I always wondered if the valve cover letterings back in the day were decals or painted. Don't know the answer but you could always put each letter/part on separately (but uniformly) if you are good with an exacto knife.
Depends on which day you are referring to. Stencils might have been used in some years. In 1954, the THRIFTMASTER/LOADMASTER name on the valve cover is shown in the Factory Assembly Manual as a "DECALCOMANIA".
In the USA, DECALCOMANIA was often used to describe a transfer: a sheet with letters/figures on it would be placed over the "substrate" and the transfer-image would be rubbed-off onto the substrate.
I have no idea how the engine "name" got onto a 1954 valve cover, it might have been hand-painted (or roller painted) using a stencil, but I doubt if it was free-hand painted. It might have been a decal as we know it (and can buy them) or it might have been applied using a transfer process (DECALCOMANIA). Does anyone else have any knowledge about this, or care to speculate (BS) on this?
Earlier names on valve covers appear to have been painted using a stencil?
