I'm re-doing a fire truck pedal car for my son for x-mas and want to put some gold leaf on it. My questions are, should I clear the pedal car then leaf, or leaf then clear? And whats the best adhesive and leaf brand/style (sheet or flake)? Thanks in advance for any help you can offer!
I have only done a very very small amount of gold leaf but if you haven't done it before you can find gold leaf at micheals craft store that is attached to the paper and it is a lot easier to work with than loose leaf, I got the one shot gold size for adhesive and as far as I can tell it works good, but like I said I don't have much experience working with leaf
http://www.harveysigns.co.nz/contact_info.html Contact Jeff , he will see ya right , tell him one of the Waters twins sent ya............. He;s world class at this stuff.
yep clear the car first then use oneshot fast dry gold size. I use 23kt medium transfer leaf, i also wait about 45 minutes before i apply the leaf or when you lightly drag your knuckle down the applied size it squeaks a little. good luck!
Normally the leaf is on the surface, but I do know of cases where it has been cleared over. Doing it under clear requires a size (adhesive) that won't be attacked by the clear.
It's been over 30 years, but clear the project first. Apply whatever sizing you want. Then the leaf needs to have a sealer applied to protect it. There are non-reactive sealers available.
The best(and most expensive) gold leaf is nearly 100% pure gold. Gold doesn't tarnish. Cheaper gold leaf is alloyed with other metals, or in some cases contains no gold at all.
I would do the leafing, hand brush some 1 Shot 4006 tinting clear over it,(thin coat) let it sit for 8 hours and then come back and outline the leaf. This way if you mess up the outline and have to remove it, you wont screw up the gold. Let the project sit a couple days and then clear the whole truck, wet sand and buff. If you just do the work over the completed job your going to still need to brush clear over the gold or it will be very easy to scratch and you wont be able to wax over the top. On some race cars I've done were the lettering is on top of the clear coat, I find the gold needs to be recleard by hand every couple of years. Save yourself the pain and clear it all at the same time.
Go to this link and see how the God Of Goldleaf, Bob Bond does it!!! http://www.bobbondart.com/how-topage1.html
Thank you for all the tips! I think my biggest concern is the wear and tear on a kids toy. I don't want the leaf to look like shit after one day. Do you think if I do an engine turn and the clear the whole car it will dull the effect of the circles?
If a little kid is going to be in & out of it every day, I would clear over it. But like IGOR said above, it will darken the gold and make it loose a little of its character and natural shine. I've used gold leaf alot in sign making and it looks great if its not cleared, but in your case I would clear it.
A few things to keep in mind... gold leaf will show any imperfections underneath, not so much a big deal on a kids pedal car but worth mentioning. If you're planning on engine turning it DO NOT buy any kind of gold leaf from michaels, it is too thin and just tears. I don't know of any automotive leafing that hasn't been cleared, the gold is so thin that even the slightest abrasion will tear it. There's a lot of youtube videos on the subject but a lot of the good ones are professional quality materials. For a single project or a beginner i'd recommend getting the Michaels starter pack it's cheap and it has the size, leaf, and clear. Make sure you have some good masking tape though b/c the size is waterbased and thin it will seep under the tape. Mask off what you want, brush on the size, wait 30 min (depending on temp and humidity), lay your leaf, brush off the excess (i've tried cotton balls but any exposed sizing will grab the cotton and look like shit), peel the masking tape, brush on your clear, stripe your edges and let it all cure.
The Jalopy Journal
