Indeed, customizing minimates is not the easiest thing to accomplish.
But once you finish it up, it was all worth it in the end!!
Unless your dealing with creating a clear custom, priming the figure before you start painting is a very good idea, makes applying the paint MUCH easier.
And Sealing it afterwards is also well worth doing.....although the paint can still get scraped off, so you still need to be careful.
Can't wait to check out your newest stuff!