One primer to rule them all??

H

Hank Solo

New Member
Hey guys I'm new and hoping I'm doing this right. I did a quick search on the site for "primer" and nothing obvious came up.

My question is if anyone knows a good primer that can be used on a piece that is mixed media. For instance I'm ready to paint a helmet that is part ABS (old softball helmet), part fiberglass, part metal (mild steel, and a couple unknown metals that I suspect might be zinc (a plated radio knob) or galvanized (electrical conduit).

I did some searching and Rustoleum has a Universal Bonding Primer that seems great....and also too good to be true. Anyone use this or can you recommend a great all around primer that you have used from experience. I get nervous about "all in one" products and wonder if it would be better to get a plastic primer, self etching primer (for bare metal), adhesion promoter (for plastic and fiberglass), etc. and mask and treat each material separately (which would suck.).

Any expertise would be appreciated thanks.
 
I'm partial to either Krylon or Rustoleum. Been using both for years and can't remember either of them having a bad reaction to anything (as long as you use it regarding their suggestions).
 
Thanks guys, but what's confusing is that Rustoleum alone has like 8 different types of primer: self etching primer for metal, plastic primer, adhesion promoter for plastic and fiberglass, and primer sealer "for use on metal fiberglass and more", etc. I saw their White Universal Bonding Primer (https://www.homedepot.com/p/Rust-Ol...ERCH=REC-_-rv_nav_plp_rr-_-NA-_-206365322-_-N) which would seem right up my alley but I'm nervous about a "one size fits all" kind of product. It sounds like for the most part it doesn't matter so much which one you choose. I think I'm gonna try the Universal Bonding Primer, if anyone has experience with it I'd be curious to hear.
 
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I think that any primer that contains acetone and/or some ----acetate should bond well to ABS. I have been using generic Dupli-color primer on fibreglass with no problem and Dupli-color acid-etch primer (for steel) on ABS without noticing any of those bonding less well than anything else. Just remember to clean the surface with alcohol before spraying.

If two types of primer are made for the same type of colour-coat then you should in general be able to spray one primer on top of another. Therefore, if you have high demands on adhesion, by all means do mask off and use different primers on different parts, and then spray one primer on top of that only to get a consistent colour.

I think adhesion promoter is primarily for automotive paints on difficult plastics such as polypropylene. Using the wrong type of adhesion promoter for your filler-primer and paint is definitely worse than using a generic spray primer.

... That is if your softball helmet really is ABS. Helmets I have modded have been either fibreglass or PE — and nothing bonds to PE. You could sculpt something on top of or inside PE, making a tight fit but it would break if you flex it.
To test for ABS, dip a q-tip in acetone and rub it against the surface. If it smears, it is ABS.
 
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It's a bit on the expensive side, but my go to is Tamiya white primer. It covers everything I've ever thrown at it and it has a fine, smooth texture when it dries.
 
Thanks yet again guys, and/or, gals. I get the feeling that most primer will "do" for most jobs....and when did primer get so specific anyway? I just ordered the Rustoleum Universal Bonding Primer and guess I'll give it a shot. It seems to have plenty of good reviews on Amazon and a Rustoleum rep who replied to a review said that it will work on galvanized metal (which seems to be a problem for any other primer). I've heard about some paints being to "hot" and if this stuff bonds "aggressively" to any surface maybe it falls in that category, but everything on my piece is pretty robust so I guess I shouldn't worry too much. Maybe if I have a super thin strip of styrene in the future I'll use something else.

And if you're curious Darth Lars, the only reason I went with ABS as the material for my softball helmet is because I got it off of some sports site (that softball helmets are "usually" made from ABS). I'll admit that going off of one website is weak research, but whatever type of plastic it is, epoxy putty, bondo, and glazing/spot putty have all stuck to it great so far so I'm hoping the primer will too.
 
My favorite primers are Bondo brand (believe it or not it's really good, we use it in the film industry every day.) SEM or Transtar. They are all a bit more expensive than something like Krylon, Duplicolor, etc... but much better paints and you don't want to cheap out on your primer. Oh one word of warning, don't use the Transtar on styrene, it will eat it.
 
Just a heads up gang, I talked to a guy in the modeling department of my local hobby shop who seemed really knowledgeable, and he said that he uses straight up Walmart primer and says that he gets great results with it. He showed me a small static model that was primed using it and none of the detail looked obscured. I really hate supporting Walmart but I thought I'd share this bit of info if anyone was curious.
 
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