Alternatives to stencil ink

ananda

Semi-Pro
Where I am, i do not get stencil inks.
What are the alternatives to it that one might get in a paint/hw store ?

(i tried Luxor Permanent markers, but they came off in one session. I tried another perm ink for marking clothes, but that slowly came off in a week).

thanks.
 

Banks

Rookie
try a bingo dobber. you can get them at dollar stores for cheep. i dont see why those wouldnt work.
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
try a bingo dobber. you can get them at dollar stores for cheep. i dont see why those wouldnt work.

i am not in the US. Tried googling for bingo dobber. is that an ink or paint or dye ? seems to be something to apply with.

I want to know some generic paint or dye or ink that i can buy outside of the US.

What is the ink that Wilson uses in its stencil ink? any ideas?
 

Banks

Rookie
shouldnt need to be in the us to buy bingo dobbers. They are pacticlaly the same as what youd get from TW just they are made for bingo. they use a quick drying ink like stencil ink and the aplicators are excatly the same. If you have any from of a dollar store where you live you can most likely find them. Id say its worth the shot cause at most it will cost you 2 bucks. Plus you can get many differnt colors if they do work and you liek colorfull things.


and btw im in canada
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
shouldnt need to be in the us to buy bingo dobbers. They are pacticlaly the same as what youd get from TW just they are made for bingo. they use a quick drying ink like stencil ink and the aplicators are excatly the same. If you have any from of a dollar store where you live you can most likely find them. Id say its worth the shot cause at most it will cost you 2 bucks. Plus you can get many differnt colors if they do work and you liek colorfull things.


and btw im in canada

sorry i am in india. not quite like you must be imagining. i need to go to a store and say i need fabric paint, or acrylic, or whatever all those terms are.
 

Shashwat

Semi-Pro
Whatever you do, don't use sharpies or markers. I tried it, first of all it came off very quickly, secondly it marked all the balls with red marks...
 

Cruzer

Professional
Whatever you do, don't use sharpies or markers. I tried it, first of all it came off very quickly, secondly it marked all the balls with red marks...

I have used stencil ink, broad tipped marking pens, and Sharpies with the following results.

1. They all leave ink/lines on the balls.

2. They all wear off the strings in about a week.
 

Ronny

Hall of Fame
use the wilson ink....apparently its meant to stay on all types of string including polys
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
use the wilson ink....apparently its meant to stay on all types of string including polys
the topic clearly says alternatives to stencil ink.

It may take me 6 months of a year to get Wilson Stencil ink thru someone coming from the US.
Yes, permanent marker came off in one session.
indelible ink came off on the balls in a week.
 

Loco4Tennis

Hall of Fame
i tried spray painting the strings, it came out ok, but i got too close to the edge with my design and sprayed the frame somewhat, and its not easy to remove, looks ugly on some spots, but not as ugly as my mishit backhands :) , so be careful,
next time i think i am going to tape the frame prior to painting because of it,
as for what other posters have said, the paint did come off but not as quick as i expected, maybe because the paint is much finer and better quality on a spray-can then on a tube.
 

Loco4Tennis

Hall of Fame
oh by the way, i used general purpose spray paint i got at the local store, nothing special,
one other thing, some strings have oily resin on them from manufacturer, cleaning prior to paint will help keep the paint job longer and not flake off as easy, i tried water, soap/water, rubbing alcohol, to get the oily resis out. dont know if cleaning the resin off is good for the strings though, cause sometimes the manufacturer place the oily-resin on the strings to make them last longer.
 
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ananda

Semi-Pro
oh by the way, i used general purpose spray paint i got at the local store, nothing special,
one other thing, some strings have oily resin on them from manufacturer, cleaning prior to paint will help keep the paint job longer and not flake off as easy, i tried water, soap/water, rubbing alcohol, to get the oily resis out. dont know if cleaning the resin off is good for the strings though, cause sometimes the manufacturer place the oily-resin on the strings to make them last longer.

sorry if this is a dumb question. but is that a water based paint or an oil based one.
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
with your spray paint, do you like use turpentine and do you cover yourself. if any paint falls on your clothes is it permanent ?
 

Loco4Tennis

Hall of Fame
just mask the frame with some tape. or better yet, don't stencil! unless you're sponsored.

yeah, im going to tape the frame next time,
as for the stencil i used, i came up with my own,
i tried to avoid the center to minimize the wear and got too close to the edges, taping would have helped, i just used the cardboard cutout
 

OrangeOne

Legend
i believe it would be water based, since its quick dry formula
took but a couple minutes to dry on the strings and my frame :-(

Fast-drying spray-paint is almost guaranteed NOT to be water-based.

As for how to not paint the frame, simply attach newspaper to your stencil that makes a 'skirt' for the frame....
 

Loco4Tennis

Hall of Fame
Fast-drying spray-paint is almost guaranteed NOT to be water-based.

As for how to not paint the frame, simply attach newspaper to your stencil that makes a 'skirt' for the frame....

i keep forgetting to look at the can i used for this, but you might be right, will post when i look next

as for the stencil newspaper idea, idid this, but my stencil was about 1/2 inch from the frame (trying to stay off the racquet center) and the paper actually lifted the stencil off the racquet when i was applaying the spraypaint, i seriouly would tape next time to get a better result
 

Bubba

Professional
shouldnt need to be in the us to buy bingo dobbers. They are pacticlaly the same as what youd get from TW just they are made for bingo. they use a quick drying ink like stencil ink and the aplicators are excatly the same. If you have any from of a dollar store where you live you can most likely find them. Id say its worth the shot cause at most it will cost you 2 bucks. Plus you can get many differnt colors if they do work and you liek colorfull things.


and btw im in canada

Sorry mate... Canada doesn't count as 'International'... India is a different story. US and Canada stores are 'very' similar... no such thing in India.
 

Bubba

Professional
i keep forgetting to look at the can i used for this, but you might be right, will post when i look next

as for the stencil newspaper idea, idid this, but my stencil was about 1/2 inch from the frame (trying to stay off the racquet center) and the paper actually lifted the stencil off the racquet when i was applaying the spraypaint, i seriouly would tape next time to get a better result

Seish... just go the the local craft or hardware store and get a flexible plastic that you can cut. Some kitchen stores sell thin flexible 'cutting boards' (really thin plastic mat) that you can use too in order to make a stencil.

Oh, and a craft store would have acrylic paint you can use... some place like Michael's.
 

OrangeOne

Legend
Hang on - you have poly strings. Surely wherever you get the poly strings from you can inquire about some real stencil ink?
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
given up - nothing worked

Hang on - you have poly strings. Surely wherever you get the poly strings from you can inquire about some real stencil ink?
nope. no one here in any sports shop, or stringer knows of stencil ink. i suppose in indai very very few are sponsored.

the other day i even tried oil paint, but that came off even faster than acrylic.

so i have finally given up.
 

LPShanet

Banned
Where I am, i do not get stencil inks.
What are the alternatives to it that one might get in a paint/hw store ?

(i tried Luxor Permanent markers, but they came off in one session. I tried another perm ink for marking clothes, but that slowly came off in a week).

thanks.

A few things to know:

1. Even real stencil ink comes off in about a week (or less, depending on how you hit the ball), and marks the balls. You just reapply it.

2. You can damage your strings with some kinds of paint that aren't made for the purpose, although poly is fairly tough stuff in that regard.

3. Many racquet technicians around the world have started using the Sanford Magnum or Pilot Super Color Markers instead of stencil ink, since it's neater/cleaner to work with and is easy to apply from the fat pen. However, it doesn't last any longer than regular stencil ink.
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
A few things to know:

1. Even real stencil ink comes off in about a week (or less, depending on how you hit the ball), and marks the balls. You just reapply it.

2. You can damage your strings with some kinds of paint that aren't made for the purpose, although poly is fairly tough stuff in that regard.

3. Many racquet technicians around the world have started using the Sanford Magnum or Pilot Super Color Markers instead of stencil ink, since it's neater/cleaner to work with and is easy to apply from the fat pen. However, it doesn't last any longer than regular stencil ink.
thats a relief to know.

however, all the people i know who play with racquets that have logos (i think pre-strung rackets) have been playing for months and the ink has not faded ??? these are the kind of dudes who will never restring their rack all their life (unless it breaks).
 

BigGriff

Semi-Pro
thats a relief to know.

however, all the people i know who play with racquets that have logos (i think pre-strung rackets) have been playing for months and the ink has not faded ??? these are the kind of dudes who will never restring their rack all their life (unless it breaks).

Very funny but so true. I know a guy who hasn't strung his Wilson racquet in over 10 years and the ink still looks dark. I pushed on his strings and started to laff. I told him to play with a fishing net next time.
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
Very funny but so true. I know a guy who hasn't strung his Wilson racquet in over 10 years and the ink still looks dark. I pushed on his strings and started to laff. I told him to play with a fishing net next time.
these are not even guys who know how to hold their rackets, honest. and i cant imagine their racks are over $10. the cheapest they could get.

whereever i have been all the racks were unstrung. so i don;t know whats on those el-cheapo OS racks that does not come off.
All the kids who play at my court here come wtith stencilled racks (prestrung) and i don't think it comes off.
None of the stringers here know of about ink. and ofcoas they don't ink.
 

LPShanet

Banned
thats a relief to know.

however, all the people i know who play with racquets that have logos (i think pre-strung rackets) have been playing for months and the ink has not faded ??? these are the kind of dudes who will never restring their rack all their life (unless it breaks).

Pre-strung racquets have three differences from your situation:

(note how I've adopted the list of two items formats in all my posts:))

1. The stencils sit on the racquets for a LONG time before they're used and get a better chance to cure. This may help them last a little longer.

2. They're generally used, as you pointed out, by people who aren't serious tennis players, and therefore don't have much spin or racquet head speed, which is what causes the stencils to come off. They don't wear out the stencils for the same reason they never break strings.

3. Most pre-strung racquets are strung with industrial (read: crap) strings. Most of these aren't coated with silicon and other protective materials that are used in manufacturing and packaging better synthetics. That coating means that the stencil doesn't adhere quite as well to the strings.
 

tbini87

Hall of Fame
so it sounds like there is no great solution to stenciling, because even stencil ink comes off quickly. doesn't sound like it is worth the time. i might try with a marker because that sounds pretty easy and hassle free...
 

LPShanet

Banned
so it sounds like there is no great solution to stenciling, because even stencil ink comes off quickly. doesn't sound like it is worth the time. i might try with a marker because that sounds pretty easy and hassle free...

That's it in a nutshell. Just use whatever works and keep touching it up.
 

vkartikv

Hall of Fame
Have you seen the marks the ink leaves on the balls? They look nasty but atleast it helps you identify your balls when you're playing next to other courts.
 

ananda

Semi-Pro
Have you tried blood? Seems like a good alternative that would stain the strings and last quite a while.

LOL. i think you need to change your username. you have heck of a nerve calling yourselves "a defenceless creature" and giving bloody suggestions :)


yup. after all this hassle i do thik a simple marker pen is the best.

last night i did a round of red acrylic paint stencilling on my racks.
And i spent more time getting the paint off my hands (stupid thing i did there, dont ask)
Last month, the acrylic paint ate through the plastic tea cup I was using and spilled onto the rug and floor, and my foot.

the advantage of acrylic though, is that very little comes off onto the ball. it seems to chip off. and since it is red, it doesnt make the balls look ugly.
that marker ink puts ugly black/navy lines all over the balls.

A note to LPShanet who left us 3 points. in the case of those prestrung racket dudes, their stencilling does not come off onto the ball.
Or mebbe its not poly. I am told poly does not absorb.
 

Yonex.

Semi-Pro
Why don't you make me some bhel? ;)

Sure thing buddy. Lick the screen and pretend your in Bombay.
chaat.jpg


(Please note, this is not me. This is some recipe website image that I googled in ten seconds ;) )
 
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