newbie advice

[Decyferon]

Hi Guys, I'm new to modelling and have a few things I am working on but just wanted to know. I have a Revell kit and it is all molded in red plastic should I just primer everything the kit comes with?

Also, do you guys primer everything including the small pieces? or is it just the bodies that you do?

Thanks in advance and hope to show you some pics soon

[bhop73]

I prime everything. Primer gives the paint an even surface to stick to and if you're puttying gaps and seams, the primer helps you see imperfections.

[craftusiast]

Hello Decyferon,i"m just join AF.I agree with bhop73 so,because your kit come in red colour.I"m sure you"ve a problem to change the colour without primer.

[tigeraid]

Always prime. Always always always prime. In THIS case, gray primer is a must, to seal that awful black plastic. You WILL hate painting this car, unless it's gonna be red or red-ish .... I usually lay a few base coats of grey primer, using it to find all the problems on the body (sink holes, scratches, etc) and then a couple coats of white primer, unless you're painting a dark colour, or silver.

And have fun! If it doesn't turn out that well the first time, you can always dunk it in brake fluid and start over!

[Decyferon]

thanks for the help guys

[tajoe]

I usually only primer what I am going to sray the body color. Any small pieces that I paint with a brush I don't primer.

[stevenoble]

I always use primer on all body parts,any parts that I have used filler on and any parts that are molded in the wrong colour for a straight paint without primer (example would be a part molded in black plastic that needs to be painted red.) I would prime it first with white otherwise the red would be incredibly dull.Other parts I will often paint without a primer (example F1 suspension arms molded black I would spray straight with black and use no primer.) The only other exception is when I use auto type paint.I would always use a primer under auto paint to stop damage to the plastic.

[MPWR]

Primer is a matter of personal preference. Nearly everyone will agree to use primers on bodies, but beyond that opinions diverge. Some people will vehemently tell you to use primer on everything you plan to paint- others will tell you that doing so is overkill, and that the advantage on engine, suspension and interior parts is negligable.

My rule of thumb is to use primer under nearly everything I will be painting in gloss colors, as I find it often helps glosses behave better (run less and stick better). With flat colors, I almost never bother. Flats are much easier to spray, are usually more opaque than glosses, and really don't need primer. As there's very little that actually gets painted in gloss on cars other than the bodywork, usually I only prime the body.

Edit: I also use primer on machined aluminum parts- it's difficult to get any paint to stick to bare aluminum.

[chato de shamrock]

I just primer areas that have been filled, resin parts, the body, chassis, side mirrors, and trunk and hood (if they are separate from the body). I dont primer small parts to avoid a build up of paint and primer that might cover up things such as small holes or emblems that are molded onto those parts.

[tigeraid]

I agree. Small parts I hand paint, or if they need to be super-glossy, I spray. Interior parts for SURE. Brushing interior parts was one of the bigger mistakes I made as a newbie.