Painting Advice?

Hey all,

I picked up a cheap Dell C600 from a friend and decided to try to apply a basic custom paint job. I looked at a couple of the threads here to get an idea of what I supposed to do and hopped to it. Unfortunately it didn't turn out so well and I want to know what I should've done differently.

So I started by sanding down the cover using 200, 300, then 400 grit sandpaper. The cover was originally textured so I simply kept sanding it until I could no longer feel the texture:

http://76.21.4.254/my pictures/Dsc04729.jpg

Now I wanted to try to get a mirror finish so I added layers of spray paint (Krypton something I picked up from Orchard Supply) until the cover was somewhat reflective. Once it stopped getting smoother I stopped applying more coats. That was about after four coats:

http://76.21.4.254/my pictures/Dsc04738.jpg

At this point I had something that called itself "acrylic coating" which I thought would finish it off and make it smooth. Unfortunately after two coats it simply started blurring the surface unevenly and I stopped.

http://76.21.4.254/my pictures/Dsc04739.jpg

By this time I was outta time so I put the thing back together with the intention of doing something about it at a later point. While the surface is not mirror smooth, it looks reasonable at some angles:

http://76.21.4.254/my pictures/Dsc04760.jpg

But the uneven looking acrylic coat is evident at others... (Look at the reflection)

http://76.21.4.254/my pictures/Dsc04755.jpg

So at this point I want to start over. I want to know:

1) How to get rid of the old coat of paint; can I just sand it off again?

2) How can I get a smoother finish? Should I sand it more? Use a different paint? Use another sort of finish?

Any sort of advice is appreciated, I'm really quite a noob at this!!

 

try wet sanding it down with a 1000grit, then 1500, then 2000 and once you are done with that you should be able to buff it back to a shine. if not that what ever is on there needs to be stripped off using a thinner. do not use paint stripper on plastic

 

Should I do this on top of the current paintjob? Also, I was thinking about "buffing" it earlier, but I have no idea as to what tools to use, any suggestion there would be nice.

 

thanks for the advice

 

yes you can do it to the existing paint... just be careful you dont burn through the clear coat you have applied... you can use either a buffer made for auto use but that could be cumbersome if you dont know how to use one.. or get one of the powerballs from mothers and use it on your drill. first geta fine cut compound and apply it to get rid of the haze from sanding then use a swirl remover or "glaze" to get rid of the fine sanding line left after compounding..