The last coat before colour. 1500 is the finishing grade — Mr. Hobby deliberately built it to minimise filling in favour of the smoothest possible surface, which is exactly what you want once the seam work is done and sanded. It goes on tight and flat and leaves nothing for the top coat to telegraph.

Black is the point of this particular can. Metallics and pearls are semi-transparent by design, and what sits underneath them changes everything: over grey or white they come out pale, flat and slightly chalky, while over a smooth black base they go deep, lustrous and genuinely metallic. Chrome, gunmetal, candy reds over silver, pearl whites on a car body — all of them want black underneath. It's also the base for black-basing and pre-shading work, where you build colour up from shadow rather than painting shadow on afterwards, and Mr. Hobby list it for figure prototype finishing where surface quality is everything.

• Finishing 1500 grade — maximum smoothness, minimal build
• Black base gives metallics and pearls real depth and lustre
• The correct undercoat for chrome, gunmetal and candy finishes
• Ideal for black-basing and pre-shading techniques
• 170ml can

Tip: Metallic paint magnifies texture more ruthlessly than any other finish — it will find imperfections gloss doesn't. Polish the 1500 back with a rubbing cloth or fine wet-and-dry before you spray silver, and the difference is not subtle.

Two things this can isn't. It's not a replacement for Surfacer 1000 — 1500 barely fills, so it belongs after your filling and sanding is finished, not instead of it. And it's not a general-purpose primer. Light colours cover badly over black, so priming a whole kit in this because it was on the shelf will cost you coats and vibrancy. Use it where black is the base you actually want.

Understanding the numbers: the grade is coarseness. 500 heavy filling, 1000 the standard working grade, 1200 finer for gloss finishes, 1500 the finishing grade — this can. Lower number, more filling; higher number, smoother surface.

Which one do I need? Choose black 1500 under metallics, pearls and dark schemes. For everyday priming and filling, Mr. Surfacer 1000 (B-519). For a smooth base under gloss colours generally, 1200 (B-515). For bright top coats over dark plastic, Base White (B-518).

Specifications

Brand: Mr. Hobby (GSI Creos / Gunze Sangyo)
Item No.: B-526
Type: Lacquer finishing surfacer, aerosol
Colour: Black
Grade: 1500 (finishing)
Volume: 170ml
Suitable for: Styrene, ABS, resin — prepared surfaces
Fills: Minimal by design
Use in: Well-ventilated area; wear a respirator