Primer necessary?

To the best of my knowledge (which could be lacking here) "primer" is a special paint that will give better "bite" into the plastic and will ensure a nice even coat of paint for your main color. I use the Model Master Gray Primer spray cans and have had great luck with it.

However, many people use just a gray or white base coat, and some use Krylon spray cans. It's mostly a personal preference. Others will doubtless have their own opinions.

John is absolutely right.. the primer (enamel and lacquer) get a good bite on the plastic, then with the ultra fine rough surface for the paint to grab onto makes it a lot easier to keep it where it belongs (on the model)

I've learned the hard way and prime just about everything I do.. well lately that would be everything I do!

I really recommend it.. and I've used everything from MM Grey Acrylic to Krylon and they all work well. Just spray on a light coat, no need to overdo it.... and presto! You'll have paint hanging on to that fuselage like a rich man to his money!

Good luck!!!

I've heard of going over the model with (I think 0000) steel wool. Does this do the same as primer?

not really as the paint is still trying to attach to the plastic. (the microscopic roughening of it will help, but not as much as primer I wouldn't think)

The bond that enamels and lacquer primers form with the plastic is more like a weld. Then the microscopic rough surface on the primer provides something for the paint to adhere well to. It also helps secondarily, with a neutral background color to spray over usually taking less paint to achieve the coverage. I use the grey primer for darker colors and white for light colors (white and yellow etc...)

All I do is get my model ready for spraying then hit it with the primer. An advantage of this is the primer helps show any missed finishing BEFORE you shoot the paint over it. Small cracks in the seam putty etc jump out at you once it is primered. I repair any of these then primer over those spots then hit it with the base coat. I haven't had tape lift up or peeling of the paint since I started using primer. In fact even acrylics stay on the model, not on the tape!

Good luck to you!!

Can I use the primer that I use for plastic on resin and PE too, or is resin primer different than plastic primer? I'm guessing that you have to use a different kind of primer for the PE? Thanks for your help.

yup... I use the same primer for everything on the model... for PE though you really don't want to prime it.. although the 0000 steel wool or 2000 grit sandpaper would be a good idea.

A better idea would be to buy the prepainted Eduard sets... but thats just because I am lazy

If you plan on using acrylics, I'd strongly recommend priming first. Even with enamels, I find that it can be difficult to get the paint to adhere.

You'll be amazed with your results the first time you paint over primer, even handbrushing acrylics on, the paint will stick.

It's also very helpful on kits that you had to do a fair bit of puttying or modifying, it makes the surface grip paint evenly.

I have had good experiences with Testors' primers, but then again, those are the only ones I've used.

OK, just want to make sure I got this straight. For plastic and resin, I can use the same primer. But before I spray anything on the bare surfaces, I should wash them with either alcohol or warm water and soap . Then I can proceed with the primer, which will be used for both the plastic and resin.
But for the PE--steel wool or sandpaper; but no primer. I'll try to get as much prepainted stuff as possible, but somehow I've ended up with some of the unpainted PE. After I use the steel wool or sandpaper, I can go straight to the painting process.

Is that right? If so, then I've got it! Thanks John, Tom,and Dan; you've been a big help.

you got it!! for the PE a VERY fine grit sandpaper is desired... just enough to microscore the metal surface for the paint to adhere.. and only use enamels, acrylics don't stick well!!

Good luck!!!

So, if I'm using enamel for the PE and acrylic for the rest of the plane, do I just have to try to find a close match. Or can I paint the PE with enamel (kind of like a primer) and then put acrylic on top of that? Most of the paint that I have right now is acrylic, so I don't really want to shell out a bunch of money for the enamel I need. I would guess that It's easier to use the same kind of paint for the PE and the plastic (or resin)? You know, then it all looks the same color. The PE might stand out too much if it wasn't the same shade.

you can buy those little Testors bottles of enamel real cheap... and yeah you can put the acrylic on top of the enamel. Most PE is so small that any shade difference would probably not be noticed... and typically the main colors on at least AC PE is silver, red, etc... tan or white or OD for the harnesses etc... but I still wouldn't put acrylic on bare PE (did it once, never again!)

---edit---

if there is external PE like the external intake grills from the HH-65 I was building just primer them with the model after asembly and whatever you airbrush on should stick to the primer. seal it with a coat of Future and I don't think it will give you TOO much problem... someone else might know more on that... (I sprayed enamel on that one due to the color/shine)

I only use Floquil Grey Primer, which is a hot enamel based primer, applied with an AB. It works great for both Styrene & Resin. Contrary to some folks here, I also use it to prime PE.

Regards, Rick

Rick - you've got me more interested in the Polly Scale and Floquill paints... I did pick up some Polly Scale Flat the other day but haven't had a chance to try it yet... I might try the primer now, just to give it a whirl.