ColorMaster Paint + PrimerKrylon paint review
ColorMaster is discontinued. Krylon folded it into COLORmaxx, which is the same paint under the current name at the same price — so use up the cans in your garage and buy the successor for anything new.
Maya spent five years running comparative product testing at a consumer testing nonprofit before joining CompositePaint. She built the round-up protocol the team uses, and she has sprayed enough rattle cans side by side to know which ones earn the extra two dollars. About the testing process →
The Fast Verdict
Discontinued. Buy Krylon COLORmaxx instead: same 12-oz format, same any-angle tip, same fast dry, a wider color deck, the same price. Krylon retired ColorMaster because it ran two near-identical paint-and-primer lines under names one letter apart and buyers kept mixing them up. The formula was never the problem. Finish your half-done project with the leftovers in the garage, but do not pay a markup to hunt down old cans.
Finishing a half-done ColorMaster project · Cans you already own · Feathering into an existing ColorMaster finish · Clean metal and wood · Indoor and shaded decor
You are shopping new — buy COLORmaxx · You would pay a markup for old stock · Slick or glossy plastic · Full-sun outdoor pieces · Handled surfaces that need a tough film
What it's good at
- Genuinely fast dry — touch dry in ten minutes or less, and a stack of metal frames in a 68°F garage was stackable inside the hour
- Clean color from the CoverMax tint base, so reds and blues read saturated instead of grayed out by filler
- The any-angle push-button tip, which sprayed upside down and sideways without sputtering
- Sheen range — six finishes from flat to metallic, more than most rattle-can lines offered
- Price at $5 to $8 a can, cheap enough to keep a few colors on the shelf for touch-ups
What it's not good at
- Being available — it is discontinued, most colors and sheens are sold out, and nothing will restock
- Plastic without a bonding primer; on glossy storage bins and slick toys it peeled in sheets within a season
- Full sun, where a sprayed metal bistro chair chalked and flattened by the second summer
- Hiding a dark or rusty base, which took three or four thin coats rather than the one light pass the coverage claim assumes
- Overspray and odor — a solvent aerosol that wants an open garage and a respirator for more than a piece or two
Spec Sheet
- Status
- Discontinued — replaced by Krylon COLORmaxx Paint + Primer
- Coverage
- Up to 25 sq ft per 12-oz can
- Sheens
- Gloss, Semi-Gloss, Satin, Semi-Flat, Flat, Metallic
- Dry to touch
- 10 min or less
- Dry to handle
- 1 hr
- Recoat window
- Any time within the hour or after 4 hr
- VOC
- High-VOC solvent aerosol; no low-VOC certification
- Primer
- Self-priming on clean metal and wood; a bonding primer is needed on plastic and slick surfaces
- Surfaces
- Metal, wood, wicker, and some plastics; not floors or high-heat parts
- Best conditions
- 55–75°F, humidity under 60%
- Sizes
- 12-oz aerosol can (11 oz on Metallic Silver)
- Price
- $5–8 per 12-oz can while old stock lasts
Honest Alternatives
The direct successor and the obvious first move. Same any-angle tip, same fast dry, a similar paint-and-primer formula, and a wider color deck than ColorMaster ever carried. If you are matching or finishing an old ColorMaster project, the result is indistinguishable. The same thin-film chip caveat applies on handled surfaces.
Full review →The rival that beats both Krylon cans on exterior durability and on coverage over dark colors. Built to cover in fewer passes, and the gloss holds up in sun longer. Costs a couple of dollars more. The right choice for outdoor metal furniture or any job that has to last past a couple of seasons.
Full review →The plastic specialist from Krylon's own lineup. Fusion bonds to slick plastic, PVC, and resin without a separate primer — the exact job ColorMaster fumbled and COLORmaxx still does. Slightly slower to handle, but worth the wait on plastic.
Full review →ColorMaster Paint + Primer Questions, Answered
Is Krylon ColorMaster still made?
No. Krylon discontinued ColorMaster and consolidated its all-purpose paint-and-primer line under COLORmaxx, which is now the only general-purpose can Krylon lists on its own site. You may still see leftover ColorMaster cans on a shelf or in a marketplace listing, but it is no longer a current product.
What replaced Krylon ColorMaster?
Krylon COLORmaxx Paint + Primer. It is the direct successor: same 12-oz format, the same any-angle tip, a very similar paint-and-primer formula, and a wider color deck. If you liked ColorMaster, COLORmaxx is the buy.
Is Krylon COLORmaxx the same as ColorMaster?
Close enough that you will not notice the difference on the project. They share Krylon's CoverMax-style clean color, the big-button spray tip, and the fast dry time. COLORmaxx is the newer name with the broader color range. Do not pay a premium to hunt down old ColorMaster cans — buy COLORmaxx for the same result.
Is Krylon ColorMaster worth it?
Only the cans you already own. ColorMaster is discontinued, and COLORmaxx is the same paint under the current name at the same price. Finish your half-done project with the leftovers, but do not pay a markup to chase old stock. If the piece gets handled or sits in full sun, step over to Rust-Oleum Painter's Touch 2X for a tougher film.
Can I still buy Krylon ColorMaster, and is a half-used can still good?
Only old stock. A stray SKU or two still shows on Sherwin-Williams, and the odd multi-pack turns up on Amazon or Walmart, but most colors and sheens are sold out and will not restock. A half-used can you already own is fine if it still sprays clean — shake it well and test on cardboard first. The recoat windows have not changed.
Why did Krylon discontinue ColorMaster?
Not for performance. Krylon ran two near-identical all-purpose paint-and-primer lines under names one letter apart, ColorMaster and COLORmaxx, and buyers mixed them up constantly. The company cleaned up the shelf by standardizing on COLORmaxx and retiring ColorMaster. It was a catalog decision, not a formula one.
Can I use ColorMaster on plastic?
Not without help. The newer formula claimed plastic, and on lightly scuffed clean plastic it gripped acceptably, but on glossy storage bins or a slick toy it peeled in sheets within a season. That was the single most common ColorMaster complaint. Use Krylon Fusion All-In-One on plastic instead.
Do the ColorMaster dry times carry over to COLORmaxx?
The timing is close enough that you will not have to relearn a half-finished job. ColorMaster was touch dry in ten minutes or less, handleable in an hour, and recoatable within the hour or after four. Shake the old can well, test on cardboard, and match your passes to the piece you already sprayed.
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