Re painting letters on hub caps

[JIPJOBXX]

Any tricks or suggestions how to hand paint or spray paint

letters on hub caps?

Edited June 4, 2017 by JIPJOBXX

[knuckleharley]

If you have a steady hand you can use an acid brush with something like vaseline to carefully outline the stamped letters before spraying. Easy cleanup once the paint has cured.

[Plymouthy Adams]

probably just be best do do them the way you did the first time around.....I would recommend only that you remove all the older paint first so the new paint will lay down smoothly

[Bingster]

What I've done is to paint in the recessed letters, allow it to dry maybe a couple of hours or so (until it's good and set but not fully hardened) and swipe over the letters with a smooth cloth like an undershirt material lightly soaked in paint thinner.  By lightly I mean not "wet" but with enough traces of the thinner to remove the paint on the edges of the letters.  What you might do is to hit the cloth with thinner and pat dry between two paper towels. If you accidentally remove any paint inside the letters, an easy touch-up.

[rb1949]

A steady hand and a small brush got my recessed letters black. Same on the trunk chrome for "Fluid Drive".

[desoto1939]

I used pin striping paint because it flows better with a brush and use a good quality small brush get them from a good art supply or artist supply store. The better the quality of the brush the finer you can get the painint done.  Just take your time.

 

Rich Hartung

[Flatie46]

This thread brings me back to my model car ( and tanks, planes, etc) days. Trying to paint the black in that chrome grill then wiping the excess off. Or lettering those B.F Goodrich tires. A steady hand has been mentioned, I've never had that. I was born with a form of Parkinson's that gives me some shake. No big deal, I brace myself an overcome it. I can even Tig weld as good as most (or better ).  I agree with Rich as posted above, the right brush will make a big difference in detail work. If you screw up, no big deal just try it again. Good luck!

[Dan Hiebert]

I used the blue 3M edge lock tape to cover the area, then ensured the edges were snug with a wooden burnishing stick.  Used an Exacto knife to cut the letters out.  A steady hand and patience are required.  Only use enough pressure to cut the tape, not scratch the metal, although that stainless steel is pretty tough and resists scratching anyway.  Then applied three light coats of rattle can paint.  In this case I used Rustoleum Sunrise Red, same color as the rims.  I was looking to avoid brush marks and such, not that you can see them from more than a few feet away, also wanted to use what I had on hand.  Used the same procedure for the hubcaps on our Terraplane, it has more intricate lettering and turned out well, too.  

 

[pflaming]

On some caps with larger letters, a paint pencil will work also. But be careful after refreshing the tip, too much paint too fast at times. And I'm not too sure of that paint's quality. 

Edited June 6, 2017 by pflaming

[steveplym]

On 6/5/2017 at 7:06 AM, Dan Hiebert said:

I used the blue 3M edge lock tape to cover the area, then ensured the edges were snug with a wooden burnishing stick.  Used an Exacto knife to cut the letters out.  A steady hand and patience are required.  Only use enough pressure to cut the tape, not scratch the metal, although that stainless steel is pretty tough and resists scratching anyway.  Then applied three light coats of rattle can paint.  In this case I used Rustoleum Sunrise Red, same color as the rims.  I was looking to avoid brush marks and such, not that you can see them from more than a few feet away, also wanted to use what I had on hand.  Used the same procedure for the hubcaps on our Terraplane, it has more intricate lettering and turned out well, too.  

 

Yes I used this same trick to paint the bumper letters on my dodge last year, except I used a cheap razor blade knife, some good masking tape, and some rustoleum spray paint. 

[Jakub]

Simplest way is to use kind of felt-tip pen with oil paint - I used it in for my Packard hubcaps and bumper letters and it looks well, right now it 5 years old and still looks great. It also can be easily removed with acetone. I did it this way: First, I "flooded" it with a paint, then used marker to spread it around and then distributed paint with a toothpick to corners and other minor parts of element. After it dried, I removed excessive paint with ear swab putted in acetone or nitro.