I am just going to kick some basic knowlage of Paint, This is by no-means a Tech-Article or even a DIY. More or less some basic info. I feel the CB7tuner novice should have under his belt to better help him understand the BASICS of paint. Should you feel my info is incorrect, just post up what you have to contribute... 
If you have any Specific questions I'll try to answer them to the best of my ability.. RYAN.
Q) What color is my Car...?
A) If you open your driver's door and look to the right on the center post or *B* Pillar you will see your vehicle's color code...
Q) How Much Paint Will I need To Paint My Car...?
A) With a FULL paint-job including your jams you would be better off getting a gallon of paint and a gallon of clear just to be on the safe side and have some left over. However 2-3 quarts will shoot the whole car. ***BTW 4 Quarts = 1 gallon***
Q) What's the difference between a Two-Stage and Single Stage Paint Job..?
A) A Single stage Paint is cheaper quality. having the paint and clear mixed toghter allows for painting once and the job is done *Similar to some Earl-Scheib paint jobs*. A two-stage paint is Identical to your O.E.M paint. It has a Base Coat for the color, and a clear sprayed on top of it. Two stages are superior quality to ANY single stage because they offer better protection to the elements, look alot better in terms of quality, and more *Fixable* i.e buffing out scratches, blending the paint ect...
Q) What is Blending...?
A) Blending is when you spray paint on an adjacent panel to what ever your painting however you only lay the Base coat or Color a few inches in. Then you clear coat the entire panel. For example is you change your fender and it's a different color you need to paint it, however the new paint might not perfectly match you old door so you would want to "blend" the new paint into the old door. This tricks your eye into seeing the repair as a whole instead of looking a one piece that's extremly shinny and abit off in color.
Q) How many coats of clear do I need for the best paint..?
A) Many people will probally argue about this cuz there is a ton of mis-information floating around. But, I always read magazines and get a good laugh. My car has 12 coats of clear and looks great...
The most coats of clear I would reccomend would be 3 or 4. You can however put much clear you want. When you buff it out you'll see why it's not good to add too many Layers to your paint.. It's not the Quanity as much as the QUALITY! 10 coats of cheap clear does nothing for your perfect paint, however 3-4 coats of the good stuff *Du-Pont, PPg* will give you a great finish that will last 10 + Years...
Q) I want a custom paint job. How much will it cost...?
A) It depends on too many things to actually answer this question. Ask yourself what do you want out of it..? Perfection..? It's always better to do it the right way the first time BUT, not always praticle. Do you want to remove your, windows, trim, door handles, interior, parts in the engine compartment ect..? Just so you don't have tape lines...? Or do you just want to mask everything off...? Do you care if down the road your paint starts cracking..? or do you want it to last forever. Bottom-Line is The more you understand the paint process the better equiped YOU are to make that decesion and find out what best suits you and your budget.
Q) What kind of Primer do I need to use so my paint won't chip...?
A) A severly common Mis-conception is that you have to use primer under your paint... I.E Ever seen a car that is completly primered...? PRIMER IS ONLY USED WHERE A REPAIR HAS BEEN MADE. For example when you remove a dent and use body filler, you have to primer over the repair area to *Seal* it and provide a surface for the paint. However if your simply painting a piece such as a fender and no body repair was performed then wet-sanding and removal of the clear is all that is necessary. Old paint makes a great surface for new paint to attach too provided it is prepped right.
Q) My paint is chipping of my bumper left & right but the rest is fine. Why...?
A) When painting Flexable pieces such as Plastic like your bumpers. Extra prepping must be done to ensure the paint will adhere proprely. It's called a Flex Addative. This is a coat the is sprayed on before the base coat that better enables your paint to *Flex* and this is what resists it from rapidly craking or flaking. This addative is not used on Metal surfaces. This is why the rest of the paint is fine but the bumper is not.
Q) I just got a Complete paint job but my bumpers look like there a different color...?
A) As stated before, bumpers have an added process called a "Flex-Addative" this gererally will make the paint a-bit darker than a painted surface that dosen't have the addative. Also, plastic generally dosen't except paint the way metal does, so you will never get a PERFECT color match between plastic and metal. If you don't belive me go to a Brand New car dealership, look around the lot at Brand New cars and observe the differences between the color of the bumpers and the rest of the car. You Will Be Surprised now that you know what to look for.
I WILL ADD MORE TO THIS LATER!!!....
If you have any Specific questions I'll try to answer them to the best of my ability.. RYAN. Q) What color is my Car...?
A) If you open your driver's door and look to the right on the center post or *B* Pillar you will see your vehicle's color code...
Q) How Much Paint Will I need To Paint My Car...?
A) With a FULL paint-job including your jams you would be better off getting a gallon of paint and a gallon of clear just to be on the safe side and have some left over. However 2-3 quarts will shoot the whole car. ***BTW 4 Quarts = 1 gallon***
Q) What's the difference between a Two-Stage and Single Stage Paint Job..?
A) A Single stage Paint is cheaper quality. having the paint and clear mixed toghter allows for painting once and the job is done *Similar to some Earl-Scheib paint jobs*. A two-stage paint is Identical to your O.E.M paint. It has a Base Coat for the color, and a clear sprayed on top of it. Two stages are superior quality to ANY single stage because they offer better protection to the elements, look alot better in terms of quality, and more *Fixable* i.e buffing out scratches, blending the paint ect...
Q) What is Blending...?
A) Blending is when you spray paint on an adjacent panel to what ever your painting however you only lay the Base coat or Color a few inches in. Then you clear coat the entire panel. For example is you change your fender and it's a different color you need to paint it, however the new paint might not perfectly match you old door so you would want to "blend" the new paint into the old door. This tricks your eye into seeing the repair as a whole instead of looking a one piece that's extremly shinny and abit off in color.
Q) How many coats of clear do I need for the best paint..?
A) Many people will probally argue about this cuz there is a ton of mis-information floating around. But, I always read magazines and get a good laugh. My car has 12 coats of clear and looks great...
The most coats of clear I would reccomend would be 3 or 4. You can however put much clear you want. When you buff it out you'll see why it's not good to add too many Layers to your paint.. It's not the Quanity as much as the QUALITY! 10 coats of cheap clear does nothing for your perfect paint, however 3-4 coats of the good stuff *Du-Pont, PPg* will give you a great finish that will last 10 + Years...Q) I want a custom paint job. How much will it cost...?
A) It depends on too many things to actually answer this question. Ask yourself what do you want out of it..? Perfection..? It's always better to do it the right way the first time BUT, not always praticle. Do you want to remove your, windows, trim, door handles, interior, parts in the engine compartment ect..? Just so you don't have tape lines...? Or do you just want to mask everything off...? Do you care if down the road your paint starts cracking..? or do you want it to last forever. Bottom-Line is The more you understand the paint process the better equiped YOU are to make that decesion and find out what best suits you and your budget.
Q) What kind of Primer do I need to use so my paint won't chip...?
A) A severly common Mis-conception is that you have to use primer under your paint... I.E Ever seen a car that is completly primered...? PRIMER IS ONLY USED WHERE A REPAIR HAS BEEN MADE. For example when you remove a dent and use body filler, you have to primer over the repair area to *Seal* it and provide a surface for the paint. However if your simply painting a piece such as a fender and no body repair was performed then wet-sanding and removal of the clear is all that is necessary. Old paint makes a great surface for new paint to attach too provided it is prepped right.
Q) My paint is chipping of my bumper left & right but the rest is fine. Why...?
A) When painting Flexable pieces such as Plastic like your bumpers. Extra prepping must be done to ensure the paint will adhere proprely. It's called a Flex Addative. This is a coat the is sprayed on before the base coat that better enables your paint to *Flex* and this is what resists it from rapidly craking or flaking. This addative is not used on Metal surfaces. This is why the rest of the paint is fine but the bumper is not.
Q) I just got a Complete paint job but my bumpers look like there a different color...?
A) As stated before, bumpers have an added process called a "Flex-Addative" this gererally will make the paint a-bit darker than a painted surface that dosen't have the addative. Also, plastic generally dosen't except paint the way metal does, so you will never get a PERFECT color match between plastic and metal. If you don't belive me go to a Brand New car dealership, look around the lot at Brand New cars and observe the differences between the color of the bumpers and the rest of the car. You Will Be Surprised now that you know what to look for.
I WILL ADD MORE TO THIS LATER!!!....
but, house paints are not the same...
Some have a three stage with an added pearl though... 
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