I painted a synethetic enamel today but have some problems

Overall the paint laid on well but with this red paint it seems to need a lot of layers or heavy coats to get a really nice and solid red color. But becuase I had to lay it on kind of thick the paint is blotchy or shiny in some spots and dull and weaker in color in other spots. And I have about 9 sags that developed too. Some of that is from overspray too.

I used hardener and medium fast reducer.

Should I let it dry hard and then sand down the sags with 400 and 600 wet paper then shoot it again? Or just clearcoat it once the sags are sanded out?

Is it normal to paint a tractor and have sags and uneven color distribution and is it normal to go back and touch up the paint job? Or, do pro's do it well once and it's good without having to go back and touch up?

When do I do it? tomorrow? or let it dry really hard over a couple days?

And, then, there some spots where the paint laid on, but it sort of bleaded or dispersed in spots. It didn't alligator, but it kind of laid on like oil and water; a small area of spotting I guess. What do i do about that?

The air temperature was in the mid 50's today. But the paint is curing and hardening.

And some dirt fell on one area. Do I let it dry hard, and sand there too and then re-coat it?

I need your help.

scott

Your options now depend on several things. Where are the runs? How bad are they? Just how much dirt did you get into the paint? How much shine has the rest of the tractor got on it? Are the dull areas easy to get to in order to buff? And perhaps most important, is this tractor for show or go? Show tractors need shine. Work tractors need protection and where there are runs, you have lots of protection.

If this tractor is for show and you want a truly good paint job, let the paint dry about 5-7 days and repaint it.

Sand everything you can get to with 220 grit wet or dry paper. Wet sanding is preferable but dry is fine also. Sand everything that you can get to. Use a sanding block also.

When repainting this time, use a mid coat adhesion promoter to help glue the paint to the surface. I recommend using a spray can to apply a medium wet coat of adhesion promoter to the areas that were hard to sand in order to help the paint stick better. Mix a little bit of the adhesion promoter into the first cup of paint and spray as usual using hardener and thinner. The next coats do not need the mid coat adhesion promoter.

An alternative method would be to mix up a cup of adhesion promoter and spray the entire tractor with a uniform coat. You don't even have to wash out the gun before pouring in your paint for spaying.

You can probably do a very good job this next time because you will only need 2 coats of paint.

The areas you talk about where the paint pulled back and left a spot is what is called "fish eyes". Is is caused by dirt or oil or even wax on the surface of the paint. Paint will not stick to these substances and therefore pulls away and leaves a "fish eye". Washing the tractor down with strong soap and water after sanding is the best way to remove all contaminants. Wet sanding with a few drops of detergent in the water bucket helps very much also.

DO NOT USE FISH EYE ELIMINATOR. It will stay in your gun and you will have to use it from now on even though you may paint a prefectly clean surface the next time. That stuff just hangs around in you gun waiting to cause problems later.

DON'T GET IN A HURRY AND TRY TO MAKE THE PAINT SHINE ON THE FIRST COAT. This is where we beginners mess up the most. After the first coat, wait about 1/2 to 1 hour and spray the next coat a little heavier and this will make it shine. I promise. Been there, done that, got the tears to prove it.

Your options now depend on several things. Where are the runs? How bad are they? Just how much dirt did you get into the paint? How much shine has the rest of the tractor got on it? Are the dull areas easy to get to in order to buff? And perhaps most important, is this tractor for show or go? Show tractors need shine. Work tractors need protection and where there are runs, you have lots of protection.

If this tractor is for show and you want a truly good paint job, let the paint dry about 5-7 days and repaint it.

Sand everything you can get to with 220 grit wet or dry paper. Wet sanding is preferable but dry is fine also. Sand everything that you can get to. Use a sanding block also.

When repainting this time, use a mid coat adhesion promoter to help glue the paint to the surface. I recommend using a spray can to apply a medium wet coat of adhesion promoter to the areas that were hard to sand in order to help the paint stick better. Mix a little bit of the adhesion promoter into the first cup of paint and spray as usual using hardener and thinner. The next coats do not need the mid coat adhesion promoter.

An alternative method would be to mix up a cup of adhesion promoter and spray the entire tractor with a uniform coat. You don't even have to wash out the gun before pouring in your paint for spaying.

You can probably do a very good job this next time because you will only need 2 coats of paint.

The areas you talk about where the paint pulled back and left a spot is what is called "fish eyes". Is is caused by dirt or oil or even wax on the surface of the paint. Paint will not stick to these substances and therefore pulls away and leaves a "fish eye". Washing the tractor down with strong soap and water after sanding is the best way to remove all contaminants. Wet sanding with a few drops of detergent in the water bucket helps very much also.

DO NOT USE FISH EYE ELIMINATOR. It will stay in your gun and you will have to use it from now on even though you may paint a prefectly clean surface the next time. That stuff just hangs around in you gun waiting to cause problems later.

DON'T GET IN A HURRY AND TRY TO MAKE THE PAINT SHINE ON THE FIRST COAT. This is where we beginners mess up the most. After the first coat, wait about 1/2 to 1 hour and spray the next coat a little heavier and this will make it shine. I promise. Been there, done that, got the tears to prove it.