temporary race numbers

it looks like some of the old timers used to use shoe polish to put numbers on their cars for the track or the salt etc. i want to do that on my car for a show coming up. i just don't want them to be permanent or do any damage to the paint . any ideas are appreciated

thanx
jp

 

Ummmm. Shoe polish, It's traditional. Bingo markers if you want some funky colors. Wax the painted areas first.

 

thats what i figured but i heard from a friend that got married that a bunch of his buddies wrote stuff all over his car with shoe polish and even a buffer wouldn't remove it after it baked for 10 days in the sun while he was on his honeymoon . so i just wanted to check here . i know some of the guys here do it so i figured i'd get a definitive answer.

 

Maybe have a sign shop cut some heavy vinyl ones for you that you can later pull off .

 

Vinyl is tacky.

 

Just put the numbers on the glass with shoe polish, be careful not to spill on the paint. Also be careful when you're washing it off, there's some on my truck still stuck to the paint from when I took it to the drags in 1997.

 

I would suggest waxing the areas first, as Oldolds mentioned, and then not leaving it on your paint in the sun for the next ten days. Should be alright.

Or, dab a touch on in a small out of the way area. Leave it for a few hours, then wipe it off and see.

 

what about that spray paint thats removable with soap and water,you could just make a stencile .

 

Its for show not go. Does it matter?

 

Magnetic vinyl is what I believe streamliner was talking about.....

any decent sign shop with a plot cutter can cut you out what you want

 

If you are worried why are you putting fake numbers on it?

 

I've used the kiwi white shoe polish available at any dept store on several paint jobs with no problems whatsoever. A little soap and water and it comes right off. Your results may vary...

 

They never put shoe polish on the paint of any car I can think of at the races. Door cars get it on the windshield and back side window, if it's glass. I had plexiglass in the side windows of my Anglia, they put the number on the windshield and the sidewall of the slick.

 

ok let me reiterate what i'm looking for here . i may be way off but im under the impression that there was a time when a young gear head would build himself a hopped up roadster for racing around the neighborhood and picking up girls and on the weekends he would take said roadster and remove the windshield headlights, etc etc. and change a few other little things and number the doors and head off to el mirage for some head to head racing or timed speed runs or just to see if his weeks wrenching and experimenting paid off . i'm assuming that come monday he would be cruising to school or work with those numbers removed from the doors . i would like to know how he put them on there and how he removed them and i'm damn sure it wasn't vinyl or magnets . i know they used masking tape on some of them . but some of them actually look like they were brushed on with a semi dry brush and some paint ( and maybe they were) im not overly concerned about it and it's not a big deal , im going to a car show next weekend and they are going to have dirt drags and i thought it would be fun to throw some numbers on the side for the weekend no biggie either way . i will look into the soap and water washable spray paint . and the kiwi shoe polish is what i was going to grab so i may try that too. thanx for the replies .

jp

 

There are some PVC (very limited colors) paint mask that work great as temp numbers.
no glue rezido eazy to remove BUT colors are limited to yellow and white...

 

If you want to know how it was really done, here it is in the 70's in Texas/Oklahoma.



And how Skip Hess did it in California in the early 60's before he started racing Anglias.

 

I'd be willing to bet money that the gearhead of the 40s/50s didn't worry if it didn't come off cleanly or worry too much about harming the paint.

 

They make applicators now made especially for use on cars when marking them up for proms, graduation, ball games, just married, etc. that are not based on liquid shoe polish. Check out the walmart in the stationary section. Gary

 

for the same reason most people do things to their cars , cause i want to . im not really interested in dying but i have a roadster that goes 125 MPH without seat belts or a top , i'm not a big fan of having to mess with carbs but i have 8 of the damn things on my car . its just something i wanted to do for a day or two to change up the look of the car and have some fun . i don't know anyone who wants their old hot rod to burn to the ground but i sure do see alot of them running around covered in FAKE flames .

jp

thanx for the replies guys i love this place more and more every time i get on here!!!

LarryT ...thanx for the pics . even though they are doing dirt drags at the show i was leaning more toward a lakes look as far as the numbering rather than a drag racing look .

 

I like this place too. There's usually great tech, "how to's" and advice. The other shit is a nice break. One thing I've learned is that there are a shit load of people who have different taste. Some of the stuff that gets asked is freaking unreal.

 

Agreed. And some of the answers are freaking unreal as well.

 

As a "tacky vinyl" sign maker I'll point out that the Cal Mask from Calon comes in white and has about half of the adhesive of most vinyls. It's enamel receptive so you can rattle can it any color you want
Or have the sign shop print on it
I use this stuff to make visor strips for racers and it won't goo up their plastic helmet visor when they change sponsors.
Www.skeezix.biz


Poverty leaves an impression

 

I race all the time, tracks use shoe polish or stuff like it. Summit or Jegs sells something that is like that but that comes off easier.