Find Out the BEST Filler to Use for Trim Work!

Some in depth test to find out the best filler to use on trim work. Taking a look at Dynatron 650(Bondo), Elmer's Natural Wood Filler, and Dap DryDex Spackle.

[vancouvercarpenter]

I only use wood filler for trim repairs. It is harder to sand but it leaves a durable repair. Drydex will crumble out with the slightest tap from a broom. As for the shrinkage in nails, it's all in how its applied. Putty knife works better. You need to really force it in so that it kind of bulges out after and leaves it slightly overfilled. 2 part bondo for only the largest repairs. Nobody wants their house to smell like that all day.

[zdoc]

I use the Bondo putty that requires catalyst hardener. Comes in a can withe a tube of cream hardener. Especially for larger/deep defects and to build up areas that have missing material. Can’t beat it. The Bondo spot putty you used shrinks terribly. For nail holes and small defects, it’s hard to beat Drydex. Also have used Bondo with Fiberglas strands all ready mixed in to replace large areas of rotten wood on window frames and it lasted for nearly 10 years. Thanks for the video.

[jerrylundin]

The Red putty Is meant to be used on top of bondo to fill sanding scratches

[cornholeyoursister]

I run the cabinet shop at a pipe organ Co, and I can say for sure that all of these fillers have their place, it just depends heavily on the application and whatever media you're combining them with. The bondo is really only supposed to be used either for pin holes created by nails, or small pot holes left over from other filling operations. Even then, we use a very fine grit (320 or 400 on a block) to sand it once it's completely dry. The other main advantage with bondo is it plays very well with lacquer. The wood filler from Elmer's tends to shrink and Crack with ketones.

[MaydaysCustomWoodworks]

Pro cabinet maker here. I've done my own installs and touch ups for 10 years. The glazing putty goes on like butter and has super fast dry time when applied in small amounts, so it's tempting... But it's shrinkage is so great that it's not well suited for this application. I am still trying to find a use for it in my wood working or painting routines.

A lot of people on this thread are recommending 2 part fillers. Once I found MH Ready Patch I very rarely use any other spackle or wood filler on painted products. It is much harder than other putties or spackles. Not as hard as Bondo, but that's good. Bondo is normally harder than wood and will potentially be difficult to sand flat because of that. MH Ready Patch has fantastic adhesion, minimal skrinkage, good dry time, spreads smooth, interior exterior, and it's a similar hardness as hardwoods so you are unlikely to have the issue you had with the DAP where it sands easier than the wood and becomes uneven very easily.

The 2 parts still have their place if you need a big gap to dry super fast. But that's about it. MH Ready Patch is the best 1 part spackle paste I've ever used. And it sands like a dream

[andresfelipemoscosohernand]

Dude you are releasing these videos like 2 weeks after I have already made the mistakes 🤣 lol completely agree with the results. Thanks!

[Tesserat]

20 years of using real Bondo with hardener, no shrinkage and it dries faster than I can apply it. never need second coat . Sanding takes more time but its way stronger.

[BigBrotherIsTooBig]

Quick note about the bondo. That kind you used is for very very minor imperfections, like pinholes. That glazing putty is a single part (no resin in it) and it is known to shrink. There are better two part glazing putties that fill in deeper imperfections better. They also won't bleed through as they are gray.

[davidlane]

I've always had great results with Bondo on difficult corners in high traffic areas. After I watched this video I decided I'd use the Elmer's wood filler tested in this video (winner) on stair risers in the corners. EVERY one cracked within a month. I had to use a multi-tool to clean all of the wood filler out and replace. Since they were inside corners, I decided to use Big Stretch and repainted. A bit messy and difficult, but so far, so good. BUT, my mitered corners on the large plywood panels of our kitchen island filled with bondo and sanded to an eased edge are perfect 3 years on.

[sungd]

What I've been doing for small filler job is using Spackle mixing with tiny amount of wood glue.
It's much stronger than Spackle itself and works like a charm especially on the corner edge of wall or trim.

[JohnD-JohnD]

I've been using the wood filler with good results. It's a bit harder to sand, but you can resolve that by not slapping on too much. Works great and pretty durable. And.. it comes in white or whatever color your are working with.

[Coreyrkennedy]

You are becoming one of my favorite people to watch on YouTube. Please continue on! Your comparison/review videos like this are super helpful to see and just to hear from someone with experience and honesty

[Charles-lztz]

The bondo works if you know how to apply it as you said. You need to push the bondo in and wipe it clean for less sanding. Normally doesn't need a second coat.

[snakeeyes]

I was taught to apply two coats of spackle as a base coat underneath the bondo. It’s more work but leaves a really clean and smooth finish.

[randallthomas]

Probably the best solution for deep fill areas would be one of the fillers, followed by the dridex. the filler for the bulk fill, and dridex to even it out. When you do Bondo on a car repair, you apply the filler and sand it smooth, then apply a glaze over it, before the final sanding, and then apply the paint.

[nolanarcher]

Dynapatch is a nice in-between bondo and spackling. You used to have to go to paint shops for it but now home depot carries it. It dries between 10 and 30 minutes and gives a very hard finish

[HFRajuncajun]

Interesting conclusion. All 3 have their place in trim and cabinetry. Typically I use drydex on nail holes and very very minimal open mitres. Obviously wood filler is the only option for stain grade. But for larger joints like doing flush window sills or exterior wood trim that's paint grade, definitely use a two-part bondo. Much better at resisting cracking.
If I use bondo indoors, I typically run it as the base coat and then finish coat with drydex to get that nice finish.

[iamamish]

I had a cat that used to use his claws on all our trim work. I think I can sand some of them out but some I had to replace, and some will require patching. This video is perfect, thank you.

[zvijer]

Red oxide is what you used instead of actual Bondo, and like the many others have said, it is a finishing product to fill fine grooves from sanding.

[VC-Toronto]

If you use spackle out of a "tub", you can mix a little bit of chalkline chalk into it so that you can see where it is after it has dried. A few times I've missed sanding off some before painting (as it was white, or turned white), and having it have a bit of colour lets you easily find them to sand smooth.