Get a little more specific on your prep. You said you primed then popped out the dents, surely you meant it the other way around? Anyway, there is a multitude of primers on the market, some primer/sealers, some high build, etc. Unless you are doing it as a sealer, you will need to sand it to level out the primer. You need to use the recommended grit to provide the bite the paint needs, without showing sanding scratches thru. Each type of paint will require a different grit to adhere properly, for instance, back in the Lacquer days, final sand was with 600, most enamels would be with 320-360 grit. Anyway, your prep before paint will make or break you. Next, basecoat/clearcoat is relatively forgiving as to application, but if your base isn't laid down fairly smooth, the clear isn't going to save it. Did your base lay out flat and turn to a satin finish before you cleared it? Finally, clear coats can be tricky, some brands lay out quick, some tend to run forever. I have been using Sherwin Williams Crossfire as of late, and that stuff I swear the clear flows for hours, so if you charge right in, you are just about guaranteed runs in the clear, but if you leave it too dry, then you have a heck of a time sanding and buffing.

How about posting a picture, perhaps we can help more from that.

Finally, if this is your first time painting, don't feel bad, I won't speak for others, but my first one ( a 1967 Corvair ) was HORRID......... But you can't give up.

 

Yeah, I used rustoleum primer and sanded it with 800 grit. Once it was level I went back over it with 1000 the 2000 grit sand paper. My buddy has a nice black paint job so here is a picture of my paint job;



This is his fender, it's clear as can be, I can't get a good picture of my paint.. it's strange.



His is factory, don't mind the bird poop

 

Look's to me like it was still rough ? but hard to say with glare on picture .

 

K, from what I could see, it looks like you need to color sand and buff, your clearcoat isn't flowing out like it could.

One thing, I am aware of no paint system that requires anywhere near that fine of a base, even Lacquer, which was very thin and virtually evaporated away only required 400 to 600 grit surfaces. If you have it too fine, the paint can't bite in, and will peel like a sunburn. Given it is a BC/CC, I would stop at no finer than 360 grit. Your basecoat needs to be somewhat flat, but they usually wont lay perfectly flat, you are more interested in even coverage and evenly distributed metallics. I always fog a coat at the end to help eliminate any possible tiger striping, and in doing so, you will usually get a bit "brighter" metallic effect. This is due to the lowered force that the paint has when it hits, it tends to lighten the effect a bit. You might want to practice your clearcoat application the most though. Like I said earlier, every brand has its own idiosyncrasies, some flow very little and then stay, some flow for what seems like hours. I would take a junk part ( say a fender ), not do much other than basecoat it, then play with the clear. See how the clear lays out best, lower gun pressure, slower pass, higher gun pressure, faster pass, what the appearance is when it doesn't run, what it looks like when it does, etc. It is literally a feel for what it will do, and if you are going to get a good finish without color sand and buff, you ARE going to get a run or drape, even the pros do and they do it every day.

 

Like patdaly said first paint jobs usually don't turn out well. Any body work takes a lot of practice to get good. I still won't paint anything I really want to look good.

You are going to be doing a ton of work on this truck by the looks of things. My advice is find a pro that moonlights at home and has a good reputation for not taking forever(this seems to happen a lot), and save your first paint job for something that doesn't matter like a Ford or anything foreign.

Second if you are using the paint I think your talking about it is not good stuff, not even chemical resistant. This means any fluid from the truck will literally wash the paint away.

Keep plugging away it'll be worth it in the end.

 

I figured that part out, the dupli color is junk. The paint literally fell off and chipped away. I called them and they said that I put too much paint on and that one coat is sufficient. Their advice was to do one coat of the color and then two to three of the clear. Anyways, I started to get dupli color primer and I came out the next morning and there is hair line cracks and it's peling off.. I cut my losses and went with rustoleum filler primer. Clearly a superior paint. I found a guy that will paint the truck for me, I just need to borrow a truck so I can bring mine to him in pieces. I've been doing a done of leveling so when the paint hits this thing it will be smooth.

Anyways this is the method to my madness.

ZinC (eastwood.com) coating, primer, paint, clear. The bottom I will spray with Wurth SKS to about 1mm thick. Frame will be stripped, Zinc'd and then covered in SKS.

 

bannerd check out www.dustlessblasting.com. This is the best blast system I've witnessed. I watched them blast a covered trailer in about an hour and 20 min. It was the slickest job I've ever saw. They have videos of it on YouTube. Maybe someone in your area has one. Good luck on your project!

 

Smoke thanks man, yeah I bought a soda blaster. Just waiting for it to arrive at the shop. I'm still working out of my tiny garage at my home and I'm in a pickle. Does anyone know where I can get the metal bar that goes along the window inside the door and sort of holds the window? It attaches to the regulator. I'll take picture to show you what I mean. The rust pretty much destroyed my doors so I have new doors on the list of things I will be buying. I'm hoping that the metal on the window isn't a permo-fix.

 

Hey guys, what are these things for? It looks like a door switch or some sort of sensor?



Here is some more progress, I'm going to have to get the wiring back in to get it to the shop. It's been raining none stop and moisture + metal is not good. I've been using this zinc coating from eastwood and it works really well.

 

If I remember from my 80's trucks, the door rod actuates the latch in the seat belt mechanism.

 

the door's have nothing to do with the seat belt's

 

I thought it was the switch that tells you the door is open but that is on the other side. I'm thinking it activates the dome light when the door opens.

 

After the flippant response I got earlier, I went out to the shop to verify my statement. The big plastic plunger has a cable that comes out the back and goes directly to the inertia reel of your seat belt. I have a 1986 cab sitting in my shop that hasn't been completely stripped yet, and these pieces were still intact. I may try to pull these pieces and get pics to show the non-believers.

 

The windows inside my door.. the regulator hooks to them. There is a metal bar (looks like) that goes across the window. Is this something I can replace? Anyone have any advice how to get the regulator out? Bought new doors

 

Well guys, did some more work on the truck. Picked up a nice air compressor that has been making this all possible. I need to change the oil in it, looking awfully black.



Sand blasted some of the cab;



And then welded in part of the floor board. I didn't notice it but there was some heavy rust under there and I would think it is because there was no seam sealer. That brings up a question.. what do you guys recommend for seam sealer? I was looking at getting evercoat self leveling for inside the cab and then under neath a heavy thicker sealer.

I'm digging the rustoleum self etch primer, although I might sand blast that back off and spray it with epoxy. I was thinking about going over the top of it but I hear mixing paints can be a pad deal.

Floor leveled;




Still have a ton of grinding and sanding to do. I've been using primer to seal the bare metal.. some reason after a day rust forms on the metal where I live. I'm hoping the epoxy primer will help this once I get everything setup. Been having good luck with eastwood encapsulate.