Tire letter paint! Quick n easy

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ghostntheshell

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Because people asked - I shall answer :)

Like the original look of the white lettered Dunlop Qualifiers that came on the Max at some point in it's history?

I sure did - as it really gives it that "muscle car" look.

I was asked by three separate people this weekend at the bike show how I did it - and it's beyond simple - but I too asked the question at one point - so here it is!

1.) Take your set of tires and clean them. It is IDEAL that they be new tires - but it's likely they will be mounted on your bike already. So position the wheel where you have access to the complete area you'd like to paint.

*IDEALLY the tire would be flat on the ground - as it avoids paint run - but I have done this once with the tires on the bike and with some quick clean up, the occasional paint run is manageable.*

I used a "nail brush" to scrub the area with warm water. After the scrub down I patted dry with paper towel.


I cleaned only the area in which I was painting. But these were new tires. So while your at it - you might as well clean the whole thing - otherwise if you have dirty tires you'll end up with "clean spots" which tend to highlight how dirty the bike is :p

newtire.jpg
scrubber.jpg
cleantire.jpg

2.) Use the paint pen. I used TRIMBRITE TIRE LETTERMATE that I bought from Auto Source for 6 dollars.
tirepen.jpg



3.) *IMPORTANT* choose lettering that is raised with TEXTURE. Otherwise this pen will do a horrible job on a flat, non-textured surface.

See in the picture the lettering section I chose had MARATHON and ME 880 in raised, dotted, lettering. Very common with most manufactures to have a raised section with texture.

When you have your clean, textured lettering in mind for painting - take the pen, dabbing the tip 2-3 times to get the paint flowing, and start coloring!
Again, I stress, it's SO much easier with the tires off the bike. When I did this with the tires still on the bike, my shoulder and neck were stiff for a day or so :p

A tip: start on the inside of the raised letters outter wall. The tip WILL cover the top of the ridge - and for the most part, keep it neat and prevent spilling of the paint over the lip.
tirepenworking.jpg


And voila! This stuff dries pretty quickly - and the instruction advise you can drive with em, while it dries for 36 hours (dry to touch in like 4 hours??)

IMG_5907.jpg
IMG_5910.jpg
 
Oh yeah - TRIMBRITE TIRE LETTERMATE is made in the USA! I know you guys like buying made in America.
 
looks very good, not my style for my bike, but def sets yours off.
 
That's painted lettering is going to look great on your bike. I don't think I've ever seen a painted metz. You may be the first! :eusa_dance:

Dale #2592
 
Yeah, Gamorg I don't think it would "add" to your bike. You kinda got a dark theme going on that seems to be working for you.

I find the White lettered tires goes good with mine because it's got that Shelby paint scheme (viper gts etc) and kinda goes with the muscle car theme.
 
exactly. blacking out more on mine as we speak. haha i think eventually i'll replace the oem grey/silver with chrome so it'll be 99% flat black with accents of chrome
 
I tried the white lettering. The white lettering makes the wheels look so sporty. Thanks Ghost!
 

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