Whats the difference between Tamiya Grey Primer & Modelmaster Grey Primer?

[chubbs36chambers]

Whats the difference between Tamiya Grey Primer & Modelmaster Grey Primer? I just wnat to know if its a good primer or not cause my LHS didnt have any Tamiya primer so i bought Modelmaster grey primer.

[RallyRaider]

I'm taking a bit of a guess Chubbs, but I'd imagine Tamiya = lacquer and Modelmasters = enamel.

Check out daggerlee's paint treatise (here) to find out all about the differences.

[ZoomZoomMX-5]

There is a world of difference between the two.

The Testors is enamel, and it cannot be sanded. Therefore it's really a gray base coat. It goes on semi-gloss and takes a long time to dry. It covers smoothly and rapidly. It airbrushes far better than the results you'll get from a spray can.

Tamiya is lacquer-based, dries quickly and can be sanded. Therefore it has some redeeming value, whereas Testors was decent for about 5 minutes 20 years ago when it was released, and since then our choices for model paints have grown well past the garbage that is Testors.

If you can't find Tamiya primer, automotive sandable primers (make sure it says sandable) work fine...anything from cheap Varsity (Pep Boys brand), to Duplicolor are good. Tamiya goes on smoother/thinner, is best for models. It's worth finding as it's the best for models I've tried.

[chubbs36chambers]

well on the can of MODELMASTER primer it says its sandable.

[RallyRaider]

I've never used the Modelmasters spray primer so can't speak with the authority of ZoomZoomMX-5, however just because a paint is enamel doesn't mean it can't be sanded. many times I've done this with MM or Tamiya bottle enamels. Only difference is the enamel takes langer to dry and is not as strong as lacquers like Tamiya. Go it it as you would a TS can paintjob and you'll be looking for trouble. On the other hand give it plenty of time to dry (may be weeks!) and use a gentle technique and it wil be okay.

[ZoomZoomMX-5]

Let me reiterate...the Model Master stuff is NOT like any other primer out there. You can sand gloss enamels if you want, but that doesn't make them primers. Testors will tell you their paint is the best in the business. I know from painting models for over 30 years that it is NOT. I've used their products, and I've used others, and Testors is about the worst you can get if it's in spray cans. It's pretty good for airbrushing and mixing colors. Just because they say it's sandable doesn't make it anything like Tamiya or automotive sandable primer. You simply have to try it to believe it, I guess. Their gray primer is simply a thick gray semi-gloss paint, with a very strange odor, and it dries very slowly and never to the hardness of lacquers. It has lots of pigment, but when you go to sand it the residue tends to ball up and fill up the sanding paper (making it useless in no time)...where REAL primer residue turns to powder and washes away with water. I used to use Testors primer, I airbrushed it to cover up the plastic, then I used enamels to cover it. It's okay as a base coat, but other primers are 20,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 times better at being primers.

[RallyRaider]

ZoomZoomMX-5, I bow to your experience. After reading that I wouldn't dream of using the stuff!

[935k3]

I want to back up zoom zoom on this one. Testor's primer is an absolute joke. It is nothing but grey semi-gloss paint. It is not in any way a real primer. I know there are allot of younger guys on this board so please listen to guys like me and zooom(we are old enough to be your dads) we have years of experience, we know what works and what doesn't and we want to keep you from making the mistakes we learned the hard way, so you too can build a better model.

[Vric]

for my experiance, modelmaster (same as testor) is unsandable even after 3 week, it still wet.. the worst crap I have ever tryed.. everythime I used it I finished to remove all of it. don'T save few buck

[StephenDeli]

To us newbies this will be much help

[clem24]

Hey thanks dads! I definitely agree. When you sand the Tamiya stuff, it simply just powders up and goes away! Whenever you try to sand anything Testors, it just get's stuck to the sand paper and then the color tranfers to the next victim, er model, you try to sand. The only thing about Tamiya is the price. If you can, go for the bigger cans as they're better value for the money. I use Testors primer/color combo on car underbodies (that don't need sanding) to save some $$$ cause you can get that stuff cheap at Walmart.

Also, a tip I just learned from TMMI (Tamiya Model Mag Int'l) is to try warming up spray cans in warm water to increase their pressure. Apparently works wonders on Tamiya spray cans. Should work on Testors too. About to try it tonight...

clem..

[zanthrax]

I've been told most Tamiya paint are the same as modelmaster products. So the difference would be the label.

[Vric]

Originally Posted by zanthrax

I've been told most Tamiya paint are the same as modelmaster products. So the difference would be the label.

LOL
I always find this one Funny

Modelmaster is a brand of Testor Corp.(USA) Tamiya is Japan.
Testor is Enamel, Tamiya is Laquer.

If you can belive only a few second this, then you never used Tamiya paint..

If you think you have good result with Testor spraycan, then keep working with them, but I used both, and I don't want to use any Testor Spraypaint anymore. (unless you like sanding)

Edit: and the Testor Primer is the worst stuff I have ever used.. the best way to scrap a model.. it's simply unsandable and do orange peel very easily (and it's not possible to correct it, since it's unsandable)

[ZoomZoomMX-5]

Originally Posted by zanthrax

I've been told most Tamiya paint are the same as modelmaster products. So the difference would be the label.

I guess everyone else is an expert here and I'll just quit giving any advice. I guess over 30 years painting models w/nearly every product isn't as good as someone who is so smart that the only thing he believes are the labels on products. When some of the best, most experienced modelers aren't good enough for real-world reviews, I guess it's time for us to let the rest of the world live w/in their own realities.

Seriously, where do people come up with this shit?

Go ahead and use Testors. They're awesome spray cans and they're simply relabeled Tamiya products.

I wish you well.

[zanthrax]

So I was wrong, excuse me for even trying.
About the "Modelmaster is a brand of Testor Corp.(USA) Tamiya is Japan."-thing: Opel is European, Cadillac American. What's the difference between a Cadillac Catera and a Opel Omega? The badge!

I guess I'll put a disclaimer in my sig:
"Please correct me if I'm wrong. Nobody is perfect, so why should I be??
Just visiting this board, hoping to find more enthusiasts, learn a thing or 2 and maybe even teach others.
I cannot be held responsible for damages to models or huge ego's caused by my posts."

*sigh* a simple "that's BS" would have done...