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MG TD TF 1500 - ID Plate Black Paint

Wondering what colour black the original ID plates were infilled with? Matte, semi-gloss or gloss? I'm about to pick up a small tin of Humbrol paint to finish mine in black & all three types are available from Hobbyco. I'm guessing semi-gloss? Just had them nickel plated & they look schmick! Rather not stuff it up. Tried some quick drying enamel in a spray can & that just didn't work. I'll use the same method that I applied the Auster red with to the windscreen, a toothpick & a matchstick to clean off the excess when it was partially dry. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

Left the paint overnight & had to remove it with turps. Didn't work at all as it took out the paint in the lettering as well. The nickel is softer than chrome & scratches much more readily, unlike the work on both the windscreen & the hub cap medallions, so not sure how to proceed. Anybody have an easy foolproof method of infilling with the black? Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

Peter, I used flat black paint, thinned a little to make it flow a little easier. I let it set up for about an hour then I used a combination of my fingernail and a plastic piece of sprue with a bevel on it to scrape the paint off of the areas where I didn't want it. I had to do it a couple times to get the result I wanted. After it was done I let the paint harden for a couple days then lightly buffed the surface with a clean cloth. Turned out well.

... CR
C.R. Tyrell

Was maybe a gloss or low gloss. Attached a pic of my original.
I wonder how the supplier did these?

Matthew.

M Magilton

Peter,

You may be able to use 'Letraset'. You probably know of it; it is/was a dry transfer lettering available in countless fonts used by graphic artists in the past prior to computers taking over. It could be put on the plate, the plate sprayed, and then the lettering carefully peeled off exposing the bare surface. It, or something like it must still be available.

Could be worth a try.

Kind regards,
Michael
M R Calvert

G'day Matthew. The TD is the reverse of your image from the TF. Are there any remnants of the infilled recessed letting on Imogene's TD? I'm having a go at CR's method as this is pretty much what I did on the Auster plate. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir


I have been avoiding mentioning this because its somewhat complicated.
Anyway here it is.

There is a product used in the production of electrical circuit boards, Dry Film Photoresist.
If it is exposed to UV light, through a pattern, then developed, some of it will adhere, some of it will be developed away.
There is a Positive photoresist and a negative photoresist. In the negative case where the light hits resist stays.
I find, looking on eBay, that negative resist is the most common type.

You could make a pattern by using a copier with a piece of transparent copy paper, then fill in the negative pattern with a dark marker. You could also scan the plate and import it into a drawing program and fill in the negative pattern and then print the pattern on clear inkjet paper.

The dry file is rolled on the plate, (and baked) the pattern is aligned, and exposed and developed. This would leave the film on the text.
You can then spray paint it and bake the paint. I suspect it would need to be quite hard to survive the resist striping.


There are a lot of instructions on the internet.

Just a thought

Jim B.
JA Benjamin

Large amount of information on this subject here:

http://www.mg-cars.org.uk/mgtd/mgtd_etchings.htm
G Evans

Sorry Peter, I was forgetting the differences. I think our TD plate has been restored.

Matthew.
M Magilton

As most of you know I'm a big fan of Chris's site & this was the obvious first port of call when undertaking the restoration of the TD ID plates. Unfortunately Graeme there is no 'how to' there on applying the black paint. After a couple of aborted attempts described above, I'm at present using a sharp toothpick under a powerful magnifying glass stand. By using just the smallest amount of paint on the very tip I'm able to infill the heavier lettering on the two TD plates. A slow & painstaking process which requires a steady hand, but this seems to be working quite well & the results are pleasing. It may also need some fine paint removal to sharpen it up. The smaller letters infill easily with the rough fill & wipe method using a cotton bud when the paint is almost dry. This doesn't work for the larger letters though. Unlike the chrome finish on the windscreen the nickel is too soft to allow anything but the most gentle scraping because of the very real danger of scratching. Once complete I'll post some pics. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

Peter

There is a suggested method on that site, use automotive lacquer and tidy up with thinners. Cant comment on how effective it would be.

Graeme
G Evans

When infilling the MG on the intake "T" casting reciently I used a wooden "Q" tip, sharpened with an XACTO.

Jim B.
JA Benjamin

This thread was discussed between 25/05/2017 and 31/05/2017

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