Got a couple questions.

I've been trying to paint a couple side covers for my motorcycle that were originally painted a different color.

Initially, all i did was use surface prep on the original paint on both pieces, and I painted black lacquer over it on both pieces, inside my garage. The paint went on pretty nicely, although it had some little bits of dust or something stuck in it, but it was shiny and pretty smooth.

However the one piece had some chips in the original paint that were still showing through the new paint so I figured I would repaint it. I scuffed the old paint with a green scotchbrite pad, then put on some primer over it that I bought that was listed as "Automotive Primer." After that dried I painted the black lacquer over it.

No matter what I did, I absolutely could not get a glossy finish over that primer. Instead it looked more like a semi gloss. I don't understand why.

I tried to paint it again the other night...I again scuffed the surface with the green scotchbrite, and applied different primer, then painted it again (this time outside). The paint dried all cloudy. I didn't think the humidity was that high but apparently it was.

This is driving me nuts. What do I need to do to get a decent finish on this thing...paint it inside only? And apparently not over that primer? ugh.

 

After the prime coat , did you sand the primer smooth with 400 before repainting ?..

If it dries dull , you can always wet sand with 1200 or so & buff it

Lastly , you could simply wash all the paint back off with thinner and start over , (take the chips out first)

 

Are the products all lacquer base?

 

I've used green stuff in a toothpaste tube to fill in chips like that. Don't at all remember the
name of it, tho....

 

3M Acryl Green Spot Putty

I would have just sanded everything smooth, primed, sanded with 400 then painted.

 

Neither of the things of primer says what kind of base they are.

Well maybe I can buff out the one cover that dried cloudy, I dunno. If not I guess I'll have to strip it.

 

I used some aluminum polish on the cloudy paint and it took out the cloudiness, but the surface has a lot of orange peel.

I may try to wet sand it sometime.

 

With lacquer you can do many coats, 5 + thin coats is normal, it really helps to build depth.

 

If its in a spray bomb, its either lacquer based or an unactivated enamel. Neither will be very durable. If its spray bomb primer, its most likely lacquer based. Enamel will dry with a gloss, although out of a spray bomb will not be great. Using an activator in enamel will help its cure time, gloss level, and durability some. You do not want to spray a lacquer based product over a enamel, even more so unactivated one which can remain solvent sensitive even many years down the road. The harsh solvents will most likely lift and craze the enamel.

Lacquer products do not dry with much gloss, they require buffing to bring out the gloss. Back in the dinosaur days when lacquer was the norm, if a metallic was used, a clear lacquer was applied, because of the need to buff, so the metallic would not be affected as a result. Lacquer is also high in solvent, and requires much more coats applied to get sufficient film build, so its not really a cheap paint compared to modern urethane when you consider how far the paint takes you, and superior durability and longevity a urethane has over a lacquer. When you hear someone say they want 10 coats of clear, and think its a good idea,thats left over from the lacquer days. 10 coats of a modern paint would be excessive film build which would only likely lead to problems.
Its hard to beat the look of a freshly buffed lacquer job, urethane being a higher solids material is very difficult to avoid a little bit of urethane peel, that wavy look when you site down the side in the right light. Lacquer, having so much more solvent content, doesn't really have that characteristic. I remember reading a saying once, you could almost apply lacquer with a windex bottle and have it turn out good. Lacquer primer will provide little if any protection to bare metal. Lacquers durability and longevity and the up keep required is at the bottle of the barrel as far as paint systems go, and most painters aren't sad to see it gone to the wayside.
The stuff in the green toothpaste tube, sounds like 3m acryli green putty. That like other 1k puttys will usually shrink and show in the paint work in time.