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Please help me with this...

Are there any differents between Primer spray and Paint spray ?

GW sells Chaos black spray and Skull white spray. Where are the primers?
I have heard that primers are specialy chemically consisted to fit at any material surface (metal/resin/plastic) in very thin layer. Paint sprays have more pigments and are just ordinary acrylic paint.

So Primers are not paints (even they are colorized) !?
Are GW sprays Black/White just paints or primers with special chemical consistation?

If GW sprays are not primers, do I need to put primer on my model first and then use GW paint sprays to make base coat?
Where to buy good primer (some online shops have problems with shipping aerosol cans)?

My local stores only got:
Mr. Surfacer (any type)
Army Painter primers
GW Chaos black spray and Skull white spray

Are they good? I need to cover my model with a very thin layer of the primer.... maybe gray primer color should be universal one?


Thank You

PS: I am not still sure if I see the difference between undercoat and base coat... in my language they are synonyms.

You are correct - primers are chemically formulated for improved adhesion and tooth (fine texture that allows successive coats of paint to stick) over regular spray paints. It is also true that the GW sprays are not actual primers. Be aware, though, that some people use "prime" as a general term for the initial coat of paint, whether they've used a real primer or not.

That said, I don't believe "true primers" are always necessary. For clean plastic, regular matte/flat spray paint adheres well enough and gives sufficient tooth for out purposes, although some people prefer to use primer, anyway. Spray paint doesn't adhere to metal as readily, though, so a primer is advisable, if not outright necessary (haven't worked with resin, so I won't comment).

I would avoid the GW sprays, anyway, as they are overpriced and I've heard plenty of poor reviews about their quality. Army Painter is supposedly good, and I've heard of the fine grades of Mr. Surfacer being used successfully as a primer. Personally, I use cheap matte spray paint (the kind that's sold for $1 at Walmart or home improvement stores) and it's worked just fine.

As for the terms undercoat and basecoat, that can get tricky, as some people use them interchangeably, while others consider them to be two distinct things (and even those distinct definitions can vary).

For some, "undercoat" refers to an overall application of paint that is not a primer (e.g. their primer is gray but they want to paint from black, so they undercoat with black paint over their gray primer).

For others, "undercoat" refers to any application of paint that is to be covered by other paint (due to the semi-translucent quality of thinned acrylic paints, you can tint colors by applying different ones underneath - this allows for effects like "pre-shading"). In either definition, one fact is constant - an undercoat is not seen.

"Base coat" usually refers to the initial "blocking in" stage of painting - the first coat of solid color on each of the model's features. In contrast with "undercoating," a basecoat isn't usually covered up, entirely. The intent is to serve as the base color for the surface, to which highlighting and shading will be applied.

Take my Ork skin method as an example: I "prime" my miniature black (regular spray paint, not a real primer, hence the quotations), then undercoat the skin with GW Orkhide Shade (undercoat, since this paint will be covered - this step simply makes the application of the next layer easier, since I'm then going from dark green to light green, instead of from black). I then cover that entirely with VGC Sick Green (this could be called the basecoat, since this is the base color onto which my shading and highlighting will be applied) and wash with GW Thrakka Green for shading. I apply block highlights by reapplying VGC Sick Green in layers, then add extreme highlights with VGC Goblin Green. I end with a thin glaze of GW Thrakka Green, to smooth out layer transitions and increase color saturation.

I have used GW black, Army Painter, and cheap stuff from Walmart.

In my personal expierences I have found Army Painter is what I have had the most success with. I find that I can prime Twice as many models as compared to GW at 2/3rd the price.

oadie, thank You for Your comprehensive answer. Thats what I was searching for. Finally I see the differences.

I have found local store selling Tamiya Fine Surface Primer Light Grey and have heard good references for this products. Hope it is primer, I will try it. However I ll tke the White one, because it should be more universal. If I need dark undercoat, I will spray black undercoat paint over the white primer. If I need more light, I will put basecoat on primer without undercoat...


Thanks for help.


PS: If anyone uses Tamiya Fine surfacer primer sprays (the fine one should give thinner layer than Tamiya Surface Primer), You can share your review.

Before I used to use Japanese Primers exclusively. Ex: Mr. Surfacer and Tamiya. Both cover extremely well, dry quick and bullet proof tough. I'd recommend those, however, they can get expensive. So, for me I use the Japanese Primers, for my more favorite kits and for general purpose stuff, I use Army Painter primers.

one of the reasons I love army painter, apart from the good price and good quality, is that their new line of potted paints match up with the spray cans. this is the only brand I know of that works like this. You can prime all you like with actual colours but it sucks you can never correct any mistakes unless you spray the can into a bowl that has thinner in it (and it drys quick....). The spray\pot combo gives you the best of both worlds, quick good coverage from a spray and easy to make corrections from a pot.

Testors flats are still best. I've tried krylon, GW, tamiya, and everything sold at Wal Mart and Lowes. Nothing is ever as easy or produce results as good.

It's thin so it doesn't fill detail, covers brilliantly, dries fast and is DEAD flat. It's a bit pricy for the small cans, but you can get a surprising number of models primed with the small cans.