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I've used Jay Cooks but now Im thinking maybee I should give sign Prime A try is it really worth the cost when Jay Cooks works fine. from what I remember Jay cooks is about $20 a gallon. and sign prime is almost $60.
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The kicker is that you don't have to prime HDU at all. Primer doesn't do anything on HDU. It doesn't soak in, it won't help the finish coat stick better.
If you want to use primer as something to fill in the tiny holes, then you might want to try the filler that is made for HDU. Check web sites of those that manufacture HDU and see what they recommend. I don't want to push a product or supplier so I'm not providing names.
I use exterior wood fillers and puttys to fill the holes in. You would be suprised what effect that Kills 2 first coat and spraying arosol paints on HDU has. I just added more confusion, didn't I? Sorry
[ October 15, 2003, 02:27 PM: Message edited by: Dave Draper ]
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I'm not sure about your experiences with primer and HDU, dave, but, I've found that, while it doesn't soak in, it does fill in the microscopic open pores. Then when you wet sand down the primed HDU (very lightly) I've been able to get it as smooth as glass. I've actually never tried sanding the HDU unprimed itself to get a finished surface, but I think it might just kepp getting more and more gritty. I also can't imagine squeezing wood putty into carved letters and getting a clean line. Is there a secret to thinning it down or something? I'm always ready to try something new.
-------------------- Mark Rogan The Great Barrington Sign Company 2 Stilwell Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230 mark@gbsignco.com
"Sometimes I think my head is so big because it is so full of fonts" Posts: 332 | From: Great Barrington, MA | Registered: Mar 2003
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Mark, There are some wood fillers on the market that are very creamy. DAP makes one that comes in a container that looks like a yogurt. We spread the putty on with a vinyl sqeegee. It goes on quick and dries quick. Stain blocking primer is good when needing to block out the natural HDU color first.
Thick putty is useless.
Primer is made to do one thing. So you really have to ponder on the reasons one puts primer on raw wood, which could rot, and then figure out why one would come to the conclusion to put primer on HDU, which doesn't rot. When you come to the realization you are working with two differnt substrates, then you will use primer for wood and the proper fillers for HDU.
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I've tried Jay Cookes on hdu and don't like it because it doesn't sand well. You can paint hdu with no primer. Be sure to blow off all the dust well first. The finish will have a bit of a texture to it. I usually want a smoother finish, in which case my favorite primer for hdu is FSC-88-WB made by Costal Enterprises (makers of Precision Board). It's a water-based product. I thin it down and spray it through my paint gun which works great for dimensional letters or sandblasted signs. It dries quickly. I build up a few coats and then sand it. Don't sand down to the hdu because then you are just back to the rough texture you started out with. The thing I like about it is that it dries quickly, sands very easily and makes a smooth finish for painting or gilding. You can go over it with water based paints, oil enamels or catalyzed paints. I think it runs about $35 a gallon. I don't know how it compares with Sign Prime because I've never tried it. Good luck.
-------------------- Dan Seese Dan Seese Studios, inc. 3830 Capitol Drive Ft. Collins, CO 80526 (970) 226-0618 danseesestudios@qwest.net Posts: 18 | From: Fort Collins, Colorado | Registered: Mar 2003
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