You can buy huge mixing containers.
If you are not activating the base coat and only mixing it with reducer it will keep IF in a tightly sealed container.
Personally, I mix only what I plan to spray at the moment. I have had too many things pop up that interrupted my painting plans for the day.

I find 1 oz of mixed base per square foot works pretty good for me.
Panels size vary way to much to count panels.
A large car has the same no. of panels as a small car.

Is that 1oz per square foot per coat?

So after doing a sprayout on a test panel it appears I will need 6 coats of base for this 68' Mustang based on how I spray, speed and gun setup. Does that seam like a lot of coats? I also re-evaluated how many sprayable ounces I will need, I added some more panels (inner trunk, back side of fenders) and this is my new total:

Paint needed to paint the Mustang
I need 8 ounces spray-able per panel.
Hood (2 sides) = 2 panels
Deck Lid (2 sides) = 2 panels
Doors = 2 panels
Fenders = (2 sides) 4 panels
Quarters = 2 panels
Roof = 1 panel
Front and Rear Valances and Jambs are all small = 1 panel
Inner Trunk = 2 panels

Total 16 panels x 8 oz = 128 ounces of spray-able per coat.
128 x 6 = 768 ounce (6 ready to spray gallons)

Does that seam like a lot to do the entire car inside and out?

Below is a sample of how each coat looked. Is it normal for the base to be that transparent?

I am confused as to why you would need 6 coats of base?
I have found most will cover just fine with 3 coats.

You are definitely spraying your coat too dry.

to me looks like you are spraying ok. your problem is that color shouldve been sprayed over a very dark gray if not black

your coats should look cloudy like you are spraying them.

again proper undercoat is key to success.

there is not a paint system in this world that can promise two or three coat coverage on every color.

when applying basecoat or SS top coats do not expect optimum results when you have not planned color from the ground up.

I am a first time painter so asking...I am wondering about the 1oz per ft. I am painting a small MGB and guestimate there is about 78 sq ft figuring just the exterior of the body panels (already painted inside). I have been using about 24 oz per coat of base. so with 3 coats applying close to the 1 oz per sq ft.
So is it 1 oz per coat or 1oz per entire base application?

damac wrote:i'm in the same situation with my first project. a small 1979 rabbit and i have typical mixing cups from local dealer. just putting one coat of sealer on the outside of this car with no panels on it used more than the max i could get from one mixing cup! so i was freaking out and mixing on the fly. i would rather not. so my for dinky car i am going to probably need 4 of those mixing cups full to get my 3 coats.

so obviously i follow my products techsheet as far as potlife.

but do you just mix a few batches up and then dump all the paint into one bigger container and put a lid on it, then mix and refill paint gun when needed with a strainer?

sounds dumb but i was worrying about how to do this, and never thought of a bigger container lol. should the paint stores sell larger mixing cups so you can do bigger batches at once?

i mix enough for 1 full coat all at the same time.. no, 1 full coat plus some- i found out the hard way its better to have 6-8 oz too much than 6-8 oz not enough.
mix everything in the bigger container- measure out the paint, then the reducer and activator and mix all at once.
i have a devilbiss copper tekna and have the dekups system for it. i can fill up 3 or 4 or those and have the ready to go. just twist one off, twist on the next, purge the air,and im rockein again real quick.

you shouldnt have a problem with the potlife unless you are extremely slow.

boggsy64 wrote:I am a first time painter so asking...I am wondering about the 1oz per ft. I am painting a small MGB and guestimate there is about 78 sq ft figuring just the exterior of the body panels (already painted inside). I have been using about 24 oz per coat of base. so with 3 coats applying close to the 1 oz per sq ft.
So is it 1 oz per coat or 1oz per entire base application?

For me and my gun, it's 1oz of mixed base will give 3 coats sprayed.
Same rule for clear.
Of course, there are a lot of variables.
Mix half of what you need and spray it first for a large job.
Then you should be able to estimate how much more it will take to complete.

JC thanks for the confirmation that I have been applying approximately the right amount of paint. Now applying it correctly is another matter I am still working on!