Since the failure of the P. W. F.'s and various other substitutes for the historic lead and oil surfacing agents, to meet the exacting needs of the trade, the swift processes now practiced have pressed into service time quickening aids which, in a work of this kind, it would scarcely seem fit to omit.
Many painters have adopted yellow ochre as a main ingredient for priming, and in particularly hurried instances, or, in fact, in the priming of a certain grade of regular factory work, varnish and, to some extent, turpentine are used. Ochre of good quality, finely ground (a coarse ground ochre is worthless in carriage painting), and containing a strong percentage of silica, is a valuable component of priming. Silica is an acknowledged pore filler, and in many of the wood fillers heralded along the highway of commerce it is the piece de resistance. A high grade ochre is a good drying and a very permanent pigment. It is a first-class surfacing material and not easily affected by atmospheric or other impurities. Thus we have the ingredients which, properly combined and manipulated, form the basis of all beautiful and durable carriage painting as gauged according to present day standards. Let us now consider the separate parts of the foundation building.
PRIMING.
Priming is the agent required to go into and saturate the minute cells and pores of the wood, getting a firm grip of the fibers, sealing them against moisture, and affording the painter a tough, elastic ground for his leveling materials to follow.
Primer No. 1.—White lead and raw linseed oil, darkened to a lead color with lampblack. A teaspoonful of coach japan to be added to each pint of the mixture, or omitted, as the time limit may impose.
No. 2.—White lead, 2 parts; yellow ochre, 1 part. Liquid, raw linseed oil. The use of japan to depend upon circumstances.
No. 3.—White lead, 1 part; yellow ochre, 2 parts. Liquid, raw linseed oil.
No. 4.—White lead, 1 part; yellow ochre, 2 parts. Liquids, rubbing varnish 1/4; turpentine 1/4; raw linseed oil 1/2. A tablespoonful of japan to each quart of the mixture. This is a very quick primer, that can be sandpapered the day following its application.
No. 5.—White lead, shaded with lampblack. Liquids, rubbing varnish 1 part; raw linseed oil 5 parts.