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Friday Quick Tip: Perfecting Primer
By: realgenius

This isn't the first Friday Quick Tip about primer and it probably won't be the last. There's been some discussion on primer in our local community and it inspired me to post a few tips on fixing problems you are having with spray primer.

First, make sure you are starting with a primer, not a spray paint. Paint is not primer and there are some hobby primers out there that are pretty inexpensive. No reason to use the wrong tool for the job.

Once you've got a proper primer, pretty much any spray primer can give you good results as long as you use it properly and in the right conditions. The expensive spray primers are a lot more forgiving than the cheap ones, but if you know how to use the particular brand (or don't mind diagnosing the problem and fixing your technique) then you can get good results with any hobby primer.

Before we start looking at some pictures, let's consider the anatomy of the spray can. The nozzle is connected to a tube that runs down to the bottom of the can. That's where the paint and solvent are located (with a little propellant mixed in) and the rest of the can is taken up by propellant. When you turn the can and spray upside down to clear the nozzle, you're blowing propellant out. A lot of times the propellant is also a solvent, so keep that in mind when working with the can sideways to reach into those tight areas.

When you shake the can you don't need to go nuts, since you're just mixing the solvent and paint that may have separated. If you shake too much you'll agitate more propellant into the solvent/paint mix and you'll get a sputtering nozzle when you spray, which usually means splatter and an uneven coat. I never shake any primer more than ten seconds, even the Armory primer that people tell me really needs to be shaken well. But be sure to shake a little as you go along, especially if you are spraying a large batch of models.

So now you're spraying your models and things are not coming out right. Here are a few common problems and how to fix them.



Oops, you didn't shake the can enough. With some primers this is really hard to do-- the model above was sprayed after not shaking the can at all, but some primers need a little more agitation. If you see shiny streaks on your first few models, but not the rest, then shake the can more. The tell tale signs of extra solvent in the mix are the shiny spots that look like they've been hit by an ink wash. You might also see some bubbling or blistering and an inconsistent coat. The paint and solvent isn't mixed enough and you're not getting a layer of primer that will stick well to the model. This problem often shows up if you are batch priming and have let the spray can sit too long between shaking.



Darn, too far away. Whenever you see this rough coat and feel a flaky, powdery texture you are holding the can too far away from the model. The problem is that different brands of spray paint like different distances. I've found that the Armory spray works best in close, probably 4"-6", and the Citadel spray likes to be a little but further away, maybe 8"-12". If you are seeing this nasty texture but spraying at your normal distance it could be a lack of humidity. If you switch brands of spray also be sure to do a few tests to make sure you are familiar with the ideal spray distance of the new brand. Either way, when you see results like above, move closer.



Ah, the model of the impatient sprayer. Caking and cracking usually mean that you are either too close or moving too slowly. Spray in short puffs, keeping the can moving and remember what they say about several light coats being better. Yeah, they aren't just saying it to take up more of your time. Sometimes you can see cracking or bubbling from over-shaking a can and getting too much propellant mixed into the can. If you suspect over-shaking, just put the can down for at least 5 minutes.

Every primer can give you good results if you take the time to figure it out. Just pick a primer that fits your budget, patience level or one that is available at your local store. You'll probably ruin a few models along the way but remember that priming is like any other painting skill: the more you work at it the better you get. Getting the priming done right will take practice but if you get good results it makes the rest of the painting job that much easier.

And besides, that cracked and detail-obscured Ork will make a great statue once you paint it with a stone effect.

Ok, let's see 'em: hit us with some links or stories of your worst priming disasters!

Good tutorial, i wondered why my models had that weird grainy affect after the spray - well no more

the worse ive seen with a spray can is my mates "ol' cheapo" can in which when you spray the model, after it dries it becomes like it has been waxed and polished several times, while a few coats of paint can fix it, it looks funny to see his undercoated models on the board all shiny looking. would this be because its not a primer but just a spray paint can?

From: The Painting Corps
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Perfecting Primer Follow-up: Using ColorPlace (Walmart) Primer
By: realgenius

To test my theory that you can get good results from any primer, I picked up a can of the ColorPlace (Walmart brand) Primer last night. The advantage of this stuff is the fairly universal availability in the US and rock-bottom price. After tax, the 10 oz can cost me $1.12. Make sure you get Primer, not paint. Check the back of the can until you find one with "Primer" on the label since at my store all of the grey paint and primer were mixed together on the shelf.



The label says to spray at 12"-16" away but from my own experience that is just way too far when using short, quick strokes. I sprayed at about 6" on a pretty windy and humid morning and the results were good. ColorPlace primer was not as smooth as some of the more expensive primers, but this was only my first attempt. I am sure better results can be had with some more experimentation and better weather conditions but I am satisfied with the results already. The grey shade is about the same grey as Tamiya Fine Surface primer, which is a lighter grey than GW plastic.

The can also says to spray a second coat within 4 hours, so I'd let is dry at least that long before painting but the models were dry to the touch within 10 minutes.



There was a large selection of spray paint at my local Walmart but they were out of the white ColorPlace primer. I talked breifly to the "paint guy" working the area and he said they now only make grey and white primer; no black. Your mileage may vary at your local Walmart, but I know that a lot of people really won't use anything but black primer.

Here's a quick video of the technique I used.



Got a can of primer you haven't had any luck with? Lemme know and I'll try to find a way to make it work.

This is useful and informative. Thank you for posting this, I think it's one of your best tips.

Grey Death, one of the biggest tips i can give in regards to spray priming is to not paint in direct sunlight.

the dusting effect from being too far away from the model is from the primer curing mid-air before it reaches the model, to gain extra leeway with painting, do it at night or at least in the shade.

I do all my priming at night with decent multi-source lighting and i can prime from 10-20" away just fine, it allows for a bit smoother control and less worry about getting too close.

Rustoleum makes a dark gray primer that's close enough to black to make little difference.

The main problem I experience is what I call "threading" - the primer has hair-like strings in spots looks like dust, fur, or hair that's adhered to the primer coat. I've been told this is the result of too much humidity. The same problem occurs when I use a poly sealer, usually with worse results.

I make sure to clean my miniatures thoroughly before priming and have gone so far as to use canned air to remove any dust/fur/dander residue. It doesn't always happen and I've found that scrubbing the mini down witha toothbrush helps to remove the threads, but what can I do to prevent them?

Gavin, its true that is caused by too much humidity, there is no real way to prevent them in this case, but like you said, if you use a soft toothbrush on the model afterwards you can usually wipe those threads away.

is there an echo in here?

Honestly, I have used Color Place for years. I swear by the stuff.

Great info for people looking for an alternative to the 10+ per can for GW spray.

I'm quite experienced with Priming and over the years have used GW Chaos Black and Sometimes Grey Autoprimer and i'm quite good at getting a nice even finish. With my current SM Chapter I decided to use the ARMY PAINTER Primer Brown Colour Spray, it didn't matter how close i got the finish was really rough and I have to re-base coat every miniature, that said it took every colour really well, including Reds and yellows which i normally have to paint 2 - 3 times to get a nice finish. Here are some of my mini's as examples...


I was quite disappointed as I was trying to save time and effort, nevermind!

I used the Army Painter Grey and had the same problem. Very rough, and the color ended up a different shade than the can top sample.

On the other hand, I used Army Painter Red for some Romans I did, and it worked really well. I think I was a little closer with the red, so I'm going to go back and re-try the grey. This is also why I always try a sample on metal minis, much easier to fix, or a bit of sprue.

I used the pure red and it ran out quite quickly and was quite thick / grainy. Never had a problem wiht GW sprays though.. I even followed the guidance for 3mins solid of shaking... no better - infact some of my minis came out PINK. Thankfully I could paint over them but then why bother wiht a coloured primer if it doens't give me the right colour?!

I will either go back to GW spray black or else a grey primer. I've tried grey on other minis for different things and it works well. Esp light grey and then black ink. Colours are bright and lively but the shadows are still there :-)

I've used almost every brand primer you can think of. Just to escape having to find sweet spots for everything I've stuck myself to the Formula P3 stuff from Privateer Press when it comes to aerosol spray primers. At 9.99 USD its amazing stuff I must say and the nozzle produces a really nice even flow and doesn't have that rough blasting feeling of some other brands. Worst thing I've ever done primer wise is just not hold the can close enough to the models. Also a good tip for priming is to never have models more than around 1" behind others as you will cause that rough sandy texture and really piss yourself off when half a squad regiment is nice and smooth and the back half are like touching 12 grit.

I don't follow how that works Ninja Biscuit? Is that due to the MINI's in front interfering and causing a slimstream/ eddies with the spray or am I completely mis-understanding your post.

Thankyou so much for these tips grey_death - you are officially, as I believe you American chaps put it: 'Awesome'.

Looks like I was a bit too far away and suffering from powdery / grainy texture.

mwnciboo wrote:I don't follow how that works Ninja Biscuit? Is that due to the MINI's in front interfering and causing a slimstream/ eddies with the spray or am I completely mis-understanding your post.

I think it's more the fact that you are at optimal distance for the model you are spraying. If there is a mini behind it, it's catching overspray but from further away so the overspray ends up grainy.

excellent...
ive been spraying models for years and ive still found a lot of this to be helpful...
good resource for new painters

Hi guys,
I think this is a good thread and have decided to share some of my discoveries. I now use Halfords (An Auto-Superstore in the UK that sells parts and accessories for cars!) grey Primer its cheaper (£6.99 for 500ml rather than £8.00 for 400ml for GW Chaos Black.



Results (tested on Metal Miniatures)


I love the quality of the finish, its relatively cheap (Compared to GW) the Can is highly pressurised, is 500ml (instead of 400ml) and does a good job and a single can goes along way. The colours such as Reds, Yellows, whites and bone colours take much better to the lighter primer, than black reducing the amount of time to paint a single miniature to a good standard. Sorry to all our foreign Dakka's out there, this probably is useless to you.

UK Spray wise, pop over to Wilkinsons, grab there "black satin" enamel spray, Good even coverage, and has the same gloss (yeah not satin lol) finish as Chaos black paint, unlike the Matt finish Chaos black spray.

Nice tutorial. It sucksi didn't saw it earlier as i primed some minis today and some were not very good.

Just done a test piece using the black spray im hoping to use a few hours ago. At first i got the "looks like i didnt shake it enough" result. Might be the fact its a gloss black spray rather than a matt spray.

Hoever once it dried I took my GW paints to see how it took to the black undercoat, the blood red took a few coats and even then it will take a few more coats, but the boltgun metal went on really well, just one coat. But cetrain spots need a touch up.

This was done with a £1 can of 400ml. Once i get the proper GW brushes i will retry painting some of the practice sprue to see the results. (The burshes I used were not meant for painting minatures!)

May post pics of the results.

@mwnciboo Seems I may have a backup primer since you claim its good, whats even better is that I can get my brothers to get it since he works there 15% off awesome!

This might help too:

Get a big cardboard box. You don't need it to be deep but wide is good. Stick your mini's in that and spray. It should help keep the wind off while you spray.

Also wear protection (that made me giggle for some reason?!). A big mask from your local hardware store to keep those fumes away. Dont want brain damage now do we?

@johnscott10, I've edited my post above to give you a look at the quality of finish the halfords Grey Primer gives.

Haha that finish with the Halfords primer is really good. May grab a can or 2.

Do any of you wash your minatures before priming?

Yes, in warm soapy water. Then I dip them in cold water to get any chemical residue off. I then leave them to dry for 12 - 24 hours. Sometimes fingerprints can leave a greasy residue so i am usually quite careful.

johnscott10 wrote:This was done with a £1 can of 400ml.

Where was this can from please mate? That sounds more like my kinda budget at the moment

Gashmangla wrote:

johnscott10 wrote:This was done with a £1 can of 400ml.

Where was this can from please mate? That sounds more like my kinda budget at the moment

Was bought from a shop called Poundland funnily enough lol.

Funnily enough I stumbled across a Poundland earlier and lo-and-behold, £1 primers in black, grey, white, red and yellow. 5x the paint, 5 different colours and still £3-4 cheaper than GW primer if you buy them all.

Ace.

Gashmangla wrote:Funnily enough I stumbled across a Poundland earlier and lo-and-behold, £1 primers in black, grey, white, red and yellow. 5x the paint, 5 different colours and still £3-4 cheaper than GW primer if you buy them all.

Ace.

Id be wary of the black, as I think its only gloss black which doesnt give good results imo. The white on the other hand will give decent results.