Tinting Primer?

[mmmalmberg]

I was thinking of adding a green tint to the primer for my to-be-dark-green OTCA.

I was going to use Pettit EZPrime as it's alkyd while Interlux is polyurethane and I like the idea of an all oil-based system. But it only comes in white which is not a great starting point for tinting to a darker color. Interlux offers a gray but being polyurethane I imagine it being not as great to sand.

Just wondered if anyone else has pondered these things and still managed to move forward - I don't think I want to make up my own although some dark green alkyd enamel loaded up with microspheres would probably do it!

 

[Dave Osborn]

I tint Pettit EzPrime, but probably not to the degree that you are thinking of doing.
My filler is white, so I tint the primer to show when I’m sanding into the filler.
I just add probably 4 oz. of color to the gallon. I’ve been using green and red to tint and end up with mint green and pink primer.
Dark green covers really well, so you won’t have problems with primer showing through.

 

[mmmalmberg]

Great info, thanks Dave.

 

[Gil Cramer]

Well over 30years ago I used a hi-build primer over the filler to get a smooth finish. The canoe looked great, but unfortunately, it was a sailing canoe ,and The owner left it in the water at the dock. Needless to say, the paint bubbled considerably. I called Jack McGreivey for advice. Jack said "welcome to the canoe restoration business." After drying, sanding, and repainting, the decision was made to not use a hi-build primer.

My procedure now is to wet sand and paint over and over until I get tired of doing it, or I can't tell if the finish is better than the time before. The only time I have had a problem was when a canoe was left in the water for 3 weeks. Since it was in an acidic lake(many are), all of the expensive paint below the water line was gone. The filler was lead-based and was in good condition..

 

[mmmalmberg]

I'm going for a canoe finish rather than an automotive finish I think probably one coat of primer sanded, another light coat just scuffed for adhesion and then color coats. My filler is plenty smooth, what I'm not going to be trying to fill are the valleys of planks that have some cupping.

 

[Dave Wermuth]

I use Kirby's primer and ask for gray tint. That way I can tell the difference from the filler, which is white.

 

[mmmalmberg]

Did not realize George had a primer and had already picked up some Interlux, in gray