Suggestions Best substrate for ballpark fences.

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

I'm just curious what the majority of you would recommend to use for signs that would be mounted to high school ball diamond chain link fences. My first thought was 1/8" ACM panels, but I'm afraid flying balls would dent the crap out of them, but I also tend to think that .080" aluminum sheets would be overkill. I'm leaning towards .063" aluminum but I'd like some feedback as to what others would suggest or have used with success. The signs would be either 8' x 4', or 8' x 3' and I'm probably going to quote them with six or eight chain link fence mounts for each sign and let the end user drill their own holes. Thanks in advance!

 

[unclebun]

I don't think your customer would like paying for .063 or .080 aluminum. I think sheet aluminum is more likely to be dented, and besides, how many times will a sign get hit in a season? Try putting a piece of the material on a fence and throwing or hitting baseballs at it. Most ballfields around here are using coroplast because they go with low bid on the signs, and get new ones every year. Even banners can be made to serve the purpose as long as you do a good job hanging them and fix them when they sag.

 

[WhiskeyDreamer]

Banner or mesh banners. Especially if there's a chance that the players will hit the sponsor boards.

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

Banner or mesh banners. Especially if there's a chance that the players will hit the sponsor boards.

I don't think your customer would like paying for .063 or .080 aluminum. I think sheet aluminum is more likely to be dented, and besides, how many times will a sign get hit in a season? Try putting a piece of the material on a fence and throwing or hitting baseballs at it. Most ballfields around here are using coroplast because they go with low bid on the signs, and get new ones every year. Even banners can be made to serve the purpose as long as you do a good job hanging them and fix them when they sag.

I should have specified that they would like these to be long term (5-10 years) and they did specify that they would prefer rigid substrate. They are collecting money from sponsors to cover the cost of the signs, so expense isn't really a concern, either.

 

[TimToad]

We do lots of these types of signs for our school and park athletic leagues. We have a couple as well as youth soccer banners to knock out this week alone. Each spring for softball and fall for soccer/football we do dozens of these types of signs.

For baseball and softball fields, we use banners exclusively and if properly installed will last as long as ACM or PVC with far less safety risk. Our high school has us do 42"x90" ACM sponsor signs for the 48" tall chain link fence that surrounds the track and football field. The distance between the posts is usually 8', so cutting them down a little makes installation easier and gives a little breathing room between all the signs.

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

For baseball and softball fields, we use banners exclusively and if properly installed will last as long as ACM or PVC with far less safety risk.

Do you have any installation recommendations, and are you referring to mesh or scrim banners? I'm guessing by properly installed you might mean with additional reinforcement around the grommets? Thanks for the info.

 

[HDvinyl]

I'd rather smash into a mesh banner than ACM or PVC.

I donate to 2 schools in my area, they both prefer mesh.

 

[TimToad]

Do you have any installation recommendations, and are you referring to mesh or scrim banners? I'm guessing by properly installed you might mean with additional reinforcement around the grommets? Thanks for the info.

Because some of the sponsors change and the banners effectively only last a few years, we just use our typical 13 oz. Mighty Banner scrim, tape hems with an extra little square of banner material layered in before grommeting and they seem to hold up just fine. Heavy duty wire ties for mounting are cheap, durable and easy to change when a new banner is replacing an old one.

 

[TaraW]

We do these for a few schools in our area as well as one of the youth baseball leagues. They all use/want ACM boards, we have encouraged them to switch from 1/8" to 1/4" as it hold up a lot better/longer. Dents from baseballs don't seem to be an issue. We use hooks a couple inches in from each top corner to hang them on the fence. The boards seem to last longer than the sponsor in most case.

 

[Oroscoe]

Mesh Banner is the way to go.

 

[Gino]

If you're talking 'Little League', just about anything will work. We always use .050 aluminum. The tops are protected so no one gets hurt, but very few balls in that age group get out to the home run wall. Once you hit junior high and senior high schools, we generally go with MDO. It takes a lotta abuse. Once ya hit 'Minor League' ball fields, we use ACM for most everything. The 'warning path' signs are furnished on a padded material. We mostly do second level and concourse signs with the ACM. Signs will last anywhere from 3 to 5 years, so the various complexes write into their agreements, that a sign must be re-done at the end of 5 years, if they continue advertising. The minor league complex re-news each and every year, so that's a continuous order. We're still doing signs for them, even though the season ended over a week ago.

 

[eahicks]

We do mostly mesh banners for this, but have done some more long term signs from 10mm Coro. Drill holes in corners, zip tie to the fence. Have some at a neighboring school that have been up for 8 years.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

Banners are fine. ACM is fine too. Each of the dents should be seen as a sign of pride rather then damage.

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

We do mostly mesh banners for this, but have done some more long term signs from 10mm Coro. Drill holes in corners, zip tie to the fence. Have some at a neighboring school that have been up for 8 years.

I would have never considered 10 mil coro for durability but this is good to know. Although we can get 1/8" ACM at about the same price.

 

[Pixels Are Bad Mmmkay?]

So essentially it would seem that you could really use about anything as long as it fits the school's agenda and budget and it's outdoor durable. Thanks for the great replies. Any other opinions?

 

[signbrad]

you could really use about anything as long as it fits the school's agenda and budget and it's outdoor durable.

I agree. Anything can be made to work. Back in the day the only practical option was 1/2-inch MDO. Not anymore. However, 5-10 years durability may be a problem. That would not be a normal life for even a heavy banner material. And Polymetal carries only a 5-year (limited) warranty. Even Matthews Polyurethane is not considered a 10-year finish. Matthews says it's a 5-year finish without a clear coat and an 8-year finish with a clear coat.

 

[equippaint]

In 5 years they will have forgot who you were and how long you told them it would last. Its highly unlikely that all of the same people would still even be involved in it. ACM should be fine, victory dents wont make anyone mad.