Clearcoat over Paint

[Jaywatt]

I am working on some metal control panels for a tube amplifier project that I'm working on. What I'd like to do is paint a piece of sheet steel in a nice clean coat of black, use a laser engraver to burn the text and whatnot into the paint, exposing bare steel as the contrasting color, and then top it all with a clear coat. Problem is, almost every single paint/clear coat that I have tried causes the base paint layer to wrinkle up. Polycrylic has zero water resistance and polyurethane looks weird. Rust-Oleum Acrylic Enamel smells just like lacquer and causes minor wrinkles. Nitro Lacquer was the absolute worst. Tried a variety of hardware store spray paints as the base layer.

I know that they do this with a lot of automotive finishes. Any tips on what product to buy that'll work? I don't need any sparkly effects/pearls/glitter etc. Just clear on black. I have an HVLP gun, but we're talking only about 2 square feet here. Rattle can would be preferred but I'll use the HVLP if absolutely necessary.

I'm gonna have to see these panels every time I look at the amp. I just want them to look nice.

 

[chopolds_2]

If using automotive paints, use a good etch primer. A light coat or 2. Then regular black basecoat. You can even get it in small amounts (pints). Then use a good quality urethane clear. It will NOT wrinkle these paints. Clear you'll have to buy in quarts, and be sure to get hardener for the clear and reducer for the basecoat.
Spray can paint is notoriously poor quality, and you never know what chemistry (paint type) they are, so mix and and matching are just a guess. And forget longevity.