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Need advice on filling and sanding


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How do I effectively fill and sand a gap between two surfaces that are perpendicular to each other, like between the fuselage and the wings of an F-4? My sanding sticks can't reach the spot that well and only end up destroying the surrounding detail, and using sandpaper gets me the same results.

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I found this little trick by accident.. If the gap is small enough, get tamiya extra thin cement, and let it soak up in the cracks. I used this to great effect on my f-4 on several locations.

I use this technique as well. If the gap is still there I use Mr. Surfacer 500, brush it along the joint, wait for it to dry and wipe it down with a cotton swab soaked in alcohol. The Mr. Surfacer 500 fills it up nicely.
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I use Tamiya putty and apply it to the entire gap. I then use a Q-tip dipped in Tamiya lacquer thinner or Mr. Color lacquer thinner to wipe most of it away. I repeat if needed. I'll then apply a thin layer Tamiya liquid surface primer or Mr. Surfacer to the area and gently sand it with very fine sand paper. I've heard you can use fingernail polish with acetone instead, but I've always ended up crazing the plastic when I used it.

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The above suggestions are great and would probably get you the cleanest solution. However, if sanding is still necessary, you can roll up a small piece of sanding paper, and use a pair of tweezers to control it along the concave joint. It works better if you wet sand it. Here is the idea, it works well for the types of joints you described.

IMG_6281.jpg

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Another interpretation of what Janissary said. I glue a strip of sanding paper to the end of a kebab skewer if I need to sand in such places. But I prefer the putty and thinner method. I use Vallejo plastic putty, and a q-tip soaked in their airbrush thinner to remove the excess.

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Another suggestion - you may come out without sanding at all.

Fill the gap with putty, let it cure. Than soak a q-tip in cheapest acetone nail polish remover and simply remove excess of putty as it is aggressive enough to dissolve putty but not kit's plastic.

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Also, I put tape on either side of the gap I'm sanding to protect as much of the surface detail as possible. Kinda have to work quickly though when doing this as it can leave a step in the filler.

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Janissary, you ARE the man. I've used a slightly curved-end 4 1/2" hobby tweezer with once-folded tiny squares of sandpaper for many years to get at those almost impossible places. And I thought I was the only one on the planet doing this.

All other techniques mentioned above are very useful, too, but this one is best for me for the hardest-to-get-to places.

Bails

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Janissary, you ARE the man. I've used a slightly curved-end 4 1/2" hobby tweezer with once-folded or rolled tiny squares of sandpaper for many years to get at those almost impossible places. And I thought I was the only one on the planet doing this.

All other techniques mentioned above are very useful, too, but this one is best for me for the hardest-to-get-to places.

Bails

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