advice on supplying flat cut stand off lettering

[Robert Lambie]

i am guessing, but a cnc router will cut it fine. as long as they use a narrow bit. 3mm bit should do it. laser router would do it best but still… 3mm bit should be fine.

[Liam Pattison]

Thanks Rob, do you think perspex is the best option considering their colours, or are their any other nice materials i should look into?

Cheers

Liam

[Robert Lambie]

ahhh waite a second mate… just re-read your post.
im thinking flat-cut raised perspex letters, you mention 3D? by that you mean built-up 3D?

NO, Your never getting the sides of those letters fabricated as a built-up.
however, you could try getting 19mm thick foamex flat cut. but you may struggle with it in black. i have only used white.

alternatively you could use HDU = High density urethane board.
you can get it in various thicknesses or it can be stacked glued and sanded then primed and sprayed.

there is also the option of polystyrene cut letters. then painted but im not sure the finish you are looking for. or how close they will be viewed.

UKSG member Fran Hollywood on these boards does styrene cut letter & graphics… very good at his job too!
.

[Liam Pattison]

Thanks Rob

Sorry to confuse you! That’s what i mean , i’m not too good with the terminology.

Basically they just want it somehow to be more than plain vinyl on a wall. So they want some kind of 3d or stand off option whatever that may be.

My idea is to make it in flat letters cut out of 3mm or 5mm coloured perspex and attach them to the wall with locators.

So i think your first post answered my question and told me this is possible. I think i will phone one of the suppliers from the toolbar and then email them over the eps to see what they think.

What about aluminium composite, would that do the job if placed on locators, or would the edges of the material not look too great.

Cheers

Liam

[Graeme Harrold]

Just done a job with a similar jaggy font and actually looked good where it went. All done by About Signs (Fabricut), not the cheapest, however they are very good quality and have fantastic customer service…..

Locator’s will raise the letter some 15 to 20mm from the wall and can be combined with vinyl on the wall to give a shadow/outline effect.

[Liam Pattison]

quote Graeme Harrold:

Just done a job with a similar jaggy font and actually looked good where it went. All done by About Signs (Fabricut), not the cheapest, however they are very good quality and have fantastic customer service…..

Locator’s will raise the letter some 15 to 20mm from the wall and can be combined with vinyl on the wall to give a shadow/outline effect.

That’s a great idea with the shadow Greame, just the kind of extra suggestion i was looking for.

What material did you use? and what thickness? I was thinking either 3mm or 5mm perspex or powder coated aluminium.

thanks

Liam

[Warren Beard]

a lot of the time materials come down to what colours are needed, most acrylics are semi transparent and you will see the fixings, Dibond etc has a black edge but can be flood coated with vinyl to match, foamex can be painted so is also a good idea but the actuall painting is a hassle and to use 19mm would make the letters nice and thick and then could just stick them directly to the wall with VHB tape and not use locators.

I always bought Dibond letters as I always thought it was cheaper than acrylic but then found out by chance that acrylic is usually cheaper (even though it’s thicker 5mm) as it takes more work to do the Dibond than acrylic so costs more 😉

Basically I have found in the past my choice of materials has come down to what the client is looking for and what colours they need.

I am busy with a job that went from 10mm black acrylic, to vinyl covered acrylic and is now being done as metal powder coated letters all because of the colour they needed, nothing else.

It’s all fun anyway 😛

[Liam Pattison]

quote Warren Beard:

a lot of the time materials come down to what colours are needed, most acrylics are semi transparent and you will see the fixings, Dibond etc has a black edge but can be flood coated with vinyl to match, foamex can be painted so is also a good idea but the actuall painting is a hassle and to use 19mm would make the letters nice and thick and then could just stick them directly to the wall with VHB tape and not use locators.

I always bought Dibond letters as I always thought it was cheaper than acrylic but then found out by chance that acrylic is usually cheaper (even though it’s thicker 5mm) as it takes more work to do the Dibond than acrylic so costs more 😉

Basically I have found in the past my choice of materials has come down to what the client is looking for and what colours they need.

I am busy with a job that went from 10mm black acrylic, to vinyl covered acrylic and is now being done as metal powder coated letters all because of the colour they needed, nothing else.

It’s all fun anyway 😛

Thanks Warren

Could i just ask about the powder coating. I know what powder coating looks like in my mind. But i have not seen it done with any kind of glossy surface and i do not even know wheather different finishes such as matt and gloss are possible?

Do you have a pic of the powder coated ones you did please if it’s not too much trouble? I’m thinking the see throughness of acrylic may be a problem but i could spray paint the reverse side to overcome this maybe? Covering reverse with vinyl is not really an option due to the jaggedness of the font.

Thanks again

Liam

[Warren Beard]

sorry Liam I don’t think it’s powder coated, I think it’s wet sprayed, the same finish an aluminium sign tray is done from the likes of Ashby etc

Sorry for the confusion

Cheers

Warren

[Ruairi O'Boyle]

Liam

Just to clear up the powder coating for you. Powder coating is the use of dry powder rather than wet paint. They spray with powder onto the product and normally pass it through a heating booth, when heated it gels together and produces the painted finish. It often gives a tougher finish that wet paint applications. I am almost sure that coloured Diabond sheets are powder coated, hence you can get it glossy and mat. It is a very popular and common method of painting.

I prefer foamex for edges like that as it is not as brittle as acrylic and is more forgiving when in the router and for fitting.

If you are using Diabond be careful of the glue you use as some of the 2 part glues can dimple the face of the diabond.

This is just my 2 cents worth from the different signs I have done, for what its worth!

[Peter Dee]

Here’s one I did in 10mm perspex. The 10mm has a chunkier look than the usual 5mm and being self coloured will last indefinitely.

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[Liam Pattison]

quote Peter Dee:

Here’s one I did in 10mm perspex. The 10mm has a chunkier look than the usual 5mm and being self coloured will last indefinitely.

Hi Peter, thanks for uploading the pic, great work. Who supplied you the 10mm, think my edges may be too jagged for 10mm but think 5mm will be ok.

thanks again

Liam

[Liam Pattison]

quote Ruairi O’Boyle:

Liam

Just to clear up the powder coating for you. Powder coating is the use of dry powder rather than wet paint. They spray with powder onto the product and normally pass it through a heating booth, when heated it gels together and produces the painted finish. It often gives a tougher finish that wet paint applications. I am almost sure that coloured Diabond sheets are powder coated, hence you can get it glossy and mat. It is a very popular and common method of painting.

I prefer foamex for edges like that as it is not as brittle as acrylic and is more forgiving when in the router and for fitting.

If you are using Diabond be careful of the glue you use as some of the 2 part glues can dimple the face of the diabond.

This is just my 2 cents worth from the different signs I have done, for what its worth!

Ruairi, thanks for explianing that to me. What i am thinking is 5mm perspex, sprayed on reverse if i have any slight problem with transparency.

Anybody know anything about flame polished edges and is it worth spending extra on getting it done?

cheers

Liam

[Peter Dee]

http://www.trade-letters.com

Flame polished might be worth the extra for an indoor job which will be viewed close up.

Best thing to do is send them the file and ask if they can do it.

[Liam Pattison]

quote Peter Dee:

http://www.trade-letters.com

Flame polished might be worth the extra for an indoor job which will be viewed close up.

Best thing to do is send them the file and ask if they can do it.

That’s what i was thinking about the polishing, will enquire about the price.

Thanks for the link, will upload pictures and let you know where i got everything once this job is complete (that’s if i get it).

If anyone would give me permission to pm them and ask their advice about the price i have in mind to charge for this, that would be a great help. It’s just i don’t want to put prices in a public area.

thanks

Liam

[Liam Pattison]

Hi,
just to update, the customer has now asked me to match some letters he had made previously. They are 3.8mm thick. They appear to be made of almost a polystyrene type foam material, similar to the type of material people stick plants into (oasis). And it has a paperish laminate surface.

Can anyone give me some advice on this type of fabrication and who does it, as i am having trouble tracking it down.

Thanks in advance

Liam

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[Robert Lambie]

Whilst your onto them Liam, ask them to stop spamming UKSB, it is getting a bit boring now. 😉

quote Liam Pattison:

quote Peter Dee:

http://www.trade-letters.com

Flame polished might be worth the extra for an indoor job which will be viewed close up.

Best thing to do is send them the file and ask if they can do it.

That’s what i was thinking about the polishing, will enquire about the price.

Thanks for the link, will upload pictures and let you know where i got everything once this job is complete (that’s if i get it).

If anyone would give me permission to pm them and ask their advice about the price i have in mind to charge for this, that would be a great help. It’s just i don’t want to put prices in a public area.

thanks

Liam

[Liam Pattison]

Just to complete this post in case anyone is interested, here is the finished product, 1 inch polystyrene card faced, matt finish-

Customer was happy with the job and has asked for a second set of letters the same, but for exterior, so i will probably be asking for some advice on those next week!

thanks again to those who offered advice on this

Liam

P.S These letters are not meant to be in a straight line before anyone says they look like they’re on this p*ss 😉

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[Graeme Harrold]

quote Liam Pattison:

Just to complete this post in case anyone is interested, here is the finished product, 1 inch polystyrene card faced, matt finish-

Customer was happy with the job and has asked for a second set of letters the same, but for exterior, so i will probably be asking for some advice on those next week!

thanks again to those who offered advice on this

Liam

P.S These letters are not meant to be in a straight line before anyone says they look like they’re on this p*ss 😉

No but the kerning is out a little…. :lol1:

[Liam Pattison]

quote Graeme Harrold:

quote Liam Pattison:

Just to complete this post in case anyone is interested, here is the finished product, 1 inch polystyrene card faced, matt finish-

Customer was happy with the job and has asked for a second set of letters the same, but for exterior, so i will probably be asking for some advice on those next week!

thanks again to those who offered advice on this

Liam

P.S These letters are not meant to be in a straight line before anyone says they look like they’re on this p*ss 😉

No but the kerning is out a little…. :lol1:

That’s why i took all the pictures at funny angles 😳