I stink at painting, please help

[fsa317]

Hi, so I'm on my 3rd coat of paint.  I did 2 coats of oil based primer, and 2 coats of oil satin black.  After each I've been sanding.  Things were going good but i noticed that I have lots of roller marks especially near the edges of the roller itself.  I'm using a 6" foam rollers but the paint seems to mainly get soaked up at the edges.  The issue is primarily noticeable on the large side pieces where i have to make more strokes.  I cant tell if I'm using too much or too little paint as i find myself having to push pretty hard on the roller, which makes the problem worse.

Any tips?

[yotsuya]

Hi, so I'm on my 3rd coat of paint.  I did 2 coats of oil based primer, and 2 coats of oil satin black.  After each I've been sanding.  Things were going good but i noticed that I have lots of roller marks especially near the edges of the roller itself.  I'm using a 6" foam rollers but the paint seems to mainly get soaked up at the edges.  The issue is primarily noticeable on the large side pieces where i have to make more strokes.  I cant tell if I'm using too much or too little paint as i find myself having to push pretty hard on the roller, which makes the problem worse.

Any tips?

Don't push hard. Gently roll the roller and let it do the work. I learned that the hard way. 

[fsa317]

I think what might be happening is this (tell me if it makes sense).  I'm using one of those plastic insert into a roller tray.  When i put the roller in it seems like the tray gives a little and the ends of the roller are the only thing getting the paint, which causes me to push harder to get some paint out of the entire roller.  I think i need a better way to ensure even paint distribution on the roller itself.

[taylormadelv]

Foam roller is good! I prefer the  smooth 4" rollers. If you are using a standard roller pan, make sure you roll the roller on the "ramp" part of the pan and even out the paint on the roller before you apply. That way you will have an even amount of paint all around the roller and doesn't get saturated on just one side of the roller or on the ends.
The temperature of the setting you paint in and speed you paint will also make a big difference in how smooth your paint strokes will dry. Too hot and the paint drys too fast and streaky, too cold and the paint dries too slow and gunky. Painting relatively quickly can also help hide the "lap" lines from the roller. Hope this helps!