Clear Coat question

[blackieNYC]

Clear Coat for Dummies: Do we sand in between coats?  (While I'm at it, what grain?)
I've bought some powder coated hammond boxes, and they just don't look as nice after I clear coat.

[GibsonGM]

I never clear over powder coated boxes, just ones that I paint myself.  The powder coat seems to 'already have its top coat', if that makes sense?  Like, that IS the finish....anyway...here are some clear coat tips for general use...

I would wait for the clear to completely dry - maybe a toaster oven would be good for this purpose - and then hit it with a fine grade sandpaper, just a bit.  What people use seems to vary, but what you'd use for auto work seems popular, about 600 grit.    Enough to smooth it out (you'll see there are high spots), make it consistent - to knock down dust that might have gotten into it...you may have 'orange peel' texture going on, which, after 4 coats of clear, makes it look like satin instead of gloss.

The best 'trick' I have for clear?  I don't use any sandpaper at all!  I use #0000 steel wool!   I'm a house painter...this is what I use between urethane coats when I'm going over a stain on interior wood work.   Just polish up with it, don't take off too much...wipe with a dust-free cloth, and apply clear.  After 3 to 4 coats, you should get to a place where you have sprayed, dried, and it looks good.    Don't put on too many coats 
That's my 2 cents, anyway.   

[thermionix]

Just don't use steel wool with lacquer, it won't adhere due to the oils left by the steel wool.

[GibsonGM]

Just don't use steel wool with lacquer, it won't adhere due to the oils left by the steel wool.

?   Do you mean nitrocell lacquer, or poly?   Some call polyurethane "lacquer"...  I could see this being true for nitro, which I never use. 

Never had an issue with polyurethane...

[thermionix]

Definitely nitrocellulose, and I would assume acrylic lacquer as well.  I've never heard anyone call polyurethane lacquer.  Get those mixed up and you're going to have an unpleasant finishing experience!

[GibsonGM]

Definitely nitrocellulose, and I would assume acrylic lacquer as well.  I've never heard anyone call polyurethane lacquer.  Get those mixed up and you're going to have an unpleasant finishing experience!

He he, for sure!    Yeah, some of us in America ain't so bright, and the wood working shows & mags often refer to 'poly' as 'lac'...it bothers me, too!  Lacquers tend to be alcohol based!    I'm a painter...the only worry for using steel wool would be with the ACRYLICS, absolutely...being water-based, you can get rust staining if you don't get all the wool off, and perhaps as you said, process oils can remain behind, not good.      Not a prob. with oil-based stuff.   

Most (all?) spray coats are going to be solvent-based, so should be ok.

[PRR]

As said: the "powder" is a plastic, clear base with pigment. So is paint. But with paint most of the body evaporates away, with powder it all stays. So the same pigment in a thicker layer of clear base "looks clear-coated".

The powder-coat guy can probably shoot a second coat of clear or "candy" for extra depth. The car-guys really push the limit on fancy finish. If your guy mostly does truck/boat work, he may have to ask his powder-salesman for the fancy-stuff catalog and some samples.