How many coats of paint?

[Doppleganger]

I was told that after the high build primer (light gray), to put another coat of epoxy sealer (satin black) so the color's (dark blue metallic) coverage is better.

?!

 

[CalSgt]

I was told that after the high build primer (light gray), to put another coat of epoxy sealer (satin black) so the color's (dark blue metallic) coverage is better.

?!

Not epoxy! IMHO epoxy is think and sticky, it doesn't lay down super nice and is a PIA to sand. If you sanded your surfacer down to bare steel a little epoxy on the spots will be needed before top coat. Ask the shop that sold you your paint if they recommend a sealer before base coat.

If you bought high quality base coat it should cover grey surfacer just fine. Buy a tinted sealer that is compatible with your paint to make coverage easier if need be.

ETA: Some primer surfacers can be tinted too, this could be an option

 

[Grit dog]

You could give it a top coat of black primer or sealer. Although imo that makes it harder to see any light coverage areas.
I’d shoot the base over the high build anyway as long as it’s a good 2k urethane primer. Although I recognize the benefits of sealer.

Regardless, you do want to do the inside of the cab and all the jamming and misc areas first, unless you’re a pro. I’m not and I could barely handle doing everything from the upper trim line at the same time. (Which I did for color consistency, although I can see no differences in the other areas I painted the light color separately. Nor can I see any differences in the dark blue bed and cab which I did separately.

The challenge is what to jam out and how to mask it or cover it later. As you don’t want to be spraying new base on shiny hard clear. For obvious reasons.

 

[Joshua Keith]

I painted mine white. I did 4 base/3 clear

 

[Need15]

The color your spraying and the tier of product will determine how many coats of base are needed. A really transparent color like some reds and yellows and a cheaper product line might take more costs of base to get proper coverage. Sealers and tintable sealers can help with this. 3 coats of dark blue should cover that light grey depending on tier of product like was mentioned earlier.

3 coats of clear and light wet sand and polish is what I would call average. 2 coats of clear and no wet sand and polish is what gives you proper UV protection so you want to try and maintain at least that 2 coat mil thickness. So the more you plan to wet sand and polish the more subsequent coats of clear you will need, to a point as i wouldn't exceed more than 5 coats.

I have painted cars with the panels all off the car and metallic colors with no problems of them not matching but I make sure use the paint from the same can and always painted one set of parts one day and the next set the next day so everything was as fresh as could be in my mind in regards to air pressure and everything else. Now with that being said if your new to painting or don't have alot of experience I would probably stick to painting it all together to be on the safe side. Just make sure you mask really well for overspray and all will be good.