Need The Help of a Pattermaker

SIP6A · Oct 21, 2016

Do we have any patternmakers here? I need about 3 feet of 3/16 leather fillet material. Does anybody have some they would sell me?

Thanks!
Todd

dcsipo · Oct 21, 2016

SIP6A said:
Do we have any patternmakers here? I need about 3 feet of 3/16 leather fillet material. Does anybody have some they would sell me?

Thanks!
Todd

did you try these guys?

FMSC - Freeman Leather Fillets
dee
;-D

SIP6A · Oct 21, 2016

I can buy it from Freeman but you have to buy 100 feet. 100 feet will last me about 300 years.

Pattnmaker · Oct 21, 2016

I think I have some but I suspect shipping will be a fair bit as getting it across the border is a pain. If you or a relative will be up here drop by with a box of doughnuts and it is yours.

Why do you want leather fillets? Why not just use Bondo? I think it has been over 20 years since I have used leather fillets

Pattnmaker · Oct 21, 2016

Sorry I just checked I have #1,2,6,8,10,12,and 16 no #3. The only reason I have this is the pattern shop I bought this building from left it behind when they moved. They got it when they obtained all the contents of a pattern shop in a foundry that went broke.

SIP6A · Oct 21, 2016

Pattnmaker said:
Why do you want leather fillets? Why not just use Bondo? I think it has been over 20 years since I have used leather fillets

Well... when I learned what I know about patternmaking 40 odd years ago that's what I was taught to use for fillets.

Now for Bondo. can I use the bondo you get at the auto parts store, or do I need some special patternmakers Bondo?

Pattnmaker · Oct 21, 2016

I buy the "premium" bondo from the auto body supply shop as I find the fillets sweep nicer and it sands better but lots of shops just buy the cheapest auto body shop bondo. Scraps of banding or old hacksaw blades make nice filet tools. Kindt Collins which is now owned by Freeman did sell and probably still sells Quick Build II which is a body filler that cures much harder than regular auto body filler but we only ever used it on high volume tooling.

There are 2 important tricks with bondo fillets. When you sweep in the fillet you will get the fillet and 2 strips of bondo either side of the tool. Leave those strips alone until they go off to the rubbery stage of curing then clean them off. If you try to clean them up while the bondo is still wet you can easily mess the fillet up. If you wait to long you will have a lot of sanding. The other trick is if you have 3 corners meeting don't try to form all three fillets at once. Slick in one, clean it up and maybe even sand it then sweep in the other corners.

With a little practice 3/16" fillets can easily be done in one aplication. Above about 1/2" they often need a second application after the first layer cures.

metalmaster1 · Oct 21, 2016

I can remember my dad talking about wax fillets, somewhere I have a box of tools for applying them.

stephen thomas · Oct 23, 2016

I know the tools were used primarily for wax, but I have several where i softened a ball bearing enough to drill and tap for a handle. I use that with "bondo" for fillets. I would agree about using the best stuff from the autobody supply, instead of Freemans for most things. I have & use Freemans, but it gets hard as rock and is not much fun to sand or fair. It has it uses for building tooling, but when you think soft materials like leather and wax were used for fillets in the past, just use something that sands more easily.

smt

b sco · Oct 23, 2016

I think I just ran out of 3/16,but will check later today.
Bondo works good short term, but will break loose in time. (if applied to wood pattern.)

b sco · Oct 23, 2016

Okay, I have about 2 feet. If that will help,I'll send it to you.
I have quite a bit of 1/4 if you can use a little larger size instead.
Give me your address if you want either size.

cellardoor7 · Oct 23, 2016

I got plenty, I'll find it tomorrow and post again

cellardoor7 · Oct 24, 2016

I got about 30 feet, how much you need? PM me.

Pattnmaker · Oct 24, 2016

b sco said:
I think I just ran out of 3/16,but will check later today.
Bondo works good short term, but will break loose in time. (if applied to wood pattern.)

How much time? I have patterns that I made for my own products that are 10-15 years old that have made over 1000 parts on a hunter and the fillets are just fine. I also have some patterns that are used in airset sand that are around the same age and have made a couple hundred parts. I have seen lots of bondo fillets that have popped out but often in loose patterns that joints are flexing or patterns that have been stored poorly. I have also seen sand get under leather fillets and peel them off.

Most of my fillets are cut out of the wood or Renshape these days.

b sco · Oct 25, 2016

Yes Pattnmaker, probably due to poor storage practice, in and out of unheated sheds.
But having seen this, I won't use Bondo for fillets on production patterns unless they are pretty small, when wood movement will be minimal across fillet width.

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