i have two fenders inside and out. a grille and cowl to paint at the moment. i've never done paint what do i need. i'll be using a gun. i called the paint store he asked if i'll be clear coating it. do i have to? advantages disadvantages? he said something about reducer. what the hell is that? and any guesses on how much i'll need?

 

I just went through all of this and let me tell you its a pain the truck is actually sitting in the yard now with fresh paint. Clear coating depends on the paint if you use a base coat clear coat system you will need the clear coat the paint comes out dull without gloss the clear coat is what gives it its shine. Single stage paints such as enamel and single stage urethane do not need clear coat the shine comes from the paint itself but you can still clear coat if you wish for added protection which is what I did. Reducer is a combination of solvents that reduce the paint and set the pace at which it dries. There are slow medium and fast reducers and the deciding factor on what one is used is the temperature at which your painting, the paint store should have recommendations for that. As far as quantity I used two gallons of paint to paint my 97 12v minus the inside of the bed so I figure you'll probably need a gallon at the most and reducer based on the mix ratio of whatever your painting. Talk to the people at the paint store they should give you some advice. Somebody with more experience feel free to chime in.

 

i would say if you have never painted before either let a pro handle it, or practice a lot before you spray your actual truck! as long as you get the mix ratios of the paint spot on you should be good. gun controll is by far the hardest thing to get a handle on but is the key to good spray!
prep has to be top notch or anything will show through! all grease wax, oils etc have to be cleaned off.
overlap as much as you like i usually go about 45%, and depending on the color swap from going side to side to up and down even diaganol to avoid getting "tiger stripes" once you think everything is covered good, do one more coat!
clearcoat spray it on and keep it wet while you are spraying it without it running. again just an experience thing. hope this helps you out.
as for single stage it is easier and harder in some ways, less spraying etc, but if you don't spray it right it will look fuzy. plus it fades much quicker than the clearcoat does.