Captain, keep going with the body work and prep....
Here's what a someone said to me recently at a local car show when we talked about paint jobs, " Ya know, these things left the factory 40 years ago with single stage paint jobs...."
That's what's going on our Duster when she's ready. A few local body shops have quoted under a grand if we do most of the prep. I also bought some fenders from a fellow member who lives in the next town over and he painted his Duster in his 1 car garage last winter with single stage paint and it looks real nice. He took his time and he learned as he went. So you don't need to spend a fortune on paint.
DD