Technique review: clear primer (Folk Art Glass and Tile Medium)
Deane Goodwin introduced me to a new method of priming a year or two ago. I'm quite devoted to black primer, but it's the ease with which it lets me paint that I like. I'm perfectly willing to try new methods if they'll make my life easier.
Since things have been a little gray (and occasionally snowy) outside, I decided to give the clear primer technique a shot. Specifically, the primer is called Folk Art Glass and Tile Medium, intended to prime and seal the surfaces mentioned in the title.
I stirred the medium carefully, as directed on the bottle. It forms bubbles pretty easily, so shaking isn't recommended. Afterwards, I scooped out a little to begin mixing
Deane (and his co-advocate Lee Olson) recommend a drop or two of black ink mixed in with the primer, both to add a bit of shading in the depths and just to help make detail stand out.
The left miniature shows a mix with just a little black ink over bare metal. The right miniature is a mix with lots of black ink over green stuff.
Glass and Tile Medium dries dead flat in both senses of the word -- there's no gloss to speak of, and the coat seems to disappear into the surface, lying down in a very thin layer even where it was applied thickly.
A good example of this thinness is my mixing stick. After I used it twice, and left on a rather thick coat of the stuff each time, the stick still feels smooth to the touch and the layer is a little tough to see. (The slightly lighter area to the left was uncoated.) The product doesn't seem to chip easily, perhaps because it's so thin and tenacious.
I painted up my Chick Challenge III miniature using the medium, and had mixed results. I'm very fond of black primer, and I've accustomed myself to using the darkness to my advantage. I like the way black "feels" underneath paint, so I'm biased from the beginning against this means of priming.
On the other hand, this is much more neutral than a white (or even a gray) primer. Partly as a result of this neutrality, I found it incredibly easy to put on basecoats. One layer usually sufficed. The paint also seemed to stick firmly -- G&T Medium has a lot of tooth, holding on to both the metal below and the paint above.
It's not an incredibly expensive investment, and I'd certainly recommend giving it a try. I think it'd clear up (heh! ehh. . .) some problems people have with different primers. In some ways it's the best product I've tried. And as long as it's chilly and snowy, I may be using this method (probably followed up by some Vallejo Smoke or something else nice and dark). Once you go black. . . .
(1 Dec 02)