Do you prime all of your projects or does it depend on what you doing?
For me prime all the way.
What do you use to prime? What type of paint do you use?
I use a selection of primers, mostly Gunze Surfacer, Mr Base White for white planes/kits.
Colours I use are Gunze Sangyo or Tamiya Colors both enamels and acrylics + Alclad for NMF.
HTH.
I usually put on a light coat of Tamiya surface primer. It come in a spray can. I just give the model a very light coat (so light that I can see through it), then come back a day later with my airbrush to put on the color. I found that primer not only helps paint adhere evenly, but it also highlights many flaws that you won’t see on the bare plastic (like seams that haven’t been filled properly or sanded enough).
primer’s a must though I admit I sometimes bypass this stage. I’ll definitely have some primer on if I have a mixed media kit or a kit in resin or white metal.
A primer isn’t really neccesary, you only really need to prime when the paint you are using might affect the plastic (like alclad and other lacquers). However, I always use a primer because it makes it easier to see imperfections in the surface (like scratches, and to see if seems are filled properly). It also gives a nice smooth finish for the paint to go onto and helps the paint bond better to the model so it won’t peel off when masked.
I use Tamiya white and grey primer. You can spray just about anything over these two primers… I use Tamiya and Gunze acrylics and Modelmaster enamels. I’ve never had any problems spraying these paints over Tamiya primers.
i prime all my exterior surfaces with Mr Base white. all the imperfections show up really well, and it helps acryllic adhesion. the effort is worth it.
I always use primer. Makes it easier for me to see how my paint job is going if the styrene of the kit is close to the same color as the actual print scheme. I have kind of grown fond of Alclad II gray primer for all my projects.
I always prime & use only Floquil grey primer. It will show any imperfections in the build that should be corrected prior to final painting, & provide a base for subsequent painting.
Regards, Rick
Fighterguru,
Like the other guys say, I always prime whatever surface I paint. It creates “tooth”, or a slightly rougher surface, which allows the color coats to adhere better.
It also makes it dead easy to spot surface imperfections.
I find that I have been using enamels and automotive acrylic primers more often than water based acrylics - they both dry hard, and sand well once dried.
The automotive acrylic primer works extremely well, and I use it for the majority of all priming, on all surfaces - resin, photo etched parts, styrene, and metals - it dries very quickly, dries extremely thin, and is very tough - not as delicate as enamels or water based acrylics.
This type of primer uses a hot solvent - which can be harmful to sytrene if you’re not careful and apply it very heavily. I thin the paint a lot - and apply a number of very thin coats - and I’ve never had a model melt yet. The best primer I’ve used so far, but it’s always best to use it outside or with a properly evacuation system like a spray booth. The fumes can’t be good for you.
The primer color should be adjusted to suit the final color - for darker colors and blues and blacks, a dark grey or black primer works best. For lighter colors, and for brighter colors, like yellows, light blues and bright reds, light grey or white is best - either way you’ll get better color saturation with fewer coats if you prime this way.
Works for me.
Never…but that don’t mean nuthin’, tho I will give my seams a squirt for imperfection review.
I guess I am one of the few that don’t use primer. The reason… I try to keep as little paint as possible on those panel lines… for the “Future”!
And if I can get away with one less cleanning of my airbrush, is the other reason.
B.
To prime or not to prime, that is the question.
Hi all,
I prime with Testors spray enamel, usually a light grey color. This provides a perfect surface for the MM acrylics that I like to airbrush. The acrylics don’t stick too well to bare plastic, so the primer coat is necessary.
I’m open to trying some of the other primers listed here, but so far, the Testors spray can stuff has worked perfectly.
Regards,
I’m working on my Me-309 project today and am putting the first coats of color on. I primed the main model with one coat of Model Master primer gray cut 30% with lacquer thinner (gives it a good bite) but forgot to prime the tree with the landing gear doors. I figured ‘what the heck’ and went ahead with the color coat. The main model took one coat of paint for good color density while the landing gear doors needed THREE coats for the same effect. Not only does priming help to find errors in your work before you get to the color, it reduces the amount of paint you need for your project and as a result saves you money that can be spent on more models.
Do I prime all my projects? I give you a most definite yes!
i prime all my models with just regular krylon primer you would be suprised how well it actually works main reason hobby stores are not very plentifiul where i live i live 100 miles to the nearest hobby store or i would probably go a different but with just a light coat you would be suprised how well it really works and at 2.97 for a full size can is very economical
I don’t prime everything, but I do prime most things. The vast bulk of my painting is with acrylics, and they tend to pop lose from the plastic pretty easily. I have yet to have that happen on anything that I’ve primed. For acrylic adhesion it makes a world of difference in my opinion.