Best nail hole filler for painted finish?

[UncleJoe]

I have been building a lot of built-ins lately around the house. White Semi Gloss paint. I have been using a spackling compound on the nail holes but thought I would ask here in case there is something better. Someone once told me he uses a caulking gun but I have never tried that. I just want to use the best product to get the job done and I am not 100% sure what that is.

 

[WarnerConstCo.]

Spot putty works great (auto body), fast n' final works good for me, I like it to swell up a little so I can hit it quick with some 150 and it is ready.

You could also use a wax crayon, like the one's from Mohawk, the white will fill the hole  after paint and you won't see it at all.

 

[hockey_magnet]

a touch of white caulk -small tube - paintable - works well. There are also some "gap filler" products in tubes

 

[JPF Woodworking]

I would strongly recommend MH Ready Patch. Rated both interior and exterior, it dries fast, easy to sand and has very little shrinkage which is always the main problem when filling holes on finish work. It is sold in most big-box stores and I think my last purchase was at Home Depot.

Best regards,

John

 

[mastercabman]

You could also use a wax crayon, like the one's from Mohawk, the white will fill the hole  after paint and you won't see it at all.

Don't over do it,Paint usually don't stick to wax.

 

[WarnerConstCo.]

You could also use a wax crayon, like the one's from Mohawk, the white will fill the hole  after paint and you won't see it at all.

Don't over do it,Paint usually don't stick to wax.

That route is for pre painted stuff.  Quick rub o' crayon and the hole is gone.

 

[AlexThePalex]

On wood, I wouldn't use anything different than a 2 part epoxy filler. Dries extremely fast, between 5 and 15 minutes depending on brand and temperature. Doesn't shrink and becomes very hard but easy to sand. All the rest is crap.

Caulk? No way, you'll keep seeing that hole because caulk shrinks. Wax? Never. Paint won't stick. Single part fillers? They dry slowly, shrink and tend to loosen up over time. 

I would also never use a filler that's supposed to work on all surfaces. Different materials need different fillers. Two part (epoxy) fillers for wood and metal, and some water based filler with gypsum in it for plaster and drywall. 

 

[mastercabman]

Caulk? No way, you'll keep seeing that hole because caulk shrinks.

I also agree,never use caulk to fill nail holes.

You can use painter's putty.It is for filling nail holes and small cracks.That's what most painters uses.

 

[Sean.M]

For painted trim I use Crawfords putty.

Spackling tends to flash and caulk shrinks.

 

[yoda]

If you want a surefire way to make the nail holes disappear you need an auto body filler like bondo.

 

[harry_]

I have had very good luck with DAP 33 glazing compound. Put it on, smooth it out. paint it. Done

 

[Lucas Pekowski]

Bondo is the way to go, minwax sells an epoxy wood filler for 11$ per small can but essentially its the same thing as bondo, they just charge 4 times more compared to buying regular bondo. The trick to bondo is to overfill the hole slightly and in about 5-8 minutes after it sets up but before it fully cures use a hard spackle knife to remove the excess which will leave you with very little sanding, another good product is elmers hole fill that comes in little squeeze tubes of different wood colors, just dont get the "probond" kind as its very gritty and not fun to work with, another great product is ZAR wood filler which has a little fexibility and tends to work with the wood.  i usually dont look at what most painters use as they dont really care about how perfect our woodwork looks, more so whats easier for them to sand.
Good luck

 

[Frank Pellow]

I used to use Bondo auto body filler and it works great.  But, It is bit of a pain to mix.

Rewcently I switched to this:  http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=20057&cat=1,190,42997

It also work great and it is much easier to mix up just the amount that you need for the job.

 

[hockey_magnet]

I used to use Bondo auto body filler and it works great.  But, It is bit of a pain to mix.

Rewcently I switched to this:  http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=20057&cat=1,190,42997

It also work great and it is much easier to mix up just the amount that you need for the job.

Just tried this myself, works great and very conveient if you just need a small amount

 

[Grasshopper]

How does famowood, or durham's water putty stack up for nail filler (and closing the occasional open miter)?

 

[chrisrosenb]

I have been using Red Devil Onetime filler for years. It is easy to apply, it expands slightly when it dries. Dries quickly & sands easily.

 

[deepcreek]

I'm a big fan of Timbermate.  It's all I use now for stain grade or paint grade.  FWIW - I buy it at Woodcraft.

 

[mrFinpgh]

I find that the thicker fillers seem to pull out a bit more from really small holes.  So for pins, I'll usually use drydex.  For 16g finish nails, I'll use something like elmers wood filler - it seems to shrink less. 

I always prime after filling holes, so flashing generally isn't a huge issue. 

The other approach I've used in stain grade work is to mix painters putty with oil paints and some cornstarch.  This would be done after the first clear coat goes on.  Done moderately well, you can hide the hole to a point where you have to really look for it under the right lighting to find it.  Done just okay (about my level of skill), you will see the slight imperfection on the surface if you know where to look, but everyone else will not notice.  [wink]  You could try that approach.

-Adam

 

[Jeff2413]

The first issue I would address is nail holes....how can you prevent from nailing through faces/planes that can be seen?  I used to build cabinets this way by shooting everything together but in the last few years have become much more strategic in my construction methods.    With the use of pockets screws, dominos and an occasional bar clamp I can't tell you the last time I had to fill a nail hole.  This not only makes a much better cabinet aesthetically but it saves a heck of a lot of time when finishing.

BUT, if I do have to fill a nail hole I typically use Famowood.  It shrinks as does every filler I've ever used so I will fill the hole when its made and then sand after it dries.  Then it gets hit again before finish.  Seems to work pretty well.  Bondo (I know it has some bad sh*t in it) works well if you're in a hurry or have a 911.  Saved me hanging a paint grade barn door last week. 

 

[mkasdin]

Crawfords for base molding.
There's another product similar to Bondo tha people will use its more for minor imperfections on metal, wood and or over Bondo. I don't remember the name. You can call 3M or google it?