Filling method

Submitted by spiceylg on Fri, 08/19/2011 - 20:41

Is there any easy way to fill and sand holes? I've made a few projects and my hubby and I just did one together. Apparently we are doing something wrong, because no matter how much we sanded, you could still see where we filled the holes even after two coats of paint and a coat of polyurethane. Same thing happened with my other projects. I've even tried a few different types of fillers. The common denominator: me!

claydowling

Sun, 08/21/2011 - 21:58

Look for oil-based fillers, rather than water based. A friend and I were discussing this yesterday, and he pointed out that oil based fillers (Famowood is the one he mentioned by name) don't shrink as they dry.

The other is that you may need to apply filler twice. This is definitely true when patching holes in walls, so I expect it's equally true of patching holes in wood with water based fillers.

For deeper/larger holes, my dad uses auto body filler, which also doesn't shrink. It doesn't take stain well, but it's completely paintable, and it takes tint especially well.

Guest (not verified)

Mon, 08/22/2011 - 03:21

Thanx Clay. I'll keep that in mind. I guess the biggest issue is the sanding or maybe lack thereof. I think I'm sanding like crazy but then it's never flush. I use grits in the 100s and 200s and somebody suggested starting lower.