What a weekend!!! not only did i get to meet Bobbo Dunn....I got to spend most of Saturday with him learning how to stripe!!! i am stoked!!! I learned that i was doing it all wrong from the start...actually making it hard on myself the way i was trying to hold the brush...He is just to cool !!! not to mention my inspiration...Bobbo can lay down some wicked lines...and now that he showed me the basics...i hope to pull some nice lines of my own.
Hey Jay I know exactly how you feel learning how to do it right. Last weekend I had the chance to take a course from Ron Gibbs (cdnratfink). Same thing. I learned what I was doing wrong and how to make it easier on myself. Its great the people out there willing to help out others and also give lots of inspiration as well as boost confidence. --Erki
I know it's probably been covered many times before but please pass on his hints for holding the brush correctly, my lines SUCK!!!
Bobbo did a stint in the Tulsa area a few years back. I met him at another stripers house. He was about as nice a dude as you could run across. It's hard to believe he is as old as he is. I meet him when he was 70 and he looked like he was in his fifties. He talked about his diet and how he wouldn't eat anything bad for his body. Looks like he could be around for another 70 if he keeps it up. Reverend Jake
Heres one variation on how to hold the brush. I used to stripe using just my little finger on the one hand to steady my hand and then also use the other hand to balance as well. Im trying to switch over to like this pic using three fingers for steadiness. When I do I pull a cleaner line especially if its a long straight one. The other way is just a habit so I tend to find myself doing it a lot more.
Thanks for posting that picture and the description... I use the "pinky" method too and I'm finding it hard to lose the shakes and lay down a nice line. Three fingers will probably help with consistant line weight, too. thanks - Joe
I use the "3 finger" method and can pull a really nice line without the jitters kickin' in. I have trouble doing tight circles or tight half circles. Anyone got any tips on that? Didn't mean to hijack the thread but it seemed appropriate.
Get up on the tip of the striping brush, steady your hand on your other hand, but don't rest either hand on the surface. Twirl the brush between your thumb and first finger, like you were twirling a booger when you were a kid. Apply enough pressure that the bristles of the brush don't pop out and then pull the line around all at the same time. Repeat that procedure a thousand times and you will be an expert circle maker.
Thanks Hotrod, I'll try the "booger twirl". Also, I hear some guys are trimming thier brushes. I'm a little nervous about cutting up my brushes. Does anyone do this? If so how? What results do you get from doing it?
I trim just the very tip off but thats just me. Be careful if your going to trim your brush because you can ruin a brush very quickly. Hotrod1941 pretty much covored the circles thing. It just takes practice.
I'm having a real problem with bristles blowing out when I'm trying to do a tight curve. Is this technique, or should I trim some off? I need to find someone to watch/talk to. Trying to learn in isolation sucks. Anyone know of any panel jams coming up in upstate NY/southern ON/Michigan?
You're brush is blowing out from trying to turn using too much of the brush. You wanna get up on the end of the brush for a circle.
Good for you Jay. I got spend a day with an 'old timer' here when I first started striping. Tommy Sanborn's been striping professionally since 57 and was nice enough to take the time to work with me. I think I learned more in a day than I would have figured out on my own in six months.
Bristles blowing out, my bet is you are using the wrong brush, one best suited for longer straignt lines and have a little too much body to tuck up and make a good curve, and you really have to get up on the tip to make it turn... having said that perhaps I need to qualify my syatement. I am pinhead #69 to any one who remembers, and have been a active striper for over 50 years, some even consider me pretty darn good.
Kinda related subjects here. Bobbo has a new brush he designed that make tight circles preety easy, I'm stricky an amature stripper and it really worked for me, I'm sure Jay got to try it too. Not sure where to buy one, Bobbo sold me one direct but I could find out if anyone's interested.
I'm really interested. If you could find out where I could get one and how much, that would be great.
Depends on how tight a tight curve is. If you are using a Mack Series 10,it's probably "just" a matter of technique and practice. Stand the brush up more vertical. Twist the handle in the direction you want to go, twist more than you think you need,then some more. And keep twisting as you go around the curve. There is a post here: "How to hold a Pinstriping brush for fun and profit". Worth looking for. Don't start chopping up your brushes until you can control them,and understand how they work. Unless you have an extra $100 worth of brushes to ruin. I used to trim mine radically,now I just take off the very tip. I think there is a brush trimming post out there too. Come to Billetproof Michigan,June 2nd. Bring your brushes,and whatever else you need. Directions on Billetproof.com
Yeah, I know the feeling! I'm a real beginner at laying stripes and like I said, my lines suck, but I have found if you thin the paint too much (reducer) it'll also mess up your curves. I've just bought a 'Typhoon' and it pulls beautiful curves (well it is a scrolling brush!) but is crap in a straight line. The choice is two brushes or more practice I suppose. So, more practice with the 'Booger Twirl' it is then! I'm still having fun with it and I guess that's the whole point!
I use a 00 or 000 Mack 10. I do think it's a matter of needing to improve my technique and I definitely need more practice. I've got Billetproof on the calendar. I want to watch the pros and see if I can absorb anything through this thick scull of mine.
You can only learn so much by watching,then you have to try it. Having more experienced artist around give you the chance for informed feedback.Bring your brushes and be prepared to ask questions. If you only watch,you'll probably only learn how to be a spectator.
Anyone got a pic of how to trim a brush? I heard that a 45 degree angle off the end of the body was the way to go.
UK COMET Don't thin the paint, except if it is VERY thick and then only a very little, you thin the paint on the brush, dip the brush in paint and then in a small cup of thinner, work the brush on paper, or thru your fingers, until it fells smooth and flows correct, takes a little practice but then doesn't every thing ,and you always get the exact amount of thinner every time, if you are turning a sharp corner then the paint can be a little thicker, if you are pulling a very long line then it may need to be a little thiner, it' that damn practice thing.. JD
here's the link for "How to hold a pinstriping brush for fun and profit" http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22374&page=1
I got both of Bobbo's brushes the 0 and the 1...i'm still learning and i have a long way to go..but his brushes made a differnce for me like night and day...you can make some awesome circles...scrolls...lines...it's just an awesome brush in my opinon for design work...Bobbo had me pick up some Kafka's long liners so i could start trying to pull long lines down the side of a car...He made it look so easy when he was showing me how to do it on the door of a 39 pontiac...i have yet to get a straight line down the side of my truck....thats my test vehicle...it has had alot of lines put on and then wiped off...I havent gotten the glide effect down yet..start of really good but the first time i try to move my foot to step back...i lose it...the line gets a little dip in it...or i lose the thickness...or the line wanders where i didnt want it to..but i'm working on it.. When i bought his brushes he sent me a paper with instructions on it...How different pressures will give you different effects and the the angle to hold his brush for the best effect which was between a 65 and 85 degree angle...Every time i go to Albq i look him up so i can pick his brain some more..But the best part is i like to call him a friend...I spent almost all day with him and it went by like a flash...he is a blast to hang out with and he knows some great places to eat...and the guy can eat some hot chile!!! i brought him some stuff that would peel the paint off of your car if it fell on it and he was eating it like it was water....totally unreal...
Unl Ian...your posts didnt go to waste i read them all and have them saved on a disc so i can go back and re-read them..before i got Bobbo's brush i had gotten some macks that have the green thread holding them together...I hadnt met Bobbo yet and i didnt know what i was doing..or what to buy brush wise i was just jumping in with both feet...your post started me off in the right direction...actually your post made me want to know more so i started looking for books...which in a weird kind of way led me to Bobbo..so thank you for starting me draggin lines...I'm the kind of person that has to see it....i read books and try to follow along but the brain just doesnt grasp it...but once Bobbo showed me...how to hold the brush...how to pull the line...and how to load the brush right GOD that makes a difference...i can come home and fight with myself until i get it right
I forgot to thank metalman too...he didnt know it but i have been going to his shop and looking at his designs so i can ad them to my collection of things to draw from when i am trying to make some of my designs.
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