Best primer to avoid raising the grain...

[blueman]

I am going to be painting a cabinet I bought with Benjamin Moore interior semi-gloss latex paint. The cabinet is made of Baltic Birch plywood and Poplar.

I want to avoid raising the grain on the cabinet when I apply primer and having to sand everything again. Which of the following priming techniquest are least likely to raise grain.

1. Zinnser Bulls Eye 1-2-3 Water-base Primer (advantage is easy-clean up but worried about water-based)

1. Zinnser BIN Shellac-Base Primer (will shellac-base be less likely to raise grain? But it's marketing seems more targeted at stain-killing)

2. Standard latex-based primer (e.g., Benjamin Moore)

1. Shellac as a sealcoat +/- followed by primer (is primer necessary if you have a shellac sealcoat?)

2. Oil-based primer? (Do they still exist? I have seen it for exterior where it is recommended for Cedar but not for interior recently)

1. Suck it up and sand after priming? It's good for you...

2. Other suggestion?

[Swingman]

1. Other suggestion?

Followed by a light sanding ... if you're going to the trouble, do it right.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Anything with water is likely to raise the grain.

No matter what I use, I give a light sanding after the first coat anyway. IMO, you are more likely to get a better finish.

[Larry Blanchard]

[Leon]

I have done a lot of oil based and water based painting. Oil based painting clean up is MUCH easier than water based clean up. Mineral spirits cleans instantly, I wish I could say that for soap and water.

Not a bad idea if you do go with water based. That sanding step to get rid of the raised grain is very light and quick.

ALSO if you use a water based latex paint for a book case, buy the absolute best quality you can get. Do not assume that a particular brand will offer the best in all of its products. Typically average water based paints tale a long tome to cure and will be sticky/stick to anything that you might set on it. Oil alkyd based paints cure much harder and quickly. I have a new home painted with water based Sherwin William paint on the trim. 1 year later the surface is harder but things still stick to it.

[Baron]

BIN is simply white pigmented shellac so you can use BIN or unpigmented shellac as a sealer / primer. I prefer BIN since it provides me with a white "canvas". Just make sure that if you use shellac, it is dewaxed. Sealcoat is already dewaxed. Any solvent will raise the grain but some do it to a much lesser extent. In general, water raises it the most followed by alcohols followed by hydrocarbons which raise it the least. I appreciate that you do not want to sand before applying top coats but you will always get a better finished product if you do so. Perhaps only sand the most visible parts of the cabinet.

Good Luck

[Pat]

I would not use a latex paint on cupboards. It stays tender forever.

[Leon]

That would coincide with the quality of latex paint you use. Better latex paints cure much harder more quickly.

[Dave]

On Mon, 19 Dec 2011 06:28:13 -0600, Leon

I've recently come to that conclusion too. Only one question. How does one determine which latex paints are of higher quality? I haven't seen too many reviews of latex paint.

[Steve Barker]

well the best way is to ask a world wide group of people. you'll get no less than 50 DIFFERENT answers. I've seen some downright shitty paint taunted as the greatest, and i've seen some of the best paints downgraded as shit. So, which pickup truck is the best make?

[blueman]

What size needle orifice do you use? Do you dilute it all or spray as-is? (I know it differs by gun/system but just wanted to get a ballpark estimate). I use a relatively low end compressor HVLP gun...

How is the cleanup? (my concern is that it dries so fast that it might gum up the works) Do you use alcahol or ammonia as solvent?

Any other tips for spraying BIN?

Thanks!

[Pat Barber]

[Leon]

I believe you go into the top brand paint store of your choice and tell them you want the best fastest curing acrylic latex they have. Thee them what you expect and see if they can deliver. Sample ahead of time.

[Markem]

Believe his Sherwin Williams dealer is one of his primary resources for info on paint. I have found mine to be knowledgable and if he does not know he will find out. YMMV

Mark

[blueman]

I was about to spray but then woried that with an alcahol-base it could be an explosion hazard if used in my basement (with water heater & gas-furnaces) since I don't have an explosion-proof enclosure. Am I being too cautious???

That being said, I ended up brushing it on and found it frustratingly hard to apply. It dried so quickly that I found it very difficult to keep a wet edge. To even approximate a wet edge and to get good coverage without patches of wood bleeding through, I found I needed to apply quite a generous coat. Additionally, paint would continually dry on my brush leaving 'muck' that would get stuck in the paint. I was applying the pain in a cool (60 degrees) basement.

Is that normal or am I doing something wrong?

[Father Haskell]

Acrylic trim / door paint cures hard, colors aren't as washed out looking as latex.