Pinstripe Graphics

Pinstripe graphics are a type of decoration often seen on customized cars, motorcycles, trucks and boats. The graphics involve designs made with thin, delicate lines; generally two distinctly coloured lines will be used. The primary line makes up the bulk of the design and stands out from the vehicle’s body colour, while the secondary line contrasts the primary line to accentuate it. Pinstripe graphics range from simple lines and barbed wire to complex designs, and give the vehicle a unique, personalized look.

Pinstripe graphics are drawn with special paints and brushes. The most commonly used paint is Sign Painters’ 1 Shot, a durable enamel with excellent coverage. Thinners or thickeners are often added to the paint to achieve the required consistency, depending on the temperature conditions. Other good brands for pinstriping paint include House of Kolor, Alsa and PPG.

Pinstriping brushes are often made with squirrel hair, and tend to have long hair (2 inches or more) to hold a lot of paint. Mack is perhaps the most renowned brand of pinstriping brushes, and produces a range of differently-sized brushes. Thick brushes are used for drawing thicker lines and thinner ones for drawing more delicate lines, but this will also depend on the pressure applied while drawing. Indeed, pinstripe artists can draw lines of different widths with a single sized brush. For proper cleaning of a pinstripe brush, you should use mineral spirits or reducers. Keep the brushes well oiled in storage.

Of course, hand-painting is not the only way of drawing pinstripe graphics. Many auto shops have machines which can lay down simple pinstripes, and this is the preferred method when drawing on long vehicles as it ensures uniformity of the lines, and it is usually cheaper than hiring an artist. If you want to have a go at pinstriping but do not have an artistic hand, pinstriping stencil tape comes in handy and you can obtain basic designs even if you don’t have much skill.

The simplest, most convenient and cheapest way to decorate your vehicle with pinstripe graphics is using pinstripe decals, which are basically stickers. You simply need to peel and stick these on the vehicle. Another advantage of decals is that they are easy to remove, and therefore are ideal if you are not sure you will like the pinstripe design on your car/motorcycle. They are also an excellent choice for those who like to change the pinstripe graphics on their vehicle frequently, as you simply need to peel the old one off and stick on the new one.