My First Resto-Mod (Guidance Appreciated)

There are several alternatives for going "flat" (which usually means satin for most, it is easier to wash) DISCLAIMER: I am not a professional painter, but I worked at a body shop for a few years and did some painting so I know enough to be dangerous. Since the flat look is popular right now, there are several companies selling clear that is a satin finish right out of the can. This helps eliminate some of the trial and error of adding a flattening agent, and hopefully helps with matching. I think I would use something like this because you still have the UV protection you would with any other 2 stage paint job, but the flat look you are going for. There are probably many threads on this subject from people that are into this paint style.

I do recommend priming with a quality epoxy primer (black if you are going to paint it black anyway :) ) after you blast it so you aren't chasing reoccurring surface rust. Also I would consider not blasting the entire car. Doors, qtr panel, roofs, hoods and decklids are already stretched
and blasting can cause some serious warpage. I plan to use a soda blaster for my hood/trunk/doors. The soda blasters do not rely on brute force to remove paint, but rather some ionic reaction.

To remove the paint from the shell, I put some scratches in the paint with 40 grit, then applied paint stripper and used putty knifes to remove most of the base coat. I then cleaned it all up with a DA using 80 grit. I only used sandblasting on my firewall, wheel wells, and some floor areas that were rusty from standing water.