Hi Chuck - at first glance, your test area looks kind of dull and it looks like the surface is blotchy, in the light reflections. Granted the light isn't that great, but the surface doesn't look smooth - was it straight to begin with?
What did you use when wetsanding, did you do it by hand or with a block of some sort? If the surface really is as uneven as it looks you might want to try a soft foam sanding block with your paper wrapped around it.
If you did everything as prescribed in this thread and the job came out lacking lustre as it appears to, you might want to try actual rustoleum, e.g. from walmart. I don't know if the paint is the difference or if it's the technique but your surface does not seem to be as glossy or mirror like as it could be. for example this is with the same technique, foam sanding block used when wetsanding, and with cheap rustoleum gloss from walmart.
If the paint surface is uneven, I would go back at it with 600 grit and water, with a soft foam block, till it's smooth, then build it up again with 2-3 more thin coats.
Hi Guys...to be honest, I had my biggest problem with the "inexpensive" orbital polisher. Everything went fine until the final wetsand/polish but the orbital polisher would not bring back the shine! So, I wiped it down with mineral spirits and applied another coat of paint. It started to become a bit of a "dull mess" at this time (wax coat, mineral spirit coat, new paint coat!!). In a last ditch effort, I wetsanded again with all three grades starting with 600 up to 1500 again then used the "pro" grade buffer. I could tell this was the problem (for me).
So, I decided instead of redoing this test-area, I would just move on to the trunk. I seemed to have found the proper technique and hopefully will get better results in the end with the trunk lid...i'll let you know as I go along.
Thanks again guys, Chuck
PS...it does look alot better outside in natural lighting, but it was stormy the day I took the pictures and white doesn't reflect well on a cloudy day!!
