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Vintage van lettering
Here’s some progressive pics of one I was working on before Christmas.
All hand painted. Sorry for bad pics taken on my phone.
I have to finish it in the New Year so will post a pic of the completed job then.
Got to put coastlines around all the panels.
Pretty straightforward job but slowed down by the freezing temps we had brrrrrr 🙁
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33 Replies
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That’s way cool.
Can’t wait to see it all finished.
Looks like something you’d see in a museum.
Love…..Jill -
You’ve spelt Argos wrong…
and I take it that’s one of their delivery trucks 😕
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Very nice.
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LOL, Phill. That’s Welsh for Argos 😉
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Nice stuff Neil, I will Look forward to seeing the finished article.
Shame its on an LDV though, (sherpa?)
Peter
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Peter, your right, it is LDV judging by those doors.
Gonna take a closer look at this after new year!
You can’t see the bonnet on but it’s very fancy. -
Beautiful work Neil….what colour you gonna shade in? 😀
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Looks really good Neil, like others have said I look forward to seeing the finished article.
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Nice work Neil, looks really good!
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Neil, I know it would be impossible to freehand the oval, so in days gone by we’d have had to drawn it, so to use the plotter now is obvious. What I did wonder though was, do you reckon you save a lot of time drawing the letters? Does it work out quicker than snapping lines and freehanding it?
I’m assuming you drew the lettering as oppose to computer as it’s struck a balance vinyls can’t ever seem to quite get, sorry so many questions, was just deciding to do something that’s all.
Also a little curious on how you coachline, I don’t personally know anyone who can do it anymore, and it’s a shame to loose a skill.
Just see you’d posted shane, have you done anymore grain and varnish?, I am in bewilderment as to how anyone can grain that well, amazing stuff.
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Harry, there’s no shading going on this one.
Bob, as the main ‘logo’ was replicated on both sides and one on the rear, although smaller, I did draw a pattern up with my plotter.
I then decided not to pounce the pattern but i just covered the rear with chalk and loosely drew the lettering on including the oval.The Old English lettering was then painted straight off a No.8 sable chisel again loosely following my chalk pattern. Even tho I used a computer drawn pattern I wasn’t to worried about straying a little to keep it fluid.
The Est. 1892 was painted without a pattern, just the normal rough layout straight on the panel to get it centred.I’m not that great at coachlining as I don’t do it often enough.
I’ll probably use Striper tape on the long lines and pull the shorter ones freehand with either a traditional British long sable lining brush or a sword striper. -
So bit of each really, I wasn’t 100% which way you’d gone, as you’ve made it your own. It really is nice stuff, painting is the only way to get that look. I tell customers it can be re-created in vinyl, but we know it can’t.
I get where you’re coming from with the coachlining, I do very little now, and where with lettering you get back in the swing in seconds, lining you can’t. I used to do lots of cars, and bike tanks, then I had a gap of a couple of years and went straight onto a Harley tank which I lined straight on to base coat. Knowing one little mistake and it’s a respray gets the nerves going.
Anyway, lovely stuff and I’ll post some of my old work soon.
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Nice!
Makes me want to Dig my brush’s out and start sign-writing again!
Then again maybe not!
Considering that I could probably knock that off in 20 minutes with my cutter.
It seems a shame! that the old skills are dying out,
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Here’s the finished van.
You may notice ‘Evening’ has been changed to ‘Daily’, luckily the body-shop
were able to polish the lettering off as the customer wanted this changed!
It is, as eagle eyed Peter noticed, a lookey likey vintage van based on a Sherpa chassis.
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nice to see the finished article Neil,
no detraction from quality, of your work, it being a relatively new vehicle.Personally I am not sure about the light blue on green, (or is it turquoise?) maybe it will grow on me,
Peter
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Hi Peter, thanks for the comments.
The colour is a 1shot colour called Aqua, quite a light blue/green not as dark as I’d
say turquoise is.
I had to match to the original colour but in the flesh I think it works.
The colours are not very far away from each other on the colour wheel so I guess it’s Analogous. So if my memory serves me well the green/aqua doesn’t fight each other and are quite passive!
But then again I maybe talking a load of b***cks 😀 -
I still have a can of 1S Aqua from the early 90s.
I can never find a use for it.
Turned out swell, Neil. -
Looks great Neil! 😀
I’d be itching to shade Argus though :lol1:
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quote Bob Clarkson:Neil, I know it would be impossible to freehand the oval, so in days gone by we’d have had to drawn it, so to use the plotter now is obvious. What I did wonder though was, do you reckon you save a lot of time drawing the letters? Does it work out quicker than snapping lines and freehanding it?
I’m assuming you drew the lettering as oppose to computer as it’s struck a balance vinyls can’t ever seem to quite get, sorry so many questions, was just deciding to do something that’s all.
Also a little curious on how you coachline, I don’t personally know anyone who can do it anymore, and it’s a shame to loose a skill.
Just see you’d posted shane, have you done anymore grain and varnish?, I am in bewilderment as to how anyone can grain that well, amazing stuff.
Hi Bob, havnt done any for a while & after reading your post I decided to do a old door at home. Now this door is badly damaged /aged with cracks/dents cracking paint & so on. So I purposely wanted to do as little work on repairing this as it would take too long. All thats done is scraped,sanded & slightly filled then under coated. The effect hides a lot of damage anyhow & in some ways enhances it. pics are of different stages all jumbled about sorry, Haven’t finshed it yet, got too busy at work but will do as the final tweaks really lift it. Oh & i’ll also finish the hinges & handle/lock to resemble iron mongery.
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Shane,
that is absolutely stunning work. but I have to ask the question,
would it not have been cheaper just to buy a new wood effect door?
or even a real wood door.
I am not sure why a painted effect is better than the real thing, I need convincing?Peter
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Stunning work Shane.
Peter, I don’t think anybody is saying woodgraining is better than the real thing. As with sign writing, with a brush, this is a traditional craft.
Years ago wood was very expensive so artisans and craftsmen trained to paint wood effects or Woodgrain as it is known.
Back then painters and decorators and signwriters would carry out this type of work.
For example in my house we have a solid slate fire surround and mantle piece. We’ve stripped it back and oiled the slate now but it was Woodgrained. A hundred years ago
Slate was cheaper than wood. I’ve researched on the net and our Slate fire surround would now fetch thousands in places like America!
When I did my Apprenticeship I learned to grain. Not long after finishing I worked for a local builders and Grained the Dining Room of a stately home.
I hadn’t done any for years until recently when I applied a very simple grain to an Honours Board that I re-lettered.
There are people willing to pay for this type of craft just as there are those who will pay for Traditional Signwriting as oppose to vinyl lettering.Don’t know if this will help. It’s just that there are people who still want or require this type of craft and these crafts are still very much alive.
There endeth the lesson 😀
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Neil I expect you and Shane and other people that can do that sort of thing do it because you can, and you also enjoy doing it 😎
Lynn
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Lynn, I couldn’t grain like Shane does, that is something else.
It’s just so great to see this type of work.
Awesome stuff 😀
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Neil I agree totally I love to see the skill all of you brushies, wood carvers, grainers have I find it awesome also.
Lynn
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quote Neil Davey:It’s just so great to see this type of work.
Awesome stuff 😀totally agree neil, stunning work, I keep going back and looking over and over, cause its so good, and beats me how its even done 😀
nik
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quote Peter Normington:Shane,
that is absolutely stunning work. but I have to ask the question,
would it not have been cheaper just to buy a new wood effect door?
or even a real wood door.
I am not sure why a painted effect is better than the real thing, I need convincing?Peter
I get asked that all the time…..even ask myself it at times.
whether its marble,wood,metal,stone & so on.
Well the way I look at it is this firstly those a new wood effect doors looks exactly what it is….. fake & repetitive. lets say you have ten cheap mdf paneled/flush or old/metal/steel doors & you want to change them or tart them up. If you wanted to change them for oak (expensive oak) or any type of wood most expensive or hard to get or impossible to get. Well first you gotta buy new ones then pay someone to take off the old and hang the new with architrave as well . Thats expensive unless you can hang them yourself. Or if you have existing plaster or painted columns , pilasters , mouldings , raised wall panels, cornices, niches, corbels,dado’s, skirting’s the list could go on & on. These can be changed into what ever you want…. marble ,stone , wood ,metal & if the painter is good enough then the most beautiful & expensive parts of these can be replicated. Ive painted a restaurant ceiling where it was cheaper for them to have a crew put up fake mouldings in tudor style & then I painted the ceiling & mouldings in oak to look as one. Steel fire/exit doors painted to match existing wood in castles/hotels , existing metal pilasters painted in sienna marble, Then there’s trompe l’oeil, I could go on & on all night.
The real thing cant be beaten but for the ‘look’ it can be matched. I need a rest after now after all that blab
Cheers, Shane -
Shane
Good points mate, and well justifying your talent,
had to ask though, otherwise we dont learn.Peter
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quote Peter Normington:Shane
Good points mate, and well justifying your talent,
had to ask though, otherwise we dont learn.Peter
Thanks mate..glad you asked why.
Plus so many people say that theres no work or money in this…. Pahh! palaces , 5star hotels , castles, film sets museums etc etc are amongst the places you will find this work….thanks all for your comments & Neil …you sound like me. ha ha -
I absolutely love the appearance, and appreciate the skill and craft of a beautiful graining job. I’ve only ever seen it done to this standard by yourself, and the guy I done my apprenticeship with, I only wish he’d taught me the more specifics of graining as I’d have loved to be able to do it, to this type of standard.
If you were a bit closer, I think we’d be working a plan for you to do every door in my house.
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Extraordinary work Shane, I think a good ‘grainer’ can create a much richer and warmer wood than mammy nature sometimes! 😀
Note to Mods: I think these pics should be given a thread of their own….no disrespect to Neil at all but there are very few examples of this standard of graining online and deserve a thread of their own.
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quote Harry Cleary:Note to Mods: I think these pics should be given a thread of their own….no disrespect to Neil at all but there are very few examples of this standard of graining online and deserve a thread of their own.
I agree Harry, this is such a great example of what can be done with graining.
I was going to shout HIJACK but I’m still getting over the hijacking that happened Friday evening 😀 -
quote Neil Davey:quote Harry Cleary:Note to Mods: I think these pics should be given a thread of their own….no disrespect to Neil at all but there are very few examples of this standard of graining online and deserve a thread of their own.
Thanks Harry, you have a good eye/knowledge for graining. You must of done a bit as well.
I agree Harry, this is such a great example of what can be done with graining.
I was going to shout HIJACK but I’m still getting over the hijacking that happened Friday evening 😀Yeah my bad, Sorry Neil
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nice neil very nice
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