Grainy Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Filler Max

[Winston]

From reading here, I knew not to get the stainable type due a previous report here that it was grainy. So, I bought the unstainable type at Home Depot and it's grainy, too. The old Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Filler I've had was not, but it wasn't called "Max."

I bought this, but should have read the reviews on Home Depot's site as I usually do before buying it:

Grainy garbage as confirmed in Home Depot user reviews.

The only other type of Elmer's Wood putty besides the "Max" indoor/outdoor (grainy from my experience) and stainable (grainy from another post here) types available on the Home Depot shelf was this one:

It is well reviewed there and there's no mention of it being grainy. Anyone here used it for rocketry?

 

[rharshberger]

I used the Wood Filler Max once and the black hard pieces took forever to sand away, the color change stuff I really like though, it thins down nice and sands away easy.

 

[Gary Byrum]

This is the tried and true.

 

[Winston]

This is the tried and true.

Home Depot doesn't have that type:

https://www.homedepot.com/s/elmer's%20wood%20filler?NCNI-5

Lowes apparently does. Thanks.

https://www.lowes.com/pd_187293-63-E842L___?productId=4086120

Lowes Item #: 187293 | Model #: E842L (Elmer's number, I suspect)

 

[hcmbanjo]

WalMart carries the stuff in the orange and blue tub.
(The picture that Gary Byrum posted.)
At least the WalMart in Orlando Florida carries it.

 

[rharshberger]

IMO,the color change stuff and the one in the Orange and Blue tub are pretty much equal, I have used both.

 

[Gary Byrum]

The one I pictured, I got at ACE. We have a Lowe's but they don't stock it. Neither does our W-Mart.

 

[Winston]

This is the tried and true.

The one I pictured, I got at ACE. We have a Lowe's but they don't stock it. Neither does our W-Mart.

I think I've found out why it's so rare - Elmer's apparently doesn't make it any more. It's not shown anywhere here:

https://elmers.com/search-results/Products/wood filler

Nor is it anywhere in their MSDS listing:

Wood Filler & Other Repair:
Carpenter's® Color Change Wood Filler Dries Natural - 4oz
Carpenter's® Color Change Wood Filler Dries Natural - 8oz
Carpenter's® Color Change Wood Filler Dries White - 16oz
Carpenter's® Color Change Wood Filler Dries White - 4oz
Carpenter's® Color Change Wood Filler Dries White - 8oz
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler 1 pint
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler Golden Oak -3.25oz
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler half pint
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler Mahogany - 3.25oz
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler Natural -3.25oz
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler- Quart
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler quarter pint
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler Red Oak -3.25oz
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler Walnut - 3.25oz
Carpenter's® Interior Wood Filler White - 3.25oz
Carpenter's® Stainable Interior-Exterior Wood Filler 16 FL OZ
Carpenter's® Stainable Interior-Exterior Wood Filler 32 FL OZ
Carpenter's® Stainable Interior-Exterior Wood Filler 4 FL OZ
Carpenter's® Stainable Interior-Exterior Wood Filler 8 FL OZ
Carpenter's® Stainable Wood Filler -3.25oz
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max - Stainable - 32oz
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max - Stainable - Pint
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max - Stainable Golden Oak - 6oz
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max: Stainable - 6oz
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max: Stainable Cherry - 6oz
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max: Stainable Natural - 6oz
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max: Stainable Walnut - 6oz
Interior-Exterior Wood Filler Max: Stainable White - 6oz
ProBond® Concrete Bonder Quart Bottle
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Cherry Wood Filler - 3.25oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Golden Oak Wood Filler - 3.25oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Natural Wood Filler - 3.25oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Stainable Wood Filler - 3.25oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Stainable Wood Filler - Half Pint
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Stainable Wood Filler - Pint
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Walnut Wood Filler - 3.25oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior White Wood Filler - 3.25oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Wood Filler: Red Oak - 3.25oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Wood Filler: Stainable Cherry 6oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Wood Filler: Stainable Ebony 6oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Wood Filler: Stainable Golden Oak 6oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Wood Filler: Stainable Natural 6oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Wood Filler: Stainable Walnut - 6 oz
ProBond® Interior-Exterior Wood Filler: Stainable White 6oz

Note that all of the interior/exterior varieties are now listed as stainable or are already some wood color. That fact is prominently shown on their now-different packaging.

Here's the MSDS for the good old stuff we've or, at least, I've been using from some years-old tubes of it:

https://elmers.com/docs/default-source/msds-sheets/me842-htm

Note that it's a clay mix and has three ingredients listed as hazardous - limestone, calcite, and quartz (dusts). Odor is described as mild. To my nose, it would be described as "none" or "wet clay."

ALL of the MSDS PDFs I've checked in the above modern list of Elmer's fillers had "100% nonhazardous substance" in their "composition/information on ingredients" section and all had their odor listed as "mild acrylic odor" which, from smelling the 8oz Elmer's Color Change Interior and 16oz of White Interior filler I now have to try, I would definitely agree with. They smell like latex paint. EDIT: actually, the color change type has a strange odor, like rubber.

So, the reason that the clay filler type we've used in the past is so hard to find and may disappear is because Elmer's has switched from a clay with hazardous dusts within it to 100% non-hazardous acrylic mixtures across its entire line.

 

[Gary Byrum]

Hey Winston. The link you posted does have the product. 10th row down on all 3 columns. The color of the tub has changed. This is what I have and it the good ole stuff. And it doesn't have a smell.

 

[Winston]

Hey Winston. The link you posted does have the product. 10th row down on all 3 columns. The color of the tub has changed. This is what I have and it the good ole stuff. And it doesn't have a smell.

I was looking for the exact container which you posted a photo of which is the same photo shown on the Lowes site, one of the few places that still sell it. It's not shown on the Elmer's page I linked to. Also, it's interior/exterior whereas none of the ones you picture in your thumbnail are. I have the one on the left of your thumbnail photos and it has a definite latex paint odor. Those are all the same composition, just different sizes, and they're all latex according to their MSDS. Perhaps you got the old formula in the new container before they changed to the new formula?

 

[Gary Byrum]

I was looking for the exact container which you posted a photo of which is the same photo shown on the Lowes site, one of the few places that still sell it. It's not shown on the Elmer's page I linked to. Also, it's interior/exterior whereas none of the ones you picture in your thumbnail are. I have the one on the left of your thumbnail photos and it has a definite latex paint odor. Those are all the same composition, just different sizes, and they're all latex according to their MSDS. Perhaps you got the old formula in the new container before they changed to the new formula?

Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. All I know, is that it works like the stuff I've been buying for years. There were no ingredients on my tub, so I couldn't confirm that "latex" note. And yes, it doesn't say exterior anymore. I really don't see a difference in product performance. It's not grainy, easy to thin, apply and sand. I wouldn't expect any more out of it.

 

[Winston]

I used the Wood Filler Max once and the black hard pieces took forever to sand away, the color change stuff I really like though, it thins down nice and sands away easy.

Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. All I know, is that it works like the stuff I've been buying for years. There were no ingredients on my tub, so I couldn't confirm that "latex" note. And yes, it doesn't say exterior anymore. I really don't see a difference in product performance. It's not grainy, easy to thin, apply and sand. I wouldn't expect any more out of it.

I was shooting for the interior/exterior type not only because that was shown on your filler tub lid photo, but because the old stuff I have a bit left of is also interior/exterior. rharshberger's post above about really liking the color change type shows that the new latex formulation apparently works just fine.

Bottom line: buy any of the filler types shown above except the one shown below and you'll be fine:

 

[Gary Byrum]

Something else I'd like to add. For all of you "tub users", try putting a 2 sq inch of over-dampened sponge in the tub with the filler. This keeps it hydrated. Those tubs can get a little dry and chunky after a while, and this puts an end to that.

 

[Winston]

Something else I'd like to add. For all of you "tub users", try putting a 2 sq inch of over-dampened sponge in the tub with the filler. This keeps it hydrated. Those tubs can get a little dry and chunky after a while, and this puts an end to that.

THANKS for that tip. I've always used the tubes in the past and was wondering how long these tubs would last before they hardened.

 

[BABAR]

THANKS for that tip. I've always used the tubes in the past and was wondering how long these tubs would last before they hardened.

+1.

 

[Gary Byrum]

THANKS for that tip. I've always used the tubes in the past and was wondering how long these tubs would last before they hardened.

You're welcome. LW gave me that tip and it's a good one. The last tub I bought would have already started drying and would have had to be moistened and mixed by now. That sponge has been in there since day one, and the filler is in excellent condition. A word of caution though. Those sponge scrubbies with the scouring pad will work, but take the abrasive side off. The filler will dissolve it.

 

[JERRYR708]

I add some CWF color change formula into a syringe to fill BT spirals and it works great. This way, I don't have to keep opening and closing the lid and drying it out.

 

[Winston]

I add some CWF color change formula into a syringe to fill BT spirals and it works great. This way, I don't have to keep opening and closing the lid and drying it out.

Another great idea. What size syringes do you use?

 

[JERRYR708]

 

[Winston]

View attachment 265672View attachment 265671

Where'd you get the 2 tsp syringes? I got five FREE 1 tsp syringes from the Walmart pharmacy some time ago. I went the pharma inquiry window and asked where I could find oral medication syringes and they just said, "How many do you want?" To be reasonable, I just said, "five."

BTW, I'm really liking the color change type of ECWF best primarily because it does color change (white with my variety) when dry and, secondly, because it seems to have a slightly thicker texture than the ECWF in the tub with the orange lid making it more putty-like for the gap-filling I'm doing.

 

[rharshberger]

Where'd you get the 2 tsp syringes? I got five FREE 1 tsp syringes from the Walmart pharmacy some time ago. I went the pharma inquiry window and asked where I could find oral medication syringes and they just said, "How many do you want?" To be reasonable, I just said, "five."

BTW, I'm really liking the color change type of ECWF best primarily because it does color change (white with my variety) when dry and, secondly, because it seems to have a slightly thicker texture than the ECWF in the tub with the orange lid making it more putty-like for the gap-filling I'm doing.

I get my syringes at the local Ranch and Home supply, they carry them in their animal medicine section and I can get them all the way up to 60cc, the one I most commonly use is a Monoject 412 Irrigation syringe that has a curved tip molded into the body, the tip can be clipped for thicker beads.