Re: painting vintage license plates

[doug daniel <dougdaniel50@xxxxxxxxx>]

i think that anyone who goes thru that much is more stuburn than me most people would of gave up before they started kudos too you ,,,,                                                                                                                                                                                      
> > Hopefully this isn't too off-topic.  I'm sure some of
> you may try to
> > restore vintage license plates for your car.  Maybe
> this can save you
> > some trouble.  In NY I'd guess it's the same as much
> of the country in
> > that you can register a real vintage plate if it's the
> correct year
> > for the car and not in current use.
> >
> > There's guys on the Web you can find to do it for
> about $75 per plate,
> > which may well be worth it.  I'm too stubborn and
> ignorant to think I
> > can't do everything myself.  It took my dumb a$$ five
> tries to get it
> > right, but they finally came out real nice.
> >
> > Here's what worked:
> > 1. Paint remover to take off majority of paint.
>  Blasting cabinet for the rest.
> >
> > 2. Sprayed base-coat primer using white Rustoleum
> metal primer.
> >
> > 3. Sprayed letter color 12 coats with Krylon
> Indoor/Outdoor.  Why
> > Krylon?  They had the right color.
> >
> > 4. Sprayed 12 coats of Rustoleum Clear Enamel to
> thicken and protect
> > layer.  Why?  KRYLON CLEAR COAT RUINS KRYLON PAINT.
>  More on that
> > later.
> >
> > 5. Sprayed 4 coats (or enough to cover) of Krylon
> Indoor/Outdoor
> > background color.
> >
> > 6. Very gently sanded off letters and edge with 900
> grit emory.  Used
> > a tiny square with my finger tip.  Took about 1/2
> hour per letter.
> > Touched up where necessary.
> >
> > 7. Sprayed 12 coats of Rustoleum Clear Enamel to
> finish.
> >
> > I'm very pleased with the final results.
> >
> >
> > In case you want to learn from my mistakes, here's
> what didn't work.
> >
> > 1. Similar sanding method as above, but with a block.
>  Letters weren't
> > as uniform height as you'd think.  Got to metal
> quickly.  Strip it
> > again, start over.
> >
> > 2. Spray on background.  Roll on letters with a small
> detail roller.
> > Impossible to get full coverage without splatter and
> without getting
> > down edges of letters.  Strip it, start over.
> >
> > 3. Spray on background.  Hand paint with a fine
> brush.  You better be
> > Bob F'n Ross.  Very hard to not get edges.  Don't
> sneeze, burp or
> > fart.  Start over.
> >
> > 4. Back to sanding method.  Sprayed on Krylon letter
> color.  Then
> > sprayed on Krylon Clear Coat.  Gee, you'd think it
> would say somewhere
> > on the can they're incompatible.  Paint got sticky
> and bubbled up in
> > spots like it was paint remover.  Boy that one put me
> in a bad mood.
> >
> > Hit on the correct combo of Rustoleum and Krylon after
> trial and error
> > on scrap plates.  It all sticks real good.
> >
> > I never tried masking tape or vaseline; they might
> have been next.
> >
> >
> > A word about color selection.  I couldn't find the
> right letter color
> > in any stores, so had to go on line.  Rustoleum
> didn't have anything
> > close.  Krylon had a whole bunch, but they were 1/4
> inch sample
> > swatches.  I'm handy with computers and Photoshop, so
> I brought into
> > Photoshop jpg images from the Web of the license
> plates.  Then I was
> > able to select a Photoshop pen with the same color
> from the swatches.
> > I could then paint right over the letters on the
> plates and compare
> > the colors.  Worked well for me.
> >
> > Anyway, that's my story.  I hope I can save someone
> some of the hours
> > I lost drinking beer and listening to music and
> watching paint dry.
> > Actually, I guess it wasn't so bad.
> >
> > - Jim
> > Jim Altemose, Long Island, NY
> > '63 Polara 500 (Max Wedge)
> > '63 Polara 500 (383)
> > '65 Belvedere I (Street Wedge)
> > '71 Bronco
> >
> >
> > ----
> > Please address private mail -- mail of interest to
> only one person -- directly to that person.  I.e., send
> parts/car transactions and negotiations as well as other
> personal messages only to the intended recipient, not to the
> Clubhouse public address. This practice will protect your
> privacy, reduce the total volume of mail and fine tune the
> content signal to Mopar topic.  Thanks!
> >
> > 1962 to 1965 Mopar Clubhouse Discussion Guidelines:
> > http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.org/mletiq.html and
> http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.com/general_disclaimer.html.
> >
> >
> >
> >
>