# mixing your own wood filler



## bassin brian (Feb 12, 2008)

If you try to make your own wood filler could you use sawdust and contact cement or what are your guys ideas on that.


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

Sawdust from the same type of wood and wood glue.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Wood fill can be made from sawdust from the same type of wood and either white or yellow glue, not contact cement. If the repair is to be in a visible area and a finish will be applied, the repair may not take the stain or finish the same as the surrounding area.

For very critical repairs or fastening there are a few alternatives, depending on how creative you want to get. You can blind nail, which is a method of using a sharp knife point and lift a section of grain, apply the fastener, and then glue down the lifted section. Or, you could cut out a small section and fit in a piece of wood fitted to match the cut out. For larger repairs, this could be made to look like part of the grain.

There are various putties that are color matched to different species and shades that will accept stains and finishes. Try them out on a sample first to see what they look like with all the stain and all the finish.


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## Geoguy (Feb 22, 2008)

cabinetman said:


> Wood fill can be made from sawdust from the same type of wood and either white or yellow glue, not contact cement. If the repair is to be in a visible area and a finish will be applied, the repair may not take the stain or finish the same as the surrounding area.


 
You're right, the glue won't accept stain. I've had success using sawdust and polyurethane after the stain is applied (not great success,,,, but it will work).


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## jerry (Nov 1, 2006)

I have tried many,many mixtures, the sander dust and glue always turns dark(usually black) sooner or later. The best results I have had have been using sanding dust and shellac. I recently tried Timbermate from Australia its water based and comes in natural(almost white) and many colors. The three times I have used it it took stain and finish just like the wood around it. They have a web site but a friend said it was also available at Woodcraft. I have no ties in any way with this Co. I got my sample free last year from some info I picked up at another site.

Regards

Jerry


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

I don't stain :no:, so what I mentioned work well for me.


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## WDChew (Aug 31, 2007)

Ditto on jerry's post. I use clear shellac and sanding dust, but I usually use shellac as a sealer before any stain or finish, so that may be why my results are good with it. I only did the dust n' glue thing one time and have the unstained spots to prove it.


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## ebrowers (Jun 27, 2008)

I ran into this dilemma recently and found that Minwax makes putties color matched for many of their stains. The secret here is to apply the putty after staining and it will match up perfectly. I even used it once to fill in a tiny but noticeable gap between a rail and stile of a face frame. I wasn't sure if it would work (I hoped it would as I didn't want to unscrew the stile and recut a new one) Worked great! Even I had a hard time spotting the repair. I use the Minwax stain and putty on a regular basis now. I did find that my compound miter saw was about a half degree off in the vertical plane, so I adjusted it and haven't since had to putty a face frame. Thank God!

Vic


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