Epoxy is the adhesive people reach for when a repair actually needs to hold, a stripped bolt hole, a cracked radiator, a chunk missing from a metal bracket. Every product on the shelf claims steel-like strength once cured, and the price range runs from under 5 dollars an ounce to well over 4 dollars an ounce for putty sticks that all look basically identical once you knead them together.
So a hands-on tester bought 12 epoxy putty brands and pushed them through pull-out strength, a multi-brand chain repair, and a pipe-pressure test, alongside two related tests comparing quick-cure versus slow-cure formulas and plastic-specific epoxy adhesives. The cheapest product in the main lineup ended up the overall winner.
Here is what actually held.
What the testing showed
Every result below comes from Project Farm's independent bench testing. You can watch the full breakdown on the complete epoxy putty comparison, the companion plastic-specific epoxy adhesive test, and an earlier quick-cure versus slow-cure epoxy comparison.
The main putty test measured 12 products for a multi-brand chain pull-out test, a dedicated pipe-repair pressure test, and cost per ounce across brands ranging from 4 dollars and 98 cents to 32 dollars and 28 cents.
JB Weld's Steel Stick won, and it was also the cheapest product tested
JB Weld Steel Stick, at 4 dollars and 98 cents for 2 ounces (2 dollars and 49 cents per ounce), the least expensive putty in the entire test, was declared the overall winner. The tester's verdict: "really impressed with some of these brands including JB Weld, which definitely came out on top overall, especially when you consider the value price." Rated for 900 psi with a 5-minute set time and 1-hour cure, it beat products costing many times more per ounce.
KBS NuMetal and Hercules earned specific runner-up praise
KBS NuMetal, at 1 dollar and 43 cents per ounce, and Hercules Pro Epoxy 20, at 4 dollars and 54 cents per ounce (the most expensive in the test), were both singled out in the tester's closing remarks as strong alternatives to the winner, with Hercules specifically noted as "also a very good product" if the price fits your project.
QuikSteel won a specific, narrower category on its own merits
QuikSteel, at 3 dollars and 18 cents per ounce, was not the overall winner, but its claimed 5,950 psi rating and ability to handle temperatures up to 500F with a bond holding to negative 90F led the tester to select it specifically for a separate high-heat cylinder repair test, a real, distinct use case where its properties made it the right specialized tool even without the top overall finish.
Weaker performers still had their place
Pratley Steel Putty, made in South Africa (one of only two non-USA brands tested, alongside Spain's Loctite Repair Putty), was the weakest pipe-repair performer of the 12 despite a mid-pack pullout strength result, illustrating that overall strength and task-specific performance (like sealing a pressurized pipe) do not always track together.
A related test found a genuinely different tradeoff for plastic repairs
A separate Project Farm comparison of plastic-specific epoxy adhesives found that JB Weld Original, not specifically engineered for plastic bonding, actually outperformed dedicated plastic epoxies on a weight test and tied for first on a dead blow impact test. Loctite's Ultra Gel Control won the twist torque test in that same comparison but was one of the weaker performers on the impact test, another reminder that a single product rarely wins every relevant test.
An even earlier test on steel bonding favored the slow-cure formulas
An earlier Project Farm comparison of epoxy on steel found that JB Weld Original, a slow-curing 24-hour formula, won the downward-force bonding test outright by holding through the entire weight set without failing, and that Devcon Plastic Steel, another slow-cure product, actually beat JB Weld Original on the torque test. Quick-dry epoxies in that same comparison, including Gorilla Epoxy and Loctite's fast formula, consistently failed to adhere as well to the tested steel surface, a real, repeated tradeoff between speed and bond strength.
How to read this for your own purchase
Across all three tests, a consistent theme emerges: JB Weld shows up as a strong, repeated performer across multiple formulas and use cases, but the "best" specific product still depends heavily on the material and the time you have available for the repair to cure.
For a general metal repair on a budget, JB Weld Steel Stick is the tested winner and also the cheapest product in the main comparison, a rare case of low price and top performance lining up.
For a high-heat application, like an exhaust component or engine-adjacent repair, QuikSteel's specific heat and cold-bond ratings made it the tester's pick for that narrower use case, even without winning the overall test.
If your repair is on plastic specifically, don't assume a plastic-labeled epoxy is automatically the right call. JB Weld Original, a general-purpose product, actually beat dedicated plastic epoxies on weight and impact resistance in the related test.
If your repair needs maximum bond strength and you can wait, the earlier steel-bonding test found slow-cure, 24-hour epoxies consistently outperforming quick-dry formulas, a real speed-versus-strength tradeoff worth factoring into your timeline.
A few universal rules the results support:
- Cost per ounce, not price per package, is the real comparison metric, since putty sizes vary widely across brands.
- Match the epoxy's rated temperature range to your application if heat is a factor, since this is a real differentiator between otherwise similar-looking putties.
- A quick-set epoxy trades some ultimate bond strength for convenience. If the repair can wait 24 hours, a slow-cure formula tested stronger in these results.
Want to compare more of the adhesives in the same drawer? Browse the rest of the adhesives, glue, and tape tests for super glue, wood glue, and duct tape comparisons built the same way.