"The paint has a tendency to be a tad gravelly feeling when dry. Also has a tendency to have what looks like a bit of a splatter."
As for "gravelly feeling"; I would hazard a guess that you may be holding the spray can too far away from your work surface.
If you're spraying from too far away the paint mist will partially dry before hitting and adhering to the surface and will result in the paint feeling rough or "dusty" (gravelly???)
re: splatter, It could be what's called "orange peel" which will also result from spraying distance, OR, it could actually be "spatter" from a crappy spray can/nozzle. Hard to say without seeing what you're describing. Rattle cans are well known for these kinds of problems.
You want to be spraying from between 6-8 inches (8 max!). The trick is getting a wet coat* that will level but not run. So it's about a balance between spray distance and speed of your passes. It takes time and practice and it's good you doing some on scrap pieces. (I'm still learning and I'm not really a newbie)
*Your first 1 or 2 coats want to be a bit "drier" and *lightly* sanded (just enough to get the nibs down and not sand through) then you want to lay down the wetter coats.
Drying time - Just let it sit until you know it's dry ie: not tacky at all. One of the key things in doing the finish work is knowing when NOT to sand or re-coat. It's not a job for the impatient. Don't ask me how I know this...