A few weeks back, there were some lovely stained-glass taillights people were noticing all over the internet, and I, like a fool, snoozed on them. When that happened, I stood out in the rain, the droplets camouflaging the tears streaming down my face, and pledged to every star in the sky and every taillight on the road that never again would I miss out telling you about any taillight art I happen to see, unless, you know, I’m feeling lazy. With that in mind, I’d like to show you these incredible taillights being hand-modified by a Brazilian artist – or perhaps group of artists – known as Kustombike Engraver, They also do engraving on other VW parts and bikes and other materials, but of course its the taillights that first caught my attention.
I feel like we may be on the cusp of a little renaissance of hand-worked taillight art. It’s still in its nascent stages, but there have been glimmers of some really interesting artisanal taillght work going on, and I hope I can champion whatever seems to be happening and encourage as much of it as possible. These van-focused stained glass lights, the ones I mentioned earlier, are, I hope just a first taste. And they’re pretty amazing.
I mean, look at these:
View this post on Instagram
I’m not exactly sure about the legality of some of these stained-glass lenses, but I think as long as there’s not unexpected light colors being shown for crucial functions (as in, make sure the brake lights are red, and so on) they should be legal. Oh, you might want to have extra red retroreflectors on the rear of your van, since these don’t appear to have those.
But let’s look at the Volkswagen taillights from Kustombike Engraver! Here’s a pair of ’62-67 Beetle (I guess Fusca to Brazilians) taillights, engraved to an ornate perfection by the artist:
Amazing, right? The tags on the video suggest that a dremel was used in this process, but I think this is mostly the product of time and skill.
They look fantastic illuminated, too:
View this post on Instagram
I love it. It’s subtle yet powerful, and I can see these as an incredible little bit of jewelry on some nicely restored old Beetle.
They are also engraving other parts, like this engine lid lock/latch:
View this post on Instagram
I mean, at this point, this is jewelry, just jewelry that you have to use to change your fan belt. Lovely!
Oh, and look at this mirror, with the Wolfsburg crest proudly emblazoned:
View this post on Instagram
Here’s a nice combination of both taillight lens engraving and the chrome engraving, all on this Karmann-Ghia taillight unit:
View this post on Instagram
The artist includes a picture that helps show the process, which seems to be sketching the design on paper, wrapping the paper around the taillight lens, and using the dremel to follow the lines, through the paper and into the plastic of the taillamp lens.
I’m happy to see that the engraving still has the same potent impact even on lenses with amber indicators as well. I’d be tempted to have the design work with the division of color, but that’s a very minor gripe. These are absolutely fantastic.
I’m not going to miss out on featuring artists working in the rich and up-and-coming medium of taillights again! This is the start of something big! Big, I tell you, big!
hi, this is everton from kustombike engraver, thank you for sharing my work
Now we know what to buy you for Xmas.
There’s a lady on insta (@etcheddout) who does this on other taillights!
Uhhh… I may be flying these guys out to Portugal to do some subtle, tasteful engraving on the chrome bits of the 70s Silver Shadow I’m 100% getting if I ever become rich (it’ll be a Panelcraft estate if I become filthy rich).
Still my favorite VW art
https://youtu.be/-TCSdwSbcAo?si=wqsFsLXDreHydZ-D
Really pretty, and awesome if you want your Beetle to experience XLR problems with rare $2k taillights.
Needs an NSFW tag. Torch’s poor heart is being tested to its limits
This immediately makes me wonder why this didnt happen already- not engraved but cast,straight from a factory.With Beetles changing so little over the decades there would have been a huge potential market!
Someone should also make lights with horses for the 2CV.One on each light for a total of two naturally
This is just fantastic!
Classy and subtle. I would much rather have that than overdone pinstriping.
I can see this showing up on lowriders for sure. Those guys already have acres of scribework on chrome etc on those cars and its amazing. Why not toss a bit more in the mix. Crud, if it isn’t a driven vehicle but a show car, do the headlights!
You are on to something there. Some are amazing art pieces, and adding a bit more on all the lights would be fantastic
I immediately thought of lowriders, too; same vibe for sure.
I’ve definitely seen the etching on metal work, like door sills and mirrors. Not sure I have on lights…I might have at a show near Phoenix a couple of months back.
Back in the 50s scarab jewelry was going through another popular phase. My mother still has bracelets, necklaces and earrings with semiprecious stones carved with intricate scarab designs. I think scarab tailights would be appropriate for an old beetle.