high spots in the base paint--HELP!

[tigeraid]

So I'm trying out the 2-part Testor's base/clear system. The base looks pretty cool, but I think I put a little too much of the base on in some areas, producing slightly darker "higher" spots here and there, and orange peel in others. I'm gonna let it dry a few days as was suggested to me, but how can I deal with these high spots and orange peel without sanding it all down and starting over? Would a fine 1200 grit wet sand do it? I don't want to ruin the clear.

pics:

Orange Peel:




High Spots (real easy to spot on the trunk there):



And above the fender trim line:

[SupaMan89T]

looks like it was sprayed to thick but i dont think thats the problem weird

[tigeraid]

but do you think a fine wetsand will help it without hurting the rest of the finish? Most of the areas of the paint look fine.

[Technoman]

The paint looks a bit too thick and it is hiding a lot of the details of the car. Some light sanding would help the high spots but overall I think it might be worth starting over after a strip down.

Just my 0.02 cents

[tigeraid]

well I suppose it can't hurt to try and sand it a bit first... What about the orange peel, same deal, just some fine sanding?

[RallyRaider]

You'll definitely need to fix the basecoat up, clear hides nothing. Gently sand the rough bits back and recoat. 1200 should be okay but 2000 would be better to finish with if you can get hold of some. How did you paint it? You'll need to try something different to try and reduce the amount of orange peel next time.

[tigeraid]

I paint it the way I normally do, but I find this base is particularily rough (like on the bottom of my paint booth, running your hand along it is really gritty)... I think you're supposed to do a good soft wet sand before the clear anyway, to get rid of that grit. But okay, I'll try sanding it down an adding another coat. So to reiterate, wait a few days for this to dry real well, then wet sand with a 1200 grit or a 2000 grit, focusing mostly on the high areas, then wash with soapy water thoroughly, dry thoroughly, and re-spray? Sound good? (Still learning this proper paint process stuff

[JTRACING]

i would definitly strip that down and start over.

also i think you may be holding the paint can to close because it looks a bit thick. or you are just spraying heavy coats of paint on?

apply several light coats to build up the color, this also reduces the amount of orange peel you may get.

also this looks like a metallic color?, if so, dont wetsand it before you clear or it will flatten the metallic look. wetsand if you have dirt or something on your paint then apply another coat of color. then clear. etc.

[tigeraid]

Okay, thanks for the tip, I won't wetsand it.

[primera man]

By the looks of the pics I'd say strip it right back and start over again.
The paint looks really rough in places and i'd say you would probably end up sanding right though the paint trying to get it out

[Scale-Master]

Looks like you put too much on and at one time so it was too wet also. After you strip it, try building it up in three or four very light coats. Don't let it get that wet look, just try for uniformity. The clear will give you the wet look... - Mark

i would say strip it as well, it just seems way to thick in places, you would spend less time striping it than trying to fix the paint by wet sanding it. Ive never been a fan of testors aerosol paints, results like this always seems to happen everytime i use it.

[tigeraid]

thanks for the help. Argh I was hoping I wouldn't have to... do I have to strip right to bare plastic, or can I just sand down until I see some primer? I have bad experience stripping paint--the last time I used oven cleaner, the stuff sludged up and crammed itself into every knook and crannie on the model, couldn't get it out with a toothbrush or anything

[Technoman]

Originally Posted by tigeraid

thanks for the help. Argh I was hoping I wouldn't have to... do I have to strip right to bare plastic, or can I just sand down until I see some primer? I have bad experience stripping paint--the last time I used oven cleaner, the stuff sludged up and crammed itself into every knook and crannie on the model, couldn't get it out with a toothbrush or anything

You really should strip it, no way you will be able to sand the paint back evenly enough to look right. Also, stripping it is the only way to get the paint out of the recessed panel lines and free up the other details on the body.

[tigeraid]

Is there a better/cleaner option than oven cleaner? I haven't tried superclean yet...