I'm always trying different materials to see how useful they are on my hobby workbench. This time, I tried 3M Wall Repair Compound, which comes in a 12 oz plastic bin. It was about $3 USD when I bought it at Walmart, but I see it priced online from $7 USD to $22 USD currently (pandemic pricing?).
![3M Wall Repair Compound 3M Wall Repair Compound](workbench/pics/gen/2021/353473a.jpg)
This stuff is interesting. You pop the lid off the container, and it's full of what looks like white dust and fibers…
![3M Wall Repair Compound 3M Wall Repair Compound](workbench/pics/gen/2021/353473b.jpg)
When you apply this stuff somewhere, it's like spreading flour – but when you compress the stuff, it compacts and quickly 'dries' into a solid. And the fibers give it an internal cohesion.
So what can you use it for, as a miniature wargamer? First, it doesn't work well as for terrain or basework – it's hard to apply in small amounts, it doesn't adhere well, and besides pressing it into place, you can't shape it much.
![Plastic bases Plastic bases](workbench/pics/gen/2021/353473d.jpg)
However, one task I run into a lot is the need to fill in plastic bases, usually because I want to attach material to the base, and just gluing it to the base lip doesn't hold very well. I've tried spackle as a filler, but it shrinks when it dries, and adhesives don't work well with dried spackle.
![Plastic bases Plastic bases](workbench/pics/gen/2021/353473e.jpg)
So I tried using 3M Wall Repair Compound as a filler – just press it into place, and level it off. I found that it doesn't shrink, and adhesives seem to work better with it.
![Figures with filled bases Figures with filled bases](workbench/pics/gen/2021/353473f.jpg)
Here are more figures, which I've filled the bases and applied LITKO pre-cut Flexible Steel self-adhesive disks. Now the figures can be safely stored on magnet-lined storage boxes!