Customs Gold leaf

Maybe a dumb question but when did silver and gold leaf start appearing on custom paint jobs ?


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Around the turn of the century,on fire engines, that was the previous one ,not this one. Bones

 

Yes I’ve come up with that maybe I worded the question wrong but I meant like when was it started to be used on like show cars or mild customs


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Lol, I kinda figured you did. Bones

 

So nobody has gold or silver leaf on a Kustom before ?!


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i have it on several cars. nothing like it. the real stuff is far better than the laminated viny product. the fake stuff can be spotted a mile away. i dont know when it was first used on cars. my guess would be early 60s race cars.

 

Who knows when it was first used, but it was a staple of the 60's show & race cars.
-Dave

 

Are you asking about gold leaf lettering or it being used as part of the paint job?

Mick

 

You see it on some high end lowriders around here but I haven't seen it on any customs lately, I'd say it has to be in the right situation on the right rig.

 

As a pinstriper and leaf layer I cant say I see it much on kustoms at all. but heavily used in lowrider stuff and drag cars. yes the sticker stuff is junk and looks like it and can be told a mile away. A good leaf artist is hard to find (im not bad at it, but not perfect) its a ***** to lay!

 

Was popular in the 60's-letters on tailgates and thin band (1/4) with striping along edges on some hotrods around Fresno at the time. Was used on a lot of bikes too. I did some back in the day and still have a book of it somewhere. Tough to get it right.

 

I’m meaning as part of a custom paint job , my car is a 54 but I’m going for a early 60’s vibe , I’ve already painted the roof candy brandywine and I’m keeping the car black but I want to add more the roof


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Thanks that’s what I’m looking for , I really want to put it on my 54 but I don’t want it to be too modern or too lowrider


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The real stuff is never perfect. That's why the fake stuff is so easily spotted. It's the slight imperfections in the leaf after its burnished that gives it character. The fake stuff doesn't light up or glow due to the clear plastic over it.
So knhtcadi if you want a traditional look seek out a guy who can apply a real leaf job. It will be worth it.

 

Yes me and a friend did it to a car of mine years ago so I know I can do it myself now my only concern is I don’t want it looking to modern or too much like a lowrider


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it’s going to go on my roof just to add a little something extra if I do it


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Silver leaf it harder to put on I'm told but might look even better. I have both gold and silver leaf on the car in my avatar.

 

Silver is what we did before , but I also thought about putting candy over it


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Gold or silver are about the same to lay. The key is good size and good timing with it and not using cheap leaf.
Kandy over it kills it in my eyes. Some of the lowrider guys do that and it looks like plastic then

 

I think King Tut had gold leaf on his custom chariot. No kidding, the use of gold leaf and custom paint goes back thousands of years.

Horse drawn fire engines had gold leaf in the 1800s and this continued on the gas powered fire engines of the early 20th century.

You may be thinking of the gold anodized aluminum trim that began showing up on cars in the mid fifties. Plymouth Fury had it in 1956, Chev Bel Air in 1957. Before that there was some gold trim used on expensive cars but confined to emblems and small name plates.



The gold anodized trim was made of thin sheets of aluminum, embossed with a pattern and anodized gold. It is now possible to anodize aluminum in many colors. Where you could buy the thin sheets of decorative material, I don't know. Today you could go to a sign shop and do it with vinyl.

 

I think George Barris' Golden Sahara was the first custom to make lavish use of gold anodized trim. It was built out of a 1953 Lincoln in 1954 or early 55. It appeared in Motor Trend in May 55. Given normal magazine lead time the car must have been finished by January or February at the latest.

 

Most "Silver Leaf" is actually Aluminum.
Real Silver will tarnish.

 

Hi. In 1957 my buddy purchased a new 4 door Chevy hardtop and had it pinstriped in gold leaf by local painter who did firetrucks. Looked real nice. I personally thought it was a bad idea when he was just talking about getting it done but when I saw how it turned out I changed my mind right dang quick on that.
Jimmie

 

This one was hand lettered and gold leafed by Jeff Devey



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