Im just using Rustoleum Filler Primer
Okay... If you want to get the things looking like plastic, here's how I do it, and it works really well... it takes a little time and effort, but the results are worth it! Look at any of my build threads if in doubt...
First, when you get the kit, read the instructions. Some cones are covered by paper wraps or parts, or you have to sand the tip round or whatever-- no sense in filling parts you don't need to, that will be covered up or have to be sanded to final shape. Do those steps (if required) first (like sanding the tip to shape). Pull the cones/transitions out and inspect them. Anything that looks like it needs a little sanding to smooth out, that might have rough fuzzy spots or dings or something, grab some 220 grit and smooth them down... you want a pretty smooth surface to start. Most of the time, they won't need any prep work before you start.
Now, get yourself a bottle of ULTRA-THIN CA glue... I get mine in the Pink bottle at Hobby Lobby-- get small bottles, because it goes bad over time. You can get it at Hobby Lobby with a 40% off "weekly special" coupon if you print one off their website, or just show them the coupon on a smart phone at the checkout counter... Anyway, take the stuff OUTSIDE to do this. I also recommend that you get a cardboard box, say the lid from a paper box, or a soft-drink flat box that sodas are shipped on, to hold everything. I also recommend that you pick up some WAX-PAPER at the grocery store-- CA won't stick to it. Might be a good idea, being new to this, to grab some NITRILE GLOVES at the hardware store or grocery store (if they have them) so you don't glue your fingers together or glue the nosecone to your fingers or whatever... CA can do some weird things... (BTW, in case you don't know, CA is "cyanoacrylate glue" better known as super glue. You'll want the ULTRA-THIN type for this procedure-- DO NOT try to use the thicker stuff like medium or thick or the cheapy tube-type stuff for this, as you're results may not be good). Tear off some wax paper to line the bottom of your box... this will keep the cones from gluing themselves to the bottom of the box later on...
Take your cones outside in your box with your CA glue bottle. If you have gloves, wear them until you get used to doing this... even I sometimes lose my fingerprints to the cones from CA glue "grabbing them" and nearly gluing my fingers to the cones, and it happens nearly instantly... so I recommend the gloves. Take your nosecone and holding it BY THE SHOULDER that goes into the top of the tube, with the TIP DOWN, start just above the lip of the cone that butts up against the top of the tube, and start dribbling CA onto the cone... you can use the tip of the applicator to "rub it in" and spread it out evenly onto the surface of the balsa... the wood will "drink it in" like water on dry sand... gently turn the cone and evenly apply CA across the surface, working from the back toward the front. Keep giving it CA until the cone will quit "drinking it in" and it starts to run down to the tip and drip off. Be careful, because the cone can get hot if it's got moisture in the wood, because the CA sets up too quickly and gives off heat... also, beware of the fumes, because the ammonia odor given off can be quite strong and sting your eyes and nose... I recommend doing this OUTDOORS ONLY, and stand with the wind blowing from either your right or left side-- NOT toward you into your face (blowing the fumes into your face) or at your back (where the wind can "whip around you" and blow the fumes up into your face). Treat all your cones/transitions this way til they won't soak up any more CA. Then, set them on the WAX PAPER to dry-- it won't take long. You can carry them back into the house by the time you get the cap back on the glue and the cones set up on their back ends on the wax paper... but give them another 10-20 minutes in the house to make sure the CA is "all dry".
Now, sand the cone lightly with 220 grit sandpaper. CA tends to make even the cleanest cone "gritty" because it raises any loose balsa fiber "hairs" or embedded sawdust and causes it to feel like grit on the surface. 220 grit sandpaper and a light sanding will get rid of it in short order and make the cone more or less smooth and not gritty feeling. Don't worry about surface imperfections now... we'll get to those in a minute. If any CA got onto the shoulders of the cone/transition, be sure you sand it down lightly and TEST FIT the cone into the body tube-- CA will make it slightly bigger in diameter and thus it will fit too tightly... just gently sand it with 220 grit until it fits smoothly and evenly into the tube again. The CA seals off the balsa grain and combines with the wood fibers to make a composite material of CA resin and wood fibers, sort of like a poor-man's fiberglass... it also toughens up the outer layer of the cone so it's somewhat more resistant to dings and stuff. (Doesn't make it bulletproof, though, but it DOES help!)
Now that the cone fits the tube nicely and it's got the grit knocked off, grab your blue painter's tape and wrap a layer around the shoulder of the cone, the part that slides into the tube. This will protect it from build up of materials from here on our, and keep the nice fit you have inside the tube. If it's a balsa transition, be sure you test fit BOTH shoulders in their respective tubes, and put blue painter's tape on BOTH. Don't do the tape sooner, because CA COULD glue it to the cone, ruining it (or at least making a HUGE amount of work). Don't skip taping it either, because it will make a lot of extra work to restore the fit of the cone in the tube later if you do...
Get you some Elmer's Carpenters Wood Filler (CWF)... it's in a little white tub with blue writing on it, and an orange lid. You'll also need a 1 inch paint brush (bristle brush, not a foam one) and a baby food jar, small resealable container of some sort, or similar... (baby food jars work well, and it's cheap, or you can save the little plastic bowls with resealable lids from your side orders at Kentucky Fried Chicken-- these work great and are TOTALLY reusable! Just wash it out well and let it dry). Put a dollop (about a tablespoonful) of CWF into the container, and add a few drops of water-- maybe 4-5... don't use too much. You can always add more water if needed, but you can't take any back! Work the water into the CWF by "tapping" the dollop with your paintbrush, and working it around in circles... what you want to do is get rid of any lumps, and get your CWF thinned down to the consistency of HOT DOG MUSTARD... add a little water a few drops at a time until you get this result... it only takes a few minutes of mixing to do this, and the thinner it gets, the easier it is. You don't want it watery like pancake syrup or water, but you don't want it too thick either... when it looks and feels like hot dog mustard, you've got it perfect... Now, brush a smooth, even coat onto the cones and set them back into the box to dry. Usually this only takes about an hour or so... You can be doing other things on the build while they dry. Once the stuff is dry, take your 220 grit sandpaper, and sand the cones down smooth and even as you can get them. You'll sand off about 95% of the filler, but that's okay... you want to FILL the pores and irregularities in the surface of the cone, not build the cone up a large amount.
A word about sanding-- there's a little bit of skill needed here, but it's simple and easy to learn. First off, LET THE PAPER DO THE WORK. DO NOT try to "sand too hard" or too fast. Take your time and let the paper do the work... pushing down hard or trying to sand super-fast only heats the part up and makes the sandpaper gummy, which will cause it to clog up and quit cutting. That waste heat is wasted energy. I have about every grit of sandpaper known to man, but I can build 99% of my rockets with only TWO grits-- 220 grit, and 400 wet/dry sandpaper... You can pick it up at Walmart or the hardware store, your choice. When you sand, you need good techniques, so best to learn them from the start. First, NEVER SAND IN A STRAIGHT LINE IF YOU CAN HELP IT! Sanding in straight lines makes sanding scratches which are very hard to fix later, and requires more work. Instead, sand in a SMALL CIRCULAR MOTION-- this prevents sanding scratches (unless you push down on the paper too hard) and it also promotes cleaning out of the paper's grit, keeping it working smoothly. Another important thing-- DO NOT SAND ON ONE SPOT CONTINUOUSLY. This causes "flat spots" that will be readily apparent in the finished part, and cause you to sand TOO DEEP and sand through previous layers of finishing work you've already done. GENTLY TURN the part in one hand as you sand in small circular motions with the sandpaper in the other hand. I recommend cutting your sandpaper into small rectangles, about 2 inches wide by about 3-4 inches long... this is perfect for most applications. Sand around the cone, starting at the back end just above the shoulder, in little circles as you gently turn the cone in your hand, until you've sanded all the way around... sand around it say twice and then move up about half the width of the circles your sanding, and sand all the way around it again. Move up another half-swath width, and sand it again, working your way gradually up toward the tip. If it's got a rounded tip and needs sanding over it, BE VERY GENTLE. The tighter the curvature or sharper the tip, the more "concentrated" the sanding is, and the more careful you have to be to avoid cutting down too much with the sandpaper... take your time, be extra gentle at the tip, and KEEP MOVING-- and keep sanding in small, soft circles, gently curling the paper to the curve of the tip. The tip should only take a few very light passes to make it clean and smooth. Once you've got the filler sanded down, look and feel the surface of the cone... it should be smooth, and there should be NO visible or feel-able pits, voids, dings, or whatever... Re-sand it with 400 grit the same way-- it doesn't take long, now that the majority of the excess filler has been sanded off... this removes sanding scratches and further smooths the surface from the rougher 220 grit. Wipe the dust off the cone with a damp paper towel, and allow to dry a few minutes.
Now you're ready for primer. I recommend that you tape the cones down to a "paint stick" to give you a handle to do this, because the cones are prone to tipping over and it's hard to paint them well with spray paint getting everywhere... you can either make paint sticks by cutting cardboard strips about 3-4 inches wide and about a foot long (or so) out of cardboard, or you can get "paint mixing sticks" (usually for free or extremely cheap) at the hardware store. These can be reused many times. Tear some strips of blue painter's tape about an inch or two long, and tape the shoulder of the cone down to the painting stick-- you'll have to "stretch" the tape a bit to conform it to the curve of the shoulder and tape it flat to the stick, but it doesn't have to be perfect, just hold the cone to the stick while painting. I recommend Rustoleum gray primer... you can usually get it pretty cheap in an "extra tall" can, it's usually a "high build" primer (meaning extra solids so it builds up the surface faster and smoother) and will usually say "wet sandable" on the can. It's a white can with black writing on it. Works great. Others will work too, but the Rusto is the best stuff I've used. Take your box with cones taped to the paint sticks outside and spray paint them with 2-3 coats of primer... shoot the first coat kinda light, give it a couple minutes, then shoot another coat, a little bit thicker, and give it about five minutes, and then shoot another thicker coat on top of that. Don't go SO thick or so fast that it runs, sags, or drips... the better the job you do applying the primer, the less work later on, SO DON'T RUSH!!! Take your time, it saves time and work in the end!
Let the primer dry, depending on your local conditions, from a couple hours to overnight... even a day or two in winter or cool, damp conditions... You want the primer to be dried and "hard" enough to sand, not gummy when you sand... experience will be your best guide here... Once you think you can start sanding, grab a 220 grit rectangle and start sanding the cone the same way you did before... work from the back to the tip, overlapping, turning the cone very slowly in your hand as you sand, and sand in small circles. Periodically flip your paper over and look at the grit... if the sandpaper starts gumming up with spots of gummy, smooth primer that won't come off, you're either 1) sanding too hard or 2) not waiting for the primer to dry long enough. Lighten up the pressure and see how it looks... If you can see sanding scratches in the surface, lighten up the pressure or wait for the primer to dry some more, or both... Once you've sanded the whole thing with 220 grit, sand it again lightly with 400 grit the same way. I know, it sounds like it will take forever, but really it doesn't... I can sand while watching TV and do all this in one thirty minute show... The 400 grit is to smooth the surface out and remove the roughness left by the 220 grit... the 220 removes the material and smooths everything down, but leaves a slightly textured surface-- the 400 grit is to smooth off that texture and remove a little material so it's very smooth.
Now, inspect the part. Wipe all the sanding dust off with a damp paper towel and wipe it off with a dry paper towel. Feel the cone, and inspect the surface-- you shouldn't see ANY pits, voids, dings, or balsa grain. IF YOU DO, NOW IS THE TIME TO FIX IT!!! If necessary, re-primer the part and let it dry thoroughly and sand it down again... if it's just a bad spot, hit that spot with a few more coats of primer, and let it dry, and resand. Basically you want the cone as smooth and as even as you want it to be when finished at this point. Take the time here to do it how you want it to look, because THIS is where you get the finish you want in the end, right at this point, and THIS is the point to fix any problems. If you've taken your time and done everything right to this point, the cone should be slick and smooth and look almost like plastic... no pits, voids, dings, or balsa grain showing. Now we want the surface really slick and smooth.
Get you an old bowl or paper bowl or something, and put some water in the bottom of it. Grab an old towel that your mom won't mind you getting paint primer dust on, and find a comfortable place to work. Grab a rectangle of 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper (you can probably reuse the piece you just used for that matter) and dip the paper in the bowl of water, until it's good and wet. Let the excess water drip off, and shake off any excess or just blot it down once against the towel... the paper should be quite moist, but NOT dripping wet... Now, sanding the cone the SAME WAY you have been doing it (small circles, LIGHT pressure, rotating the cone constantly) sand it with the damp sandpaper... as you sand, you'll see that you're leaving behind a thin layer of wet "sanding mud", a mix of sanded off primer particles and water from the sandpaper. As you sand, this will get thicker and thicker as more and more particles are produced and the water slowly evaporates. You can dip a fingertip in the water and put a drop on the cone and sand over it, which will keep the paper and sanding mud moist... after you've sanded a minute or two, things will be getting pretty dry. Take a damp paper towel (not dripping wet) and wipe off the sanding mud from the surface of the cone. Dip the paper in water a few times, rub the grit with your thumb, and the paint particles will rub loose from the surface, dip the sandpaper again and rub it underwater to release all the trapped paint particles from the grit of the paper... then shake off the clean paper, daub it gently on the towel once if it's too wet, and continue sanding... this doesn't take as long as it sounds either... work your way all the way around and up the cone to the tip, and BE VERY CAREFUL AT THE TIP-- the sanding is concentrated, remember! Now, wipe the cone off with the damp paper towel of any sanding mud, and dry it off with a dry paper towel. Hold the cone up to the light, say a brightly lit window, or a bright light across the room... look at the GLINT of reflected light off the surface of the cone... gently turn the cone in your fingers as you watch the reflection of the bright light... the reflected light should be smooth, unbroken, with no dark spots or waves that indicate an irregular surface, pits, voids, or anything else... holding it up to the light is the only way to inspect it, because it should be SO smooth you can't FEEL ANY imperfections at this point. The cone should look perfectly smooth, like a plastic cone, or even better than a plastic cone. No sanding scratches or grain should be visible AT ALL... If you see anything you want smoother, grab the 400 grit, dip it in the water and shake it off or daub it on the towel, and damp-sand that spot again-- but DO NOT sand too much or IN ONE SPOT-- keep it moving and sanding small circles! You don't want to ruin it by sanding in a flat spot now! Better a tiny imperfection than a flat spot!
More to come... OL JR
There ya go! The devil is in the details.....but they turn a "meh" model into a "wow" model.....I'm not saying your Soyuz was a "meh" model....
