Paint the hubcaps?

[jeepguy1948]

I ordered a set of “Ford” hubcaps from Dennis Carpenter but the come without the letter’s being painted and I want red letters. There must be a trick for doing it, with my arthritic hand I won’t be doing it freehand, that for sure). Also, is there an off the shelf paint color that is close enough to the original? Thanks.

[Model51]

I ordered a 1935 hubcap for display purposes from Dennis Carpenter and it did not come with the blue paint fill. Then I noticed that Bob Drake had the same hubcap with the blue fill paint for about $10 more. I'm not good enough to paint in the fill to my satisfaction and too cheap to order another hubcap, so I'm stuck with an unpainted one.
If Bob Drake has the kind you want with red fill paint and Dennis Carpenter will take the hubcaps back, the small incremental price would be the easiest path in my opinion.

[cmbrucew]

Take them to a nail salon, they are artists.


Bruce

[nelsb01]

Or a sign painter --- yes, there are still a few around.

Or someone who pin-stripes cars/motorcycles.

[corvette8n]

I painted a license plate by masking everything and cutting around the letters/numbers with an exacto knife.

[52flthed]

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Originally Posted by jeepguy1948

I ordered a set of “Ford” hubcaps from Dennis Carpenter but the come without the letter’s being painted and I want red letters. There must be a trick for doing it, with my arthritic hand I won’t be doing it freehand, that for sure). Also, is there an off the shelf paint color that is close enough to the original? Thanks.

Hi what vehicle is this for? Curious as my 1952 f-1 had red lettered hubcaps and accents, but I’m not sure of any other car or truck having red.

In my case i used a NOS badge with the red on it to mix and match paint using one shot enamel. . Like was said above a sign painter could definitely do this.

But there is or was a seller on eBay who sells vinyl red or any color for hubcaps. They were ok, I tried them for awhile.

[ford38v8]

Whether hubcaps or Ford Script batteries or whatever, there were no sign painters or nail salon artists or Exacto knives involved in the original factory application of color to Ford cars and parts. Granted, pin stripes on the early models were done by hand, those employees chosen for their steady hands quickly learned their trade to perfection.
You'll notice that in most cases, the painted areas are either in a depression, or a raised surface. For the raised surfaces, a simple rubber ink roller was used, no masking and no touch-up required. For depressed pattern surfaces, paint was applied and any excess was easily swiped off in a single pass. Another method that was often used was a reusable template held tightly to the part, then spray painted. The thing to remember is that in no case was any method employed that required more than a few seconds to complete, meaning that a Restoration today that sports meticulously applied hand painted color accents is deserving of admiration at a Coffee & Cars Meet, but not so on the Judging Field.

[dean333]

Why not on a judging field?

[52flthed]

Originally Posted by ford38v8

Whether hubcaps or Ford Script batteries or whatever, there were no sign painters or nail salon artists or Exacto knives involved in the original factory application of color to Ford cars and parts. Granted, pin stripes on the early models were done by hand, those employees chosen for their steady hands quickly learned their trade to perfection.
You'll notice that in most cases, the painted areas are either in a depression, or a raised surface. For the raised surfaces, a simple rubber ink roller was used, no masking and no touch-up required. For depressed pattern surfaces, paint was applied and any excess was easily swiped off in a single pass. Another method that was often used was a reusable template held tightly to the part, then spray painted. The thing to remember is that in no case was any method employed that required more than a few seconds to complete, meaning that a Restoration today that sports meticulously applied hand painted color accents is deserving of admiration at a Coffee & Cars Meet, but not so on the Judging Field.

No doubt it was a quick process but one that would take an individual a great deal of equipment and time to set up properly. I’ve tried believe me you can’t just put in the paint and wipe it with one pass and have it look like anything other than a mess. I strongly suspect some type of soft rubber inking process was used on both scenarios. Like any print making process it’s takes a lot of effort and specialized skill/equipment materials to set up. correctly. But to your point once it has that investment you reap the benefits of it only taking seconds to complete.

[jeepguy1948]

‘51 f-1

[52flthed]

Originally Posted by jeepguy1948

‘51 f-1

In 1951 the hubcaps and spears were all Blue accent, not Red. Same blue as 48-50. The blue is a perfect match with One Shot Enamel ; Reflex Blue. Unless you want red for some reason? I like the red on certain body colors it accents nicely. But if you want to be historically correct then it’s the blue. I also thought those hubcaps used to come with the letters painted blue already? And as I mentioned there’s a seller on eBay who used to sell the vinyl. PM me for some links.

[Doublepumper]

Tape-N-Spray

[GB SISSON]

Originally Posted by Doublepumper

Tape-N-Spray

Beautiful! Is that done with an exacto knife cutting away the excess masking tape? I DO like the idea about the nail salon also. I bet they'd make light work of it. If you live in a small community you may want to purchase a set of those nose/mustache/eyeglass combos before you enter.

[rockfla]

I painted mine with modeler's spray gun. I tracked the V8 emblem and uct my tape on wax paper then sprayed mine. You can also use a preval sparyer IF you don't have a modelers spray gun.

[jeepguy1948]

The answer to the common question “Why Red?” Is this the answer: Truck is painted Maroon (we painted it in the 70’s,yes, the 70’s) when nobody cared about factory colors. At this time, we do not intend to repaint it. In my minds eye I just don’t like the look of the blue with the maroon. On the other hand, I was at a car show this last Sunday and 2 different cars had red lettering. I liked it. FWIW Bob Drake is out of stock on most of their hub caps including the blue painted ones. Double pumper: your finished product looks beautiful however I can’t tell from the first picture how you accomplished that.

[jimTN]

How do you get paint to stick to a polished surface like the hubcaps?

[deuce_roadster]

I will add pinstriper to those who can easily do this task. My late pinstriper friend did the plate lettering on my 32 roadster after he pin striped the car. He said I could do it and then taught me the basics and I metal finished bad 1940 plates for all 48 states and Canada that were in use, painted and lettered and made a display on the back of my sliding door between my work room and my storage area.
One-shot has colors you can mix and match to get the right shade. I think I have about 14 cans of the stuff.

[Rockymountainsparky]

Masking and a wiping rag with paint thinner.

[52flthed]

I roughed up the surface with a jewelers scratch pen, the kind they use to finish off brushed stainless steel. It’s precise like a pen. Then I just hand painted mine with a small brush using one shot and additives to slow down the drying. They came out nice not perfect but from a far you can’t see brush marks if you’re up close to them you can make out some brush marks. Matched the color red to an NoS example. Red fades so the originals are not accurate.

[restoman]

I have done many with excellent results. Mask off a rough area outlining the entire area to be painted. Paint the letters with a spray gun aerosol can or paint brush. If you use a paint brush put it on heavy enough to flow out smooth. When well dried pull off the tape. Wrap a paint mixing stick with a smooth cloth like a cotton sheet and use fine rubbing compound to remove the paint on the surface of the cap, leaving a perfect recessed letter. The final look is definitely nice.