Rustoleum Auto Primer

In closing: Folks, for your saftey and the rest of the planet, please resort to using less toxic materials even if they require more effort.

Data sheet

Saftey Data Sheet.
The one I got - that was recommended was non-sandable. There was only one can of it on the shelf - I have the feeling that it's been phased out in favor of sandable ones going forward. This one is definitely not sandable - it comes right off if you try to sand it. To your point - the fumes are way noxious and linger.
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The good news I don't have to worry about my painting rusting.
 
Oh no - didn't realize this until just now - I DID NOT buy Automotive Primer. I bought it at Autozone so I just assumed -- wrong. Baumann stressed getting Automotive Primer - not some other formula. They are not all the same. - fast drying, wet sandable - this is a different formula all together.

And Lowes carries it! So - It's not over yet. I'll have to get some of this and try it out.
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Went to Lowes - out of the Auto Primer - I asked and they said a "nationwide" shortage on spray paint - so doesn't know when they might get some more. I went on Amazon and typically you have to buy 6+ cans -- but I did find someone selling one can of Dark Grey Auto Primer - they only had 2 cans left ( now 1)- won't get it till Dec 10. So that's my backup if I can't find it elsewhere sooner.
 
Reading the product description for the Auto Primer it says it's oil-based. Never would have guessed that an auto primer could be oil-based - but it makes sense why it could work with artists' oil paints.
 
Oil based with these nasty solvents; Acetone, N-Butane, n-Butyl Acetate, VM&P Naphtha, Xylene. Bad VOCs

Be Arty smart 🤣 and Use this. Just Water and DH alcohol base. And for oils or acrylic. Much safer for us all.
 
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I got the correct Rustoleum Auto Primer yesterday and sprayed an 18"x18" panel and a piece of scrap. The odor is similar to a Kyron spray paint (still bad). Dark grey was the only color I could get, and it comes out looking like a matt black.

It left a very light texture - possibly the grain swelling from the panel. I just touched it with a worn-out sanding sponge and it left the panel as smooth as an infant's buttocks. Tried a few brush strokes of oil paint and it really gripped the paint. Maybe had to use more medium than normal. All preliminary results will be able to judge better after I do a painting.
 
I got the correct Rustoleum Auto Primer yesterday...
Good to know that the experiment hasn't totally run its course.

I also have a Rustoleum-related test going on at present. I've run into unusual time constraints, but early results look promising. More to follow.
 
This is the stuff I use: https://www.amazon.com/RUST-OLEUM-8...hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4583795260424573&psc=1

Only I buy by the quart, not the gallon.
I too always have a quart of plain shellac on hand. Use it to seal hardboard panels prior to gessoing for watermedia and to seal re-purposed old wood picture frames that I scavange from local salvage and re- use stores. Being very thin in viscosity it soaks deeply into wood fiber. I also use it to seal Hohner Harmonica wooden combs as it is food safe. IMO, its the safest VOCs and it dries very fast and stops off gasing quickly.
 
I just got some natural floater frames for me thinner profile oil paintings that I am also going to seal. I know it doesn't change the look of the wood very much, but it will just enough I think. Plus, it's just a good idea. The frames are temporary (just for exhibition), but it's a good idea so that dust won't settle into them over time.
 
I too always have a quart of plain shellac on hand. Use it to seal hardboard panels prior to gessoing for watermedia and to seal re-purposed old wood picture frames that I scavange from local salvage and re- use stores. Being very thin in viscosity it soaks deeply into wood fiber. I also use it to seal Hohner Harmonica wooden combs as it is food safe. IMO, its the safest VOCs and it dries very fast and stops off gasing quickly.
I'm a big fan of shellac from my furniture re-finishing days. It's an excellent sealer over a stain, dries fast and it's easy to remove with alcohol. It's a final finish, 18c furniture makers like Thomas Chippendale used it because it's quick to dry when you want a product out the door fast. It hand-polishes well. Shellac will blush white when exposed to water, but a swipe with a pad of alcohol will remove it.
 
Well I spray painted an 18"x18" with the auto-primer about 2 weeks ago and just now got around to doing a painting on it. The only way I could get oil paint to stick was to dilute it with oms until it was runny.

However using polychrome color pencils on it was an absolute dream. The color just glided off the pencil when I was doing the sketch. The only auto-primer I could get was "dark gray"- actually a matt black - and the white polychrome I used covered smoother than chalk on a blackboard.

So additional layers were like dredging thru mud and had to add liquin. I finally quit as the painting was going nowhere and not fun to paint - also not used to painting on a black surface.

Having said all that, there are (evidently) a number of artists out there that use it and love it. I remember when I first used Yupo and hated it - but kept with it because I didn't want to waste the 11"x14" pad I bought. I ended up loving it and buying it by the 60" x 10-yard rolls made hundreds of 20"x30" and 40"x 60" paintings.

So if you're adventurous you might want to give it a try. But I'm giving it pass, maybe try it again this summer.
 
Baumann 😜 I would not put much trust in what he says - he does more talking than painting - just my opinion.
 
Baumann 😜 I would not put much trust in what he says - he does more talking than painting - just my opinion


""Plein air artist Stefan Baumann, host of twenty episodes of the PBS painting series, “The Grand View: America’s National Parks Through the Eyes of an Artist“ and author of “Observations Of Art and Nature“ travels with his vintage trailer throughout America’s western landscapes, painting stunning vistas on location with oils on canvas. Baumann’s art reflects his commitment to ecology and the preservation of the natural environment. In the episodes of “The Grand View,” Stefan Baumann takes his paints, brushes and canvas and hikes deep into the National Parks system to paint his vision of nature’s magnificence and share his passion for the wilderness and art. In each episode he paints in the artistic style of Romantic Realism, pioneered by the American master painters who traveled throughout the west in the 1800’s to sketch similar environmentally inspired paintings. Baumann’s DVDs journal of his treks that encompass every aspect of the park as he focuses on the plants, wildlife, geologic and human history that have impacted the region.""
 
Truer words were never spoken! His videos are 90%
Tooting his own horn & 10 % actual painting - of course this is an estimate only - :>)

I don't care for his teaching methods.
 
This does not make him an expert on materials.
True. You also don't have to be an expert to say, "this was recommended to me, I tried it and liked it, you might give it a try too"
Also imo it's a bit rich to say that he doesn't do much painting - that's why I posted the bit of his bio.

I'm not a big fan of his teaching methods either - but I put that on me, not him.
 
He doesn't spend a lot of time painting in his course because he's made twenty episodes doing plein air paintings from start to finish in National Parks.

Here's one of him doing a start to finish Plein air in Joshua National Park

Why would you take a course to watch him paint when you have twenty free episodes to watch? So instead he spends the time critiquing students' work, teaching value, harmony, composition, mixing, brushes, easels, how to paint rocks, alpine glow, brush strokes, brush cleaning, panel prep, .etc.

And yes he does it all the while wearing a puffy shirt.
 
Bauman is OK. I've watched a lot of YT videos about oil painting by various artists. There is something to learn from all of them. I think it's funny that there are almost as many different supports and ways of prepping them as there are teaching artists. The possible combinations of these probably numbers in the thousands.
 
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