Agree with Ron. Oil primed some pre-acrylic primed panels about 10 years ago with perfectly fine results. Much less absorbent.

Don

Only to go over it with a soft brush at the end. Varnish brushes are very soft. Or maybe a fan brush.
Possibly several thin coats, (brushed out thinly, not thinned with solvent), would give you a smoother surface.
I have heard some apply it with a credit card rather than brush, but I don’t know if this is over an already smooth surface.

I nearly always paint on canvas, so I don’t have this problem.
Maybe others here will have suggestions.

I bought a few of the Da Vinci panels but wasn’t thrilled with them. I prefer more texture on my painting surfaces, such as the RayMar cotton canvas panels. I also noticed the same issue with colors sinking into the surface but I resolved that by oiling out the paintings. For me, softer brushes work better on smooth surfaces but most of mine have relatively stiff bristles.

I’ve had excellent results with smooth MDF panels from a home improvement store. But once primed with an acrylic primer I need to spend a day on it sanding it smooth again.

I can get a 4ft x 2ft panel for around $8 so the sanding is totally worth it to me! 😀

I’m able to achieve excellent detail on it vs a traditional canvas.

Thank you, Lon. I did buy some MDF but never got around to doing anything with it. I just need to get out the saw & get busy.

These DaVinci panels were already primed & I got a really good price on them so now I’ll have to use what I have. I got a couple to try out & liked their smoothness so I bought a box in each of my favorite sizes.

Live & learn.

I may look for some myself and give them a shot! 👍

Here’s a link:

[url]https://www.jerrysartarama.com/da-vinci-pro-ultra-smooth-gesso-panels[/url]

Thank you!