For a master class on finishing, one of the best is Windy U's series on his Tribute plane. I've watched it all the way through and left amazed at how simple it can really be. Simple as in you don't need a lot of fancy equipment. A wide, high-quality brush or 2 (or 3), lots of wet-dry sandpaper in a variety of grits, a simple HVLP spray rig with compressor, optional: airbrush, and lots of patience.
If I remember it correctly, he brushed 3 coats of dope, thinned 50/50. Doped on the silkspan on the entire surface (no built-up tail and a solid-surface composite wing), rubbing the dope in to get it to adhere to the undercoats. 3 more coats of thinned dope, sanding in between each coat (it should powder off). When he was satisfied with that, thinned coats of Brodak silver, sanding in between each coat and going over all the little imperfections. At that point it was a simple thing to mask or backmask as needed and spray the color. When that was finished, he sprayed the clear. When that cure/dried, time to final sand and then buff. Lots of steps, lots of patience, and lots of sanding & fussing, but not outside the realm of mere mortals. Oh, yeah, the entire finish was Brodak dope that he had decanted. From base coats to top clear coat, all Brodak.
Steve