Members Mr Songwriter Posted February 6, 2009 Members Share Posted February 6, 2009 I've seen quite a lot of dry transfer stickers that look like they'd be ok for using on birthday cards or whatever, but obviously I'm going to need something a bit more permanent if I'm going to be sticking it onto an amp chassis. Has anyone got any idea where I can find stuff like that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members musicdog400 Posted February 6, 2009 Members Share Posted February 6, 2009 Maybe you could use the regular lettering, then spray a coat of poly over it. Or shellac, if you're concerned about the tone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mr Songwriter Posted February 6, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 6, 2009 Maybe you could use the regular lettering, then spray a coat of poly over it. Good idea! Or shellac, if you're concerned about the tone. Yes, I'll have to make sure I use the right font for the lettering as well in case it affects the tone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted February 7, 2009 Members Share Posted February 7, 2009 Lettering affecting the tone on an amp? Better make sure you also take tone into consideration when sourcing knobs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members archiemax Posted February 7, 2009 Members Share Posted February 7, 2009 Lettering affecting the tone on an amp? Better make sure you also take tone into consideration when sourcing knobs. ...........'cuz everybody knows that chicken-head knobs give you a more vintage tone; if you want the heavy metal "Spinal Tap" sound you'll want the knobs that go to 11. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted February 8, 2009 Members Share Posted February 8, 2009 What kind of knobs do I need for a church band? I already have a holy grail reverb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ItchyFingers Posted February 10, 2009 Members Share Posted February 10, 2009 What kind of knobs do I need for a church band? I already have a holy grail reverb. These go to 7 and have little iron crosses emblazoned on them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members larryflew Posted February 11, 2009 Members Share Posted February 11, 2009 Any sign shop can do the vinyl lettering in any size, color and font you want. I'll do it for you for a couple bucks for postage if you like (PLEASE no emails for freebies although it isn't very costly to begin with). If you do any coat over it make sure it is enamel or poly, NOT laquer as the lettering would lift. Also do NOT coat it too early, let it sit for a few weeks as the vinyl lettering takes a long time for the adhesive to gas through it. Larry_Flewelling@compuserve.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted February 12, 2009 Members Share Posted February 12, 2009 Great advice. I would think this would work for guitar headstocks as well. But how thick is this stuff? Need to use a lot of clear to obtain a flat surface? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members larryflew Posted March 26, 2009 Members Share Posted March 26, 2009 For headstocks a water slide lettering would be better as it is MUCH thinner. Any hobby shop can sell you a kit that will do water slides on a laser printer. Kits run about $30 for 4 half paper size sheets. Less color choices of course. IE have lots of the pearl white type lettering like Gibson, Epiphone etc use in vinyl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members amp_surgeon Posted March 26, 2009 Members Share Posted March 26, 2009 I've used dry transfer lettering on a lot of test equipment and guitar pedal projects, and I've never liked it much. It does look a lot better than hand written lettering, but I always have a really tough time getting the letters lined up well enough so that the finished words don't look like they're part of a ransom note. I've also had problems with the letters floating up when the clear coat is applied. I've had this problem even when using clear coats that were expressly designed for sealing dry transfer letters. The coatings they used to sell for Datak brand letters dried to a semisoft rubbery consistency that you could easily gouge with your fingernail. I always found dry transfer lettering better suited for marking drafted documents, or hand taped PCB layouts (back before there were computer programs for this stuff). There are a lot of computer printable decal alternatives available these days which would seem to be a lot more practical than dry transfers. If you wanted something that was really durable and looked professional, maybe you could take your chassis to a machine shop and get the lettering engraved. After applying your base finish, you could fill the letters with enamel. I've never actually done this, but always thought it would be a great technique. If it works properly, it should look something like cloisonne artwork. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members larryflew Posted March 27, 2009 Members Share Posted March 27, 2009 You don't "line up" lettering from a sign shop it comes complete as words or even complete lines if you have a long sentence. The vinyl on sign lettering will not lift when you coat it unless you use clearcoat which isn't compatible with the glue. All poly, enamel and shelac products work fine. We also do legend plate engraving and although you could do your 2nd suggestion I can tell you for a fact that lettering fill is a P.I.T.A. especially if you have never done it b4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ChrisAlbertson Posted March 27, 2009 Members Share Posted March 27, 2009 I've seen quite a lot of dry transfer stickers that look like they'd be ok for using on birthday cards or whatever, but obviously I'm going to need something a bit more permanent if I'm going to be sticking it onto an amp chassis. Has anyone got any idea where I can find stuff like that? The best way to go is with vinyl leters cut by a sign shop. They stick very well. Afer all the material is designed to be used outdoors in the weather and sun for many years. Your amp will never see that kind of abuse. The letting will come between two sheets. One sheet covers the permanent adhesive and the other is a post-it type used to keep all the letters aligned as they are applied. One other thing. The "letters" can be any artwork you like, anything you or a graphic artist can draw as vector art on a computer The vinyl itself is very thin. Not much thicker than paint. Can be as thin as only a few "mills" and there is no need to overcoat it with clear. This material is designed for outdoor use in the weather. (But it can be mechanically scraped off.) One other way to go if you really do not like the look of vinyl and you really do want the overcoat. Have the vinyl cutter outfit make you a stencil. This is a single use sheet of vinyl with tacky, non-permanent adhesive. You would apply this to the panel then paint over the stencil and then later pull the stencil off the panel. This is as close as you can come to a professional silk screened panel. The trick is knowing when to remove the stencil. This takes some experiments If you can't find anyone to make a stencil, my dad has a "hobby business" doing this kind of work. But don't expect fast turnaround. Frankly any local sign company can do this for you. Vinyl stencils work well and you can spray on almost any kind of paint you like. There are also "exotic" or creative methods. For example some vinyl stencils will make good stencils for light sand blasting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members silenttone Posted April 27, 2009 Members Share Posted April 27, 2009 Transfers work great on all kinds of instruments. Many small companies actually use them for their own graphics and text on their products. Some of the stuff I've seen is just incredible. I know that a lot of artist use Color Vu out of Colorado Springs, they make intricate and colorfull high quality transfers. The other good thing is that they will do just a single 5x7 sheet if thats all you need. Of course you will have to clear coat them after they are applied, but then they look like there put on by the manufacturer. This way your equipment will look like you're a professional even if you aren't. Here is the site:http://www.colorvu.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted April 28, 2009 Members Share Posted April 28, 2009 The waterslide stuff for inkjet is about $15 & so far hasn't worked well for me. Ink runs. Maybe not enough decal bonder. I ordered a waterslide decal from an Ebay vendor for around 10 bucks. I'll post again with the results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nos Posted April 28, 2009 Members Share Posted April 28, 2009 The waterslide stuff for inkjet is about $15 & so far hasn't worked well for me. Ink runs. Maybe not enough decal bonder. I ordered a waterslide decal from an Ebay vendor for around 10 bucks. I'll post again with the results. It's been several years since I used the stuff, but I think you're supposed to spray a couple light coats of clear over the decals before you soak them to prevent the ink from running. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted April 28, 2009 Members Share Posted April 28, 2009 It's been several years since I used the stuff, but I think you're supposed to spray a couple light coats of clear over the decals before you soak them to prevent the ink from running. Testors sells a clear decal bonder. The instructions call for a light coat of it to stop the runs. I saw on another thread that more is needed. 2 or maybe 3 coats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TL4558P Posted April 28, 2009 Members Share Posted April 28, 2009 What about silkscreening? Seems like the obvious choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members larryguitar Posted April 28, 2009 Members Share Posted April 28, 2009 I've done dry erase on headstocks with very good results. The key is:1-use tape and precision measurements when laying out. (I would print the word in a matching font with a word processor to help me layout the letter spacing.)2-the first several coats of clear have to be no more than a very light misting. You're trying to build up a coating thick enough to protect the transfer from the full, wet coats of lacquer you'll eventually use for a finish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted April 28, 2009 Members Share Posted April 28, 2009 I thought about using a sharpie to do headstock lettering. But the minwax poly makes it bleed. Tried a light mist coat & no luck. good thing I tried it on a piece of scrap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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