The Airbrush Co. Acrylic Primer Set (PS01)

[Mike]

Acrylic Primer Set (PS01)

LifeColor via The Airbrush Company

 

 

You may prime your models or not – it's a choice that we make with some pros and cons on either side, but generally speaking I fall into the category of being a modeller that primes my models.  I feel it gives a standard colour and texture over which to paint your top coats, shows up imperfections that might need some attention, and generally gives the model a key onto which you add your next layers.  This brings with it some requirements for a good primer.  I prefer using a primer that is sandable, and adheres well to the plastic so it doesn't pull off the paint when you remove any masking.  I also spray my primers predominantly, so the ability to run them through an airbrush is also a must.

 

This new boxed set from LifeColor is mainly aimed at armour modellers judging by the colours, but as I only had an aircraft fuselage to play around with them, that's what you get!  The paints arrive in the standard box with the six colours all held in a card insert. The bottles are 22ml and have black screw caps keeping the paint in and new labels with their name and number at bottom centre.  Opening up the lids you can see what they mean, as it is immediately obvious that they are pigment rich, and thicker than the usual consistency of LC paints, as evidenced by the slow sinking of my glass mixing beads into the pots.  In the set you get the following 6 colours:

 

• BC01 Primer Panzer Dark Grey
• BC02 Primer Red Brown
• BC03 Primer Olive Drab
• BC04 Primer Tank Interior
• BC05 Primer Burned Base
• BC06 Primer Panzer Yellow

 

 

 

 

Airbrush Use

The thickness of the paint has a knock-on effect of requiring more thinners to get it to spray through an airbrush (my nozzle is 0.2mm), and clean-up is extended slightly due to the pigment content.  I got the mix a bit wrong in the Burned Base, which explains the slightly spitty demarcation with the Tank Interior White.  It's easily corrected with a bit more thinner though, and for this review I used Ultimate Thinners, as usual.  When thinned correctly it sprays well and covers well, as you'd expect with the whitish shade of Tank Interior White requiring a little extra care initially to mist on the primer with heavier coats to follow.  Ignoring clean-up between the colours, there was little to slow me down and my ad hoc thinning method (i.e. "that looks about right") seemed suitable.

 

 

Adhesion seems good from the outset and upon trying the aggressive masking, burnishing and ripping off the tape again there was almost no paint removed despite my best attempts.  The paint that was removed appeared to have possibly had its adhesion reduced by some exterior factor – possibly a little oil from my fingers.  Fresh paint didn't fare too well against a sanding stick and it peeled off rather than sanded off.  After the paint had cured overnight on a warm day (21^oc) however it reacted better to sanding sponges, but was still a little prone to tearing with sanding sticks of coarser grades that had no cushioning layers behind the abrasive.  Saying all that, you're a lot less likely to need to sand seams with AFV models, which is where these paints are aimed.

 

Brush Painting

This was a bit of a novelty for me, as I'm a dyed-in-the-wool airbrush user.  I painted the insides of the fuselage halves with an AMMO #6 flat brush without thinning, and was very pleased with the results.  The paint goes on very smoothly and brush marks don't seem to be much of an issue.  Whether there's an element of self-levelling in the formulation I can't say for certain, but the effect suggests that there may be.  Only the Tank Interior White, which is actually a slightly off-white with a hint of yellow-brown needed a second coat to achieve even partial coverage with a brush.  I would have added a third coat if I was actually building the model rather than just testing the paint.  The Dark Yellow also needed a second coat, but would not need another one on the basis you would be painting over it.  I'm sure a veteran brush-painter could make a better job of it, and the fact that I was painting around lots of internal ribs didn't help, but overall I'm quite impressed with the quality of finish.  I'm not going to throw out my airbrushes just yet mind you!

 

 

 

Conclusion

LifeColor paints are good acrylics and clean up with water, Ultimate Airbrush Cleaner or their own thinners.  If you're not using it on subjects that may need further sanding after application, they're a good base for your work.  Airbrush or brush painting gives a good finish, and using a similar shade primer to your top coat allows greater freedom to achieve the results you're after. 

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

[bootneck]

I've always primed my kits with standard grey acrylic primer, is there any real benefit from investing in different coloured primers?  Yes, I am a numpty when it comes to these things  and would be grateful to be enlightened.

 

Mike

[Mike]

4 minutes ago, bootneck said:

I've always primed my kits with standard grey acrylic primer, is there any real benefit from investing in different coloured primers?  Yes, I am a numpty when it comes to these things  and would be grateful to be enlightened.

The two I can think of off the top of my head are less top coat layers needed, you can get away with lighter coats in places to simulate some modulation of colour, and if you miss a spot it won't jump out at you like grey or bare plastic might. 

 

[bootneck]

Thanks Mike,  I have a few pennies left and was just wondering whether to invest in paints and/or primers etc.

Mike