To sand or Not to sand...

[Ken McGuire]

I am painting a 1940 Ford Coupe model in two-tone paint. I've painted the bottom section but - because I'm a dummy and didn't wipe down the body first - there are a few pieces of dust in the paint.

I'm wondering if I should correct the problems in the bottom section (sand it out and put on another coat) now OR paint the top section in the other color and then sand out the whole paint job (which I'll probably have to do anyway)?

If I do only the one area, will it mean that the overall paint job will have different thickness of paint in places and will show it?

[Ace-Garageguy]

I assume it's solid colors, not metallics or pearls (in which case you'll have to sand the trash out and shoot another coat). If it's solid colors, just shoot the other color and sand / polish all at the same time. You can also shoot clear over all of it to even out the level of the paint at the tape line.

[Ken McGuire]

Thanks Bill. They are solid colors so I'll shoot the other color and clean it all up afterward. Anyway, it's not too bad and this will be a learning experience as I've just returned to the hobby. I was concentrating so much on mixing paint, reducer and hardener for my return to airbrushing that I forgot the first rule: make sure the body is clean!