Best white paint marker for disassembling engines?

[Stevenn1]

For keeping track of which plug goes with which sensor or which bolt goes where.

 

[superduty1]

Most of the time you can't mess those up. Usually each plug is unique.

I like using blue painters tape and write on there with a sharpie. Wrap it completely around the wire and back onto itself.

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[G1GRANDEUR]

brand really don't matter, just make sure you clean the surface good, so paint pen sticks.

 

[Professional Tool User]

Any half way decent paint pen will do.

 

[Ramblin Man]

I use liquid white out. Works well and dries fast.

 

[plinker]

I like these super met-al pen markers, sort of a squeeze action set up. They have many colors and they dry fairly fast for paint and it holds up well. The tip can plug sometimes.
Zoro has a better price then Amazon last I knew, around 5-6$ each.

https://smile.amazon.com/Super-Met-Al-1296-1324-Squeeze-Action/dp/B000KL7OYO/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=met-al&qid=1574550335&sr=8-1

 

[DFB]

You know I purchased one of those white Milwaukee Inkzall liquid paint markers on a suggestion from kctyphoon himself .

The speil being it's supposed to write on all types of surfaces, wet oily etc.

They come in a few other colors too... blue, red, gold.



To tell the truth I didn't find it being any better or worse than any other white paint pen I had (and those most come from the Walmart). I also have the Milwaukee black markers THOSE I like a real lot especially the fine point ones. Also have a whole box of the wide chisel tips thru my tool discounter they were like .50 cents each


https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwaukee-INKZALL-Paint-Marker-White-48-22-3712/206973452

I often do the same to mark/label things as someone else already mentioned painters masking tape. I have a whole case of bright orange tape and of course the black Milwaukee markers

 

[laser3kw]

I like using blue painters tape and write on there with a sharpie. Wrap it completely around the wire and back onto itself.

^^^^ this
and take lots of pictures! I even take special pictures of, maybe an odd length bolt and hold it near the part it goes to. I have realized I don't remember small details 6 months later.

 

[Macneil]

^^^^ this

and take lots of pictures! I even take special pictures of, maybe an odd length bolt and hold it near the part it goes to. I have realized I don't remember small details 6 months later.

Bang on right there!

One shop I worked at we’d tear down machinery and rebuild/customize for a new life. One machine in particular was an old cat grader. Had to tear it down and give it a 110% rebuild. On top of that, we had to shed 11” in overall height so it would fit in the drifts of a gold mine. This entire process took us 8-9 months from what I recall from unloading the broken machine off the truck to rebuilding it, testing, measuring, tearing it apart again and slinging it underground to rebuild the third time.

I would take pictures of everything and anything that when I was taking it apart and went “hmm” at. That saved my bacon a few times on that project. Pictures were taken with notes written down in the picture too depending on the situation.

You could pick up a cheap label maker from amazon/eBay. We used a fancy one that we would use tie wraps with and made a legend at work. My wife had bought a cheap label maker that I’ve since taken and have used on projects in the garage. Nice added touch.


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[LXCam]

If this is a modern engine, it’s pretty dang hard to screw up since everything pretty much lays in place and has dedicated ends.

 

[ChrisLS8]

I've never done that. Most plugs are unique and will only fit and or reach a certain part

 

[signcrafter]

I never label wires, the harnesses lay down where they are supposed to and connectors are different so next to impossible to screw that up. For bolts I use cupcake pans and run a strip of masking tape next to the cups and write on that with sharpie what each cup of bolts are.

 

[KomatsuTech]

The ones I use at work are UNI Paint markers from Staples. I tried to link them but my post count isn't high enough. They hold up well, dry fairly quick, and last a long time. Also take pictures as you go, as others have already mentioned.

 

[mfewtrail]

The ones I use at work are UNI Paint markers from Staples. I tried to link them but my post count isn't high enough. They hold up well, dry fairly quick, and last a long time. Also take pictures as you go, as others have already mentioned.

One more vote for UNI. I've been using them for several years now to mark engine parts, to make match-marks, label car parts for storage, etc. They even work pretty well on surfaces that aren't exactly clean.

 

[bwringer]

If this is a modern engine, it’s pretty dang hard to screw up since everything pretty much lays in place and has dedicated ends.

Um, well... a friend of mine once helped me remove and replace an engine, and he somehow managed to mix up several connectors on "his" side of the engine. Fortunately, the connectors didn't actually connect and he didn't force them, so he just left them hanging and badly misrouted but didn't say anything. It was getting really late and cold, so we left it for the time being.

About five minutes after he went home I figured it out.

Lesson learned... double-check each other's work. Ask the other guy to check your work as well, and no one will get offended.

Here's what I use.

https://www.arromark.com/products/pm-16

It't a liquid paint that they use at places like PickNPull that has a valve actuated tip to keep the paint from leaking or drying out.

Yep, I've had the best luck with paint markers. Oftentimes if there's potential confusion, I'll make symbols instead of trying to write a description. Like one has three lines, one has a circle, another has a triangle, etc; things that would be easy to tell apart even if they rub off partially.

Of course, flagging with masking tape works fine, too, and allows you to make notes like "route UNDER radiator hose".

Paint markers always seem to dry out really fast. I also keep a few bottles of cheap fingernail polish on hand for marking stuff.

 

[2ndGearRubber]

Go to harbor freight or similar, and buy the bucket of neon zip ties. Use combinations of color and quantity to denote location. I like this for obscured plug wires where it's easier to mark them and snake them into place than remove everything around them.

 

[DGersic]

I never label wires, the harnesses lay down where they are supposed to and connectors are different so next to impossible to screw that up. For bolts I use cupcake pans and run a strip of masking tape next to the cups and write on that with sharpie what each cup of bolts are.

I tape the ends, not so much for identification, because you’re right about harness memory and unique connectors, but because it helps make sure I don’t miss one on reassembly.




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[LXCam]

Um, well... a friend of mine badly misrouted but didn't say anything.

Yup, routing is everything which is why pictures are more important then tagging ends IMO.

 

[matt_i]

Dykem Brite Mark is the best marker in my opinion. I have put 20 years into large scale manufacturing where paint dots are used constantly to denote quality checks, and those seem to be the most consistent once they "get going" and a regular flow is established.

The Uni I would rate a close second, but they take longer to establish the consistent flow thru the porous tip. Sometimes way too much solvent comes out, sometimes only part of the diameter is actually flowing. Also Uni has a tapered cap which can get throughly stuck on to the point where one needs a small channellock (etc) to remove it. The Dykem uses similar but has an engagement-limiter where the cap stops after a certain point and doesn't continue to "wedge".

Sharpie got into paint markers and I used a few of those with seemingly good success but they seemed like the experiment from the OEM ended. Those had a cap with a "clip" on them where they would stay in a shirt-pocket whereas the other two will spill wildly out having only the round barrel.

 

[gearhead1]

I prefer the Uni Paint markersand mostly use those.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006IFFX/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I also use the Mean Streak Sharpie markers.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006Y03A/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[gearhead1]

Pics

 

[MarineScott]

I use liquid white out. Works well and dries fast.

I use the white out pens

 

[Jarhead0408]

If this is a modern engine, it’s pretty dang hard to screw up since everything pretty much lays in place and has dedicated ends.

Yeah...but with so much going on I appreciate the savings in mental bandwidth haha!

 

[4xdog]

Here's a strong recommendation for lots of digital photos. That's saved me time and confusion more times than I can count, and often captures the answer to a question that only comes up later.

I've used masking tape flags many times on my vintage Triumph TR3 and its many bullet connectors. Works OK.

For a marker, I really like silver Sharpies. They're reliable (more reliable than any of the real paint markers I've used) and usually have plenty of contrast.

I'll sometimes use simple dots or dashes on wiring (or other parts) to indicate orientation -- it doesn't often take numbers or letters to keep things straight.

 

[goldtang]

What ever work buys works good

 

[bwringer]

A small assortment of cheap nail polish in weird colors is pretty handy when you need unique colors.

And if you get bored or curious, then, well, you can paint your nails and feel pretty...

 

[MrPink]

I use liquid white out. Works well and dries fast.

I have done this for years, I do it for marking timing chains too as it does not gum up engine internals. I also have an array of colored paint pens too.

 

[macgee]

Use White "Markal HP Pro" (Zoro). Works great on oily surfaces, can easily be wiped off with rubbing alcohol

https://www.zoro.com/markal-permane...ip-white-color-family-paint-96871/i/G0158681/