solid brushed silver material for base of sign

[petepaz]

making a lobby sign for a customer with some gemini plastic letters and logo. they want them mounted to a brushed silver base 3/16" -1/4" thick but they want it to be solid. meaning they don't want the edge to be a different color. any ideas what to use?
i was thinking just use aluminum composite and paint the edge silver.

 

[GaSouthpaw]

Your plan is the best option in my opinion- depending on how much money they want to spend. You could always buy a piece of 1/4" brushed.

 

[petepaz]

i was looking at the 1/4" brushed and it's expensive but not my problem if they want to pay. just wondering if the weight might be an issue.
just came up with another idea, maybe just put a metal from on it.

 

[GaSouthpaw]

The appropriate number of studs on the back would hold a solid piece of 1/4".
I still think your initial idea is best, though.

 

[CanuckSigns]

Can you v-grove the aluminum composite to make a nice solid return, that way you can get the look of a nice thick substrate, and the edges will perfectly match the front

 

[rjssigns]

What about 3M 1080 wrap film over a piece of ACM? They have some nice brushed finishes.

 

[paul luszcz]

If they want it to look nice, have Gemini or one of the other steel letter companies make the piece out of fabricated stainless steel with stainless steel returns. You (or they) can drill it and you can use bolts instead of studs to hold the letters.

 

[Marlene]

how big is this base or background piece? .25" should be OK to stud mount to a wall as long as it isn't crazy huge. they want to edges to be brushed but they won't be on the regular brushed aluminum. do they mean silver? you could go with a brushed laminate and paint the edges silver

 

[petepaz]

over all size is 60" x 30" and as of now they want me to use stand offs for the install but not sure that will be best if they go with the 1/4" solid brushed alum unless i use 6-8 of them

 

[paul luszcz]

I'd have to see the design (or at least the letters) but at that size I might use black gator foam with a metal laminate face.

 

[J Hill Designs]

What about 3M 1080 wrap film over a piece of ACM? They have some nice brushed finishes.

I got a sample of 1080 brushed in yesterday (was going to propose the same thing) and it looks ****-poor in comparison to actual brushed aluminum (or even the faux ACM)

 

[letterman7]

I got a sample of 1080 brushed in yesterday (was going to propose the same thing) and it looks ****-poor in comparison to actual brushed aluminum (or even the faux ACM)

I've got 3M's sample pack here.. and you're right. Their brushed almost looks white at some angles.. not even close. But then, it's vinyl.

 

[J Hill Designs]

I've got 3M's sample pack here.. and you're right. Their brushed almost looks white at some angles.. not even close. But then, it's vinyl.

yeah don't get me wrong. it has its place, and actually looks pretty durned cool on cars (theres a range rover with the black brushed around here that looks tits) but its def. not a replacement.

 

[paul luszcz]

We've done this dozens of times, including the N.E. Patriot's radio station suite at Gillette Stadium. Gator foam is stronger, lighter, thicker, better looking and stays straighter than ACP. It looks great with stand offs also. Four to Six would do it. It's easy to drill for the letters too.

Ultra Board is available with a brushed metal finish if you're uncomfortable using ChemMetal laminate.