any tips on painting emblems

[Erdos]

Anyone have any tips/tricks to painting harley tank emblems. I am restoring harley speedball emblems. I have thinned the paint and let it wick into the letters but I'm not satified with the results.

[Carl N. Olsen]

I have one of those big round magnifying glasses with the round florescent light. I use a fine brush and work from the inside out to the edge and do not thin my paint. Use a good quality paint at the hobby store in the model dept. Make sure and brush the paint out in the larger areas. You can bake it in the oven to speed up curing time. Make sure the emblem is clean and free of any polish or other contaminants.

[AdminGuy]

I did some black letters in alum w/ auto touch-up paint. It took forever to dry. I tried heat and it bubbled up. Too thick, too hot. I cut/polished that back down, cleaned it and put another coat over that. Looked good. Waited two months. Ran the bike and it sagged. Heat-Eng cases. Put 600miles on bike. Squished it back w/ my thumb. Such great care! Let that dry for another month or two. Then cut it back again. So now it looks as per factory. It was an ugly experience for me. In hind sight, I think I should have done it in stages. As it was really thick.

I'm very interested to see how low heat dries the thin paint on chrome. So please post results.

I agree w/ Carl. and feel that low heat for a couple of hours is a must. If not just leaving them on a sunny window ledge for a month or two.

[Mike L]

Might want to try,"#1 SHOT" pinstripe and lettering paint and a real pinstripe, horsehair brush. It's made for this type of painting. Smooth flowing, goes where you put it. Large assortment of colors and can be mixed to get the right shade. You can add a hardener so it can be cleared over without waiting a week to cure. I used model paint before but this #1 SHOT is much easier to use with a GOOD brush. Eastwood sells it and any good auto body supply store.

[60PANMAN]

EMBLEM PAINTING

GREETINGS FROM MAINE !! I HAVE A 1960 HARLEY-DAVIDSON FLH WITH THE ORIGINAL ACME EMBLEMS. I FOUND IT EASIER ALL THE WAY AROUND USING THE TIP OF A TOOTHPICK TO FILL IN THE HARLEY-DAVIDSON LETTERS. TAPEING OFF THE REST AND USING THE FINEST FINE BRUSH YOU CAN FIND. IT TAKES A LONG TIME TO DO IT RIGHT, BUT YOU WON'T DO IT AGAIN FOR A LONG TIME. LET THE EMBLEMS SET IN THE SUN FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS AFTER YOU FINISH THEM TO "CURE" THEM. ANY OVER PAINT IS EASILY REMOVED THEN.