[steve]

get a MAC!!

[steve]

Many thanks guys what would we do without us!!

[steve]

Moss plastic parts in Manchester about 40 colours they are excellent BUT there is a very silly minimum order quantity! sorry dony know the website address GOOGLE will though!

[steve]

Dosn’t it depend entirely on which way the sun supposedly is hitting the text? morning east- shadow right -noon cast shadow from top- and afternoon shadow left and again technically a painted letter would not cast a shadow at all because it has no thickness to speak of?

[steve]

Wow- great to get feedback on a question posted ages ago thanks for that guys I think i am right in suggesting that up to date Flex 7 is not available for any Mac is that true? will V6.6 run on OS 9.1 or 9.2 classic?
We have a beta version loadd and I agree its too PC for my liking!!!
I am laothe to change anything the MacG4 running Flexi 5.6 and Illlustrator 10/5.5 for vector files s totally stable and has served us well over the past 15 years has anybody got the G5/Flexi 6.6 combination yet and if so how does that perform?.

[steve]

Thanks guys UKSG never ceases to amaze me! JOB IS SET AND READY TO GO thanks again

[steve]

Andy call Harry Matthias the blade man he will get you the best machine at best price great advice we have operated two Grphtec plotters 610 and 1220 both have operated daily for NINE AND SEVEN YEARS without a hitch we cut thick card on the 610 for our Polystyrene letter templates take my advice call Harry in the call will last a minimum of 30 mins but its worth it!

[steve]

Thanks Guys I have taken Jills advice and created the logo i think I caught a dose a of very prevalent UK disease called CABS stands for cant be arsed syndrome!
always great to hear from members across the pond -a great country I have been over eight times and not one of them to boring Florida!!

[steve]

Thanks Jill these signs are for an event at the British Motor Show and will never be used in the US but its nice to get authenticity huh
Have you got a vector .eps of the interstate sign the one which is on a shield ? i need interstate 90 apparantly a turn off the New York Thruway?

PS please could you let the millions of e-mail spammers over your way know that I and most of the 56 million other UK citizens am totally OK for Viagra and the plethera of other potentially dangerous drugs they incessantly try to sell me and I also have a nice cheap mortgage and a diploma from every American University known to man!!! its only a matter of time before they try selling .44 magnums and generic AK47’s to us hum it might not be a bad idea the way this country is sliding away from law abiding citizens ask if they have any speed camera ZAPPING WEAPONS!
DO AMERICANS GET THIS CRAP which is costing us a fortune in lost time every day just deleting i would love to meet one of these people in the flesh the AK47 would come in usefull!

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[steve]

Thanks Richard

[steve]

The sign has HIGHWAY 90 in a shield with the word THRUWAY to the right of the shield
then New York and two arrows pointing down depicting two lanes i guess does that help?

[steve]

thanks Ray your a star

[steve]

Invitation cordially accepted

[steve]

Many times, I love the South Coast I work regularly in Brighton and Bournemouth on exhibitions and conferences

[steve]

…..yes but a great place to be sad old Weymouth

[steve]

Spare a thought for poor old Christine 48 is no age!

[steve]

Jill we do Bikini waxing……….call me definately no appointment nessessary!

[steve]

I’ll second that….. Ashbys are a superbly efficient organisation their service is second to none try their 3mm Ali panels ready coated in vinyl no bubbles no hassle all post track is pre fixed under the vinyl their sample sign that they will send out to you sells the signs clients love to see the finished article with post/sign and stainless clips.
Their powder or wet coated trays are also excellent.
give them a try last week I ordered £1200 of kit they turned it round in 2 days can’t speak highly enough of them.
Steve Signagraphic

[steve]

Thanks guys all in a days work here at good old Signagraphic
My latest project,should I choose to accept it Jim! is to produce 10 double sided 3000 x 2000mm jig saws inkjet prints to both sides mounted to each side of 500mm thick High Density Polystyrene so they build into walls- no pressure!! and 11 2000 x 1200 dummy cheques to be in Athens by early next week!
Rob award stand is polystyrene- swirl is MDF and a bit of fine surface filler!!

[steve]

now thats what I like ..constructive critisism!! 😆

[steve]

voila!

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[steve]

or me steve@signagraphic.com we have had every mac file problem known to man…or woman

[steve]

Once again a result! many thanks to all

[steve]

sorry to say it does….. after 17 years in this job it puts years on all of us 😮
but little tips like this certainally help !!

[steve]

Thanks Guys i have called Chris a very nice man I think im on a winner there!! bless you all!

[steve]

Very many thanks to all who responded so quickly to my request, such a mind blowingly magnificent forum to be part of. Long may it live and a mighty thank you to Robert for his tenacity and professionalism in the creation and constant tweeking of this great site to keep it totally current three cheers and a double Malt from all of us for Rob…….

[steve]

HI John the system is pre shaped and simply requires digi or vinyl diplay pans on 3mm Foamex sprung into the panels with velcro…. easy…

[steve]

A BIGGER PIC OF 2003 CBI CONFERENCE SET ICCBirmingham Nov 03

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[steve]

Hi Rob- fixing is simple- 75mm screws into blocks under reinforced floor decks there is very little weight in the structure ali tube is very light but strutting from behind back to the back wall is commonplace on heavier structures.
I will soon post our latest set- CBI Conference at ICC Birmingham last month uses Polystyrene Digi and vinyl mediums and MTV Awards in Edinburgh
Steve

[steve]

We also do a great deal of lettering and logos in Polystyrene Flame retardant material we ofted cut up to 1830 high and100 thick painted vinyled or inkjet print faces trading under the mane of Polyshop its easy to apply and looks fantastic on a set shop stand or EXTERIOR FASCIA!
I attach a pic of how we do it

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[steve]

Thanks for that yes all our own work. Our main bag is worldwide Conference graphics we specialise in all things inside!! and the occasional vehicle and extrior sign- school signage is a good earner they usually go for top spec stugg ali signs and supports.
I will post a few other bits
feel free to visit my site http://www.signagraphic.com
regards
Steve Brear

[steve]

It would be very interesting to hear from Brian the Brush on this string he still makes a good living out of pushing the brush I learned all my skills at College doing signwriting the “best years of my life” but the other guys are right its not possible to both learn traditional signwriting and vinyl skills from scratch they are an ocean apart! it is truly a niche market client bases are so difficult to amass no money to be made

[steve]

got it many thanks i reckon this site may catch on!!
steve 😀

[steve]

Adrain Please could you e mail it to me I can never see the on post stuff on my Mac just shows a running man with a red line through it! i need a plug-in apparantly but it never tells me what the plug in is or where i can get it! any knowledgeable Mac people out there can tell me?
steve@signagraphic.com

[steve]

Thanks a million Adrian we can always count on you!

[steve]

go on Nichola tell us exactly what you need!!!

[steve]

Lorainne im sure your client is refering to a simple Nimlok Pop up display unit done correctly they can appear to have a seamless graphic face they are in fact in strips and held in place magnetically I do a great deal of them along with banner stands and portable exhibition units Im afraid their budget is too low though.

[steve]

would this method work in flexisign on a mac?

[steve]

Thanks Steve your comments are welcome and noted

[steve]

what about a facility to pick up your parcel from the depot, the cost of this sevice would be very much cheaper and at least you could collect it when you wanted it not when the harrassed drivers choose to deliver it- like Red Star on the rail network?

[steve]

GET A GRAPHTEC or MUTOH plotter and sleep at night! we have operated 2 Grphtec machines for 7 and 5 years respectively neither has missed a beat in all that time we all need to do a little bit more self maintenance than we do though it is imperative to clean all visible moving parts very often especially rollers and knurled bars they get choked up with all sorts of gunge we use lighter fluid safe and efficient.
Call Harry Matthias he can get a good deal on these machines and has a fantastic knowledge of the plotting industry but only call him if you have a couple of hours to spare!! 😆

[steve]

We have tried them all and found TARGET to be the best of a very bad bunch my brother has his own distribution Company and he regularly uses his brand new 4.4 metre Sprinter (which i should have lettered 3 months ago!) working for Business Post on their deliveries he once had 20+ 9 o clock deliveries to do….. they were 25 miles apart….. and he started at 8 am!!
Chalkie has it completely in a nutshell its all about bribery and corruption…. we tamed a business post driver to deliver to us at the start of his hectic round we always gave him trinkets by way of payment….. this worked !
If anybody wants a mega reliable delivery organisation I have one in the family 😆 😆

[steve]

Neil that’s well clever!

[steve]

can’t ever recall seeing any adverts for professionally made workbenches for our trade maybe that’s something else the UKSG could make and market they could incorporate power fed carrier dispensers overhead electricity feeds etc etc any views on that? (?)

[steve]

Gray slam some 3m’s VHB 25mm tape on it will still be up long after you are gone!!

and give us a tune…

[steve]

A great method Alan we have used it for years works a treat!

[steve]

Shame on you Brian why didn’t you ask me to do the vinyls!!

[steve]

Lorainne I use a co called Clayton Signs for all my fixing they are superb they work all over the UK but are based in West Yorkshire they can do anything and I know they are in THELONDON AREA VERY OFTEN THEY WILL HELP IF THEY CAN- ALL MEMBERS TAKE A NOTE OF THIS NO. YOUR FIXING PROBLEMS ARE OVER! CALL CHRIS ON 07970 155968 tell him Steve at Signagraphic recommended him.

[steve]

Wooow come on Rod youre taking all this far too seriously chill out what a beautiful country you live in …….(except Jo burg!) stop and smell the gazelle droppings! are you near a bush?!!

[steve]

I reckon the very best available config for signmaking is MAC G5, GRAFTEC 1220 PLOTTER, running Flexi 7.0 with Illustrator 10, (Freehand 7, just in case), Photoshop 6 Quark express 6 and an HP 5500PS IJ PRINTER TAGGED ON THE END the world is your oyster with that lot what say you PC people
Lorainne JUST KEEP WATCHING E BAY MAC HARDWARE SECTION SALES YOU CAN PICK UP SOME GREAT BARGAINS ie fully loaded G3 sold recently for £85.00!!
I now run 8 macs they are all gems!

[steve]

Consider my bubble well and truly burst L but still get a Mac!!

[steve]

quote steve:

GET A MAC!!

you can then save files as…… UKSG is great & fantastic.eps !!

[steve]

GET A MAC!!

[steve]

he he he well done Neil…….these boards are marvellous 😆 😆

[steve]

Neil a very nicely laid out post and only 3 mistakes! a mere 30p in the kitty keep it up you are showing great promise …..for a Southener 😆 😆

[steve]

Gray & Eddie this post is making the banjo and Bodhan fingers well twitchy!
Oh to be sat in another flying session in that magnificent pub I know it well

[steve]

Dave does this guy sell offcuts im always looking for them as often to buy a 2050 x 1500mm half sheet makes me non competitive on flat cut routed letter jobs?

[steve]

Thanks for letting us all know how things are Pierre I was very very involved last year and it had a very pronounced effect on my thoughts making my problems almost insignificant in comparison to those of Rosemary,yourself and all her family. The trauma you are suffering can only bring you closer together we are all with you in spirit please give her a great big kiss from me when she is well again there is a holiday home here in the UK with us for as long as she wants.God bless you all
Steve

[steve]

GRRRRRR GREAT take 2 good digi pics, major detailed description, of it bang it on in collectibles section with a reserve of min £250 get a very accurate despatch cost to say California and wait!

[steve]

John firstly you must register, there is a wealth of information on their site giving tips on every concieveable e- bay info you will ever need- it is addictive after your first sale on there it is easy- if i can help with any specifics please ask- there is an extremely good helpline on there covering all types of Q AND A combinations.
First tip is to put a reserve on your work do not be tempted to sell cheaply it wont be long before potential buyers will hit you with bids it really is great fun watching the bids mount up on screen.
Dont expect it all to happen quickly itsall about waiting and watching what other people do treat all the mountains of tips as gospel the whole thing is extremely well run and interesting and can be very very profitable there are several sections that deal with art and collectables my advice is to set up a shop AFTERr you are totally familiar with the way its all done make sure you read all about the scams that exist as there are unscrupulous dealers on there as well as very very nice people to deal with
Good luck keep me in your loop im very interested in how it goes
regards

[steve]

John have you thought about setting up an art shop on e-bay? that way you could sell your work worldwide at very little outlay you could also attract commissions.
I have been dealing on e-bay.com for about 3 months its like winning the lottery slowly!
Has anyone else got the e-bay bug ..if you haven’y you should!

[steve]

Welcome to the UKSG John I TOO HAVE HAD A GOOD LOOK AT YOUR SITE YOU HAVE AN AMAZING TALENT i can signwrite in the traditional way but like so many of us the talent tends to get pushed to one side when computers can do what the hand does in a fraction of the time .. and time is money!
You , in my humble opinion are wasting your undoubted talent in even considering trad signwriting although it will no doubt be very satisfying for you to master a new skill it will not pay the bills especially if your intended move to London happens.
This industry is cut throat and is getting worse by the day.
Trad signwriting is not a way of expanding your skills by the look of your skills you would be far far better off in the high end graphics market as an illustrator or visualiser in a top Design or advertising agency of which there are many in the capital.Conference and Exhibition design/visualisers are like gold dust.
You could also ply your trade doing commission work especially for the States painting English landmarks and selling online or on e-bay, taking an e-bay worldwide shop.
The sign trade is great with a vast amount of satisfaction but with business as it is there will be few takers for the type of skill that you will develop it is not cost effective any longer.For a comaratively small finantial outlay coupled with advice and help from the members on this excellent forum you can , I am sure start to swell your income in a more cost effective way as most of us do GET A COMPUTER AND PLOTTER…. BUT PLEASE DO NOT HANG UP YOUR BRUSHES your skills are mind blowing and needed by many big agency names in this country.
The very very best of luck whatever you decide to do your dogs are stunning would you paint the wife ?? 😮 😮

[steve]

av nowm me av ter wark forty mile wit 12foot ladders on mi back just ter alter opanin tymes on a bord fifty foot up int air and wark back wi em
thar dunt naw thars born darn int south yer all sissys
Steve Yorkshire born and bred and proud of it

thar nars (>) 😀 😀 (-)

[steve]

TRADITIONAL IRISH MUSIC I adore playing it i play the Bodrhan the single irish drum in sessions throughout the UK and in Co. Clare.
There is nothing better than sitting for up to eight hours knocking out irish jigs and reels with a dozen or so like minded musicians over a gallon of the black stuff I have played in Temple Bar in Dublin that is awesome its like a rave but deeper! wonderful therapy in comparison to playing an Apple G4 all day i have all my instruments at the side of me in my office one of the perks of being the main man!
I have six guitars inc a strat and les Paul, five drums a fiddle a mandolin and flute
This type of music has got to be the very best to unwind to!!
I also sing irish folk songs to my magnificent Yamaha LL11E accoustic guitar
come on Gray back me up here fella!!

[steve]

JUST A MINUTE…. ROB… HELP… MY POST COUNTER IS BROKEN IT IS STUCK ON 296!! HAS BEEN FOR AGES IIT SHOULD READ 327,547 1 MORE THAN YOU!!

[steve]

10 out of 10 Mike it is indeed ITC QUORUM BOLD

[steve]

I might be wrong but I reckon this text started life as Fritz Quadrata Medium and is a very badly done bastardisation of that font you can, if looked at closely, see the bits filled in on the a and d we get this annoying problem every day of the week
Steve

[steve]

I might be wrong but I reckon this text started life as Fritz Quadrata Medium and is a very badly done bastardisation of that font you can, if looked at closely, see the bits filled in on the a

[steve]

Marty have you thought of this idea- why not simply get signwork in and get local trustworthy firms or any of us UKSG members (except Gray!) to make the signs for you, mark it up and pocket the profit its called a “middle man”I have worked for a lot of middle men over the years they all live in big houses and drive fancy motors it makes sense no machinery no outlay no premises plus you know your job!
There must be at least 10 of us willing to do your work- think about it

[steve]

looks about 20% too expensive to me- the sign trade is getting harder by the week- too many sign firms- too little work- too tight budgets- nobody wants quality any more!
think ill get out and apply for political assylum in Iraq!

[steve]

TOTALLY AGREE
ITS GOT TO BE ASHBYS
YOUR CLIENTS POLES SHOULD BE 76mm OD
ASHBYS SUPPLY 3mm ALI PLATES READY COVERED IN VINYL AND WITH FIXING CHANNEL I HAVE NEVER HAD ANY BUBBLES. THEY DO EVERYTHING YOU WILL NEED AND ARE NO WORSE ON PRICE THAN ANYONE ELSE
ASK FOR ONE OF THEIR GREAT SAMPLE SIGNS WITH ALL AVAILABLE COLOURS ON
USUALLY NEXT DAY DELIVERY.

[steve]

Welcome to the boards guys..enjoy!
Steve at Signagraphic BRADFORD!

[steve]

A tip guys we get the pantone match problem every day its always been a nightmare if the job is for interior use we simply paint white matt vinyl with 2 or 3 quick thin coats of emulsion paint which is readily available or mixable with a very fine glossing roller once completely dry it cuts, weeds and carries OK get us out of the —- on many occasions

[steve]

a tip use Bosch A0 jig saw blades for cutting no spelshing of the face very fine cut they are excellent

[steve]

boy was it hot on site in Cannes

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[steve]

a couple more…. earlier this year one is a floating venue. Cannes marina makes you sick!

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[steve]

Thanks for your comments guys seems you wanna know how its done i will post an explanation asap this week Could i do a piece on Polystyrene lettering and how to create it?THere is a section on my website called POLYSHOP whih explains a little of the uses and strengths of lettering in this medium it does a great job OUTSIDE as well!

[steve]

same trouble here no response on posts
god Rob you must have a million things more imortant than this!

[steve]

Hows about a digitally printed single or double sided totally portable and re printable BANNER STAND the Barracuda we do them complete ready to stand in place @approx 325 plus vat clip on lighting is also available size is 2100 x 800 portrait- see mysite signagraphic.com
Steve

[steve]

looks a whole lot like Commercial Script

[steve]

sell it and get a proper car….. a jag

[steve]

carrie hows about an LED moving message panel with their logo programmed in its great as people can not ignore one of these babies he could put on time and temperature info ..anything to get it looked at not the cheapest solution but innovation never is we all look at that type of info also looks good at night when all other signs are asleep!!

[steve]

3 cheers for Harry Matthias a great character….. the UK talking champion!

[steve]

Martin anothe importantr point to bear in mind perspex can and will expand in warm and contract in cold weather you must use end springs this also helps to keep the panels tight up together i would certainally go along with cutting the panels half lapped so when the panels expand they stay supported Northern signcases are very good and helpful good luck illuminated work is very different to bench work get a COMPETANT FIXER and make sure he has adequate public liability insurance. If you use a fixer who does not take out insurance and the job goes wrong ie hits a passer by you are liable.There are many Health and Safety issues here. The subject of general and fixing legal liability will, i am sure, be of interest to all members does anyone know all the ins and outs?

[steve]

Timmy as a matter of pure interest exactly how long did it take Harry Matthias to explain the rudiments of depth of cut setting?

[steve]

I have got Meta plus Postscript for my Macs i can set what you want and mail a vector let me know all any of you need to convert any font to any format is software called TT Converter you will never have the problem again i simply downloaded mine from the net FOC im sure there was a post a few weeks ago telling us about the software it may have been adrian he knows a million sites!!
regards to all Steve B

[steve]

wonder if HM Inland Revenue or Inspector of Taxes does Bartercard? its a load of tosh

[steve]

I’ll second that comment- a great site befitting a great industry

[steve]

We would be happy to quote that job just need the full spec post lengths reflective or non size etc send e mail ill get straight back to you guys
regards
Steve Signagraphic steve@signagraphic.com
I guess it will be All standard DOT spec ali 3mm 600mm circles 76mm od ali or steel posts stainless steel clips and channel for post mounting

[steve]

We use an Epson Stylus Photo 1290 gives excellent results on plain paper but stunning quality when the specialist Epson papers are used we use the self adhesive paper this is great for slotting little prints into vinyl jobs and exterior if laminated we also use choices stationery their prices on all ink tanks are very very cheap I RECOMMEND THAT YOU ALL USE THEM FOR ALL YOUR PRINTERS EXCELLENT ONLINE PURCHASE FACILITIES THEY ALSO DO LASER PRINTER CARTS CHEAPER THAN ANYONE see above post for website address
WE PAID £255 FOR THE EPSON PRINTER AT MAC WAREHOUSE
Steve

[steve]

exactly what im saying we should all pay the same from all branches of all suppliers we would however expect a hefty discount on big orders lets all post a list of what we are actually paying for all types of materials ass can then be kicked!

[steve]

I pay just over £10 for an 2440 x 1220sheet of 3mm white Amari Foam will advise other sheet costs if anyone is interested it makes good sense for everyone to advise what they are paying we will then know what our target price is

[steve]

Great news one in the eye for intransigence! I use Amari in Leeds they always come up with the goods I can also reccommend POS Plastics in Horbury Wakefield call James he is a plastics guru tel 01924276666 say Steve at Signagraphic sent you!

[steve]

I get your drift lads but try telling that to the board of Marks and Spencer when discussing the graphics on their forthcoming Annual General Meeting “you will have to accept near enough your corporate col,,,,,,,,, smack…… thats me hitting the deck after being thrown out of the production meeting never again to put dark green on ivory!!

[steve]

great stuff Rob ill watch this one with great interest

[steve]

PHIL why did you make it so difficult for me to steal all your gear ive made a right old mess of the front of my jag ill try the roof next time 😕 😉
i am truly sorry for you there but for the grace of big G and all that

[steve]

HATS OFF TO SAAB SAS AND VOLVO i wish many other corporate blue chip companies would write exterior signage specs into their corporate id documents hats off also to Avery and 3M for making pantone matches in their 900 range – TOO EXPENSIVE TAKES 2 WEEKS TO GET IT AND IT WILL OUTLAST MOST VEHICLES BY 7 YEARS also 95 per cent of small businesses in the UK will not use a 50 metre roll of anything let alone a highly expensive gloss arm and a leg product made to match (sort of) a world colour system- problem- you lay out £1500 on a 50 metre roll of sticky backed gold dust and the invoice for it arrives next day— PAY IN 30 DAYS OR WE WILL NAIL YOU TO A STAKE AND BURN YOU ALIVE…. your client calmly pays you in 90 days!! disaster– then our dear chancellor slaps yet another stealth employment tax on small businesses is there any more room in Sweeden Henry for a couple of hundred hard working signmakers ?? and would the last business to go bust in the UK kindly PUT BIG LIGHT OFF!!

[steve]

Rob hows about inviting a representative of all the software manufacturers on to the site to answer all the above questions and anomolies that their products present to us in everyday pressurised use they must see it as an opportunity to put their products forward as a viable alternative to each others perhaps an e mail to their HQ’s informing them of our existance this could include Amiable technologies (Flexisign)

[steve]

Wang the lot and get Flexisign 6.5 …and a Mac!!

[steve]

Thanks for that Martin have you any idea what the BS ref No is for the acrylic?
The blurb that the DVLA sent me with my licence had no mention of any production guidelines or preferred suppliers for components I have now had 5 enquiries all 5 wanted me to doctor the plates