Ok what did I do wrong

Ok what did I do wrong (Painting issues)

Priming was ok, some small fish-eyes at first but then I started using thinner coats.
I decided to try some top coating to see if I was up to the job. After much faffing with test pieces I through I had it sorted (I ran out of testing material at the same time, I should have found more).

So I decided to try the smallest (and cheapest to replace) bit for my first real paint. Everything looked great until the lacquer went on.

So any guesses as to what would cause this (I think I see fish-eyes, solvent pop and orange peel all at the same time).

Process was to buff,clean and tack ragging between each coat with a 10-20 minute flash time.
2 dust coats etch primer,
1 wet coat etc primer,
2 dust coats of base,
1 wet coat of base (for colour coverage),
1 medium coat of base (to make sure the metallic bits were all sticking up and not lying down)

Wait for about 2 hours to flash, longer than I had previously tried on test pieces to avoid the solvent popping.

2 dust coats of clear (looked ok but dry at this point)
1 wet coat of lacquer
At this point it looked liked it does in the pictures.
Did I put too thick a coat on it?

Lacquer was mixed 2:1 with ~10% thinners.
I was hoping for a finish I could buff out any orange peel, I didn't get what I wanted

This is definitely getting redone, but I will only do it myself if I can find out how to fix this.

So any ideas?

Note: I have also posted on an car painting forum in the hope someone might have a simple explanation as short of buying an expensive spray gun I'm not sure what to try next (I'm happy to buy a gun if that turns out to be the problem)

madmaveric said:

Everything looked great until the lacquer went on.

Click to expand...

Lacquer over what????

Not sure about the newer paints, but in the old days you never put lacquer over anything but lacquer IIRC.

I painted my plane and I have had experience such as it seem that you have.

I would check my air supply and hose making sure that it is clean of any oil residue. Contaminants can cause fish eye.
It is possible that the paint you are using might be contaminated, from the supplier?

Also, check and be sure your gun is clean of any oil residue.


I had used a old air hose, I thought was good. Turned out after I bought a new one, the problem cleared up.

I am just throwing out ideas, I am not an expert. just some experiences that I had and fixed.
Best to you,
Dave

The lacquer is put over metallic base coats. More commonly called clear over base or clear coat.
This is the stuff I'm using.
http://www.churchill-paints.co.uk/sites/default/files/0210%202K%20MS%20CRYSTAL%20CLEAR.pdf

I did consider contamination but had ruled it out as the base was fine, thinking about it again though it could be.

If I think about it (hang on a sec while I think out loud , might also promt some other ideas) I have seen a similar fisheye effect on the etch primer in the past but using thinner coats stopped it happening so I had assumed it was just me putting it on to thick.
If it is contamination then I guess it isn't in the paints (etch and clear being different mixes/paints but both from the same company). The base appeared unaffected by it but that could be as the other two (primer/clear) are 2k so it is a different mix and may be less susceptible to it.
I have used a different gun for the clear this time (first use) compared to when I saw this effect during testing so it's not the gun.
I guess that only leaves the pipework/compressor or another airborne source. I have a particulate filter on the end of the copper pipework from the compressor which should pick up any contaminates so that would leave the rubber hose from the wall to the gun (I use separate hoses for painting and air tools to avoid contamination from other tools) so I'm not sure how this would get contaminated.

That at least gives me something to look at, getting hold of another hose to try.
I checked the drains on the copper piping but I should probably recheck the compressor as well (I've yet to see any water in the filter on the paint gun but I guess it will effect the paint before I see it in the filter).

OK, I missed the "small fish eyes at first" . From my decades old experience, if it is in the primer it will be in every coat after that. I tried once to flood it with paint and it just got bigger.

What are you using to clean the surface?

Now - it looks like the thinner has evaporated before the pint drops hit the surface. So either a hot weather thinner, or experiment with lower pressure to prevent such small drops. The hot weather thinner will evaporate slower and allow flow flow out of drops after impact.

Just some ideas.

BillL said:

OK, I missed the "small fish eyes at first" . From my decades old experience, if it is in the primer it will be in every coat after that. I tried once to flood it with paint and it just got bigger.

What are you using to clean the surface?

Now - it looks like the thinner has evaporated before the pint drops hit the surface. So either a hot weather thinner, or experiment with lower pressure to prevent such small drops. The hot weather thinner will evaporate slower and allow flow flow out of drops after impact.

Just some ideas.

Click to expand...

For some reason it took several attempts to quote, forum kept giving me a blank page. Even the forums are giving me trouble today.

I should have said it was in the primer when I first started months ago, I learned to put several dust coats down first on bare ally, I thought it was just me putting too thick a coat on first. On this piece I had dusted a couple of coats on first to avoid the primer eyes (if there were any I didn't notice them and certainly no like the pictures show in the clear )

The surface is cleaned either with MEK or acetone and then wiped dry and leave to air dry while I mixed the paint, then tackragged it just before painting so hopefully that should have meant it was clean.

It was T-shirt temps in the garage (well low t-shirt temps but enough to make you sweat in paper suite and full face mask). I guess I should get a temperature gauge in there.
the paints I'm using are in the picture below and spec sheets (if your interested) can be found at Churchill site (you may spot something I missed). These were what I got from the pain shop, I told them the colour and what it was for and they recommended these. The only one I wasn't sure about was the thinners but it says it can be used with clear on the sheet. I used it as I thought the paint lookedlike it wasn't flowing correctly.
The primer/base were dry in 10 minutes and the primer seemed to take a bit longer.
The base coat looked great (I was really pleased with it and that set my expectations up), it had no noticeable marks on it so I think most of the problems are with the clear.
Luckily this is a small piece so I can quickly sand and redo it.

I will go back to my test pieces first though now. I have almost run out of my tester tin of base paint so I will just be practicing with lacquer until I get that right.

So any tips for retrying. If I can find somewhere open I will get a new hose, clean and dry as much as possible. Maybe I should go back to no thinner and try the gun settings in case I don't need it (or get a proper gun, this one came with the compressor)

Looking at that pic has thrown up a possible cause.

When I purchased the paint it was stated to mix base with thinner at 2:1
Looking closer at the base tin it says 2k on it, I thought that 2k meant it needs hardener or does that just mean it has to be covered in 2k lacquer?

I was told only the clear needed the hardener in it but the person who mixed it wasn't the person who served me. I wonder if the person serving was describing a different paint to the one I received.

I can't find out until Monday now as they don't work Sunday but if that is the case I wonder if it could cause the issues I'm seeing.

troubleshooting trouble

Jon, some ideas
first, if you title your post, 'paint problems' you might get all the real paint experts online much faster. I can't even BEGIN to count the number of things I've done wrong, ( just ask my wife! )

it's hard to troubleshoot from afar, but here's a couple things nobody has offered yet. for reference, I've painted and done bodywork on about 7 cars, 2 planes, fabric & metal, and about a thousand sign cabinets etc. NOt a pro, but done a lot of stuff wrong, and too hot, too cold, old paint etc. etc.
The whole reason pros have climate controlled paint booths and a zillion filters etc is to reduce the variables. and !@#$% still happens on occasion.

your photos at first glance look like water to me. resembles fish eyes. if you have any kind of fish eye, stop. you have to strip down to bare metal....and then clean your shop, and make sure your neighbour 2 houses over isn't waxing his car. yup, it's that bad.

if your sample was ok, could the weather have been different on paint day?
even on same day, your compressor is now running much longer to paint larger pieces, getting hotter, so you are spraying warmer air, which will hold much more humidity before it condenses out.

Lots of other good ideas previously. LIke if you're using the same hose you built with, and oiled the quik connectors so it slipped on your rivet guns more easily, there's a source of contamination.

clean everything, wet down the floor ( walls if you can). Use a gun that will apply primer reasonably well, and reserve a separate, 'good' gun for finish coats.

and good luck with the other 2,384 variables!

The short answer to "what did I do wrong" is you did not hire a professional painter. Been there, done that.

Silicon contamination looks plausible to me.

Yes, you're doing it wrong.
Read the instructions from the paint manufacturer and follow them.
I see solvent pop and fisheyes as a minimum.


Generally:
Cleaning: Use paper towels or towels from the paint shop. Never use rags you have washed. There is silicone in fabric softener and silicone is the #1 cause of fisheyes.
Same goes for tack rags.
Never use an air hose that has been used with a tool oiler. Same deal. Use new hoses specifically for painting. Get a filter. The Airmotive "toilet paper" ones are good. Use a prep-sol for cleaning (the paint store should know what to give you). It is a mix of solvents and dries slower giving you time to allow you more time to apply an area and follow up with a clean towel to remove/dry.

Basecoat: Forget your "dust coats". Apply base for color coverage. DO NOT FLOOD IT! It will look like ****, matte and dull. It's supposed to look that way. For metallics your last coat should be a "drop" coat. Drop coat = backing off a bit to avoid tiger stripes. Look this stuff up on the Autobody 101 web site or similar if you need to understand the lingo. Most basecoats use a hardener. Again, get and read the instructions. When in doubt, use a slower reducer, it will help with flow-out. I would never use an "extra fast" anything. I always went one temperature range hotter than the ambient temp. Worked best for me. If you mess up the base coat, it will usually come off with laquer thinner.

Clear coat: No "dust coats". Put it on wet with overlaping wet edges. It's call "moving the wet edge" or something like that. Your solvent pops are from putting on the second coat too soon. Shoot a piece of cardboard at the end of your coats. When you can run your gloved hand across the clear on the cardboard without sticking (called "glove slick"), you're ready to shoot the second coat. I used a kitchen timer and just chilled until it rang (a full-face supplied air rig helps keep you cool too). Your tendency will be to rush it. Again, a slower reducer is your friend. Helps with flow-out. If you get a run, don't sweat it. Color sand and buff in a couple weeks. A couple of runs are much better than orange peel. I did two coats of clear on most of my plane and was able to color sand a few runs with no problem. Less weight too.

Grab some black base and practice on some junk yard trunk lids until you get your technique and gun dialed in. Black is cheap(er) and will show your mistakes best. And yeah, a good gun helps, but is not going to help if your technique is lacking. Lots of guys shoot great paint jobs with cheap guns. Run the pressure at the gun/tip the manufacturer suggests (and the pressure is with the trigger pulled) and the proper tip size.

It's a learning experience, but very satisfying once you get it figured out.

Good luck!

madmaveric said:

Looking at that pic has thrown up a possible cause.

When I purchased the paint it was stated to mix base with thinner at 2:1
Looking closer at the base tin it says 2k on it, I thought that 2k meant it needs hardener or does that just mean it has to be covered in 2k lacquer?

I was told only the clear needed the hardener in it but the person who mixed it wasn't the person who served me. I wonder if the person serving was describing a different paint to the one I received.

I can't find out until Monday now as they don't work Sunday but if that is the case I wonder if it could cause the issues I'm seeing.

Click to expand...

Go to the link you provided - it has a lot of mixing and compatibility information. Yes, 2K comes from a German designation as 2 Komponent. Print out the tech documents for each, then after studying, go talk to the paint seller, and a painter who uses this paint. He will set you straight so fast, that unless you have studied all the information, you won't understand the explanation. I like to talk to the real experts, so, go local, and tell them about your project and they will be your new best friend!

Copper tube?

You mention a copper tube supply, if hot compressor air was traveling down that supply tube and then hitting a colder end near the gun you may be getting water in your spray pattern. Fish eye results from that I think.

I always have had a filter and a water trap near my supply hose and drained each pot of paint.

I also ensure there is a loop of supply hose about twenty feet back from me.

Some more ideas for you, just thought of mine.

Good luck, i do like the color though!

dave4754 said:

You mention a copper tube supply, if hot compressor air was traveling down that supply tube and then hitting a colder end near the gun you may be getting water in your spray pattern. Fish eye results from that I think.

I always have had a filter and a water trap near my supply hose and drained each pot of paint.

I also ensure there is a loop of supply hose about twenty feet back from me.

Some more ideas for you, just thought of mine.

Good luck, i do like the color though!

Click to expand...

Good call,,,, we have a 50' hose coiled in big loops coming off the compressor hanging on the wall then a filter dryer then to the air hose for your tool/gun.

Firstly thanks for all the replies. For some reason the forum wasn't working for me this morning (in fact this site and also vansairforce.net both were unavailable)

Sorry about the title, I thought as it was in the painting section it wasn't needed but I guess a lot of people use the 'new posts' option (like I do myself) so it is a bit random on that list. I'll change it if I can figure out how to (editing the original post doesn't allow me to change it)

I have to sort out the contamination problem or resign myself to the fact of having to pay someone to do it (and thereby not being able to say I did it all myself )

On the contamination issue. When it came to stripping the part above it I found that a rag soaked in acetone and cling filmed to the panel removed the paint far quicker than I expected. I believe this may be one of the sources of my problems as I clean the guns with it, then I leave some in the cup with the nozzle in. At painting time I empty and wipe out the gun, spray some air through and then off I go.
I need to get some proper gun cleaning solution (I'm not sure if I can use the thinner I have for gun cleaning or not).

The only problem with reading the instructions is that the base paint doesn't have any it came from the store with the advice of not needing hardener (just the thinners) and there isn't any online info I can find about it like the rest of the paint I got. I will have to check with the store on that.

I use some of those large blue paper rolls that I use for cleaning, so I should be ok there (unless they are providing the contaminate) and, as they are cheap, I don't mind using a lot of them.

for the air supply I have separate air lines for painting and airtools to avoid cross contamination, my pipework/filters for painting can be seen here (from the blog)
I'm hoping I have done enough there to keep the air ok, there is still a chance the last hose section could be a problem as someone else has mentioned.
The guns has these on it for filtering and checking the pressure (with trigger open)


I like the idea of extra hose but I don't have space for that It was hard enough finding space for the copper 'water trap' drops, I probably have the least space of all the build spaces I have seen.

Thanks for the painting tips, I always thought the first coat had to be a dust coat (I did say I hadn't painted for 20 years though) so that is good advice.

The fast hardener I have was what was recommended at the shop, I will try and find a local painter for a chat (and maybe a bit of cash to come help with the first set-up). There is a guy fairly close, I will pop in and see if I can get him interested in coming to help 'some idiot trying to build a plane in a shed' round the corner as I'm sure I will be called

Good tip on the cardboard checks for the clearcoat, it wasn't easy to see when it dried as it doesn't go matt lol

I was wondering if one of those air purifiers you see people with allergies using would be of any use, for a few hours before painting, to help clean the air.

Thanks for all the tips guys.

I try and provide my setup/solutions (if I have any) to the tips so that you can check if I'm doing things right.

My next steps this week are going to be
1) Get some more base as I've now run out and see if I can get some cheap practice base.
2) Check on the mix of the base and try to get a spec sheet from the supplier
3) Get some proper cleaner for my guns (I'm hoping this is the main issue)
4) Try and catch the painter at the shop and see if I can persuade him to help out.

Found the place to change the title, I had to be in advanced mode but was in my usual simple mode lol

Just a few suggestions from my experience.

Recommend you do not call your finish paint "lacquer" as it is acrylic by the tech sheet. Calling it lacquer may confuse someone giving advice.

You need another filter on the air hose. Get one recommended for painting air and put it after your primary filter. Many available sources. Harbour Freight has one, not terribly expensive. Also available are small white units to use right at the spray gun. Good insurance.

I would believe that your base coat needs a hardener as it is labeled 2K = Two component.

Shouldn't need to buff, clean and tack rag between coats if you stay within the re-coat time window noted on the paint (typically 24 hours). Tack rags can leave residue if used too vigorously. Maybe just a light air spray to remove dust if necessary, but probably not needed.

Make sure your base material is very very clean before first primer coat. Clean with solvent, alumiprep or other etch is a good start. Fish eye in your primer will not cover up with base coat but will continue to show in following coats.

Clean your gun with the same thinner as used for the paint to avoid compatibility problems.

Apologies for the Lacquer/clear confusion, I thought they both referred to the same thing (a clear lacquer on top of a colour). I will try and stick to using clear coat from now on.

I currently have 2 filters and 2 water traps/drops at the moment. What filter would you recommend over what I have already?
I thought I was covered withe the 10 micron draper one and the moisture trap one on the gun but I'm happy to add more if it will improve things.

Agreed on the paint, I will check next time I get up the shop (I've run out of base so I will have to get more anyway)

I only tack rag between coats (buffing/cleaning was for bare metal) and then gently. I still remember 30 years ago the first time I used them with a heavy hand, the first coat looked like someone had smeared chewing gum on the paint lol. I learned that lesson quick (or slow as it took ages to re-prep the roof)

I didn't have fish eyes on this primer but previously I've had it if I go too heavy. I plan to use this to track down the source, primer painted heavy with the idea to be able to get runs without fish-eyes (just to prove I have fixed the contamination). I see lots of scrap being needed in the near future.

I plan on completely washing the gun with thinners rather than acetone and drying properly to see if that stops it. I just need to find out if the 2k thinners I have is ok for cleaning and storing in the gun when not in use or if I need a different thinner for that.

Thanks again for the tips.

spark68 said:

Just a few suggestions from my experience.

Recommend you do not call your finish paint "lacquer" as it is acrylic by the tech sheet. Calling it lacquer may confuse someone giving advice.

Click to expand...

The Churchill spec sheet does refer the the clear coat as "lacquer".

And - let's not hear about the bonnet or the boot either.

Two countries divided by a common language. Brilliant!

Cheers

You want to say you painted it yourself Great. You want it to look great. so a suggestion is to have an experienced local painter familiar with what you are using and doing come over and give you a tutorial. Have the person walk you through the process on the wings or a piece or two. It might cost a few bucks but you will probably get more out it than you paid for. Larry

Fisheyes can be an easy problem to solve or a hard one.

To start, the surface you intend to paint needs to be clean. A good quality wax and grease remover along with lint fee rags is needed.

Second, your air needs to be clean. A good water filter and oil filter are needed. Also make sure that your compressor is not passing oil as it runs.

Third, don't let any cleaners that have silicone in them anywhere near your paint area. Add to this list anything like WD-40 or LPS2. Even your neighbor can ruin your paint with these guys.

Forth, unless you have a lot of experience with the paint your using, follow the manufacturers instructions to the letter.

Fifth, and this one is a tuffy, the soap you use to clean yourself or your clothes with can ruin your paint. Perfumes and colognes can also be bad news. This also extends to things you might clean your car with.

One more thing to be sure of

When I first started painting, mine looked like that. I was doing small test pieces like you, so I wanted to mix up only small amounts of my expensive paint. My brilliant idea was to pull small amounts of paint out of the can with a syringe and squirt it into the cup for mixing. As it turns out, syringes are made with silicone and contaminated the paint every time.

As others said, that looks a lot like silicone contamination, so if you're using a syringe or anything else like that, stop it.

BillL said:

The Churchill spec sheet does refer the the clear coat as "lacquer".

And - let's not hear about the bonnet or the boot either.

Two countries divided by a common language. Brilliant!

Cheers

Click to expand...

At least on here we don't have the added pronunciation issues, especially with all this aluminium around.

I now also plan to try and get hold of a local painter for advice and maybe a tutorial on these new paints and the 'painting booth' setup I have.

Nice breakdown of the sources of contamination there KTM520guy, I had forgot about soap. I'm going to make a 5 point checklist for when I paint from that to consider all options before starting a paint session.

I also need to look at making a better paint booth. Mine currently is my build area with a partition to split the area in half that. This means the area I paint in is the same as where I build in (same tables).

I have been using syringes to mix paint. I have now ordered 50 mixing cups instead and will stop using them. That was one source of contamination I hadn't thought of.

I don't expect to get a perfect finish like some professional painters (I say 'some' as I've seen so called professional Jobs that are worse than ones I have done myself in the past). If I can get it down to low level orange peel and just the occasional spot in the paint i would be happy.

Not a new issue, discussed here many times!

Once again, do not use syringe with RUBBER! Those RUBBER seals are contaminated and will further more contaminate the paint!

Use only syringe without rubber when you pull the amount of paint/hardener/thinner out of the can.



Happend to me and many others here. On the Air supply also all must be free of oil. If you used once a hose with a parts that where contaminated (compressor, regulator, ...) then the hose need to be exchanged.

Good luck!

Not a new issue, discussed here many times!



There are syringes without rubber! Ask in the pharmacy or better where you buy epoxy and fiberglass.

I am going to stop using the syringes now and use measuring cups, just need to find a clean way of getting paint from the tin into the cup

Anyone got any tips on transferring paint from a tin to the cup without pouring it down the sides of the tin (obviously not using a syringe lol).

Use syringe without rubber!

See my previous post!

I did the paint your own plane thing, don't let anyone talk you out of it, it is park of the build your own plane thing, I also had a steep learning curve. And expensive.......all I have lef is the fuse, I will be getting a dececant air dryer for the last part of my paint, I built a boot out of 1" PVC and visqueen, with box fans and filters. Came out great. Are you wet sanding your primer? I did 400 wet and base clear.

Hmm I might have to revisit the syringe thing, I'll see how I get on (if I can come up with a non spill way of getting 30ml of paint out of a full 1 litre tin without spilling it everywhere )

I'm trying to avoid getting talked out of it, if I end up having someone else do it, it will be because I can't do it rather than someone else telling me I can't do it lol.

The plan is to prep the surface and then paint the etch, base and clear in one session (that session will probably be a day or more depending on the flash time needed) with only gentle tack rags in between coats. If I find I need to sand in between coats then I need to try and fix the reason to avoid having to do it every time. I'm sure there will be some sanding needed (dust,runs etc) but I don't plan to do it automatically, only if needed.

I may then colour sand and polish the clear if it needs it (which it probably will) to get the finish I'm happy with. I don't expect a professional finish, just one I am happy to put my name on.

If you need to sand between coats, this will not work with metallic. only one shot or start over, go ahead, ask me.....and with most paint you have around 24 hours between base and clear for maximum chemical bonding. I used epoxy primer and it worked well. if you sand the primer, there is no window, you can take your time. as long as you are not in a humid area.

madmaveric said:

I am going to stop using the syringes now and use measuring cups, just need to find a clean way of getting paint from the tin into the cup

Anyone got any tips on transferring paint from a tin to the cup without pouring it down the sides of the tin (obviously not using a syringe lol).

Click to expand...

Do like I did, steal your wife's soup scooper (big deep spoon). You just have to clean the spoon after each use but less mess than pouring out of a gallon can.

I had the same experience with my first metallic paint job (a long time ago using cellulose) I sanded the masking lip between the colours before I clear coated ... ended up starting again

Soup spoon sounds good with the added bonus that there isn't a wife to complain ... mind you I also don't have a soup spoon so will need to buy one. Maybe there is a link there somewhere, does the spoon normally come with a wife (or visa versa)

Looks like you need to drain your tank of moisture, put on a good dryer. Your spraying a little heavy, causing the orange peel effect. Sand and put a lighter wet coat, clear coat and you should be good to go. Don't give up

Syringes - ha! Nailed it!

If you were using standard syringes, then there's your problem. I suspect your next round of paint will be MUCH better. After a little learning curve, I really don't think painting is all that cosmic. It's just a whole lot of work, and you have to be very, very clean! And that means clean air, too, so you don't get dust.
If you really want a super nice paint job, plan on cutting and polishing at the end. There really is no other way to get the "perfect" looking paint job, I think. After having painted my plane as an amateur, I now scoff at paint jobs on very expensive cars that quite often have a fair amount of orange peel - I know what it's supposed to look like now!

After my syringe debacle, I bought some "paint can pouring lids", i.e. these things:
http://www.amazon.com/Spill-Painting-Pouring-Reusable-Gallon/dp/B005T3JQAI

You can reseal the paint cans by just screwing the lids back on. The plastic they are made of did not contaminate my paint (however, I did not use the exact brand in the link, so YMMV). You can re-use them when you use switch to a new gallon of paint (just clean them off with acetone or thinner). I had some paint left over and stored it for YEARS with these things still on top, well past the "shelf life" of the paint. It worked just fine after I pulled them out again. I highly recommend.

My advice - keep painting! I can't tell you how much more pride my wife and I have in our machine since we did the painting ourselves. We also learned lot and used that knowledge on other projects (car repair, painted a steel toolbox, etc).

Good luck!

I would have just sanded and cut the panel if it wasn't for the solvent pop (or maybe this is also caused by silicone). It only took an hour or two to strip it back to bare ally.

I have now thrown out the syringes and have mixing cups and sticks. I popped into the paint shop and they confirmed that the base DOESN'T need hardener, it is only mixed using 2:1 with thinner so I can rule that out as an issue.
I picked up some new gun cleaner (thinner) in case the acetone is causing issues.

I should also have brought all new paint/clear/hardener etc. but it didn't occur to me until I got home that all the paint I have will also be contaminated (due to putting the excess back in the tin from the syringe).

I like those lids, I will have to see what size tins I get the paint in and buy some to match.

This week I will be fitting more lighting (to help see how thick the paint is going on) and sealing the roof with wood (from the empennage box) and plastic sheeting as currently it is all beams and old chipboard. My shed is the paint booth so I need to line it much better.

I also need to make some space prior to the wing kit arriving sometime near the end of this month and this seems like a good time to do it. So a tidy up/re-org is in order.

I will then pick up some more paint and try again. and hopefully this time I can get closer to a finish I want.

Well I have to say thanks to everyone
It looks like I have solved the mains issues, I still have some smaller ones to sort out but at least I'm at a point where I wouldn't be upset at the amateur paint job

After switching out the syringes and getting new paint I tried again. I also brought a new paint gun to help out. The results were much better.
I need to remember to use a clean table cloth (vans packing paper ) but apart from that I'm happy with the first attempt enough to go ahead with trying the rest.
I'm not expecting it to be perfect but as long as it reasonable I will be happy (saving about £7000/$11000 for a paint job means it wont take much to be happy with it ).
The big question now is weather I can upscale the finish to the bigger parts, this one is quite small an easy to do.
Note: these were taken about 20 minutes after painting so I still have my fingers crossed it doesn't react as it dries.
It has one small run on one edge (I'm happy with only one as I'm still learning how thick to put it on).
There is also some dust on one side which I think came off the table (hopefully that will buff out and a cleaner table will help next time) but all in I'm happy with it so far.






P.S. I have deliberately left the pictures large (well I reduced them to 25% of original) so you can see the finish

That is looking good ;-) ..

I usually measure paint components with notches on a paint stick. Say the ratios are 8 parts paint, 2 parts reducer, 1 part hardener. That's 11 parts so if I want 4 inches of paint in the cup, 4 divided by 11 = .36" per part so I cut notches at 2.9", .72", and .36".

That works pretty well and the mess is minimal. Be sure to mix in a straight-sided cup or can.

Nice work! Looks great!

That flowed out really nice.

looking very nice!

Jon, looks like you've done the research, trial and error, and are winning! congrats!
if you want some more tech info, I found one of the best explanations of spraying technique was from another 'John'.....
http://www.houseofkolor.com/index.jsp

he really breaks down the mechanics of it...how to ensure you are overlapping the right amount, etc.
I haven't watched the youtube stuff, but seeing it done is worth a thousand word explanation, for sure.

keep up the great paint!

The sense of accomplishment that comes when you watch the paint flow out to a glass like surface was for me, one of the best moments of my project. Way to hang in there and figure it out. You are now qualified to critique all the crappy factory paint jobs on cars. (And now all your friends will want you to paint their project cars)

Thanks guys, it is much appreciated (I'll definitely be looking at the other John's tips on that link ).
For anyone else looking for tips I also found some youtube videos by "The Gunman" (https://www.youtube.com/user/MrZoeystevenson) to be really useful, to the point that I brought his recommended spray gun

If it hadn't been for the tips I got I would have probably given up so thanks again for them, hopefully I can get the same results on the bigger pieces now.

The best results so far were on the anti-servo tabs I did last weekend. They still aren't perfect but I'm not looking for perfection, unlike a car it is harder to see the quality from a few thousand feet below

This is one of the better bits where it settled nicely, some other bits I had to do a bit of colour sanding due to a couple of small runs and a bit of dust that I blew out of the roof by accident.



And the pic I have entitled "The Spray Painters Selfie".
There's a bit of orange peel in this but I'm happy enough with the finish (I will be trying to refine my technique to match the above finish as I go). I could colour sand it perfectly flat if I was really that worried but for now it is good enough (it will give me something to do when I'm parked up somewhere ).


I've already been asked if I can paint someones bumper(fender) on their car lol.

I noticed "the gunman" uses a measuring stick for mixing as well so I may look into that at some point.

To anyone else wanting to paint their own plane I would say go for it but only if you have the extra time to spend during the build, and your willing to re-do parts while learning/risking damage while assembly.
The modern paints do make it a lot easier than it used to be but there is still a learning curve/time penalty (although this is reduced a bit by not having to get it painted at the end of the build).

There are a couple more pics on the blog in my signature if interested. I am going to try and document more about he painting as I go on and learn more. This weekend I plan to attempt painting the Vertical Stabilizer (as I plan on using vinyl graphics for the tail art it seems a good piece to train with as I can cover any major mistakes if I need to).