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Color filling/Paint filling engravings in sun dials

I am looking for advice with color filling engraved lines and text.

I make custom bronze sundials. They require a fair bit of rotary engraving on a sandcast curved (not flat) surface. I have been paint filling the lines (using One-Shot lettering enamel) tediously by hand, and am wondering if there is an easier way. I don't want to "flood" and wipe the surface, followed by sanding off remaining dried paint, as this will destroy the sandcast texture of the surrounding metal.

I am hoping that there is a cream or paste product that can be rubbed on, wiped off (maybe using a solvent), and then will cure hard. lacquer-Stiks don't cure, so they are not an option. Perhaps there is a putty-like paint or epoxy that can work? These sundials are for outdoor use, of course.

William Gottesman
Precision Sundials LLC - Burlington, Vermont, US
2004

I can recommend the AirPen dispensing tool used with acrylic paint for your situation. It is a hand-held air-powered tool with different sizes of tips to place paint in small areas. It is used by some engravers for color filling.

Jake Otto
engineer - Kansas City, Missouri, USA
June 3, 2009

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