Originally posted by Steward
I bought a can of "Rustoleum Metalic" today...
It turns out pretty... but has the smoothness of course sandpaper... I can sand it out, but man that's alot of trouble... and you lose the sparkle...
I thought about just filling it with clear coat... which might work... but will certainly add too much weight...
Oh well...
Watch out guys...!!! Live and learn...
Do NOT cover it with clear coat. It even says this on the instructions. I know because I ruined a few finishes before I read them. You'll end up with the base color; grey if steel or aluminum, tan if gold, brown if copper. Use Future. It will coat and protect and not reduce the sheen.
It smooths better if you use a very smooth base. I use satin finish for this.
Coarse sandpaper? You did something wrong. Mine is "dusty" at worst, much finer than 600 grit. And most of that wipes smooth with a towel. On a good sub-surface I can now get the chrome to reflect a sharp image.
You need to put a fair amount on. Two light coats at a time. I do this three times. Either do it between 15 and 60 minutes after the prior coat, or else wait at least 48 hours.
And, use a handle or stand so you don't have to handle it after painting. Even when the paint is dry, it's soft. Even as late as the day after painting, you can leave fingerprints in the paint (raised ones, not just smudges) if you try to pick it up directly.
This stuff takes some learning and practice, but it's worth it. When I finally finished the Kappa 9 M with the stainless steel and aluminum sections obviously different, I had a paint job I was finally proud of. But I had to let the aluminum coats dry for a week before I could mask it for the chrome coat, without leaving marks from the tape.
