Painting emblems using lacquer paint and a hypodermic syringe

[Sicklajoie]

That came out "Super"!
Nice job!

[magicoolbus]

Bubbles in the resin are super easy to get out. All you do is get a coffee stirrer and gently blow across the surface. They magically disappear!
JB

[Metaldoc]

Originally Posted by Frank_Zappa

Hubby: Hey Honey. Can I borrow your red nail polish?

Wifie: Well sure I guess. Hey where are you going with it?

Hubby: The garage.

Wifie: The garage? What are doing with it in the garage?

Hubby: The emblems on my truck are cracked and flakey.

Wifie: Yeah right. YOU ARE NOT FOOLING ANYONE BOB! IF YOU WANT TO HAVE A MIDLIFE CRISIS GO BUY YOUR OWN BOB!

Hubby: Women. Can't live with em...............

I have nail polish, nail polish remover, and hair spray in my shop and my wife thinks I'm a bit off. Nail polish for carb. swell plugs, remover which is acetone to remover permanent marker and hair spray for my potato gun

[In The Ten Ring]

Impressive!

[Elliot949]

Great Job right there...

[Bishops Trucks]

That is one of the best tips I have ever seen. Now I need to find those needles you use.

[FlameOut]

Originally Posted by Bishops Trucks

That is one of the best tips I have ever seen. Now I need to find those needles you use.

I was checking Amazon and there are a ton, but I don't know which are correct for this. Could someone in the know maybe post a link?

[kingstrider]

Originally Posted by FlameOut

I was checking Amazon and there are a ton, but I don't know which are correct for this. Could someone in the know maybe post a link?

The monoject 22 gauge needles work best for lacquer, I've used as small as a 27 gauge but they are a bit harder to use. You can always ask your veterinarian as well.

[73737373]

Just a point of clarification, after you strip the original paint off and the badges are "bare", take a wet toothbrush (soft bristle) and some Barkeeper's (or Bartenders)Friend (or other non abrasive cleanser) and clean up all in between and around the letters. Barkeeper's friend ought to be renamed "Emblem Restorer's Friend" because it's just magic. I have made/saved countless hundreds of dollars over the course of time doing nothing more than buying old emblems, door handles and you name it and doing the Bartenders Friend trick on them. As a matter of fact, taking 3 hours off work today to go home and enjoy a warm late fall Oklahoma day doing that to a bunch of pieces I've picked up over the course of the past summer.

[Steeveedee]

I use the Barkeeper's Friend in my coppersmithing work for cleaning. Be sure to wear gloves if you have your mitts in it for a long while.

I like the original lacquer solution, and the epoxy one, too!

My wife must have 20 shades of red nail polish that I can poach a little of to get the color just right!

[FlameOut]

Is that Barkeepers Friend stuff you're referring to the powder stuff (like Ajax or Comet) or the liquid? I was checking Amazon and found a couple of different ones

[73737373]

Yes, it is a powder, but it's non abrasive. That's the key. I think Bon-Ami makes a non abrasive cleanser, as well. Cleansers w/grit in them will scratch.

[custom10nut]

Timing is everything. I could have used this two months ago, when I repainted my emblems. Mine are the "Custom/10" and "8-350" type. This technique would have been a lot easier than the way I did it. Because my emblems have the black behind the chrome, I started to carefully mask everything off, but then I figured this: paint the whole thing with black and carefully peel it off the chrome. Well to to make a long story short, it took a little while, but they turned out pretty good (IMO). I used a sharpened piece of wood to peel back the paint without scratching the chrome, and my picks to reach the tight spots. One thing I didn't do and now wish I did, was to strip them of all the old paint first.

[elpound]

Thanks for sharing this!

[fennderbender1]

I love those guitars!

[NorCalC20LWB]

Thank you for the great step by step post Kingstrider, this method works great! The only frustrating part I ran into was where to get the syringes, surprisingly Rite Aid does not carry them. My daughter in So Cal works at a pharmaceutical testing lab so she was able to get me some. I used 18 and 22 gauge needles, very easy DIY!

[In The Ten Ring]

I would have to check the legality of this but I could supply you guys with hypodermics and needles to your emblem's content.

I go through two needles every two weeks and I have just been recapping and storing those. The Red Cross certifies me as a blood donor so I can't have anything too bad floating around in my blood.

[badpeanut]

I'm using 23 gauge blunt tip needles along with 3mL syringes, but am having difficulty drawing nail polish into the syringe. Any tips or tricks?

[NorCalC20LWB]

Possibly 23 gauge is a bit small? I first tried on a test piece with the 18 gauge needle and it did seem the black nail polish was kind of "clotted" or congealed. My wife said to shake it up better, that did help somewhat. I also thinned it with some lacquer thinner, went on well but it seemed too thin and was concerned the finished product would not be thick enough. Ended up getting another black nail polish and making sure it was at room temperature first, went on nice and thick and smooth.

With the multiple trips to Rite Aid to purchase nail polish, I think the folks that work there thought I was joining Bruce Jenner

[88Stanger]

damn good job

[Metaldoc]

Originally Posted by badpeanut

I'm using 23 gauge blunt tip needles along with 3mL syringes, but am having difficulty drawing nail polish into the syringe. Any tips or tricks?

I used the needle for refilling printer inks. It's much bigger diameter and volume. Worked perfect.

[Steelheader]

Well I know what I'm doing this week , ( taking off my badges and trying this out ) and with the needle situation I know Tractor Supply carries them for livestock vaccinations, thanks for the great tips guys .

[chevrolet4x4]

Great thread by Kingstrider, I think i will be doing my emblems real soon, Thanks!

[In The Ten Ring]

So 23 gauge needles may be too small? I need to do this ASAP.

[NorCalC20LWB]

I used 18 & 21 gauge. The finger nail polish seemed to flow pretty easily, so would think 23 G would work, just take more time and patience. What worked best for me was to shake it really well and warm it up a bit, sun, hand, whatever.