baudot
New member
I'm always curious to do side-by-side comparisons, and due to a bit of over-enthusiastic consumerism, recently found myself with three different matte white primers:
Army Painter "Base Primer Matt White"
P3 "White Primer"
SpazStix "Extreme White"
The Army Painter is what my FLGS stocks. The P3 I'd special ordered because it was from the same folks who'd made my minis, an approach that I'd have mixed results with before. The SpazStix was available on Amazon Prime, well rated on a search for primer, and cheaper than the other two.
Results Summary
At the end, I liked the P3 primer best.
The Army Painter gave an honorable showing.
I'll have to find some other use for the SpazStix. This is the last time it touches my minis.
Longer Version
For the test pieces, we have shields from Warmachine's "Temple Flameguard".
View attachment 52659
The pieces were prepped by having their smaller mould lines melted back into the model with a fine tipped soldering iron set to 400ºF. Larger molding artifacts were cut off with an Xacto knife.
For the test, I split the shields into three piles of 3 or 4 each, taped a label on a sheet of chipboard saying which primer went with that pile, and then sprayed them.
Then, before doing the back, I realized I was doing a lousy job of science-ing the job. For the backside of the shields, I photoed them BEFORE the priming, not only after, and made sure to shake the cans for the same count of seconds each. The backs were primed a half hour after the fronts, when they seemed adequately dry.
All the cans had been used 0 or 1 times previously.
Army Painter "Base Primer Matt White"
This has been a tried and true brand for me. If anything, my previous experiences with it have been more flawless than this one, and it may deserve a re-match.
This primer was the boldest of the three. It came out thick and opaque, and sprayed so forcefully that it flipped over some of the shields like kites. This may be responsible for the few flaws I found in the pieces it primed, which picked up some surface texture that wasn't in the original model. It sprayed on so thick that I found myself pulsing it on and off rather than leaving it spraying, for fear of clogging the minis. So that's another possible source of the few particles of surface texture it put on the minis.
When collecting the painted pieces after the primer had dried, the Army Painter had hardened to a thin seal, so the pieces needed to be gently "cracked" off the backing board.
In the end, the Army Painter gave good, solid coverage, getting in all the cracks of the shields without obscuring any details. It did, however, add texture onto the models that hadn't been there before.
View attachment 52666
View attachment 52669
View attachment 52670
P3 "White Primer"
I've had good results with this primer in the past. It's been noteworthy for giving even coverage, and getting into all the cracks of a model without clogging up details.
This time gave a similar result. The P3 primer wasn't as opaque as the Army Painter, but I had far better control over it. I was able to hold it on the pieces longer without worrying about it clogging up details, keeping a continuous spray going while I spun the backing board the pieces to be primed were laying on.
The P3 didn't glue the pieces to the backing board. Or rather, it attached them least of the three, giving me the fewest worries about cracking off primer as I removed the pieces from the backing.
In the end, the P3 gave thinner coverage, but very even. It got in the angles of the shield as well as on the flats, and didn't obscure any details.
View attachment 52663
View attachment 52664
View attachment 52665
SpazStix "Extreme White"
When I first started writing this summary, I was inclined to go off on this Amazon favorite for keywords "white" and "primer". However, looking at the photos in more detail as I upload them, I'm inclined to give it a bit more credit.
First impression, it sprayed thin, and then pooled in the crevices of the shield, rather than staying evenly spread. The same as it pooled in the cracks, it seemed prone at times to leaving poor coverage on some of the flats. It also seemed to be the "wettest" of the three primers, and sure enough, it stayed wet and unworkable for the longest time after priming.
If that weren't enough, there's just not very much of the stuff, if the can size is anything to judge by. It costs a third less than the other two cans, yet looks to hold even less per can than that cost break would justify.
It stuck to the backing board, and the pieces had to be gently cracked off.
All that being said, it does look more even and acceptable up close as it dried.
View attachment 52660
View attachment 52661
View attachment 52662
Army Painter "Base Primer Matt White"
P3 "White Primer"
SpazStix "Extreme White"
The Army Painter is what my FLGS stocks. The P3 I'd special ordered because it was from the same folks who'd made my minis, an approach that I'd have mixed results with before. The SpazStix was available on Amazon Prime, well rated on a search for primer, and cheaper than the other two.
Results Summary
At the end, I liked the P3 primer best.
The Army Painter gave an honorable showing.
I'll have to find some other use for the SpazStix. This is the last time it touches my minis.
Longer Version
For the test pieces, we have shields from Warmachine's "Temple Flameguard".
View attachment 52659
The pieces were prepped by having their smaller mould lines melted back into the model with a fine tipped soldering iron set to 400ºF. Larger molding artifacts were cut off with an Xacto knife.
For the test, I split the shields into three piles of 3 or 4 each, taped a label on a sheet of chipboard saying which primer went with that pile, and then sprayed them.
Then, before doing the back, I realized I was doing a lousy job of science-ing the job. For the backside of the shields, I photoed them BEFORE the priming, not only after, and made sure to shake the cans for the same count of seconds each. The backs were primed a half hour after the fronts, when they seemed adequately dry.
All the cans had been used 0 or 1 times previously.
Army Painter "Base Primer Matt White"
This has been a tried and true brand for me. If anything, my previous experiences with it have been more flawless than this one, and it may deserve a re-match.
This primer was the boldest of the three. It came out thick and opaque, and sprayed so forcefully that it flipped over some of the shields like kites. This may be responsible for the few flaws I found in the pieces it primed, which picked up some surface texture that wasn't in the original model. It sprayed on so thick that I found myself pulsing it on and off rather than leaving it spraying, for fear of clogging the minis. So that's another possible source of the few particles of surface texture it put on the minis.
When collecting the painted pieces after the primer had dried, the Army Painter had hardened to a thin seal, so the pieces needed to be gently "cracked" off the backing board.
In the end, the Army Painter gave good, solid coverage, getting in all the cracks of the shields without obscuring any details. It did, however, add texture onto the models that hadn't been there before.
View attachment 52666
View attachment 52669
View attachment 52670
P3 "White Primer"
I've had good results with this primer in the past. It's been noteworthy for giving even coverage, and getting into all the cracks of a model without clogging up details.
This time gave a similar result. The P3 primer wasn't as opaque as the Army Painter, but I had far better control over it. I was able to hold it on the pieces longer without worrying about it clogging up details, keeping a continuous spray going while I spun the backing board the pieces to be primed were laying on.
The P3 didn't glue the pieces to the backing board. Or rather, it attached them least of the three, giving me the fewest worries about cracking off primer as I removed the pieces from the backing.
In the end, the P3 gave thinner coverage, but very even. It got in the angles of the shield as well as on the flats, and didn't obscure any details.
View attachment 52663
View attachment 52664
View attachment 52665
SpazStix "Extreme White"
When I first started writing this summary, I was inclined to go off on this Amazon favorite for keywords "white" and "primer". However, looking at the photos in more detail as I upload them, I'm inclined to give it a bit more credit.
First impression, it sprayed thin, and then pooled in the crevices of the shield, rather than staying evenly spread. The same as it pooled in the cracks, it seemed prone at times to leaving poor coverage on some of the flats. It also seemed to be the "wettest" of the three primers, and sure enough, it stayed wet and unworkable for the longest time after priming.
If that weren't enough, there's just not very much of the stuff, if the can size is anything to judge by. It costs a third less than the other two cans, yet looks to hold even less per can than that cost break would justify.
It stuck to the backing board, and the pieces had to be gently cracked off.
All that being said, it does look more even and acceptable up close as it dried.
View attachment 52660
View attachment 52661
View attachment 52662
