When we first heard the eGarage Ford GT was equipped on a brand new set of HRE P44SC performance wheels, we just knew we had to do a bit of simple customizing to really set the look off.
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
As everyone knows, auto culture adopts a ton of trends from motorsport, this much is undeniable. One of the most recent aesthetic kicks that seems to be catching on is the throwback look of hand painted lettering on the tire wall, either fully custom to represent a car club or brand, or simply doing a fill on the factory letters for added emphasis.
In Formula 1 & other racing divisions, tire lettering has been indicative of compound. Hard compound tires sport silver lettering, medium compound have white lettering, soft tires have yellow lettering and the super-soft tires wear red lettering. When you’re lettering for the street, it’s really just a matter of personal preference & how much effort you want to put into it. Even the most basic of stencil applications can be tricky, but dedication to the little details is part of what makes personalizing vehicles so great. We imagine there’s already someone out there painting up camouflage for their drift missile or already rocking plaid lettering on a Golf as we type this!
So, if you want some insight to how we pulled off a little bit of writing on the wall, check out the short montage and write up below!
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
First things first, we took measurements of the front and rear tires and mocked up a template in Illustrator. Using a bit of scrap vinyl, we ran the template through the cutter and set to work weeding out the letters for the stencil.
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
Once all the unnecessary vinyl was removed, Blake applied a bit of transfer tape and mocked up the placement of the stencil on the tire wall.
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
The reveal was a slow peal since we had to make sure the letters wouldn’t lift. A little bleeding is almost inevitable with something like this, but we wanted the cleanest lines possible. Blake hit the vinyl with a few passes from the torch to further secure the stencil to the tire wall before applying the tire paint.
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
With the stencil edges all taped up, it was time to apply. The paint we used required a little bit of setup time to harden its rubbery surface, so the heat gun helped to expedite that part of the process.
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
After the tape had been removed from the stencil, Blake used a razor to make micro incisions around the letter forms and edges to aid in the removal process.
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
Carefully picking away the excess rubber paint and vinyl bits, we see the letters start to emerge out of the stencil…
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
The finished product is on point. Motorsport inspired and modeled after the iconic Pirelli typeface, the new lettering looks right at home above the satin bronze HRE wheels on the Ford GT.
Check out these beautiful shots of the GT in the wild, courtesy of eGarage!
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
Tire Stencil Custom NWAS NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering GT40 Tire Paint
Alderwood Auto Detailing NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering
Alderwood Auto Detailing NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering
Alderwood Auto Detailing NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering
Alderwood Auto Detailing NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering
Alderwood Auto Detailing NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering
Alderwood Auto Detailing NorthWest Auto Salon eGarage Ford GT HRE Tire Lettering
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