Help me understand "Tamiya Putty"

[luisito8m]

I've been having trouble with "Tamiya Putty", it is the basic type, gray color. (On Tamiya's list it is marked as item no. 87053).

Anyways, the putty acts quite estrange, as soon as I take a small amount out of the tube, the outside surface complete solidifies en-capsuling fresh/wet putty, and the entire thing dries in less than 30 seconds, thus it doesn't give me enough time to mold as I desire to fill the gaps of my models. (Curing time lasts longer).

Am I doing something wrong?

Is there a way to thin out the putty to make it last longer (drying time)?

I've heard it is possible, I added a tiny amount of testors thinner and it turned into a mess, solidified within 5 seconds and separated into chunks, may be I am using the wrong thing.

First time using putty by the way. Thank you guys in advance.

 

[TiM]

It does skin very quickly and this can then get wrapped into your filling - I have the same stuff and it does take a bit of practice. It can be thinned with acetone, I have some and just tried it.

 

[luisito8m]

It can be thinned with acetone, I have some and just tried it.

Thanks TiM, seems that that is the way it works then.

Is it safe to use acetone? I do not want to be creating a crazy chemical mixture that could end up bad.

Acetone is nail paint remover, right?

 

[urumomo]

use lacquer thinner. It is a very fast putty though---don't leave the cap off any longer than nec. .Doing so repeatedly will allow the solvent to evaporate till the mix is , well , poopoo.
You can use "KleanStrip" brand or similar from your hardware/big-box but the much pricier by volume Tamiya or Testors will perform better . The ratio of solvents is different for dif brands and brand formulas .
You also may have an old tube. I went to use some Squadron White Putty (very similar) the other day and it was freakin cured rock-solid with the cap snug super tight ! :

 

[luisito8m]

use lacquer thinner. It is a very fast putty though---don't leave the cap off any longer than nec. .Doing so repeatedly will allow the solvent to evaporate till the mix is , well , poopoo.
You can use "KleanStrip" brand or similar from your hardware/big-box but the much pricier by volume Tamiya or Testors will perform better . The ratio of solvents is different for dif brands and brand formulas .
You also may have an old tube. I went to use some Squadron White Putty (very similar) the other day and it was freakin cured rock-solid with the cap snug super tight ! :

Haha. Never thought about that, it may be old. I tried testors thinner before and I used the smallest possible amount since I didn't know the ratios and it turned into a mess.

 

[urumomo]

Yeah -- not ' thinner ' or mineral spirits .
Lacquer thinner contains acetone though the proportions differ with diff brands ( also MEK , toluene vitmins and fiber ) so it will work with no ill effects but may not provide the working properties intended by the manufacturer

 

[luisito8m]

AAaaahh!