Matan Ram reviews Vallejo Acrylic''s "Urethane White Primer."

Link to Item

If you have comments or questions please post them here.

Thanks!

Good review but to me seems like sometimes Tamiya primer comes across a little Grainy in those Pics.

Good to go.

Thanks for the review.

Vallejo also has this same primer in Grey and Black.

To be fair, I have never had much luck with any white primer, including Tamiya's, and I have always gotten a finish from white primer similar to what you have achieved from the Vallejo White Primer.

I think if you compared Tamiya White, to Vallejo White, and/or Tamiya Grey to Vallejo Grey, you would probably find different results.

Also....the Tamiya Grey you are using.....is it sprayed from a spray can? Or did you decant it, and spray it through your airbrush? Coming straight from the spray can, the Tamiya Grey is going to go on slightly thicker, and cover better than from an airbrush where you have more control over the paint flow.

As far as cleaning the Vallejo with lacquer thinner. While lacquer will eat away at most paint, I have found that it doesn't react well with any of the Vallejo paints for cleaning....better off to use Vallejo's (or some other brand) Acrylic Cleaner to get rid of the bulk of the Vallejo, and then run some lacquer through the airbrush to clean up the rest.

no, it comes in a sort of square jar.
I have just tried the vallejo primer on another model, and had the same poor results.

Better put a H & S Warning on this. Every time I see the thread re-appear I looks like a pint of guinness

Thanks for the review.

Al

Matan I found your review informative however it did raise one question. Did you clean the parts being sprayed as I wondered if perhaps one paint handles residue better than the other, and also as Scott said I have rarely had any luck with white paint/primer as it just doesn't seem to cover as well.

yep, I have cleaned them (as with all model before priming).
same with the second model I have tried it on - which had some resin parts, but as on other parts, the coverage was bad.

Thanks for that Matan it covers another possible aspect.

I have just tried the black primer and found that it covers well and gives a very nice and smooth surface. I did not thin it before airbrushing but I did add a little bit of Liquitex retarder, just to be on the safe side. The airbrush was cleaned very easily with Vallejo's airbrush cleaner.

After letting it cure for a few days I have found that it does not stick to the surface as well as a solventbased primer. The model in question is plastic with some PE parts and it was cleaned before priming. While the model can be handled without a problem, any sharp object may scrape off the paint. It can be scraped off with a fingernail as well. So the manufacturer's claim about durability and resistance is relative. Good for an acrylic perhaps but inferior to a "hotter" primer. On the other hand, that makes it easier to strip. Denaturated alcohol easily removes it.

I've used Humbrol satin colours as primer before and those are much more resistant to handling. I may stick to those for that reason.

Cheers,
Carl

I have found no acrylic primer yet any good for sticking to plastic.

Maybe just me but the way it is.

Of all Tamiya black with lacquer is about all,but it even will rub right off on corners when put down.

I guess Floquil is the best I have used.

I just tried this product (Vallejo Acrylic Polyurethane White Primer) for the first time. My first go at it, I got an unsatisfying result much like that documented here. However, I browsed some of the blog entries over at Vallejo's blog and discovered that higher air pressure might be in order (the blog states 3 bar, which is over 40 psi!). So, I tried again at about 30 psi but with more distance between nozzle and subject and the result was much, much better. Quite nice, actually.

So, it would appear that the Vallejo acrylic primers need much higher air pressure than those who airbrush Model Air or Model Color are probably used to (10-15 psi, or about 1 bar seem to be most commonly referenced). At least that has been my observation given this afternoon's experiments and reading the Vallejo blog.

Greetings,

I just wanted to share my thoughts/experience. I recently started building again and was looking for a replacement primer. I have been using Mr. Surfacer but the fumes started bothering me. In the past I tried acrylics but never had any success. Biggest problems were poor adhesion and tip cloging. I started reading good things about Vallejo and decided to give it a go. I bought some of the Vallejo white primer. I made sure that the plastic was clean and did some test coats about 35 psi. I was really impressed. I got nice fine smooth coverage. Let the freshly painted piece bask under a light bulb and after a day or so, gave it the adhesion test. Using blue 3M painters tape I was unable to pull any of the primer layer off the plastic. I was so impressed, I ordered some of the same primer in black. I used laquer thinner to clean my airbrush and the occasional tip clog that I got was quickly cured with a q-tip soaked with windex. BTW also made certain that I shook the primer bottle for a bit before I sprayed and I use just a drop or so of retarder.

Not sure why others have had any problems but all I know that it worked for me and all with no lung issues. Valleo is getting very popular and it just might be my go to paint.

Hop this helps you,

Cbreeze

Just another update.

Picked up some of theVallejo black primer and all I can say is wow!!!! I am very impressed with the coverage, improved adhesion and quick clean up. For the build I am currently working on I also tried some of the Vallejo model air colors. I had some of the Model color laying around. After four years of sitting on the shelf, still good. I am simply amazed at how nice the Vallejo paints spray and brush. Looks like I can finally say good bye to MM acrylics.

Cbreeze

I just used Vallejo primer today for the first time. I thought it looked a little grainy but I will let it sit a bit before I make a judgement.

I am used to flushing my airbrush with Windex after I paint with acrylics, but when I did this with the Vallejo primer it gelled the primer and I had a lot of gooey paint to clean out of the airbrush. I guess I should have used water first.

I am hoping I will be able to use this primer as I like the fact that it is acrylic based and easy and safer to clean up after a painting session.

i use vallejo model air most of the time now but i cant get the vallejo primer to work well...it just doesn't grab the plastic the same way tamiya's fine grey primer does.
will stick to tamiya cans for primer.

paul

Just ordered some of Vallejo's grey primer .Will let you guys know what happens.It is important to note that to get any product to stick to anything you have to apply fairly wet coats.If not,the paint,primer. ect.will be mostly dried before it hits the substrate and will not stick.This is true with laq.also.So try spraying a little wetter and you might get better results with stuff sticking Jeff T.

Hi,

just a small update based on my experience with vallejos primers. I used white, black and the grey one(73.600/601/602). Other primers I use and compare are tamiya (T) and alclad(A). I do both armor- and aircraft-modelling and colors used are vallejo air, tamiya and sometimes gunze. My prefered A/B is an evolution "2 in 1".

I like the idea of spraying primer with an A/B just like the colors very much. It gives you much more control about what's happening than using a can (like T without decanting). Another aspect, and here V definitly wins, is smell/odor. OK, T smells a little more than V, but A is simply a stinker. Good ventilation is a must, whereas V is much more 'home-environment-friendly'.

But we don't use primer for good smell, do we? And that's were my experiences with V are much disappointing! Compared to the others, esp. A, V doesnt bite into the kits plastic very well. Instead it seems to build up a second skin, which peels of easily in some occasions. Try to mask clear canopy parts, prime and color afterwards, leaving a day for the primer drying. After removing the mask, peeling of primer with overlying color occurs easily Sanding imperfections after primimg will probably lead to another bad surprise! Chuck, over at Aeroscale, experienced that, to:

http://aeroscale.kitmaker.net/forums/169471&ord=&page=5

Another point is the 'heavyness' of their coating. Maybe that's the reason for many to ask for thinning!? Smaller details, like rivets are easily filled to non-existance!

All at all, I regret to have bought vallejo's primers. Instead I get my windows open and mask prepared and use Mr.T's decanted primer or for the finer results Alclads grey primer...

Just my 2c

V

I too have found that Vallejos primer does not stick well to my models.I do reduce it a little to spray it and that helps with the build up.I have also found out that it does not sand well,even wet,and will leave a sharp edge instead of tapering out.I have much better luck with Tamiya.Jeff T.

Interesting results, but

I have been using Vallejo Primers for a few years now and have never had any issues, it has always sprayed dead smooth with full coverage and never once have I ever had any problems with adhesion, and I have used nearly all of them including all the new coloured versions, which are so good that its almost no worth using a top coat as the primer colour can be so close to the required colour as to make it almost pointless.

On a side note, I have never seen Tamiya Primers in anything other than a rattle can, when did they start supplying it in bottles, and have you got the item code.

Thanks

Paul

And to the contrary, I use the Vallejo primers all the time and don't find any of these problems at all.

One, you have to clean the mold release from your plastic....or I say should clean, I usually don't unless it seems particularly greasy, and still have no problems.

Two, don't thin it, shoot it straight from the bottle, if anything, up your spray pressure another 5 psi or so, as it does like the higher pressures rather than what you would spray regular thinned paint with.

Three, if you do need to thin the primer for whatever reason, thin it with Vallejo's own thinner. If you are using water, it is simple just literally "watering down" the paint, and you are actually weakening the bonds that will adhere the paint to plastic, which will result in the primer rubbing/flaking off the bare plastic. Using the Vallejo thinner instead will keep that chemical de-bonding from happening. However like I said, thinner really isn't necessary, just up your normal spray pressure and have at it.

Thanks for all the good info. I'll stay with Vallejo

Well said that man

Paul

Scott and Paul... I will give it another go unthinned.Can you give me a working pressure? I will admit that when I tried it I had not been air brushing very long.Now that I know my way around a little bit I may have better results.I really like their paints and it would be good if I could use their primer withbetter results.Jeff T.

They sell a liquid version of their surface primers

White


Gray


You can dilute them with Tamiya lacquer thinner and you can use them with your AB

Anyway, I've been using Valleyo primer for a while and I've never had any problems. Contrary to the review, it seems to me that you can get a smoother sufaces than those that you can get with Tamiya primer in rater can
Moreover i've noticed that you can apply the Valeyo primer also with hand brush to cover some small details. The primer tends to be self levelling, so when it dries, the brush strokes are not visible

just my opinion anyway

Okay, so, as per Jeff's question, at what PSI do you all spray these primers?

Have the 200ml bottle of grey primer I'd like to try as well so input will be appreciated.

Rob