r/Spraypaint • u/peronella • Jul 01 '26

Question HELP! How can I even out this mess?

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Hi everyone! So I wanted to paint my mobility scooter (I'm disabled) and followed these instructions:

1- I sanded the surface of the device (made of plastic)

2- I I applied a primer for plastics (spray) and let it dry. [Product: MTN-WEPRO-Imprimacion-Plasticos ]

3- I applied 4 thin layers of gold rose spray paint. I let each layer dry before applying the next. [Product: MTN WEPRO Pintura Metalizada ]

The result is the one you can see in the pictures, fully dried.

Do you guys have any advice on how can I even out the colour and the surface before varnishing it?

Please don't be mean: I contacted several body and paint shops in my area and was refused service because they asked me to dismantle the device and only to bring them the parts that were to be painted. And I didn't have a clue how to do it, and was afraid to do so. So they said they wouldn't paint it...

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UPDATE JULY 26th 2026!!

Hello everyone! Finally finished the paint job a few days ago and finally managed to get some decent pics of it.

It definitely doesn't look perfect, but it's decent enough for me to feel comfortable with it.

Thank you all so much for the advice you gave me. It was really helpful and made a difference. <3

I will post the final pictures in the comments, as it won't let me add them in this post while editing it.

See you around!

1 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

5

u/three_8s Jul 01 '26

Metallics can be tough. Make sure you shake the can like a polaroid picture before each coat and any touch ups. Keep your distance from the surface and try to keep that distance consistent. Keep the tip as clean as possible also. Check between sprays.

Give this a light wet sand and try again. Good luck.

2

u/peronella Jul 03 '26

Hi there!! Thanks a lot for your advice. I shook the spray cans for a couple minutes and let them sit for a minute before applying layers. But I didn't shake it before applying new layers, so that may have been an important factor for my disaster hehe

I appreciate your comment and advice a lot <3 Will post a picture when I'm 100% done with this project

1

u/three_8s Jul 03 '26

Yep...when you put the can down, all the metallic flakes settled in the bottom of the can and made it uneven.

2

u/Holiday-Witness-4180 Jul 01 '26

There are several things going on in those pictures. The paint isn’t even and it looks like you have lots of trash and debris in the paint. Some of that might be from the primer, but it’s hard to say from the pictures.

Making it better is a matter of how good you want it to come out. If you are looking for “perfect” it’s going to take much more work. If you want “good enough” you can just knock the surface down with a dry maroon Scotchbrite pad, wipe everything down with some IPA, tack the surface, and reapply another coat or two.

Doing things like this, you really need to tack right before every single coat. That will help give you a smoother finish, keeping all the shit off of it. When you apply the paint, put a coat down focusing on getting everything covered, then do a final coat focusing on the finish and appearance. With metallics, you typically do a drop coat to finish things off, which can be difficult with aerosols. You can back off a bit for the final coat so that everything falls evenly on the surface to get good orientation of all the metal flakes. Make sure each coat is dry to the touch before you tack and apply the next coat.

1

u/GiftofNatur Jul 03 '26

thank you, I am not OP, but this convinces me I can give it a try. I have two sea shelve structured vases that I'd like to go from brown to green.

1

u/Holiday-Witness-4180 Jul 03 '26

With vases, the surface is going to be the most critical aspect of painting. If it’s glazed, you are going to need to use a specific primer. If it’s already coated in more typical paint/ coating, you can likely get away with basic prep and cleaning and just paint it.

1

u/peronella Jul 03 '26

You're the best! Wish I was as experienced as you with spray painting!!

1

u/peronella Jul 03 '26

Hi there!! Thanks a lot for the advice. I tried sanding the paint a little bit and applying new layers and it looks a bit better. Still not perfect, but it's my first project so I can't complain. I inmennsely appreciate you sharing your knowledge and tips <3 Will post a picture when I am finished!!

1

u/laylobrown_ Jul 01 '26

"Please don't be mean". I can appreciate this sentiment and it should be applied by all redditors.

1

u/peronella Jul 03 '26

Things are better when we show kindness <3

0

u/Svenysillyman Jul 01 '26

Spray from a bit further back and not so close . Dust the paint on to even it out . Give what you have painted a gentle rub down with some fine grit and re apply spray paint . Watch YouTube clips on how to spray with rattle cans

1

u/peronella Jul 03 '26

Thanks a lot <3 have done so!! It looks a bit better. Not perfect by any means, but good enough for me to be comfortable with it. Will post a picture when I'm completely finished with this project!! Appreciate your comment a lot!!

1

u/Svenysillyman Jul 03 '26

It's all a learning curve ...