another thing.. what brush are you using? I have a Badger 175 and a 155... no probs with full coverage painting with the 175, BUT with the 155 if I am not careful I end up with flat glosses, or grainy flats... as in too little paint versus pressure... it has a smaller needle than the 175 and I have to get in closer at a lower pressure and COVER it to make it gloss...
of course I fixed this by using my 175 for overall coverage... the 155 for detail... but if you're in this boat and only have 1 airbrush try getting closer with less pressure (not more paint) on a junk model and see what happens...
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Oh yeah I fourth the thing Reggie said!!!!