Primer Not Drying??

[sinister]

I painted my 67 GTX with Testors primer (enamel) on Sunday the 4th. I thought by now it would have dried but the paint still feels tacky, and when I sand it I can tell it has not dried completely. Is this normal? It was 70 degrees when I painted and the car was completely clean and dry. Does testors paint take that long to dry?? What paint do you guys recommend?

[dub]

Plan on putting it away for a couple of months. If you put it on heavy, like I did, It will take forever to dry. After I tried days in the sun on a windy window sill with no effect I bought a dehydrator to speed up all of my builds. 48 hours in that and it still smelled like it was gassing out! I don't know why testors enamel is this way but it has been forever. You have two choices: strip it and start over with another brand of primer or wait. and wait. and wait....

[sinister]

  dub said:

Plan on putting it away for a couple of months. If you put it on heavy, like I did, It will take forever to dry. After I tried days in the sun on a windy window sill with no effect I bought a dehydrator to speed up all of my builds. 48 hours in that and it still smelled like it was gassing out! I don't know why testors enamel is this way but it has been forever. You have two choices: strip it and start over with another brand of primer or wait. and wait. and wait....

Thanks for the response, what primer have you had better luck with?

[dub]

Better choices are Tamiya or Plastikote. Tamiya is the best but it is priced accordingly. Plastikote is nearly as good but getting hard to find. Both dry very quickly.

Sorry, I tried to re-do the post and wound up with two posts.

Edited November 7, 2007 by dub

[mikelo]

I use duplicolor with good results. I found the primer/sealer/scratch filler to be unbeatable when it comes to filling little pin holes/scratches when doing bodywork.

[Zoom Zoom]

The problem is that you used ENAMEL primer. Testors enamel primers are not really good primers as they're not generally sandable (like "real" primer) and take a long time to dry. You get much better results using Testors white lacquer primer, or any of Tamiya's primers, or even Duplicolor or Plastikote sandable lacquer primers. The lacquer/sandable primers dry very rapidly.

[sinister]

I didn't know that enamels took so long to dry. I'm going to get some plastikote from the auto parts store and try some of that. Do you guys use their clear as well?

[Harry P.]

Enamel paint takes a long time to dry, and for some reason especially so with Testor's.

Some good recommendations for primer have been posted here. Personally I've given up on Testor's enamels altogether, other than the small square bottles for detail painting. Acrylics and lacquers dry MUCH faster than Testor's enamel. I don't have the patience to wait out Testor's!

[sinister]

  harrypri said:

Enamel paint takes a long time to dry, and for some reason especially so with Testor's.

Some good recommendations for primer have been posted here. Personally I've given up on Testor's enamels altogether, other than the small square bottles for detail painting. Acrylics and lacquers dry MUCH faster than Testor's enamel. I don't have the patience to wait out Testor's!

I hear you. I thought to myself, hell it'll take me months to finish ONE paintjob, that is rediculous. I bought primers, clear, and different colors all by Testors and all enamels from Tower!!! Guess I'll have to buy some more paint.

[Brendan]

Raul,

Wanted to make sure you're aware that Testor's Enamel Primer is not an actual primer. It is just a gray paint. It does not do anything to help paint adhere to the plastic.

When I worked in a hobby store, we used to have people come in with the same problems. I would tell them to use either Tamiya's primer or automotive primer. Your best bet would be to stip it down completely and start with one of the primers mentioned above. You'll definitely be happier with the result. On top of that it dries within a couple of hours.

[sinister]

  Brendan said:

Raul,

Wanted to make sure you're aware that Testor's Enamel Primer is not an actual primer. It is just a gray paint. It does not do anything to help paint adhere to the plastic.

When I worked in a hobby store, we used to have people come in with the same problems. I would tell them to use either Tamiya's primer or automotive primer. Your best bet would be to stip it down completely and start with one of the primers mentioned above. You'll definitely be happier with the result. On top of that it dries within a couple of hours.

I think I'll just buy a new kit, its not even worth the trouble. I'll strip the "primered" one and keep it as a test dummy!

Thanks fellas.

P.S. anyone want some Testors primers and clear coats!!!! On sale 1/2 price, get 'em while they last!!

[mikelo]

Thats funny

Seriously......I interested, but only if you can get them here by the end of the week as I have to have a project finished by the end of this year.

[Raul_Perez]

I threw all of my Testors gloss enamel paint in the trash after I started using their lacquer paints about 2 years ago. I only kept the flat enamels. They dry pretty well and I still use them for my military modeling.

As a retired autobody repairman and painter, I’ve been impressed with and have had great luck with the Testors lacquer paints. I’m particularly impressed with how well and quickly all of the colors cover, including the yellow and the metallic colors.

Unlike the enamel gloss colors, I also found that I no longer need to heat the can before I paint to get good pressure from the can and good flow of the paint onto the model.

I use “BONDO†brand automotive grade primer from a spray can whenever I need a good sandable filler to prep areas of the model that I’ve modified. It comes in red oxide, (which is really brown in color), gray and black. The local True Value Hardware store carries it in my area.

Good luck,

[bobss396]

The Testors primer would dry in a dehydrator in about 8 hours. I also agree that avoiding Testors spray paints is sound advice.

Bob

[Modelmartin]

Lacquer!Lacquer!Lacquer!

[MrObsessive]

  Modelmartin said:

Lacquer!Lacquer!Lacquer!

Yes! What he said!

Nothing's better!

[bobss396]

  Modelmartin said:

Lacquer!Lacquer!Lacquer!

It's all part of the modeling learning curve. I was hesitant to make the jump to lacquer, but when I did I was amazed at how EASY it was to use, my painting got BETTER in a flash. There is way less drama with lacquer .

Bob