All the help I've received here so far has yielded the
following original prototype.  (still playing with the design, placement of parts etc.).  I wanted to experiment with some paint possibilities also...even during the design phase, as this can yield new design directions. 

Problem:  How do I paint this bird fresh from GMAX??
I've read a lot of tuts on RE-painting but how do I
start a new paint job????  Is part of the process completed within GMAX??

I have:

1. dtxbmpx
2. Corel Photo Paint (allows layering, alpha's etc.)
3. A major headache
4. Tons of gratitude

Thanks for putting up with me

Hey, very cool...thanks, Moach!