What do you use to fill in the holes in structures where signs, etc. attach? There are some details I am opting not to add to a structure kit but dont want to leave those pin holes where they attach visable. I am a novice so please be speciffic as I may not know every product or technique you suggest.
Find a styrene rod the size of your hole, glue it in place, and then shave off the excess with a chisel-nose X-acto blade.
Evergreen should have what you need…
http://www.evergreenscalemodels.com/Shapes.htm#Round%20Rod
If it’s a tiny hole, a dab of modeling putty will do.
Steve S
As Steve suggested, inserting an appropriately sized rod will often do the trick. I save a few spru parts from most kits and can ften find one the right size, eliminating the need to purchase rod.
Another idea is to cut a small rectangle of thin styrene sheet and glue it over the hole. In real life some holes are just patched.
If you’re not adding a particular part to the kit, you can use that part to fill the hole and then cut it off flush with the wall surface after the cement sets.
Rather than carve the styrene rod or piece of sprue, one popular technique is to take a piece of sprue from that very kit, hold it over a candle or source of heat until it starts to soften and melt, and then pull it apart so that the center becomes very thin strands. Some cold water to douse it in stops the melting immediately.
You then insert the narrow end into the hole and continue pushing until the hole is plugged and filled, then cut it off flush with flush cutting nippers. You may have to do some additional sanding to totally make the plug flush with the side. This has the advantage that the sprue is the same color as the structure itself. A bit of solvent cement inside will hold the new plug in place.
Dave Nelson
I use a product called Squadron Putty. It comes in a squeeze-tube. Take a bit out and fill the hole. It hardens quickly, and then you can sand the surface back to its original contour. It takes paint pretty much the same as styrene.
It’s a hobby shop product.
I use Evergreen styrene rod, and keep a selection of sizes available for such work. I’ve found that the rod works best when it’s about .005"-or-so larger than the hole to be filled. Coat the end of the rod and the inside of the hole with solvent-type cement (I use lacquer thinner) and let it sit for a few seconds, then push the rod into the hole, forcing it as far as it will go. If you’re filling a number of holes, slice-off the rod so that there’s excess sticking out of the just-plugged hole and continue on. After the plastic has fully re-hardened (usually overnight) use a sharp #17 or 18 blade to trim off the excess - the area should require no further touch-up.
If the hole is of a size not .005" less than a standard rod diameter, drill it out so that you can use the next larger-size rod.
This method also works well in holes in cast metal, such as loco boilers (obviously no need to coat the inside of the hole, though [swg]), and can be used in sheet metal holes, too, if the hole is backed with sheet styrene, as on this Varney boxcar:
I also use this method to replace oversize plastic grabirons on rolling stock, especially Proto (Walthers), Intermountain, and Red Caboose. Simply drill out the cast-in holes and fill them with suitable rod (the supplied plastic grabirons are usually made of engineering plastic, which is unsuitable for this task, as it’s unaffected by solvent cements). New holes are then drilled into the plugs for installation of the wire grabs.
Wayne