Ive been dickin around with some pinstriping brushes the last couple months and im lost. I have gotten alright at making decent lines but im clueless on how your supposed to do it. what do i use to thin the one-shot paint and how do i do it. i am using green wrap mack and an excaliber brush. ive been dipping my brush in the paint and then laquer thinner which i would imagine is wrong and the books i have dont expain it. any help would be appreciated.
I'm kinda new to it but here's what i know. Drag yer pinky, adds good stability. To thin it get 1 shot reducer. They Have a high temp and a low temp. If you are painting in warm weather get high temp. If you want to clear over it later on, get I shot hardener. It will kinda work as a thinning agent but will not wrinkle when cleared. For striping I like the blue ferlue sword striper. 00 is a pretty general size.
I've always used mineral spirits...Striping is very personalized people use all kinds of things,methods,etc. Just find what works for you. And check out Sketchkult.com. it'll teach you everything you need.
basically just get 1 shot stuff, it's all designed to work together. Some guy dip their brushes in oil when they are done, to keep em good shaped n soft. I just use the 1 shot brush cleaner. It kinda leaves an oil in the brush even when it dries so it stays good. If I don't know what I'm talking about, somebody please tell me. I learned from experimenting and watching others n such.
DON'T use lacquer thinner. Get some 1-Shot High Temperature Reducer. There have been a few good threads here that covered most of what you need to know. A few to get you started: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22374 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=160355 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=104912 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=19690 Might be some in the Tech Archive as well. Also search on Youtube for pinstriping. Most books on the subject are JUNK.I've only seen two that are good.One from John Hannukaine,and the new one from Alan Johnson. Some of the others have a few nice pictures,some are misleading.I think of them as expensive pallets. Have yet to see a real good video on striping.
I have been pinstriping for over 30 years and I do about 1100 jobs a year and lacquer is all I thin with.
In addition to the excellent advise above I suggest you check out StripeKult for additional help and encouragement. http://sketchkult.com/phpBB/viewforum.php?f=21&sid=c1b157d8a88946bd303659c390728f7e
You are sure to get differing opinions. I have been striping and lettering for 50 years and I never, ever, let lacquer touch any of my brushes. Doesn't mean that someone else doesn't do it every day, but I went through the old apprentice school of learning and I worked with some of the best and brushes were treated with respect and cleanliness, always oiled and shaped when stored. Killer-D how do you get so many jobs, 1100 jobs a year means you stripe almost 4 a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. That is a lot of striping.
You and Shane are the only guys I've met that use Lacquer thinner. The average person will find it much easier to learn, reducing with something slower.
I would try all the ways of thinning 1-shot.Use the one you feel more comfortable with.I have tried everything and lacguer works the best for me.I am very fast and I need a thinner that dries that way.
I do car shows all over the states ,about 30 shows a years.Most are Goodguys shows.At a few shows this year I did 40+ jobs.One show I did 57 in 4 days.I average 30 jobs a show at the 3-4 day shows.If anyone on here knows of me knows what I am saying is the truth
...the guy is just starting...I don't think he's fast enough or trying to be fast...nor should he be concerned with speed , or the ammount he can pump out .
There are a bunch of great pinstripers here. Just use the reducer to thin out your paint, should flow well off the brush, and this takes time. Here is Alan Johnson doing it... http://www.youtube.com/user/artofthehotrod
If you looked at the last thing I wrote I said that a beginner should never use lacquer.I answering the person that said NEVER USE LACQUER THINNER. I was just saying if you are comfortable with it there is no reason you can't used lacquer thinner.
I would tend to agree with those who advocate the use of either mineral spirits or 1-Shot reducer for someone just starting out in the field.If you decide to stick with it,you can start experimenting with other materials. As for Darrin striping that many cars,I think that estimate is a bit on the LOW side.Darrin and Shane Syx both use lacquer thinner for reducing and brush cleaning and are probably two of the quickest and accurate stripers I've ever had the pleasure of working with.I can work fairly quick but not that quick. Shane and I stripe-flamed a pickup at one meet(Pontiac Illinois)from front to back in two colors and did the hood and tailgate with stripe designs in seventeen minutes.Did a two color flame job on a Dodge Magnum wagon in the parking lot of a motel in Indiana in about 23 minutes.I was using 1-Shot thinned with their reducer and he was using lacquer thinner.
The only guy I've seen who is faster,than Darin and Shane, is Robert Nois.Some might know him from Lazerlines.com From what i understand,the guys he was competing with at the new car dealerships in Dallas(?) are just as fast. He's the guy who challenged Gary Jenson to a race, the first time he went to a panel jam.Gary was using a Beugler,Robert has a brush,with his own paint and reducer. Gary beat him,but only be a split second. Robert asked for 2 out of 3.Gary refused.
Steve Robisonson(sp?) wrote an article in Signcraft Magazine a few years ago,talking about striping at dealers in Dallas,and how quick they have to do the cars to make any money. Everyone said it was total bullshit,impossible do a double stripe on both sides of a car in 3 minutes. Everyone,except for those of us who saw the techniques demonstrated in OKC,among other places.
Rice Rocket...as you can see its not that cut and dry, no pun intended. By no means do I give myself the honor of calling myself a stripper. I have been trying to it myself and found that this art doesn't lack experts. I sometimes can't believe the people selling crap on a purse with the lack of quality lines. Just go to a show and you will see what I'm talking about. Be that as it may, I struggled with frustration for several weeks trying do anything that looked even close to what these guys do effortlessly. That lead me to a workshop from a guy in Iowa named Jim "HETZ" Hetzler and this dude knew his shit! His quality of the lines he pulled was unreal. Don't take it from me check out his web site jchetzstudio.com. Anyway you will see alot of different strippers and alot of different lines...hence alot of different approaches. I'm sure you might be able to pick a great strippers brain right in your own town, if not real close to where you live. Most of them are really koo and would love to impress you. Ask alot of questions and write them down, cause you will be so amped that you will forget! Don't mean to ramble so I will kick myself off the soapbox and let you know that what I use is just ordorless mineral spirits. Ordorless cause I don't see myself showning any work right now and I'm painting inside for a good long while! If you start striping right now you will eventually piss someone off and he will talk about your shitty work more than he will talk about your great work. My advice...I should say, the advice I was given...work on quality and practice...practice...practice...If you want I can post some pics I took! It was a great workshop!
Whatever reducer Robert was using with his own paint, (some automotive mix) makes 1-Shot dry instantly and dead flat. I was doing some lines maybe 12" long,and you could see the design drying a few inches behind the brush. I use 1-Shot Low Temp Reducer for doing faux marblizing, because it dries quicker and gives a nice gloss.
Speed has nothing to do with a quality stripe job. What does a car owner care about how fast a job is done. A quality job has good lines and composition and enough paint on the surface to last and a good flow gloss. I can tell you that I have removed many jobs because I wasn't happy with it and have no qualms about removing it if the owner doesn't like it. Someone new starting out should use the thinners recommended and learn how to mix the paint properly. Properly mixed paint requires very little additional thinners. Learning the proper feel of mixed paint is a good practice technique. I can believe discussing striping becomes a shoot out about who is fastest.
you know i started with 1 shots reducer but found it got gummy on me, ive only been laying lines for about a year and i just use cheap ass paint thinner. seems to work well for me.
1-Shot 6000 Reducer has resin in it,so it will eventually set up in the can.1-Shot low Temperature,and High temperature Reducers are strictly solvents;they do not contain resin. -------- I got a PM asking about thinning: You can't thin the whole can,or even a small cup,ahead of time,because the solvent is constantly evaporating.If it's perfect now,it might not be in a few minutes,or a couple hours,depending on the weather.On real HOT days,with a little breeze,I find myself over reducing,because by the time i get from the pallet to the panel,it is about right. Most people thin on the pallet,as they work. Constantly adjusting the viscosity by feel. If you watch the Alan Johnson video,linked at the end of the "how to hold a brush" thread,he demonstrates the technique pretty well.
That was never my intent to turn this thread into a pissing contest.I was merely recalling some of the good times I have enjoyed with fellow stripers as I was composing my reply. I'm sorry if you took offense. Ray Smith
I was trying to answer the original question. The pissing contest involved how fast someone striped, which had nothing to do with the original question. It becomes obvious that we all approach the technique from a different direction. All someone starting out can do is absorb as much knowledge as possible and practice. When someone is just starting out, speed should not even enter the picture, because it has nothing to do with good striping. Again this is just my thoughts on tthe subject.
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