how to fix minor errors from grinding and cutting metal

[Cannibal23]

hi there. im not super familier with working with metal so i think i need some more seasoned guidance here.

ok heres the problems i have. while grinding some edges down the grinder touched the acctual surface of the peice (steel) and left a little mark. i know when i paint over it it will look a lil funny. is there something i can fill that in with that will stick permanantly?

while cutting my design out i have over cut by the smallest ammount. i think less then 1/16th but if i try to file it out or grind it flat its going to look funny. is there some kind of putty that i can use to fill that lil gap?

while prying something the plyers left some small dent on the surface im assumeing i can just hammer them out with a mallot or something. ideas guys?

[XcOM]

use some spray putty, its a form of bondy type stuff, that will fill any small dents or scratches, but works like a can of paint.

[jdbnsn]

I have found that typical solder works well to fill in those dings and scratches, then you can file them and sand them back down to smooth it out.

[jdbnsn]

Oh, I forgot to mention something. You have to take measures to make the solder stick. One is to use rough sandpaper and alcohol to clean and rough up the surface. And as you apply the solder, the metal need to be heated. It would be much more difficult to do this with a soldering iron, easier to use a butane torch to heat the metal (doesn't need to glow red, but should be good and hot), then melt the solder into your dent. It may take a couple of tries, but once you get it the patch will be quite durable.

[Slug Toy]

ah good old lead-slinging.

ill add one more thing to that idea. lead is probably the easiest to work with when its at a plastic-like state. i cant say for sure how to know except for trial and error, but if you try working with lead, you'll quickly learn when its at the plastic state.

seeming as you probably have never done that before, ill just keep it to that. there are other things you usually do when you work with lead, but you dont need to know them at this point. just fill up the little nicks and grooves, and then sand it back down until its flat.

[Cevinzol]

since you'll paint it anyway I'd go with bondo or an epoxy filler. Lead requires a torch and a bunch of messing around.

[Cannibal23]

well. seeing as i dont have a torch i will have to go the bondo / epoxy method i guess. so i guess i can fill the minor scratches with the bondo and sand it down. i dont know about the lil over cuts though. what is bondo like some kind of play doh kind of stuff or more liquidly?

[xmastree]

there are other things you usually do when you work with lead, but you dont need to know them at this point.

Apart from being aware that it can be poisonous, so use adequate ventilation.

[Slug Toy]

i wouldnt worry about ventilation. id be more worried about somehow eating it. lead shouldnt vapourize when heated, unless its some sort of super-lead that can take on any state at any given time. dont worry about breathing it in, although if you get a sweet taste in your mouth, you should probably stop. i say sweet because lead is sweet, and that would mean you have somehow exposed yourself.

[Cevinzol]

i wouldnt worry about ventilation

Umm. I think Breathing in lead dust falls under Ventilation. If you sand a lead patch flat- you get lead dust in the air.

And lead does not taste sweet.
This is from the US National Library of Medicine - National Institue of Health's webpage. Link to artricle on Lead poisoning

Lead is a very strong poison. When a person swallows a lead object or inhales lead dust...

Unfortunately, you can't see, taste, or smell lead

Slug: Please check your facts before posting. Inaccuracies will impact the veracity of your posts.