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Black, most armies I do need a darker tone to them anyways.

carabine wrote:Black, most armies I do need a darker tone to them anyways.

you play blood angels
i would expect a darker tone
i don't see many white death company

I think it depends on the color scheme of your models. If your painting them with lighter colors use the white primer. If you're using darker colors get the black primer

SomaRukido wrote:I think it depends on the color scheme of your models. If your painting them with lighter colors use the white primer. If you're using darker colors get the black primer

Yeah agreed, I didn't think it was a debate...

Black for sure; better coverage. Plus I prefer the gritty darkness of 40k more than washed pretty pastels.

NoToTheMan wrote:

KingCracker wrote:I spray the minis black, but when I do skin parts (so on Orks thats ALMOST half) Ill go over the skin parts with a white primer now. So I guess Im about half and half

there's a company out there that has a great primer that's the same colour as goblin green
that's what my friend uses for his orks

Nope that would throw off the way I paint my Orks skin now. White base makes the colors more vibrant and bright. A green base would dull it down. Heres a half assed shot of how I do it

I use Grey since it sits nicely between white and black so reds arnt pink, or so dark it looks like black =p. also makes metals look more bright imo.

I would rather use a black primer, but if GW would ever try a grey spray primer i would definetely try that.

I prefer Black because it comes with its own shadows.

although it usually depends on the color scheme your going with for your army.

being the proud owner of four chaplins it's nice to not have to paint the black all over again
i just used three costs and it works well

Black.

With black you paint the color and leave the shadows. With white you paint the shadows and then paint over with the color.

Plus, 40k is grimdark. White produces clean uniforms.

Also, white makes colors too bright. It makes them look like Hasbro or Mattel toys, all bright, shiney, and plasticky.

Ailaros wrote:Black.

With black you paint the color and leave the shadows. With white you paint the shadows and then paint over with the color.

Plus, 40k is grimdark. White produces clean uniforms.

Also, white makes colors too bright. It makes them look like Hasbro or Mattel toys, all bright, shiney, and plasticky.

i agree 100%

White. It can be a pain in the ass getting the nooks and crannies, but means you don't have to paint as many layers, and you can get some cool effects by washing.

I have black, white, and grey primers. Anyone who only uses one primer is missing the point of primer.

Primers are supposed to make your job easy. You need to plan ahead, be mindful of your intended colors, and THEN choose a primer.

If I were painting Blood Angels, I'd use a red primer. Primering the following guy black was a HUGE mistake. It took tons of coats and 3-4 times longer than it should have to paint, but I like the final outcome.



If I were painting IG tanks, I'd use green because green camo looks awesome.

When I paint my Black Templars, I use black. Duh. Then all I have to do is highlight and add a few colors. These guys were super fast to paint after a black primer.



When I'm going to paint something that has a lot of light color, such as reds and yellows, I prime white.

I don't use my grey as often as I used to, though. Now that I've gotten more experienced with painting, I don't need the "crutch" of grey. To me, grey is for times when you haven't decided on a color, so you go for a middle ground. It's also a good choice of primer for medium colors, like greens and blues.

Black primer is great because I LOVE to include black-lining on my miniatures. Dramatic black lining, like this guy.

I have started to use a dark brown camo color for a base coat. So far it has worked wonderfully. It does not chip or run off, leaves a flat even coat and works wonderfully on light and dark colors.

When i first started i used Black, because i found if easier to get depth a finish i was happy with. But now now i nearly always use white. I find it takes most colours better and give a great depth and detailed finish. Its particularly good white washes to. Only draw back is metallics really, you have to darken the area down before using them.

Here is an example:

Black primer = more grimdark. Sure, I'd try switching to white if I wanted to paint primarily lighter and brighter colors, but I much prefer a darker palette, in general. I don't want my Angels Porphyr to look like Ultramarines and White Scars had babies, I want them to look badass. My version of white is Astronomicon Grey, highlighted with pure white. Why? It feels white, but it doesn't look impossibly clean and shiny.

In the grim darkness of the future... white primer makes your mega-butch veteran super soldier look like a Saturday morning cartoon.

That said, black primer makes it easier to achieve the look I'm going for, but it's by no means the only way.

Grey all the way. My CoD Cadians wear grey fatigues, so it provides the perfect basecoat for them. It also covers larger models extremely well, lets bright colours 'pop', and provides a solid base for darker colours.

It also makes for great concrete terrain with a simple black wash:

I use white as my basecoat, but when painting "metallic" areas, I will use black paint on those metal parts then apply my metallic paint. Black is a really good basecoat for metallic paints, really makes them stand out.

Black primer to me is more reminiscent of when I was younger and didnt know any better or had enough skill to use a white basecoat. Red's and yellows didnt pop, white was next to impossible to get right etc. I've seen models on tables where a yellow is slopped on over a black coat and the modeler is wondering why he cant get yellow right. Sheesh!

Now with a white basecoat, I feel that I have a broader range to take my colors to. I can stain the white to look dirty, dusty etc, and build up my shading with inks then watered down paint.

Also, with a black basecoat, you use more paint as you try to build up to the proper color (ex: bright reds, bluse etc).

@oadie: Where are you in New Brumfus (near Rutgers)? Are the grease trucks even there anymore? I went to Rutgers WAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY wayyyyyyyy back and was wondering....

Right, okay, I modify my vote:

BLACK!!!*




* unless you're playing an army where there is a lot of base color that matches a primer color, like spraying ultramarines blue, or priming blood angels red, etc.

...saturday morning cartoon... classic...

Ailaros wrote:

* unless you're playing an army where there is a lot of base color that matches a primer color, like spraying ultramarines blue, or priming blood angels red, etc.

Seconded.

where can you find ultramarines blue?
that would help a lot

I use grey primer as it does not push anyone color scheme to much differently than you want.