lookin good!! lookin good! Congrats on getting back to it!
Now you understand more about the paint issues right?? When you paint the tubes next time, you will be amazed at how much it helps the colors stand out. You can brighten the colors in the blank using white paint, or darken them with black paint. You can also highlight different shades with red, or blue, etc. etc.
In fact, our neighbor (Oklahoman... aka Roy) posted a cool example a while back where he did two of the same blank, one with light paint and one with dark paint. The outcome was shocking. Looked like two totally different blanks!
Now the fun REALLY begins! Have fun and don't hesitate to ask questions...