As I get older and the room gets darker I find it harder and harder to read the sizes on things. This is worse on things like wrenches, sockets, drill bits, and taps. I find that tool marking with paint makes it much easier to see. I have always wanted to know how to make tool markings stand out.
This post is a quick and simple method to mark stampings
- Paint your tool with a can of spray paint (black is nice, but white or other bright paint will work better on darker metal)
- Once the paint dries, you can then rub it off – depending on the finish, a dry rag, a rag with a SMALL amount of acetone, or (if you are not picky about scratches) steel wool can all be used.
Just like scrimshaw (or the AR-15 marking post) you are putting paint in recessed areas. This allows a level of distinction between the colored areas and the out metal.
There really isn’t much more to say about how to make tool markings stand out with ink. Once you get the idea on tool marking you can easily adapt the process using different materials – I have even seen people fill the markings in with colored sugru.
Speaking about tools, I found toolsinsider that has a lot of other good tool information. I particularly like their article on sharpening drill bits..