Is there a green stuff alternative to pin magnets in place?

[antique_nova]

Exactly as the title says. I know that sometimes magnets can get knocked out of place and if the magnet is inside a vehicle that was glued together, it will rattle etc. Also, I currently use greenstuff to put magnets into place.

 

What alternatives can I use?

 

I'm already using super glue as well.

 

The main reason for this, is because I'm trying to use greenstuff to position my magnets where I want them inside the Leman Russ sponsors instead of cutting out sprues, gluing and drilling them and then positioning them carefully within the sponsor which is hard and takes too long.

[Bryan Blaire]

Superglue.

[Arkhanist]

Standard yellow-grey milliput should be significantly cheaper in bulk, yet works in much the same way as green stuff. Yellow-grey is just quite a bit coarser (it's intended for plumbers and car body repair etc). It also expands a tiny bit when dry, and dries harder than GS. Neither should be an issue for holding magnets in place out of sight. The same is true for DIY two part epoxy putty generally, so if you see a knock-off cheap moldable epoxy putty, that'll likely work fine too.

 

If you're doing a bunch of magnets at once (bases, for example) sugru is another option. It comes in individual packets/pieces which are quite large - it's like premixed GS to work with, but dries to a hard silicone rubber in about 30 minutes and sticks to pretty much anything. So a single packet can't be reused; but the packets are quite cheap, I often see them on sale at my local hobby store.

 

Last suggestion would be a cheap hot glue gun. I've hot-glued some things I expected I'd have to re-do fairly often, and I've been surprised how well it holds under significant mechanical stress and haven't had to repair one yet. It will glue onto styrene hard plastic just fine, and the hobby ones aren't *super* hot, so shouldn't melt anything unintended even if you touch the nozzle tip to the plastic, though I'd avoid doing that just in case!

 

All the above assumes you're surface mounting magnets onto the insides of the vehicle and you don't want to spend the time to drill a shallow hole for each and superglue it. Decent superglue on its own *should* be enough, but I have had a couple that weren't in holes come loose (fortunately, they were external in a hidden joint so easily repaired). Never had one in a hole come loose.

[Maschinenpriester]

I use a special "Repair" glue.

I don't know which products are available where you come from.

 

I am based in Germany, and I use either "Pattex Repair" or "UHU Repair". It is a glue which is used for repairing shoes i think. But technically it can glue everything. Besides... It does not melt away foam btw, so it can also be used for that. ^^

 

If you are based in America I guess this is something similar: https://www.clasohlson.com/uk/Loctite-Power-Glue-Repair-Extreme-Adhesive/34-20

 

The reason that I prefer this glue over Superglue is the following:

 

If you use Superglue it is very likely that it beaks on impacts, because it lacks ducility. So the magnets will come off again at some point.

The Glue I use remains a little elasticity when it is cured, but the bond is superstrong.

SInce I use that Glue I never had any magnets coming off anywhere again. I also use it to glue my minis on bases (In combination with pins and a little superglue).

[antique_nova]

Superglue.

 

Already using it and I need an alternative to put the magnets in place for my Leman Russ sponsors as the Leman Russ magnet guide on the forum is too fiddly and takes too long.

[Aothaine]

Greenstuff is honestly the best material for this. It is super cheap ($15.00 US).

[Arkhanist]

I can get 5 boxes ~= 550g of yellow/grey milliput for £10. For that price, I get about a 1/3 of that by weight for green stuff/kneadatite - even superfine white milliput is cheaper. For stuff you're never going to see greenstuff is overkill, it's a fine sculpting putty. A plumbers/boat repair two part epoxy putty will do this job just as well.

[Ovidius Incertus]

 

Superglue.

 

Already using it and I need an alternative to put the magnets in place for my Leman Russ sponsors as the Leman Russ magnet guide on the forum is too fiddly and takes too long.

 

 

Why not use both in combination?  Put a drop of superglue roughly where you want it, put the green stuff blob on top of it, then manipulate the blob to the exact spot before putting another drop of superglue under your magnet before you smoosh it in the GS?

 

That's what I do when I need to use GS to deal with magnet placement (unless it's a huge thing, then I'll use JB Weld).

[antique_nova]

 

 

Superglue.

 

Already using it and I need an alternative to put the magnets in place for my Leman Russ sponsors as the Leman Russ magnet guide on the forum is too fiddly and takes too long.

 

 

Why not use both in combination?  Put a drop of superglue roughly where you want it, put the green stuff blob on top of it, then manipulate the blob to the exact spot before putting another drop of superglue under your magnet before you smoosh it in the GS?

 

That's what I do when I need to use GS to deal with magnet placement (unless it's a huge thing, then I'll use JB Weld).

 

I already mentioned that I use both in my original post.

[Aothaine]

I can get 5 boxes ~= 550g of yellow/grey milliput for £10. For that price, I get about a 1/3 of that by weight for green stuff/kneadatite - even superfine white milliput is cheaper. For stuff you're never going to see greenstuff is overkill, it's a fine sculpting putty. A plumbers/boat repair two part epoxy putty will do this job just as well.

 

Fair enough. But how brittle is the milliput? Greenstuff dries super hard but is not very brittle. Though I do agree that Greenstuff is a green sculpting putty as well. I just recently got into sculpting so I guess I still have a lot to learn.

[Arkhanist]

 

Fair enough. But how brittle is the milliput? Greenstuff dries super hard but is not very brittle. Though I do agree that Greenstuff is a green sculpting putty as well. I just recently got into sculpting so I guess I still have a lot to learn.

 

 

They're both epoxy putties, so they're quite similar - it's relatively subtle differences. Milliput comes in different coarseness (the finer, the pricier). The finest, suitable for detail sculpting such as faces is superfine white (its original marketing was for porcelain repairs - still is, I think). It dries harder than greenstuff, but isn't brittle - it makes it quite nice for hard edges or weapons. You can also smooth it down easily with water which makes it less sticky, which is a pro and a con! Too much water will turn it into slippery mess though. Vaseline also works for lubricating. It will set underwater, and is waterproof when set. It can be a bit sticky when first mixing it (kinda like greenstuff!). It gets stiffer as it ages, so it can be worth letting it sit for a bit if you want to jump straight to detail (just like greenstuff!) The working time is longer than greenstuff, maybe two hours, takes around 3-4 hours to set rock hard at room temperature, though you can speed that up with mild heat. You can sand it easily when set, and when set it is heatproof to boiling water, probably higher.

 

It lacks the elastic stretchiness of freshly mixed greenstuff, so it doesn't work as well for thin sheets or ropes. It would be ideal for press molds for sharper edges, but it expands fractionally when dry, so your mold will be slightly smaller than the original! This can be resolved by using milliput for the new object too, as it too will expand a tiny bit back to the original size. As the mold is hard though, it makes it harder to get it out again - here the slight springiness of greenstuff has the advantage as you can flex the mold, but at the cost of the detail being slightly softer as I find it relaxes a little when setting.

 

Back in the day, standard milliput was what I used for fixing gaps etc, like other british scale modellers of a certain age - greenstuff wasn't common back then I believe! I still use standard yellow/gray for filling in stuff - when I paint a model on pins then drill holes to put into the base for example, I use standard milliput to hold the pins solid (plus a little superglue first, of course). Very cheap (£2 for 100g) and milliput lasts a looong time - I found a half-used pack that was years old - it started a little dark and stiff, but after cutting off the 'crust' and a little extra mixing it was fine, if a little stiffer than fresh.

 

My preferred modelling putty nowadays for detail work though (mostly press mold for bases and kitbash gap sculpting, I'm no davinci) is magic sculp - I believe magic sculpt (with a t) is the US branding. it's kinda a cross between the best bits of green stuff and milliput. Less sticking to the tools than greenstuff and stiffer to start with (no waiting for it to stiffen up), and stays where you put it, easy to smooth with water or vaseline but the hardness and sandability of milliput when set. It's great stuff (roughly the same price as superfine white milliput or bulk greenstuff) at £5 for 100g. It's cheaper in bulk though, 600g is £20 (cheaper in the US too, I think)

 

You can also mix mixed putties together, to get some of the properties of both. That is definitely a topic in its own right though!

[Major_Gilbear]

A few comments on basic Milliput yellow-grey, as someone who buys it ten packs at a time:

 

> When mixed, it undergoes a mildly exothermic reaction (i.e., it gives off heat as it cures).

 

> When heated (or when curing normally), it expands a little. If you use it to make moulds (I don't recommend it), the moulds will be smaller than the master because the "walls" and details of will expand a little from what was moulded originally. If used to cast from a mould, the mould will need to be flexible enough to release the Milliput cast as it will have expanded a touch. If you cast with Milliput, a light dusting of baby talc is an excellent release agent.

 

> Once hard-ish (after eight hours or so), it can be steeped in hot water to speed-harden it further. This is very useful if you use it for basing material in lieu of slate or whatever.

 

> It's quite brittle when cured, much more so than greenstuff. That said, it can be tooled much better than greenstuff, and takes a decent edge too.

 

> Once mixed, it's just like classic clay to work with. You can soften and smooth it with water, but too much turns it to mush. That said "Milliput Wash" is watered-down mushy putty applied as you would liquid greenstuff, but it can be filed and such more readily when cured. This "wash" is an old historical modellers' staple.

 

> You can mix up to about 35% volume of pre-mixed Milliput with the rest being pre-mixed greenstuff. This hardens up the greenstuff, and is less brittle than Milliput on its own. It does take longer to cure than either putty on its own though. If you add more than about a third of Milliput to a putty mix, it mostly behaves like regular Milliput once cured (thus rendering the mix somewhat pointless).

 

> If the Milliput is old, the components may get a little brown and oily/sticky on the outside. This can easily be rinsed off with warm water before you start. It's always better to knead each component part you've cut off until smooth before mixing the softened parts together. You get a better and more even cure, and I think it cures a little faster too.

 

> Other Milliput types share all the above traits with the standard yellow-grey stuff. They are all also more expensive, and I'd be hard-pushed to recommend them outside of very specific instances.

 

> If you neeed a fast-bonding, highly adhesive, and relatively cheap putty, look in your local hardware store for an emergency plumber's repair putty. These can set in anything up to 15-20 mins, and are virtually bomb-proof when set. Just scuff the area in question with a little bit of sandpaper to help the putty grip to the smooth plastic, and away you go.

 

Hope that helps! :)

[antique_nova]

Due to concerns about the milliput expanding and moving the magnets, I've decided to stick with greenstuff as I can get 36 inches of it for just £6.95, which is cheaper that any milliput I found and it won't expand.

[Arkhanist]

36" of green stuff is 140g. 114g of milliput standard is £2.89 to £2.95 to from a bunch of places on ebay with free shipping (cheaper if you buy multiple boxes). Milliput expands by a fraction of a mm - only noticeable if you're doing fine detail work or press molds.

 

I'll shut up now.

[antique_nova]

36" of green stuff is 140g. 114g of milliput standard is £2.89 to £2.95 to from a bunch of places on ebay with free shipping (cheaper if you buy multiple boxes). Milliput expands by a fraction of a mm - only noticeable if you're doing fine detail work or press molds.

 

I'll shut up now.

 

You sir are a freaking legend. I've just ordered it from Amazon with a next day delivery for just £3.65

[Major_Gilbear]

Yeah, the expansion of Milliput matters only if the fit of the puttied part needs to be exact. For your purposes, I doubt it will be noticable at all.

 

I buy mine from Proops Brothers in the UK - they usually sell through Amazon and eBay under the username "sproops", and as well as normally being the cheapest price on multiple packs, their putty is always super-fresh. :)

[antique_nova]

Turns out milliput was only half the answer. It lacks the sticking power of greenstuff, when I need to pinch the magnets in place. Looks like I need to buy some greenstuff anyway.

[Bryan Blaire]

Why not just drill the magnets into the actual vehicle body?

[Arkhanist]

Huh, I've always found milliput to be as adhesive as greenstuff - more so, even, when it's freshly mixed, it sticks to my fingers very well! Thought you were glueing the magnets on first to the right spot, then lumping putty over the top to secure it?

 

Both greenstuff and milliput will stick better to a clean surface; dust or release agent still on the surface will reduce the adhesion, water will also reduce it. A quick rub with a file or coarse sanding stick on the surface will also improve the grip. Milliput does need to be thoroughly mixed for at least a couple of minutes, ideally more, to fully blend the two parts together; more so than greenstuff.

[antique_nova]

The problem is that the millput doesn't hold the magnet.

 

For example, I'll have one 5x5mm magnet on one side of a leman russ and another 5x5mm magnet on the otherside that is meant to be inside a sponsor. The problem is that greenstuff is able to hold onto the magnet instantly to take the magnet away while keeping it inside the sponsor, the milliput is not and I don't want the milliput to set in and stick itself to the tank as that would defeat the point of magnatising it.

[Essexkiwi]

I've always used two-part epoxy, the 5-minute grab version.  Strength is better than superglue, and isn't a brittle bond because it has some flex. And it has gap filling properties like a putty once it is mixed and tacky. 

[Calyptra]

I magnetize the bases of my models for storage and transport, so I deal with this a lot. Historically I've used green stuff, although lately I've been using a 50/50 mix of green stuff and milliput for purely economic reasons.

 

There were a handful of occasions when I pulled a model out of the tool box and the magnet decided to stay put instead of coming along. The green stuff always stayed with the magnet.

 

It only happened a few times, but because of it I started scoring a cross hatch pattern into the underside of the base before pressing in the green stuff and magnet. Since I started doing that I haven't had any problems.