Problems with paint

Sup guys. I am truly fascinated with the skill you people bring to creating models. I am trying get myself on your level but am having a problem with my current project.

I have the revell civic coupe model and sanded it down. I then used automotive primer filler. I let it dry for a day then layed down some duplic-color automotive paint. I let that dry for a week and it has a whole bunch of little bumps in the paint. I sanded it down with 2000grit paper and sprayed it again today. I noticed that the paint did the same thing over again and left a whole bunch of little bumps. What did I do wrong and how can I fix this? Here is a pic:

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f225/miklomeza/HPIM0223.jpg

Welcome to AF!

Does the paint go on smooth and then bump up over the next few days, or does it go on bumpy?


Maybe it's the fumes from the mangoes that are doing it.... :uhoh:

what is the primer like before you apply paint?
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When I put the primer on it came out kind of rough. I was assuming that's how primer is supposed to be. Here is a pic of it after I primered it. I didn't sand after I primered.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f225/miklomeza/1step1.jpg

After sanding down the automotive paint with 2000grit I sprayed it again with the same automotive paint and noticed that some bumps came back while other parts the paint looks really dull. What do you guys recommend?

What do you guys recommend?

Tamiya TS lacquer sprays. :grinyes:

If the paint is bumping up or becoming dull sometime after it has been applied, you're having paint/primer incompatibility issues, and that paint cannot be safely used with that primer. Switch to something else.

When you prime a body for painting, the primer must be smooth, even, and perfect before moving on to paint. Sand it (polish it) with 2000 grit until it is as smooth and shiny as you want the final layer of paint to be. If the primer is rough and uneven, everything else you apply over top of it will be also. Probably 80% of the time and effort of painting a body will be in getting the primer right- and it can take many, many spraying and sanding steps. Once it is perfect, leave it overnight and you can go on to paint.

As for the paint itself, I cannot recommend strongly enough that you try Tamiya primer and paint. It is a superior product, designed exactly for this application. It is more expensive than other varieties, but it is very much worth it. There are people who really groove to Duplicolor (maybe because it is relatively cheap and avalible?), but we all too often get threads from people who have had it go wrong for them. Even if at some point you want to go back to Duplicolor, it's best to learn on the good stuff so you know how things should work and how to use them- when you have more experince, it's easier to work with other varieties of paint.

I understand what you are saying. I assumed that using automotive primer and then automotive paint everything would be cool. I feel that my major mistake must have been not sanding down the primer to get it smooth. As for the dullness I am guessing it was because after I sanded the material down, some parts were sanded pass the primer.
I noticed a hobbystore by my house which carries tamiya paints. I will try that. Thanks very much for helping me out with my situation. I really appreciate it.

Dupilicolor sandable filler primer is great stuff its their paints I do not fancy. Some of their pearl paints are nice but on the whole their base colors are too transparent and duplicolor paints do not handle humidity well at all and will often fog unless you are very very careful. Tamiya TS sprays are much better on the whole but I love duplicolors primer.

Dupli-Color is relatively inexpensive, and has lots of colors. But its solution is rather strong, so a wet coat tends to dissolve the underlying layer of paint or primer, which might have caused your problem. (I'm guessing from my own experience.)

Make sure you limit the amount within two swings of the can, then move on from one side to another, like right side, front bumper, left side, rear bumper, hood, roof and trunk, or whichever order you like. You can repeat this process for 2 or 3 times, as long as you keep each coat very thin. Then end the session and let the paint dry for 12-24 hours. You may do another one or two sessions, depending on how thick/thin each coat is.