I think you're overlooking THE cardinal rule of painting, which is to follow the manufacturer's tech sheets. Wherever you bought your materials, they have Product Information Sheets, or "P-sheets" as they're called. These are usually handed to the customer with the primer, paint or clear at the time of purchase and are full of answers to the questions you have. Variables like, reducing ratios, spraying temps, tip size for your gun and surface prep are all covered as are such important items like safe use of the product. But here's what I do for primer: first make sure the surface is clean. I do this with a final wipe degreaser. I use House of Kolor's stuff, but any good brand will do. Don't allow it to dry on the surface, just wipe on, then wipe off with a dry, clean rag. Next, I mix the primer and strain it into the gun. Since I use an epoxy primer, it's not necessary to thin it, jusy mix part A to part B and strain it into the gun. If you're using something like a lacquer primer, you need to thin it 100%-125%. If your primer isn't going on "wet" enough, check your tip size. I use a 1.8 tip, but most primers will be better off with a 1.5 tip. You should also have a guage/regulator on your gun. If not, they're only about $20, buy one so you KNOW what the pressure is at the gun. Most HVLP guns need about 20-25 lbs at the gun to work properly. Also, make sure if you are using an HVLP gun to keep your gun close to the surface (about 5"-7") and parallel to the surface. I highly recommend picking up a copy of House of Kolor's books by Jon Kosmoski, they're on ebay all the time and are excellent books to help someone get pointed in the right direction, regardless of paint brand. Hope this helps.