about to do my first model with PE parts as i have never used them before do you just paint them per normal like the rest or is there anything you have to do b4 hand??
Also wat about metal barrels??
Thanks for your help

John

Prime and paint the same as plastic. Very important that you wash before paint, warm soapy water and a good rinse. I use a soft brush to scrub down a bit. Very gently of course.

sorry if i sound stupid but wat do you mean by prime??

John

Hi John,
Welcome - primin refers to the act of undercoating.
Basically a first coat of paint for the following layers to adhere to.
However for me to "prime" a figure means to completely prepare it for painting, sanding, glueing and then the undercoat - I then consider the model /figure primed for me to ruin it with my terrible painting skills - lol
Cheers,
Andy. :-)

I do paint these pieces how John described here.
Prime coat is a coat of paint which I give first. With an airbrush or spray paint. Then I give the base coat, the real color of the piece I mean. This prime coat helps the base coat to adhere the surface. I usually use a sand color for the prime coat. But it can be in any color. It must be matt.

ok now i get it thanks for all your help can you just use white as an undercoat?


John

Tamiya primer in the rattle / spray can is magic - it is light grey.
Cheap, easy to use, sprays nice & thin and dont have to clean the airbrush!!! :-)
give it a whirl - I love the stuff (about the only thing from the Tamiya range that I do.... oh their brass 88 shells are quite nice too)

John,

I guess the simple answer here is "yes".... however you can also use grey or black....

Regarding the black, as I understand it, apparently it helps reflect light back through the subsequent base coats etc to give your model's paint depth.... unfortunately I don't speak with first hand knowledge or experience here, but it made sense at the time when I heard or read it... dunno if I relayed the method properly though....

Perhaps a veteran can attest to this?

Rudi

Regarding the black, as I understand it, apparently it helps reflect light back through the subsequent base coats etc to give your model's paint depth.... unfortunately I don't speak with first hand knowledge or experience here...
Perhaps a veteran can attest to this?
[/quote]

In many cases yes, black does accentuate the primary color. Especially for light and reflective colors such as silver, metal, gold, etc.

Depending on how you (or if you) handbrush your first "prime" coat, it will streak, but the next coat will adhere it. And depending on the size of the PE part you are painting, try not to put too much paint on it and it will "blob" the detail making it look not as sharp as it is supposed to. Light (thickness) coats are the name of the game here.

As for metal barrels, same thing applies.

Jeff

You can use Floquil Primer. or you can also use standard Auto primer as it is designed for metal. Just my 2 cents worth



Herky