Just as a tattoo on the arm says something about a person-biker trash, mini-trucker, military, etc.-getting an image on your truck can let people know a little bit about you. I'm not talking a full-blown set of flames or scallops that costs a ton of money (like a full-body tattoo); what I'm referring to are smaller pieces of art that won't take over the truck, but complement it.
What got me thinking about this was a lunch-time visit to Eightball Rods and Choppers to visit Stefan and see some of the bitchen choppers he's got in his shop. I was in the lobby when I spotted a kickass early Ford radiator that had been painted up with a shop logo just to hold some business cards. I asked Stefan about it and he said, "That was Vandemon. He's always doing something a little kooky."
I went into the shop and asked Steve how painting something like that differs from pinstriping. As he was explaining the process, the tech editor in me popped up and thought, "There's a story here."
Steve and I discussed what type of design I might like to see on my S-10, and I thought a stylized yellow jacket on the back of my truck might kill some of the bumblebee comments I've received. Steve told me to go home and clean my truck while he draws something up. The following images map out how it was done and what you need to do it yourself. Steve makes it look easy, but if you have some artistic ability and some time to practice, this just might be something you could tackle.
What's In The Toolbox?
Here are the basic items you need to purchase. We got ours from Coast Airbrush in Anaheim, California. First and foremost you'll need paint, and 1 Shot lettering enamel is great because you can get it in small quantities and it comes in an array of colors. Second, you'll need assorted brushes-lettering quills and long liners to be exact. The long liner, or striping brush, is used for outlining and some smaller details. Lettering quills are used for the bulk of the design and fill work. The brushes differ in two basic ways: hair and handle length. I'll get into why later in the story.
THE TECHNIQUE
1.Before Steve put any paint on my Chevy's tailgate, he showed me his basic sketch of the design. It looked bitchen to me, so he started transferring the design to the paint with a Stabilo grease pencil. | 
2.Once the basic design was sketched on the paint, Steve prepped the paint and brushes. Using an old Custom Chrome catalogue as a pallet, he thinned the 1 Shot Tan, the midtone in this case, just enough to flow but not so thin it would drip off the brush. Also, Steve drug the brush in a straight line numerous times to line up the hairs. | 
3.The lettering quill won't hold as much paint because of its shorter hairs, but it will provide more control over a long liner. Steve wasn't overly concerned about the edges because he planned to come back and outline them in black. He did pass along a little tip: Cut into your line or sneak up on the edge. Don't just put the brush right on the line and pull. Instead, set the brush close to the line, and then as you pull drag it over and then follow the line. |
4.To create the highlight and low-light colors, Steve mixed in darker or lighter paint to the tan midtone. When he was happy with the contrast, he filled in the back areas of the design with the darker color. This creates depth and realism to the painting and really makes it pop. | 
5.Here is a better look at how Steve holds the lettering quill. Just like pinstriping, you want to keep the brush at the same distance from the subject throughout the process. This keeps the brush stroke uniform because if you position your hands closer or farther it will change the fan-out of the hairs and widen or tighten the stroke respectively. | 
6.After adding some low lights to the edge of the banner with a touch of the tip and a swoop-down motion, he moved on to filling in the body. A mix of black and white was used to create the gray midtone for the head, torso, and parts of the abdomen. If you look closely, you can see how Steve kept track of the design by leaving small lines unpainted (e.g. where the antennas protrude from the head). In areas where you can't leave lines, Steve recommends filling in the area and using the brush strokes as a guide, so don't just fill the area any old way. |