Too cold to prime...HELP!!!

[Malcolm M]

I've got a small backlog of models I really want to get on with but it's too cold outside to prime (0 to +6 F at the best) I can brush prime a few but I don't want to brush prime the Landing Ship from Jimi as it will ruin the panel details.

Can anyone recommend a good brush on primer for resin and white metal/brass?

Thanks in advance,
Malc.

[redfinger]

instead of brush priming why not just heat up your primer? Take the spray can and soak it in some very hot water, shake it up, then soak it some more, after about 5 min or so of this, shoot the model quickly, then warm your primer back up again.

Ashton

[seam-filler]

Erm... hand-hot water maybe.... But very hot water could have spectacular, not to say, messy results. But I still think there'll be a problem with the paint adhering to the surface if it is too cold.

[redfinger]

Erm... hand-hot water maybe.... But very hot water could have spectacular, not to say, messy results. But I still think there'll be a problem with the paint adhering to the surface if it is too cold.

As long as it is not boiling you should be fine....why not warm the model up slightly.....to take the model that is in a heated room and some warmed canned primer outside for a few moments to spray, then bring it back in to dry and it will be fine, I do it all the time.

ashton

[Johnnycrash]

Please, whatever you do, do NOT do what redfinger has sugested. It's bad bad bad. Warm water is fine, as long as you can keep you hand in it for 30 seconds or so. Anything warmer will cause dramatic, if not deadly, events to unfold in a way your family will NOT find amusing. If you do that, please make a recording of the conversation you have with the triage nurse at the ER. It will be very amusing, if not tragic.

If you live alone, just paint in the damn house. Nothing like the smell of paint in the morning. OK, maybe not. But this still can be done, with minimum effect on others, and the house.

I assume there is a bathroom, and it may even have a ceiling vent/fan. Get yourself a large cardboard box. Place it on the sink/vanity, and open all the flaps. You may need to add a little bit-o-tape to the top flap to keep it out of your way. Place the model in the box, turn on the fan, and paint the model. Once you have applied the primer, carefully close the flaps. They don't need to be completely closed and sealed. Close the bathroom door, and come back in 30 minutes or so, depending on how long the paint takes to dry.

A small, portable spray booth.

[The Mad Klingon]

Do what I do...sneak into the laundry room and spray a few coats. We have a window in the room so I open it help alleviate the fumes. I would recommend it for everyday use but once in a while is OK.

And if your family says anything tell them what I tell my wife, "What? You don't like the smell? But, it's the aroma of creativity!"

And if that doesn't work, tell he to mind her own business or get in the kitchen and make you some pie!

[Richard Baker]

It is not just the primer & the model that need s to be the proper temprature- the air in between should be in the safety zone also. Paint spray can 'freeze' in route and give you a weird finish- just like too much humidity can cause clear to 'milk up' with trapped moisture.
I have had to paint indoors before and it will not cause a catastrophe unless you have open flames or special objects in the overspray cone. Take some cardboard and tape, make a mini-spraybooth corner and work small.

.

[Malcolm M]

Thanks for the tips everyone.

Johnnycrash wrote "Please, whatever you do, do NOT do what redfinger has suggested. It's bad bad bad. Warm water is fine, as long as you can keep you hand in it for 30 seconds or so. Anything warmer will cause dramatic, if not deadly, events to unfold in a way your family will NOT find amusing. If you do that, please make a recording of the conversation you have with the triage nurse at the ER. It will be very amusing, if not tragic."

I tried that once with a clogged can of grey a pan of boiling water and a camping stove.....and a wall to hide behind It was spectacular to say the least, I found a piece of can embedded in a tree about 10 yards away. Boy was that sucker loud when it blew

I tried the bathroom idea but it didn't go down to well with the household authority aka the wife.

The Mad Klingon wrote "And if your family says anything tell them what I tell my wife, "What? You don't like the smell? But, it's the aroma of creativity!"

Wrong...it's the aroma of I'm sleeping on the couch.


Richard Baker wrote "the air in between should be in the safety zone also. Paint spray can 'freeze' in route and give you a weird finish"

Thats exactly my problem the paint didn't even reach the model in a liquid form it landed as a fine DRY powder.



I'm going to sweet talk the warehouse manager to see if I can bring all my models in and have a mass priming session. Thanks again, Malc.

[redfinger]

[quote="Johnnycrash"]Please, whatever you do, do NOT do what redfinger has sugested. It's bad bad bad. Warm water is fine, as long as you can keep you hand in it for 30 seconds or so. Anything warmer will cause dramatic, if not deadly, events to unfold in a way your family will NOT find amusing. If you do that, please make a recording of the conversation you have with the triage nurse at the ER. It will be very amusing, if not tragic.[quote]

I have been using warm to hot water to warm cans up for years, it is harmless. I first started doing it when at my first job in a auto body shop, do to the semi outside nature of the job the cans of filler primer were always clogging when it got cold, so a few minutes in a bowl w/ some water poured from the coffee machine worked just fine.

let me explian the process....put it in the water for a min or two, take it out dry it off and shake it, then back in the water, repeat the process untill the primer in the can is no longer cold, of course the longer it stays in the hot water it builds pressure, that can be bad, but I REALLY didnt think I needed to explain that concept to the op, and if it has to be explained to anyone, maybe they should wait untill it gets warmer to use there primer.

ashton

[Richard Baker]

I think the problem is not so much the temprature of the spraycan but the temprature of where he is painting. Everything is fine inside the home but when you go outdoors to spray it doesn't work well.

.

[Rogviler]

I have been using warm to hot water to warm cans up for years, it is harmless. I first started doing it when at my first job in a auto body shop...

Hey, me too!

I also used the method when I was doing custom guitars even when it wasn't cold because lacquer can be a bear to spray on...

-Rog

[Johnnycrash]

I too have warmed a rattle can. That's not the issue. But how much you warm the can is. And I quote;

Take the spray can and soak it in some very hot water, shake it up, then soak it some more, after about 5 min or so of this, shoot the model quickly, then warm your primer back up again.

This very hot water idea is the problem. Like I said, if you can't keep your hand in it for 30 seconds or more, it TOO DAMN hot to be warming your rattle can in. I have no issue with warming a can, but you only need to add a little warmth. The can's contents are already under a fair amount of pressure, adding heat will increase that.

Feel free to warm your paint, but by just a little bit, and slowly.

[ignatz]

An enamel primer, like Testors Model Master Car Enamel Primer might level out better than any other type of primer, but you don't really get close to the even thin coating that spraying will yield, and then there's the smell of enamel paint and paint thinner to deal with.

I bought me a Dayton exhaust fan, hooked it up to a laundry dryer hose and put the other end of the hose out the window. Now I can prime anytime in the basement. Fumes are outside in seconds. That's about all I can think of. Using Alclad 2 grey primer and shooting it out of your airbrush is a little less noxious than a spray bomb, but not by much. Ventilation is key.

[hackercat13]

for smaller models and figurines, try gesso. Available at any art store. I prime most of the gaming figurines I paint this way, and it will work for larger items too. Gesso shrinks an amazing amount, so it won't obscure your details.

[Malcolm M]

Thanks for the help everyone. I took over a dozen models/figures into work and primed them. So I've got my fix for the time being.

Thanks Hackercat13 I was wondering what that brush on primer was called.
And to echo what Redfinger said about warming the can, hell, I've been doing that for years and everyone was right about not overheating the can...unles you're bored with a destructive tendency (see my second post )

Thanks again,
Malc.

[hackercat13]

Thanks Hackercat13 I was wondering what that brush on primer was called.

No problem! I use the Liquitex grey gesso, avaliable at Michaels. I checked, there is one in Anchorage. It's not cheap, about $12 per bottle, but it goes a long way. Paint it pretty liberally, it really does shrink that much! You may have to go back over a couple small bare spots where it shrinks away from the metal or plastic, but other than that, tough, great tooth for paint to adhere to, and non-toxic, non-stinky!

[Lord Darth Beavis]

Ask TheJimi about heating a can of paint on the stove...

Or should I say, ask TheTami...

[Lt. Z0mBe]

Ask TheJimi about heating a can of paint on the stove...

Or should I say, ask TheTami...

And their pets.

Kenny

[Kylwell]

Ask TheJimi about heating a can of paint on the stove...

Or should I say, ask TheTami...

OMG, you're kidding.

Wow.

[Newbie Doobie]

I just step outside long enough to spray my model with primer out of a spray paint can,then step back inside to let it dry. I don't usually leave my models outside in the elements,but I have done musical instrument finishing,and automotive painting for twenty years. I have a lot of success doing this,but I have a LOT of experience doing this too,as I don't have a professional down-draft booth. As long as the model you're using is the same temperature as the paint itself - you shouldn't experience any paint bubbling,or incompatibility due to heat,and cold extremes. Just don't wait outside forever! I just spray a few coats,then go back inside to warm up,then back outside to finish the final coating. I hope this helps!