painting raised letters and emblems

[minkos]

hello, sorry in advance for asking a question that's probably been discussed before, but what is the best way to apply chrome paint to raised letters, emblems, etc? the closest i've been to success is using a the edge of the end of a toothpick, but it isn't fine enough and even when it does go on ok the paint gets laid on too thin. any pointers? thanks.

[cobraman]

Have you tried Bare Metal Foil yet ? There is a learning curve but better than paint. IMO There is at least one thread here that will tell you how.

[jaydar]

I make sure that i use a paint that has the opposite base meaning acrylic on enamel/lacquer or enamel over acrylic. then i do my best dry brush or wet brush technique followed by a clean brush with the appropriate thinner to clean up and make the lines sharper. Using a little alcohol over lacquer to clean up the acrylic paint won't hurt the lacquer in the same way using a little turp to clean up over acrylic.

joe.

[Ace-Garageguy]

There's always the option of using very fine-tip silver gel pens, available at craft stores. I've sometimes had to sharpen the tips of the fiber-tipped ones a tad with a VERY sharp blade.

[Quick GMC]

dry brush or marker. Either way, hold it 90 degrees to the surface you are painting. Sometimes you will only get a tiny bit at a time. Keep going over it gently untill it build up on the lettering. I like to use the part of the brush closes to the handle, it's more firm and won't want to flex down into the low spots.

[Guest]

Dry brushing works best for me. I use either a 5/0 or 10/0 brush. Just dip your brush into your paint, then dab it onto a paper towel until there is no more paint coming off the brush. Then just lightly pull the brush over your script. The high spots on the script will grab onto the paint and begin to appear. You may have to go over it a couple of times to get it painted well, but it works great.

Another method is to foil the script before primer and paint. When done, simply polish the script with 12000 grit.

[jaydar]

I have got to try that eraser thing.

thanks for the tip.

joe.

[rickd13]

The best method is dry brush. The car is cleared in lacquer, so I use enamel paint on the brush. It works great because if you mess up with the enamel paint it can easily be cleaned off by using Meguiar's Scratch X without damaging the lacquer clear coat or paint if you did not clear coat. I will take the point off of a wooden tooth pick, so it is dull, and dip it in a little Scratch X and remove the excess paint if it gets on the car around the emblem. It works great.

Edited April 13, 2013 by rickd13

[minkos]

thank you for all of the suggestions, i tried the dry brush method and it works pretty good.