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Hi, That's the absolute best way to start! Once you can apply the paint to a vertical surface without runs or orange peel and do it fairly consistently, you'll then be ready to tackle a real project and be confident of success. There are no "secret tricks" or "special ingredients" to a fine paint job. It's not hard but it does take some practice to get the feel of it and gain confidence. There are many things that can go wrong. To minimize problems, don't play amatuer chemist and mix and match ingredients from different paint manufacturers or even within different paint lines from the same manufacturer. Pick a single line of paint from a local automotive refinish paint supplier, get the technical data sheet(s) that apply specifically to that paint and follow the manufacturer's instructions closely. If you have a PPG automotive paint supplier in your area, I recommend a relatively inexpensive line called OMNI. PPG OMNI MAE is a decent, economical acrylic enamel that can be used without a toxic hardener additive. Here's the technical data sheet for the MAE. Other brands will have similar sheets available. If they don't, tell them you'll find another source. I believe those sheets are that important. You cannot generalize here. Different manufacturers will have different instructions for what seems to be a similar product. Any automotive paint manufacturer worth bothering with will have those sheets available at their on-line website so don't take no for an answer from a local salesman who doesn't know what he's selling or can't be bothered. Unfortunately, such salesmen do exist. You'll also want to follow the instructions provided with your spray gun. Some good instructions are provided by DeVilbiss here. While specifically for DeVilbiss guns, the information is pretty generic and can be followed generally for similar guns. It's a half meg pdf file so be patient if you are on dialup. Setting the correct air pressure can sometimes be confusing, especially with modern HVLP guns. My own way of doing it is described here. A good source for troubleshooting problems in painting is here. I do not recommend using any of the urethane products or hardeners in enamels for beginners because they are unlikely to have the proper, expensive, respiratory equipment to use such additives safely. For background discussions on this subject do a search on the word isocyanates in this forum. After you gain confidence using unhardened enamels, you may then decide you want to spend the money for the equipment to safely use to the better, more durable, hardened enamels or urethanes. Don't be discouraged when problems develop because they probably will. Good luck and have fun.  Rod
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