read martin sr's post on paints---excellant info. thought i'd throw my 1 1/2 cents worth in. most guys are scared to death of painting their own truck, but i say go for it. remember that 99% of a paint job is preparation, and the process is almost agonizing if done right. factory literature, and publications are usually a great help, the things is--you gotta do it. probably the best tool you can use is the HEEL of your hand--not the fingertips, you can feel imperfections much better, and use light coats of primer as a guage of high and low spots. plenty of block sanding, lots of elbow grease. remember if you can see imperfections in the primer---you will REALLY see them after finish paint. that little "booger" you noticed during prep, but thought it was o.k., will look like a bowling ball when it's done, and even if noboby else notices it----you will. as far as whether the paint hold on to the metal, that's what wet sanding is for, lots of water, and again, lots of elbow grease. take your time, make sure there is no gloss, or unsanded primer spots---none! the primer should feel almost like velvet. wipe everything down with thinner to remove any oil on the primer, and clean dust.
when you do shoot the first coat of paint, it's a "tack" coat, not designed to cover, almost like a fine mist. if you're shooting acrylic enamel, give it about 5 minutes to set up before starting to shoot the next coat, oh yeah, if you are going to shoot acrylic, i like to use hardener--really toughens the paint and speeds drying time. use sucessive light coats of paint, again, patience, until the paint reaches the desired thickness (for me that may be 9 or 10 or more coats) and start to add thinner to achieve a gloss the last 2 or 3 . the last coat i shoot will be nearly all thinner, shot fast to avoid runs. after the paint has set to the manufacturers spec, any small imperfections, i.e. orange peel, dull spots, or dust specs can be rubbed or polished out. speaking of imperfections--you gotta be clean. use a tack rag on all areas you are going to paint--and when you think you got all the dust off---tack rag it again to see how wrong you were. sweep the floor, and wet it down just before painting. this keeps the dust down, and keeps overspray from messing up the floor. good ventilation is important, and filter the air coming in to the garage (i buy cheap cardboard and fiberglass filters and coat them with penetrating oil). remember the buildup of fumes is explosive, not too good for your respiratory system, hard on your skin, and the paint dust settles on tacky paint and dulls it. NOTHING THAT MAKES A SPARK--AND NO PILOT LIGHTS!!!!!!!!!!!!! that includes the compressor motor---save the victory cigar for after the job----outside.
i learned by watching others, reading, and practising on an old car hood. i made mistakes, and corrected them myself. i am my harshest critic, and demand more of myself than i will ever expect from others, and after some doing, am satisfied with the outcome of the paint work i've done, even though i have never done a perfect job by my standards. i have painted street rods, semi's, boats and skateboards (i got kids, and my son just HAD to have a flame paint job--we did it together). take your time, experiment on scrap metal, and remember if another human can do it, you can too with patience. you too will make mistakes, and learn, and get better every time. probably the cheapest stuff to practice with is good old cheap enamel and thinner, and paint the stuff you need to spruce up, but paint it like it's going to be a crown jewel---you know--those cabinets in the shop, that old toolbox, those wheels that have been sitting around that you're going to take to the swapmeet, the mailbox--be creative, and practice. now this ain't all the is too it--but it's a start--read what you can--carefully, and follow directions--to the letter, watch somebody if you can, ask questions, and of course, watch the bolt page. there's some amazing knowledge here, and really good guys to help.
