Painting recessed lettering?

R

runmikeyrun

Senior Member
I’ve had success with motorcycles using a toothpick and model car paint. However, it’s not working for me this time- the grooves are too shallow and when I try to wipe paint off the knob the paint in the groove comes with it. My only thought from here was to lay it I’m thick then wet sand off the excess with 1500 or 2000 grit paper and a very light touch.

How do you guys paint stuff like this? It’s the shift knob and I can’t find a replacement anywhere.

Thanks!
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Didn’t do knobs but have done recessed letters. What I did was spray primer, let dry, spray color. Once completely dry used acetone to gently remove outer layers leaving the recessed color.
 
Tape off as much of the object that you can. Then fill in the recess with a light coat of paint using a paint pen or spray can. Let paint get tacky. Then wrap a piece of nylon stocking tightly once around a small rubber sanding block. Moisten the nylon with a little paint solvent and carefully wipe off the excess paint using light strokes and clean area of moistened nylon for each stroke. That's how I did my hubcaps. If you make a mistake, wipe clean and try again until you get the "knack". Nylon stocking is lint free and won't "grab" and "pull" paint out of the recess. If you do get a little color haze around the recessed letters it is easily removed with solvent after the recess paint dries. Be patient.
 

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All the fifties Fords had a die cast malleable iron alloy parking brake handle painted with gloss black paint. The black paint would always disappear eventually. These all had recessed white letters "BRAKE". On a few occasions I have repainted my brake handles with a cheap black enamel and baked the dried handle in a toaster oven. Allow to cool and set for about a week to allow paint to thoroughly harden. Then I used Testors or Pactra white model kit paint and a small modelling brush to brush the paint into the recesses. I used to have a steady enough hand to do it without getting any white on the black, but in old age my hand has become pretty shaky. Last time I did one, I had to do a little cleanup with a mild solvent. (not acetone or naptha benzine or anything harsher). I just dipped a soft cloth in gasoline and carefully wiped the white off the black quickly. As long as the boo-boo is fixed quickly without repeated wiping, it will come out right. Not sure if this helps your application.
 
Daves55Sedan said:
All the fifties Fords had a die cast malleable iron alloy parking brake handle painted with gloss black paint. The black paint would always disappear eventually. These all had recessed white letters "BRAKE". On a few occasions I have repainted my brake handles with a cheap black enamel and baked the dried handle in a toaster oven. Allow to cool and set for about a week to allow paint to thoroughly harden. Then I used Testors or Pactra white model kit paint and a small modelling brush to brush the paint into the recesses. I used to have a steady enough hand to do it without getting any white on the black, but in old age my hand has become pretty shaky. Last time I did one, I had to do a little cleanup with a mild solvent. (not acetone or naptha benzine or anything harsher). I just dipped a soft cloth in gasoline and carefully wiped the white off the black quickly. As long as the boo-boo is fixed quickly without repeated wiping, it will come out right. Not sure if this helps your application.
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I have a similar issue with shakiness, it’s just enough to make a straight line impossible lol. Thank you for the tips, it does help.


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