I think I've reached a milestone at this point.
I know I haven't posted in a while, and here's why. I got incomplete instructions as well as the wrong reducer for the primer from the body supply shop. Fast forward (after all the shaping, sanding, filling, sanding, priming, sanding and wet sanding) to the application of paint and it became something of a Hollywood special effect.
We masked for the red center stripe and mustache first, before the white went over the rest, and by the time we finished the last piece the first one was a mess. There was a reaction between the primer and the solvents in the paint (likely because the solvents in the primer were still there) and the overlying surface looked like alligator skin. Not orange peel, but genuine sun-cracked desert floor after a monsoon, watch out don't cut yourself on it, alligator skin.
That's a little overly dramatic but to say I was upset was an understatment. The paint just shrivelled upon itself.
It wasn't going to fix itself so it needed to get stripped off. I tried a chem stripper for the rear clip and it ended up pulling off the paint, primer, filler, and even some resin and gel coat. I literally washed away about six months of my work.
I didn't go out into the garage for about 3 weeks.
The supply store realized what they did and graciously volunteered to replace my supplies (primer and paint is spendy!). Unfortunately I was on the hook for reworking the surfaces.
Subsequently I've been chasing my tail in the garage trying to get the flares filled and smoothed back in like they were and then sanding off everything that was on the car, back down to the gel coat.
That's been a little work. It's hot (HOT) in Phoenix right now and I don't like working in 110°+ weather. The garage stays cooler, like 100°, but it's still HOT. Even though it's been this hot, as I sand I can still smell the solvents escaping as I open the surface to atmosphere.
The whole thing has been a little frustrating, but at this point I am through the worst of it. I have the small things in the rear clip to fix still and then to sand the doors and sills. The front clip and spider are done.
Someone said doing the car yourself that you'll learn about all of the mistakes you can make and that you'll end up doing most of them. I am still enjoying building the car but I am ready to never touch another piece of sandpaper again!
It'll still be a while before I make any forward progress but it does feel good to get things sanded and ready to prime again.
Chris