shape than shaping styrene.

[chrismcgee]

i think there is no right or wrong way to go about building a kit.
If you can produce the results then thats all that matters.

Why are we even arguing over this, are we gonna start stressing over how many layers of paint people are using, or if they are using the right primer.

judge the works when they are completed!

p.s. i always leave my putty to dry for one week or more before painting to make sure any further shrinkage is accounted for if any exists at all