A pinstriping brush is the tool of traditional free hand pin stripers use for

pin striping Pin striping (or pinstriping) is the application of a very thin line of paint or other material called a pin stripe, and is generally used for decoration. Freehand pin stripers use a specialty brush known as a pinstriping brush. Automotive, bi ...

. Freehand pin striping is the most difficult method of pin striping and the brush is an important tool for design. Pinstriping brushes have several different designs: Swords, Daggers, and Flats, as well as Double line brushes. The brush consists of a small wood

dowel The dowel is a cylindrical shape made of wood, plastic, or metal. In its original manufactured form, a dowel is long and called a ''dowel rod'', which are often cut into shorter ''dowel pins''. Dowels are commonly used as structural reinforceme ...

handle, string or brass fixture with

adhesive Adhesive, also known as glue, cement, mucilage, or paste, is any non-metallic substance applied to one or both surfaces of two separate items that binds them together and resists their separation. The use of adhesives offers certain advantage ...

and brush hairs traditionally made from

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae (), a family that includes small or medium-sized rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrel ...

hair (confusingly called

camel hair Camel hair specifically refers to the fur from the body of a camel, but more generally refers to the fibre (and cloth) that may be made from either pure camel hair or a blend of camel hair and another fibre. Camel hair has two components: ''guard ...

). The small wood dowel is balanced so pin stripers can freely

spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

the brush between their fingers. The dowel's short length is so the brush does not hit the palm of the hand while the brush is placed in-between the

index finger The index finger (also referred to as forefinger, first finger, second finger, pointer finger, trigger finger, digitus secundus, digitus II, and many other terms) is the second digit of a human hand. It is located between the thumb and the m ...

and

thumb The thumb is the first digit of the hand, next to the index finger. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position (where the palm is facing to the front), the thumb is the outermost digit. The Medical Latin English noun for thumb ...

. The hair of a pinstriping brush is relatively long at approximately 2 inches or more, compared to most artistic brushes of a similar size. This long length is to hold the necessary amount of paint to pull a long line.

Cleaning and storage

After every use of a pinstriping brush, the brush must be cleaned in order to not damage the brush once the paint dries. The cleaning procedure consists of submerging the brush hairs in

mineral spirits White spirit (AU, UK and Ireland)Primarily in the United Kingdom and Australia. In New Zealand "white spirit" can also refer to Coleman fuel ( white gas). or mineral spirits (US, Canada), also known as mineral turpentine (AU/NZ/ZA), turpentine s ...

;Pinstriper FAQ
/ref> the brush is then laid down and the brush hairs are gently worked through to remove all paint and residue. The brush hair is delicate and must be stored properly between usage. The brush should be laid flat and soaked in brush oil.

References

Sources

The First Brazilian site dedicated to the Kustom Kulture / Pinstriping Old Skool
Painting materials {{tool-stub