glues, fillers and paints
Super glue doesn't have the shear strength to hold parts under any kind of stress together. It also dries harder than styrene so oversanding the plastic around the join can be an issue. Some guys use the thicker CA as a filler but you have to catch it at just the right time in the setting action to sand it. I'll use it on fiddly bits like shifters, steering wheels, etc. but 99% of the adhesive I use in styrene modeling is styrene cement. Testors Liquid still has a place on my bench along with Tamiya Extra Thin (same stuff as Tamiya Airbrush Cleaner BTW) and Model Master "Liquid Cement" and Tamiya Thin (orange cap)-both thicker versions of liquid cement. There are also "space age" liquid cements that dry ridiculously fast like Styrene Tack-It (formerly Tenax 7R), Plastruct Bondene, Micro Mark Same Stuff, etc. Some guys also use plain ol' MEK but my experience with it hasn't been good.The majority of my work is done with Tamiya Extra Thin and MM Liquid Cement with the occasional hit of Styrene Tack-It for a quick join.
For all the fillers I've used over the last 50ish years of scale modeling I've narrowed them down to two-Tamiya Putty White and Deluxe Materials Perfect Plastic Putty. Deluxe Materials filler is water based so if I have a tricky place to fill the ability to clean up excess with a wet Q-tip is ideal. I went through a phase where I was using auto spot putty and Sikkens Kombi proved to be the best of the bunch I used but it all has an aggressive solvent base that attacks plastic which is sometimes optimal, sometimes not. I decided in the end it was better to go with something that didn't do that. And I always prime my filler work so it doesn't absorb paint, just like in the real world.
Paint is going to wind down to your personal preference. Testors was bought out by RPM (Rustoleum) and they've pretty much destroyed the US enamel paint lines like Model Master, Floquil and Pactra. A shame as I rather liked Colors by Boyd for my automotive builds and most of my military stuff was done in Model Master. But there are plenty of others out there in enamel, lacquer and acrylic paints as well as a lot of offerings in spray paint.
You tube is a treasure trove of information about tricks, techniques and reviews of everything from kits to tools to materials. And there has been a increasing number of podcasts lately that offer the same.
And for fun-fresh off the bench Airfix 1/48 Hawker Hurricane Mk. I, 145 Squadron June 1940. Humbrol paints, decals by Xtradecal:
Super glue doesn't have the shear strength to hold parts under any kind of stress together. It also dries harder than styrene so oversanding the plastic around the join can be an issue. Some guys use the thicker CA as a filler but you have to catch it at just the right time in the setting action to sand it. I'll use it on fiddly bits like shifters, steering wheels, etc. but 99% of the adhesive I use in styrene modeling is styrene cement. Testors Liquid still has a place on my bench along with Tamiya Extra Thin (same stuff as Tamiya Airbrush Cleaner BTW) and Model Master "Liquid Cement" and Tamiya Thin (orange cap)-both thicker versions of liquid cement. There are also "space age" liquid cements that dry ridiculously fast like Styrene Tack-It (formerly Tenax 7R), Plastruct Bondene, Micro Mark Same Stuff, etc. Some guys also use plain ol' MEK but my experience with it hasn't been good.The majority of my work is done with Tamiya Extra Thin and MM Liquid Cement with the occasional hit of Styrene Tack-It for a quick join.
For all the fillers I've used over the last 50ish years of scale modeling I've narrowed them down to two-Tamiya Putty White and Deluxe Materials Perfect Plastic Putty. Deluxe Materials filler is water based so if I have a tricky place to fill the ability to clean up excess with a wet Q-tip is ideal. I went through a phase where I was using auto spot putty and Sikkens Kombi proved to be the best of the bunch I used but it all has an aggressive solvent base that attacks plastic which is sometimes optimal, sometimes not. I decided in the end it was better to go with something that didn't do that. And I always prime my filler work so it doesn't absorb paint, just like in the real world.
Paint is going to wind down to your personal preference. Testors was bought out by RPM (Rustoleum) and they've pretty much destroyed the US enamel paint lines like Model Master, Floquil and Pactra. A shame as I rather liked Colors by Boyd for my automotive builds and most of my military stuff was done in Model Master. But there are plenty of others out there in enamel, lacquer and acrylic paints as well as a lot of offerings in spray paint.
You tube is a treasure trove of information about tricks, techniques and reviews of everything from kits to tools to materials. And there has been a increasing number of podcasts lately that offer the same.
And for fun-fresh off the bench Airfix 1/48 Hawker Hurricane Mk. I, 145 Squadron June 1940. Humbrol paints, decals by Xtradecal:
