Custom 2000 Chevrolet S10 Retro Paintjob - Flake 'N' Bake

Part Three: Style It!
1. Once the paint on the body of our truck dried overnight, Pat Maxwell was able to lay out some graphics with plastic fine-line tape. We went with a scallop-type flame job, similar to what we have seen on other retro-style vehicles. To start, Pat outlined the outer scallop and then moved on to the flames. After the initial design was set, Pat continued it all the way down to the end of the bed. It was laid out in the same order with the straight scallops coming first, followed by the flames (inset). When the graphics were finished on the passenger side, Pat repeated them on the driver side by taking down a few measurements.

2. On the hood, we had it previously louvered by Sir Michaels, and that limited the space for graphics. However, Pat still had enough space to lay out two scallops and run some flames on the outer sides of the louvers.

3. With the graphics laid out in plastic fine-line tape, all of the edges around the doorjambs, cab, and bed were covered in masking tape.

4. Sticky-back paper was then rolled out on top of the fine-line tape, and the design was traced with a blade. To expose the graphics, the paper over it was pulled off.

5. Then, we got crazy with paper and masking tape to make sure all of the other areas did not get any purple on them.

6. To help speed up the pace, James stepped in to spray two coats of our 1:1 mixture of the custom Deep Purple and reducer.

7. We wanted to have the purple graphics with a reflective quality similar to our flaked-out Pewter. To do so, James added one teaspoon of PPG Prizmatique, PN DX78, to a mixture of 1:1 ratio of clearcoat and reducer. Then, the design was sprayed four times with this reflective mixture.

8. After waiting about a half hour for the paint to dry, Pat was able to slowly peel off the paper and the tape.

Part Four: Stripe It!
Now that we had the purple graphics done, we needed to break up their harsh edges with pinstriping. Pat went with a custom green made from a combination of Primrose Yellow and Process Blue One Shot paints, and reduced it to a viscosity that would allow it to run in long continuous lines.

1. With the green paint mixture set, Pat used a Mack striping brush in a 00 size to coat the edges of our graphics (1a).

1b. In these photos, Pat displayed an ideal stance for striping. Notice he runs one arm along the body to stabilize him and the other to run the long lines. He does this all while slowly walking backward.

2. For the open spaces like the middle of the hood and the rear corners of the cab, Pat created some complex pinstriping designs right on the spot. He used a different combination of green and purple made from One Shot paints to give them depth from the graphics. If you notice, the designs he made have a very traditional style with mostly various curves, rather than the jagged edge lines you see in modern striping. Pat has been striping for many years and has advanced his skills with a ton of practice.

3. To finish our truck in Texas style, we had Pat tag our truck with a state outline covered in a Kustom Werx logo with a Maxwell signature.

The Final Word
Since the paint process can take some time and we had other responsibilities at the magazine, we were only able to capture these steps on our retro paintjob. The preceding steps included six coats of 4:1:1 clear, reducer, and hardener to cover our graphics and flake, letting the clear bake in the sun, color-sanding all of the paint with 1,000- to 2,500-grade wet or dry paper, and then buffing the clear to a wet shine. With the truck fully assembled again, it was taken outside to reveal the shine and sparkle of our retro paintjob.