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I cannot for the life of me seem to run primer through my airbrush without encountering constant cloggages. A batch of models that should take no longer than 30 mins ends up taking HOURS as i have to constantly dissemble the airbrush and deep clean it out. Ive tried thinning it down considerably, I've tried various PSI levels, I run AB cleaner through it every few mins to try and prevent the build up of gunk, I've tried different neede sizes...nothing seems to make any difference. It seems as though the primer just dries up inside the airbrush and blocks the pathway and needs a good scraping out more frequently than is tolerable. Ive thought about adding slow dry, into the mix but not sure if that will negatively affect the primers adherence.... i dont mind if it takes longer to dry. I'm at the point now of just saying screw it and buying a bunch of rattle primer and doing it the old fashioned way. I'm using Vallejo primer currently, I have two separate bottles of the stuff so dont think its a case of a bad batch... I guess it could be worth trying a different brand, scale 75 perhaps? IDK, I dread having to prime anything now because of this issue. I rarely get problems with regular paints... the odd clogage here and there... nothing like the frustration this primer causes. Any advice much appreciated...

I had lots of problems with Vallejo primer, it wasn't very tough, took ages to cure and it was susceptible to clogging with a smaller tip and with a larger tip it tended to blow chunks.

I've swapped to Gunze Mr Surfacer 1500 (they also make 1200, 1000 and 500 but 1500 is the finest and best for airbrushing) and I thin it with Gunze Mr Color Levelling Thinner.

It sprays smoother, doesn't clog, cures fast and ends up pretty tough.

The downside is it's a lacquer, so you need to make sure your work area is properly ventilated, also it's quite thick in the bottle so you need to thin it down quite a bit.

Hmm , my area isn't that well ventilated... I have a window right next to my desk, but havent bothered investing in an airbrush booth or anything... so not sure if that would be a good option for me. I guess I should try other acrylics based stuff first.. I'm curious if scale 75 or the one by badger I saw a while back may be a better options. The vallejo stuff when I can get it onto models seems durable on plasctics but absolutely terrible for metal stuff... the slightest rub and the paint just peels off.

If you are using Vallejo PU primer throw it into the trash bin. It is not even worthy to try it with a hairbrush and it will 100% clog your nozzle (took me days to clean my airbrush from this) no matter how you thin it, despite it is designed to run via airbrush without thinning at all.

Found similar, but only certain colours, and not every bottle of them. Black seems to be the worst, have a 200ml bottle of that I use for brushing on bases now, but a 60ml bottle thats fine.

I strongly suspect it needs shaking more, if you think you've shaken this stuff enough, you haven't.

Also leave it overnight, or ideally 24 hours after spraying.

Well....I just got an hour of continuous priming done without a single clog and cleaning of my airbrush. I think the trick to it is:

1) only having a small amount in the cup at a time (3 drops),

2) thinning it plenty, I used a 1:1 with water

3) As soon as you have used whats in the cup IMMEDIATELY refill with water primer mix and begin spraying again, anything longer than like 20-30 seconds between refill and the stuff starts drying up inside the AB and its time to deep clean everything...

If the above isn't what just worked for me then I have no idea why it worked so well just now... airbrushing makes no sense to me sometimes.

I'm gonna order some scale 75 stuff anyways and see how it compares,

Disagree, the Vallejo grey primer is fine. I don't like the black however at all. It clumps way too much and tends to be too expensive. I've used the grey in my airbrush as well, but I don't like to run it, it does clog after a while (with a large needle) needing to be cleaned out after like 10 ish models or so (depends on size). I use it for brush on pretty much only now.

Still looking for a better airbrush primer that's non-lacquer as well.

 Guildenstern wrote:
Still looking for a better airbrush primer that's non-lacquer as well.

Honestly, if I'm not using a lacquer airbrush primer I don't think it's worth airbrushing the primer at all. Just give a light dusting with a spray can and be done with it.

Even if it didn't clog, Vallejo primer is just not all that tough and toughness is the whole reason I bother priming in the first place.

Until I meet an acrylic airbrushable primer that is the measure of a spray can I'll just stick to the rattlers. Thus far only the lacquers get close.

I've handled some plastics pretty badly that were vallejo primed and not had any paint come off... metals though is a whole other story... I definitely need a better solution to that problem...I don't like having to varnish protect them as IME it can alter the final look in a way that I'm not ok with.

For metals I use a metal primer.... which is also a lacquer It etches the metal so subsequent layers stick better, but it's clear itself.

For the most part I haven't had huge problems with Vallejo primer chipping but that's because I'm super careful with my models, most the time the models get chipped it's because one of my idiot friends handles them too roughly But I have had a few time where it's pulled up with a mask or chipped off enough for me to not want to use it and, as you've noted, it really didn't spray all that smoothly to begin with.

Lacquer fumes are bad but they're short lived, because they cook off and cure quickly they tend to not hang around all that long, but I'd still use a fan to get them away from yourself.

I can't rattle can prime where I live, it's simply too humid except a very few times of the year. One of the reasons I actually brought an airbrush lol I may give the lacquer a go if I can get a decent ventilation set up.

A couple of times I've actually sprayed rattle can paint directly in to my airbrush cup and then airbrushed it. It's not advised because the solvents need a bit of time to cook off, I basically just sprayed it in the cup, waited a few seconds for the paint to stop bubbling then sprayed it. Worked fine the times I did it.

Good ventilation is important no matter what paint you use, it's just lacquers (or enamels for that matter) you'll really notice if you have bad ventilation.