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Just starting out painting. What do you guys recommend for basing miniatures? Heard GW spray primers are crap.

What you guys recommend? Any difference between Walmart, Krylon, or P3 spray primer?

I disagree. I used to paint on the foundation by hand. The result of that was rubbish.
Recently switched to GW spray primer and loving it!

THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ANY PRIMER I use a $10 can of custom mixed hawk turquoise primer, and Its made by walmart! basically they are all the same!

Capitansolstice wrote:THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ANY PRIMER I use a $10 can of custom mixed hawk turquoise primer, and Its made by walmart! basically they are all the same!

Id disagree with that, some primers are very similar at varying price levels but others are very different, like car primers that go on much thicker.

That being said, unless your painting display models, any primer $5 upwards not designed for cars will probably be fine and the differences are pretty small as you go up in price.

GW primers are excellent by the way, they are expensive and you get the same quality for less from places like vallejo, but anyone that tells you they are crap is just anti GW

I've used both the black and white GW primer, before I got my airbrush.

The black one is excellent, the white isn't quite as good - but that could be just because white is a expecially fickle color to begin with.

Cheers,


IK-Painter

IK-Painter wrote:I've used both the black and white GW primer, before I got my airbrush.

The black one is excellent, the white isn't quite as good - but that could be just because white is a expecially fickle color to begin with.

Cheers,


IK-Painter

In what way isnt the white quite as good? Coverage? Smooth surface for paint to hold on to? Durability?

I ask cause Im contemplating on trying out priming my models with white, and all I really have in my area are GW Primers. We have Army Painter stuff but they dont stock black and white for some reason.

Skippy wrote:GW primers are excellent by the way, they are expensive and you get the same quality for less from places like vallejo, but anyone that tells you they are crap is just anti GW

Have you ever tried Krylons? ones that is cheaper than GW by like..... atleast half?

Valspar Red Sandable: I'll swear by it.

The white does not seem to have the same coverage. The grey is good but I don't use it much.

Army painter. Sure it's expensive but the quality coverage and less filling of detail is amazing. Definitely worth the money.

How does army painter compare to P3's line of spray primers?

amrogers3 wrote:How does army painter compare to P3's line of spray primers?

I have never used p3 so I wouldn't know but I would not recommend any spray paint(krylon and such) as it is not meant for minis, is not primer, is more watery, and will hide your detail. Army painter will do none of that unless you spray directly on the mini from 2in away for more than 5 seconds.

Ronin wrote:In what way isnt the white quite as good? Coverage? Smooth surface for paint to hold on to? Durability?

I ask cause Im contemplating on trying out priming my models with white, and all I really have in my area are GW Primers. We have Army Painter stuff but they don't stock black and white for some reason.

If you spray the black primer, you immediately have good coverage and a sense, how much you need. The white primer goes on much lighter and if you aren't used to it, you tend to overdo it, causing blotchiness and streaks on your model in the worst of cases.

That's a problem with using spray primers anyway - you just need to dust your model with the primer, so that the basecoat has something to adhere to. You don't need to cover your model 100%.

Cheers,


IK-Painter

LunaHound wrote:

Skippy wrote:GW primers are excellent by the way, they are expensive and you get the same quality for less from places like vallejo, but anyone that tells you they are crap is just anti GW

Have you ever tried Krylons? ones that is cheaper than GW by like..... atleast half?

I did say gw was expensive and you could get the same quality for less. That still doesn't change the fact gw aren't crap, just overpriced.

Found this:

http://www.belloflostsouls.net/2011/11/paint-showdown-which-primer-is-best.html

Great White wrote:Army painter. Sure it's expensive but the quality coverage and less filling of detail is amazing. Definitely worth the money.

I have to agree there I've just switched to Army Painter from GW and they really are excellent. Price was a little eye watering but at the same time so was the price of the GW spray paints.

LunaHound wrote:

Skippy wrote:GW primers are excellent by the way, they are expensive and you get the same quality for less from places like vallejo, but anyone that tells you they are crap is just anti GW

Have you ever tried Krylons? ones that is cheaper than GW by like..... atleast half?

There is definitely a difference in primers... I just recently AB'd a whole bunch of them. In my opinion, after many tests, the Krylon was indeed the best and in the US it's around $3.50 a can. I use primarily the black but the 'ruddy brown' is an incredible base for Reds, because it is very reddish to begin with. The Krylon (indoor/outdoor - primer) has a neat 360 degree tip that sprays in a very nice line and is quite convenient for minis or even terrain.

Gunzhard wrote:

LunaHound wrote:

Skippy wrote:GW primers are excellent by the way, they are expensive and you get the same quality for less from places like vallejo, but anyone that tells you they are crap is just anti GW

Have you ever tried Krylons? ones that is cheaper than GW by like..... atleast half?

There is definitely a difference in primers... I just recently AB'd a whole bunch of them. In my opinion, after many tests, the Krylon was indeed the best and in the US it's around $3.50 a can. I use primarily the black but the 'ruddy brown' is an incredible base for Reds, because it is very reddish to begin with. The Krylon (indoor/outdoor - primer) has a neat 360 degree tip that sprays in a very nice line and is quite convenient for minis or even terrain.

very nice

I agree with some of the others on here....I use the Krylon primers available at Walmart and they work well.... and VERY cost effective

quickfuze wrote:I agree with some of the others on here....I use the Krylon primers available at Walmart and they work well.... and VERY cost effective

I disagree with the original statement that the GW primers weren't very good. They worked wonderfully. My only concern was cost effectiveness.

Screw that... I switched to Krylon, and was just as pleased with my results as with GW's product. So...

+1 to GW
+1 to Krylon

and, at 1 points, I was in dire need of primer, and nothing but Rustoleum was available, so...

+1 to Rustoleum as well.

Just remember, proper application is key.

I should have also said that Rustoleum was quite good in my tests ...but it's a little more expensive than Krylon (still way cheaper than GW), and it doesn't have that super nice "360 degree" tip that Krylon has.

I'm not going to argue it, but I've always preferred Duplicolor sandable auto primer. It's thin enough to get into a model's recesses, and sturdy enough to hold up to the normal wear and tear of transporting primed models (if you can't get them painted immediately.) Privateer Press' primer is the same stuff, but at twice the cost. It runs about six dollars a can, and can be found at auto parts retailers.
I've also tried Army Painter colored primers, which hack me off royally. They are really thick, and tend to plug the cap after using about a third of the can. Add to that a $15 price tag, and you get ulcer-in-a-can.

I used to use Krylon, but it's actually their terrible 360 nozzle that turned me off from it. That sucker clogs and winds up being near impossible to clean out. I've since switched over to rustoleum as being the primer of choice. I feel like it goes on pretty thick, so you have to be quick about your passes. You seldom need a second coat though.

As far as color goes, I spray damn near everything black. I paint very thin layers, and I like to let a lot of the black show through because I think it gives some depth to the model and gives it sort of a 'dirty' look.

As someone who lives fairly far from a gaming store I throw my vote in with the Krylon primers. I haven't had them do anything wonky on me yet and I've gotten decent results.

Just make sure you're getting primer and not spray paint. There IS a difference. I don't think the $1 cans at Walmart have a primer in the mix but I could be wrong.

Ive been using armory primer, and it works like a gem, and its only 7 bucks a can.
Perfect color, dries fast, cheap, and its got funny pictures of people on the front.