Hi everyone,
I know there´s been much talk about primers before but I just can´t find the right answer to my question. Which primer should I use for a kit master which has very fine panel lines? My model has many many small greeblies, lines and stuff and I don´t want to fill up all the engraved panel lines. So which one should I use? Could it be thinned if necessary? And is there a good one from major manufacturers like Tamiya or Model Master which I could get here in central Europe?
Thanks for any help you could provide me!
Is the Tamiya primer good for priming kit masters? You know it shouldn´t fill up fine panel lines. Also, what´s the exact name for the Tamiya stuff? I should be able to get it here in Austria...thanks for your help!
The actual name is "Tamiya Surface Primer".
They also offer a resin primer same as Gunze.
Either one should fill your needs as they don't obscure details on plastic models and I would expect your kit master to have stronger detail than the final product.
I´ve been to my local hobby shop today but they didn´t have the Tamiya stuff. They hope to get some new in a few days, but they only knew the surface primer as spray can. I thought it was airbrush stuff? Can anyone tell me who´s right please?
Not to hijack the thread, but what's a good primer to use if you're using a light color over top of it? I usually use Floquil primer, but to use a light color over it takes a lot of coats.
In your area, I don't know...I have seen it in the US as both a bottle and a spray can. I know the Gunze products (Mr. Surfacer) are available as both a spray and a bottle.
Dan
"Laugh while you can, monkey boy!" -- Lord John Whorfin
Surfacer is gray, and I'll use a primer if I have to cover various materials - like resin, metal, renshape, epoxy etc. I find it's easier over a uniform surface. If it's just styrene, then no worries.
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Will the Tamiya Surface Primer also stick well to resin? And what color is it? Light Grey? Grey? Dark Grey?
Also, will the Surfacer stuff stick well to resin?
Mr. Surfacer will stick to resin (make sure you clean it!), but they also make a special resin primer (Mr. Resin Surfacer), it's a touch hotter than the Mr. Surfacer. I've used it a bit, seemed to work well. It's the same color--a neutral gray.
Dan
"Laugh while you can, monkey boy!" -- Lord John Whorfin
darth_daniel wrote:Will the Tamiya Surface Primer also stick well to resin? And what color is it? Light Grey? Grey? Dark Grey?
Also, will the Surfacer stuff stick well to resin?
It should. Go to the Tamiya web page and check it out.
It is Light Grey. But I think it only comes in spray cans. If you are going to airbrush a primer on then I would use MR. Surfacer it comes in jars.
The Tamiya Primer works great when sprayed lightly.
Good luck
"Life is tough. It's even tougher if you're stupid." — John Wayne
Okay I got Mr Surfacer 1000 now I´ll ask before I use it what can I use to clean my airbrush afterwards? Should I use 96% Alcohol or Nitro compound/turpentine? Also, should I have to thin it, what to use?
Thanks for any help!
Denatured alcohol will remove Mr. Surfacer quite easily; that's what I use to clean my airbrush. I also use it to thin Mr. Surfacer, but it isn't the ideal or recommended thinner.
Huh, I seem to be too dumb to airbrush a primer on! Today I wanted to prime a custom made base and my small scratch SD, and when Mr. Surfacer 1000 hit the base, it looked like a dusty cobweb that stretched between each smaller uprising! WTH happened? Can anyone tell me? I didn´t thin it because it was very liquid so I thought it wasn´t necessary. Was this the mistake? Thanks for any help!
In my experience, cobwebbing with Mr. Surfacer is due to it either not being thinned enough, too much pressure, or too far away from the model.
That said, I've also heard that if you use Mr. Hobby Leveling thinner, you don't have this issue...but I haven't tried it yet. Smells like acetone though.
Dan
"Laugh while you can, monkey boy!" -- Lord John Whorfin
I've tried to thin Mr Surfacer with just about everything and only Mr Thinner works correctly. I've also discovered that the best way to get rid of the cobwebbing is to use the Mr. Retarder to keep the paint from drying before it hits the model. 50% paint, 25%Mr. Retarder, 25% Mr. Thinner is my ratio. I like to use high pressures, though, so backing off the AB pressure might also help to alleviate the problem. Clean up the AB and ye hands with lacquer thinner, save the Mr. Thinner for thinning.
Again, to prime resin and get it to stick, do this; wash the model with your favorite degreaser, bake the model in your oven at 145 degrees for about 2-3 hours to hard cure the resin (post cure). Once cooled, give each piece a wipedown with lacquer thinner, THEN prime with Mr. Surfacer. 99 times out of 100 you won't have any paint pull up if you do all of these steps. Resin can't be painted and expected to hold paint if it's still curing, and it takes years for it to completely cure if not post baked. If the resin is less than a year old, bake it.
darth_daniel wrote:Will the Tamiya Surface Primer also stick well to resin? And what color is it? Light Grey? Grey? Dark Grey?
Also, will the Surfacer stuff stick well to resin?
Yeah it's light gray (I primed the ISD bridge and my falcon with it), and it's dont mask greeblies and scribed lines.
I have always seen it in spray cans but you can transfer the primer from the can to a bottle to use it with your airbrush.
U have to use a drinking straw to transfer the paint, lot of people use this method. I saw this tip in the Tamiya Magazine. Never tried by myself though.
Thanks for that advice, but in the meantime Ralphee suggested using primer used for car bodies. I found a very good primer, also light grey, and with a little warming in warm water in goes on great. I used it on my SD master and some other stuff. It´s just a bit expensive (I paid 13.95 Euros for 1 spray can).
Here the automotive primer are cheaper (and the cans are bigger !) than a tamiya can ! I used automotive primer (the dark one) on my falcon too, but the result is thicker than the tamiya one
Anyway the tip is ok for all the tamiya cans since some colors are only available in spray !
I have a Master Grade Gundam Char's Gelgoog (Game Color Version) and I would like to paint the Dark Brown Torso Armor parts "British Crimson". However this color over Dark Brown really doesn't look as light as I want it. Does anyone have a suggestion for a Primer that would lighten up things (and not fill in the panel lines as mentioned above) before I spray the "British Crimson"
Thanks
DarKev
Why would one buy a "NEW" Multi_Million Dollar Management Information System that can't do processes that the old system did correctly?? Answer - Someone in Upper Level Administration got a "GIFT" (Unknown Author)
Today I wanted to prime a custom made base and my small scratch SD, and when Mr. Surfacer 1000 hit the base, it looked like a dusty cobweb that stretched between each smaller uprising! 
WTH happened? Can anyone tell me? I didn´t thin it because it was very liquid so I thought it wasn´t necessary. Was this the mistake? Thanks for any help! 
