aka Larry
Well-known member
I have a project coming up in which I want to paint a plastic engine cover in a two tone scheme. The cover itself would be one color and the raised lettering the other. I've done this in the past and it came out great, but I was able to purchase pre-cut vinyl decals to mask the raised lettering. This new cover is less popular, so nobody seems to be making the decals I could use for masking.
I've been kicking around a few ideas. Option one being covering the letters with masking tape and trimming it to fit in place via an X-acto knife, but this seems beyond tedious, and not nearly as precise as I'd like it. Option two is a variation of option one where I'd cover the letters with the masking tape, do a "rubbing" to get the outline of the letters, remove the tape, trim the tape with the X-acto knife, and re-apply the tape to letters. Like option one, option two would be tedious, and probably not precise enough to suit me.
So to the point of this thread, I started wondering if using Plasti-Dip as masking would work? I've used it to coat the raised emblems on my Charger where it worked perfectly and was easy to do. Here's what the game plan would be:
1. Spray paint the raised lettering with the first color.
2. Mask off an area around the lettering, and apply the Plasti-Dip over the letters.
3. Remove the surrounding Plasti-Dip (like on the car emblems) leaving the letters covered (masked).
4. Spray the second color to the rest of the part.
5. Remove the Plasti-Dip that was being used as a mask revealing the color underneath on the lettering.
I've tried to research someone else doing this, but I only found one example who said the Plasti-Dip was all but impossible to remove from the lettering. I know it's much easier to remove the thicker it is applied, which I can absolutely do. I once Plasti-Dipped a wheel with like 10 coats, decided I didn't like it, and was able to peel it right off almost in one big sheet.
Anyone think this would work? I know I could just go for it, but with cost of the cover, hardware, paint etc, I don't want a failed 'experiment' on this part.
Thoughts? Suggestions?
I've been kicking around a few ideas. Option one being covering the letters with masking tape and trimming it to fit in place via an X-acto knife, but this seems beyond tedious, and not nearly as precise as I'd like it. Option two is a variation of option one where I'd cover the letters with the masking tape, do a "rubbing" to get the outline of the letters, remove the tape, trim the tape with the X-acto knife, and re-apply the tape to letters. Like option one, option two would be tedious, and probably not precise enough to suit me.
So to the point of this thread, I started wondering if using Plasti-Dip as masking would work? I've used it to coat the raised emblems on my Charger where it worked perfectly and was easy to do. Here's what the game plan would be:
1. Spray paint the raised lettering with the first color.
2. Mask off an area around the lettering, and apply the Plasti-Dip over the letters.
3. Remove the surrounding Plasti-Dip (like on the car emblems) leaving the letters covered (masked).
4. Spray the second color to the rest of the part.
5. Remove the Plasti-Dip that was being used as a mask revealing the color underneath on the lettering.
I've tried to research someone else doing this, but I only found one example who said the Plasti-Dip was all but impossible to remove from the lettering. I know it's much easier to remove the thicker it is applied, which I can absolutely do. I once Plasti-Dipped a wheel with like 10 coats, decided I didn't like it, and was able to peel it right off almost in one big sheet.
Anyone think this would work? I know I could just go for it, but with cost of the cover, hardware, paint etc, I don't want a failed 'experiment' on this part.
Thoughts? Suggestions?
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