Originally Posted by Duke7777

Yes - although I have pinstriping brushes and did quite a bit of practising, I couldn't get to the skill level I wanted. I even built myself this little sled to guide the brush in a perfectly straight line:



It was a total failure, for reasons that are probably obvious to any actual pinstriper.

So I tried the paint pens and was amazed at how well they work. The lines are actually a bit too straight and sharp - it's obvious they weren't done with a brush. But I think that's better than wobbly, which was my other choice unless I wanted to spend a lot more time practising. As they say, buy a pinstriping brush and a gallon of paint. When the paint is gone you should be a decent pinstriper. I just don't have the patience, plus everything in my house would end up pinstriped. For the long lines I use pieces of 3/4 x 3/4 x 1/16 aluminum angle as straight edges. They lie perfectly parallel to the frame tube, with the edge sitting just off the surface so you don't get paint creeping under. For the circumferential lines I use a piece of fairly heavy zap-strap wrapped around the tube. I go over the lines twice to get a thicker build (not the lug lining though), letting the paint dry between coats.