Data Plates

Nice Job Jeff, I've had that process used to etch aluminum mold cavities with leather grain texture, We refer to it as Photo-etching,this type of process is very much in use today in the automotive  industry, it's used for injection molded parts as well as integral skin arm rests and pads. keep up the great work!!! Sandusky

Thanks for that tip Jeff, I like to learn ways to make new stuff look old, especially for my '49.

A method that I found for painting etched metal was to dip it in paint thinner, then lay it flat and spray the paint on before the thinner evaporates.  The paint will be thin enough that it falls to the low spots leaving the high spots bare.  Much easier than trying to sand the high spots especially if the high spots aren't so high.  Leave it to dry over night and hit it with a clear coat in the morning.  Even an old crusty tag will look new.  Oh and make sure the tag sits level.  If it messes up all you have to do is let it soak in the thinner and start over.

The big flat spots may still need some touch up.  They may have some shadowing around the edges, but that should be fairly easy compared to the rest of the small letters.  I was restoring a cream separator and had tried the sanding method a few times with unsatisfactory results.  I decided to try the trick I mentioned above after noticing the effect while cleaning the tag up.  The deeper the etching the better it works.