Update on Painting

So far, painting the car has been going really well, all things considered. With that said, I'm definitely having my fair share of issues. Luckily, it's really only on the clear coat, and it's things I can definitely fix!

In addition to the parts I've already shown, I've now painted the rear clip

As well as the roof! But about those issues I mentioned...

There's sooooo many bubbles.

Everywhere.

This is a result of one thing for sure and another possible thing. The possible thing is that since I haven't been draining the air compressor tank daily, water has been accumulating inside. I do have a huge desiccant snake meant to trap any moisture, but it's really designed to just grab whatever trace amounts are running in the line. Having a lot of water sloshing around with the air supply is not ideal, and not what the snake is designed for. It's meant for competent people haha. 

But the biggest thing is that I'm still going way too slow! I feel like I'm going a mile a minute when I'm painting, and that any faster would mess everything up. As a result of that slow speed, there's way more paint being laid down than there should be. Even with waiting 30 minutes between coats (as opposed to the 10 minute minimum), there still isn't enough time for the paint to flash properly and offgass as it should. The gases that try and try to make their way out of the paint can't because it's just so thick. They form all the little bubbles we see.

The good news is that because it's so thick, I can easily wet-sand and polish the heck out of it without risk of burning through the clear. It's more work to do, but the end result will still be great, so I'm not too worried. I do want to make an effort to really get my technique down going forward. I still have the hood, decklid, and both bumpers to paint, not to mention all of the black parts to paint on those as well (underside, trim, etc.).

From ~10 feet back, the parts still look really good now! Way better than what the car was.