painting advice needed, original 914-6, doing metalic paint, can it be done? Options

[highways]

So I have a few questions... I'm restoring a 914-6 and want to cross all the "t's" and dot all the "i's". The body is stripped down to bear metal and bodywork is all straight. I want to do the spray job myself- and I'm totally confident in being able to do a good single coat job. But the original factory color on this 6 was a metalic color. Now I doubt that the exact paint type is still available (this was in the early days of metalic paint schemes) but I'm sure there's a modern three coat metalic color that's as close as it's ever going to be. So here are my questions:

1. Just how much more difficult is it to do a three coat metalic paint job compared to a normal paint job?

2. Is it possible for an skilled ametuer with a bit of practice (say on lots of large scrap sheet metal) to build enough proficiency for the project? If that ametuer can already do a good normal paint job...

3. The body will be painted inside and out... trunks, door jams, under bumpers, everywhere. Like I said ther car is pure bare metal currently. My concern is some of the smaller tighter radius concave and convex areas. How difficult is it to sufficiently paint these smaller radius areas like they did at the factory without drips and overspray?

4. How much is obsessive wet-sanding a determining factor in the final result of metalic jobs? I'm great at wet sanding- just concerned that professionally it's not part of the final process for metalic, or is it? Currently I understand that the skill with which the final clear coat is applied is the determining, and final quality of 'shine' factor.

5. How is the second coat (the metalic flake coat) applied evenly? Does it require special spray guns?

6. I'm going to build my own spray booth... do I need to consider special ventilation to prevent dried over spray from re-settling on the applied coat- creating roughness? Or can the booth be sealed and overspray in the air not be a concern to the car. (Me, the spray gun operator plans on wearing a full suit with compressed air pumped in to create a 'positive pressure' suit for respratory safety). Also- the booth will have to be electrical spark free (no light switches, cell phones, ect.) because I understand they can become explosive- filled with paint fumes. Is that scary fact alone a need for industrial type ventilation? Is it legal? Is static electricity a danger and how is it handled? I could imagine a synthetic paint suit making some static... hmmm.

7. Where can I find detailed information/DVD courses on do it yourself 3 coat metalic painting?

8. Are all three coats done in immediate succession, while paint is tacky or wet, or does the time frame not matter?

9. Am I insane for even considering doing this metalic 3 coat myself? I just can't afford a $5000 paint job... and I do trust myself to do a great non-metalic job... but I want to keep this car 100% original right down to the paint code number. I figure practice, and go for it! Talk me out of it, or forever hold your peace.

10. Considering that the car is completely bare metal- I'm curious about the possibility of doing exstensive POR-15(?) rust prevention painting pre everything else. Maybe even so far as essentially making the entire primer coat a POR-15 coat (914-6 timecapsule for the next 100 years!). Is this insane? A good or bad idea? I don't have experience using POR...

11. Any other advice, criticisms or dire warnings? Thanks in advance!

[914GT]

highways - here are my comments. I've done numerous paint jobs, including several metallics.

1. I think all you need is a metallic base coat followed by clear coat to duplicate the original appearance. With the car's paint code you can get an auto paint store to mix a metallic to the original color, or very close to it. I doubt if you want some kind of special metallic flake, pearl, or other custom-looking finish if you want the original look.
2. If you've painted cars before then you can master a metallic. If you haven't painted a car before, then practicing on some scrap metal will probably not be enough experience to do a high-quality job you'd expect for your car - even with a non-metallic. Metallics require painting all the panels at the same time, if possible, and in their normal orientation. It's not a good idea to paint metallics piece-by-piece because of shading variations. Also, I normally 'dust' or lightly dry spray after the last coat to let the metallic particles 'stand up' and even out the overall appearance.
3. This is where experience handling the gun comes in. In door jambs and tight areas you often change the gun's spray pattern (direction and fan-out) and even reduce the pressure to reduce blow-back. These are things you learn to do better after painting a few cars.
4. Sanding of the primer-surfacer is very important for the final finish. It's not just wet sanding, but the proper way to block sand or stick sand to level the finish. This is a very time consuming process to get the degree of perfection you want. The amount of work also greatly depends on the amount of body work, filler, etc. that must be tweaked to get the surface level. You can have a kick-ass paint job, but if there are waves and imperfections in the panels they will all show up.
5. I mentioned this above. I use my normal HVLP guns with a smaller tip used for other top coats.
6. It's good to have an area where you can control the ventilation/lighting and minimize dust, bugs, etc. Fresh filtered air should be brought in from above or one end, and the air exhausted out the other end or from below. You really want just enough ventilation to keep overspray from getting too high. You need to be able to see what you're painting. Clearcoats are worst because the clear stays in the air longer and can make it hard to see. For a home paint booth, too much ventilation can be bad because it can increase chance of dust or dirt being brought in. A breathing system with outside air is good, and almost mandatory for urethanes with isocyanates. Urethane 2-part paints are not too much of a danger for explosion. You would have to have the concentration extremely high (like no ventilation and can't see across the room) before it would likely be dangerous. That's because these urethanes are not so heavily solvent-based as the old lacquers and enamels. However they will build up on light fixtures and fan motors, and eventually could be a fire hazard. You want to protect anything electrical in the paint booth to reduce fire danger, and not keep cleaning rags and solvents laying around.
7. Autobodystore.com and Eastwood could be sources of information on special metallic paints.
8. Base coats are given enough time between coats to flash and have dull finish. You don't want metallics to be put on too heavy or quickly otherwise the metal particles will not orient properly. at least 30 -45 min time before applying clearcoat. Successive coats of clear also need enough time to set, so it's just sticky. Not enough time increases chances of runs and sags, expecially in overlap areas. A run or sag can mess up the metallic and be visible even if the run is taken out by sanding/buffing.
9. You're not insane, but you are just like I was about three years ago and want to know how to do it yourself. It's possible, but a lot of work. You probably won't get anywhere near perfection your first time. There are too many things to learn and those things you improve on the next time, including the paint booth, equipment, etc. If this is a real special car then you might consider painting an old daily-driver or beater first (or have a pro shop paint your 914).
10. Most restorers use epoxy or similar primer on bare metal panels, after properly sanding and degreasing. Keep the POR14 on chassis or other parts, not body panels.
11. Best of luck! Do a lot of reading. Hang out on Len's Autobodystore.com forum to learn more. He has some videos for sale. The hotrodders site mentioned earlier is also very good place to go.