Questions about primers

[Chris Kelm]

Hello,
I'm here to find out about primers and which primers are best for which medium. Example: if you have 4 figures,metal,resin,kit plastic and soft plastic,which primer or primers would be best for those figures?
Also,what primer is the so called best on the market?
With these questions in mind which of them can be sprayed thru your airbrush?
If I've asked a very open question about primers,then I'm sorry but for some reason no matter how much prep I do on the figure itself,in time(3 weeks) tops the paint seems to chip or flake off.
Thank you
Chris

 

[sippog]

I expect this is one where everybody will have their own preferences.

I've used a 'hardware store' spray can primer on metal and resin kits for years without a problem: Plastikote, Humbrol, Halfords or Citadel. The trick is in applying them lightly so as not to obscure detail. Never had a problem except with vinyl (what you mean presumably by 'soft plastic') which doesn't like polyurethane - but Halfords do a special grey vinyl primer for car bumpers which is great and cheap. (Lately I also had a model with very fine detail and bought some Tamiya Fine Surfacer which worked very well)

I have felt no need up til now to airbrush primer mainly because my airbrushes are expensive and I wouldn't want to shoot primer through them. Then recently I became aware of the whole pre-shading technique (using different shades of primer for light and shadow). After that I began thinking of primer differently and bought a whole lot of different coloured cans - browns, tans, flesh. I've just invested in three bottles of Vallejo Polyurethane primer (black, grey and white) which are supposed to be airbrush compatible and which I intend using on my next kit.

 

[Chris Kelm]

sippog,
what airbrush do you use? I have an Iwata HP-BC and Iwata eclipse.
chris

 

[Chris Kelm]

yes you are correct about the vinyl/soft plastic. But there's got to be a primer that will bite into the soft stuff so these problems don't happen.

 

[sippog]

Edited

 

[theBaron]

I use automotive primer, too, and specifically, Walmart's own store brand. I settled on it, after some trial and error. I use it on styrene, metal and resin. Haven't tried it on vinyl, only because I've never built a vinyl kit. I follow sippog's tip and I try for light coats, but I do apply it right from the can.

I have been meaning to try using Mr Surfacer as a primer, but haven't gotten to it.

Also, for my Maschinen Krieger kits, I have purchased a can of Army Painter flat black, to use as a primer to support a specific weathering technique.

Prost!
Brad