Walldogs... a dying breed

[Bigdawg]

Just ran across this cnn ireport

http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-574450?hpt=Sbin

 

[Pat Whatley]

In the words of Si Allen dying breed means higher prices for those who can still do it.

For the record that's not me....I was born on the ground, I fully believe that's where God intended me to stay.

 

[iSign]

In the words of Si Allen dying breed means higher prices for those who can still do it.

For the record that's not me....I was born on the ground, I fully believe that's where God intended me to stay.

don't sell yourself short.. you should attend a wall dog meet & work on one of the ground level walls, sticking to the bottom half only, there would still be hours and hours of fun work to do, with your feet flat on the ground!

 

[OldPaint]

really miss those carefree days of not worring about FALLING)))))))))) now a 3 tier step stool is a challenge. rememeber day of improvisation as to how to get a sign painted. i had a 4' x 5' plywood frame i could mount on the rear roof of my dodge van, THEN put a LADDER from there up to where i was painting!!!!!!! think about it now, wonder how i didnt get killed))))))

 

[Jane Diaz]

Now we're talking! Walldoggin' is great but I don't do anything over 3 ft. off the ground! Support staff on the ground or painting the low stuff....I'm happy. Doug knows!!

 

[Pat Whatley]

don't sell yourself short.. you should attend a wall dog meet & work on one of the ground level walls, sticking to the bottom half only, there would still be hours and hours of fun work to do, with your feet flat on the ground!

Attending a meet is on the agenda this year, just haven't figured out when or where yet. Scaffolding, scissor lift, boom lift, bucket truck...all of those are grounded and I can handle it. Damn board tied to the roof and dangling on the side of a building is just crazy.

 

[Si Allen]

Been doing that stuff for well over 40 years.

Ladders, scaffolds, scissors lift, booms, standing on overhangs, tressels .... but drew the line on swing stages! Like Old paint, I put lumber racks with bolted on plywood ... with an 8 ft stepladder, easy to work up to 20 feet high.

Real Walldogs don't worry about heights ... we carry a hammer in our tool belt! In case of a fall, you knock yourself in the head before you hit the ground!


:Oops:

 

[round man]

Joe I don't miss those days a dam bit here,...Docs say I have post delayed stress syndrome from 25+years of working over 4 or 5 stories up every day. But when it IS all said and done I do miss the carefree days of feeling ten feet tall and bullet proof once the adrenaline kicked in,....back in the day our talent was well respected within this trade but nowadays any vinyl jockey can buy a twenty thousand dollar printer and they are instant artists,...no need for the five to ten years of dangerous apprenticeship needed back then. Back then you progressed in the hierarchy of the trade on how well you did your work and the amount of effort you put into your talent and the discipline you represented,not the line of credit and the caliber of equipment and or software you could buy and or finance. Funny how things have changed I can remember over fifteen crews who worked our district(NC,SC,GA,VA,eastern TENN and Southern W.VA) for 3m advertising back in the day then one day the operations manager walked in on monday morning and told us they had bought a big stretch face printer and we all had six weeks left to work before that damned printer replaced us,... really breaks my heart when I hear of the digital print shop down the street lowballing some shop,...back in the day we painters stuck together and demanded prices as a group and were united.

 

[TyrantDesigner]

Joe I don't miss those days a dam bit here,...Docs say I have post delayed stress syndrome from 25+years of working over 4 or 5 stories up every day. But when it IS all said and done I do miss the carefree days of feeling ten feet tall and bullet proof once the adrenaline kicked in,....back in the day our talent was well respected within this trade but nowadays any vinyl jockey can buy a twenty thousand dollar printer and they are instant artists,...no need for the five to ten years of dangerous apprenticeship needed back then. Back then you progressed in the hierarchy of the trade on how well you did your work and the amount of effort you put into your talent and the discipline you represented,not the line of credit and the caliber of equipment and or software you could buy and or finance. Funny how things have changed I can remember over fifteen crews who worked our district(NC,SC,GA,VA,eastern TENN and Southern W.VA) for 3m advertising back in the day then one day the operations manager walked in on monday morning and told us they had bought a big stretch face printer and we all had six weeks left to work before that damned printer replaced us,... really breaks my heart when I hear of the digital print shop down the street lowballing some shop,...back in the day we painters stuck together and demanded prices as a group and were united.

Yeah, it's a shame. but it's still needed and respected by those that know the difference between someone's photochop print out and a good quality painted sign. Not to say that a lot of painters and illustrators that used to do the sign painting haven't adapted though. I know a few that are paid rather handsomely just for their design work by sign shops who can't do what they do with a brush. software does not the designer make.

 

[ForgeInc]

Wow, great to see this. I live in Portland, and while I as going to design school in the early 90's I was a sign painter for local grocery stores. I used to see ArtFx murals all the time on a few prominent walls in Portland, had no idea the company had become so well known. Thanks for sharing, brought back some good memories of gazing at their work, thinking how their paintings looked like photographs. First thing I did was forward this to my old roommate who also was a fan of their stuff. We always talked about how amazing their work was, and how cool it would be to work for 'em.

 

[round man]

Si what is wrong with a swing stage????? I had to use one every day for over 25 years. The neat part of that is whoever screws up tying off will be on the bottom of the pile,usually with all the paint on top of them,when ya hit the ground,...Don't ask me how I came by this pearl of wisdom,...

 

[signage]

Here's a nice walldog video!

 

[Arlo Kalon 2.0]

Si what is wrong with a swing stage????? I had to use one every day for over 25 years. The neat part of that is whoever screws up tying off will be on the bottom of the pile,usually with all the paint on top of them,when ya hit the ground,...Don't ask me how I came by this pearl of wisdom,...

I'll tell ya what's wrong with 'em. The rigging is called "rope falls". I'd prefer they be called "rope stays ups".

 

[Si Allen]

Round man ... will be on the bottom of the pile,usually with all the paint on top of them,when ya hit the ground,...Don't ask me how I came by this pearl of wisdom,...

I guess that you just answered your own question!

 

[round man]

Actually Si,..I did end up in that pile a couple of times but,.....never on the bottom,...


edited to add it really sux when tha ground flies up and hits you in the butt,....

 

[Craig Sjoquist]

Well I've never worked that high or anywhere near that, but knows less and less people will go up like that, but still think Walldogs will never go away for a long time, low tech ways and means always gets popular as high tech does, as you see they were fairly young and alot of the younger generation is taken a real interest in the low tech ways and means such as sign painting, pinstriping, and other handcrafted work.

Also just because it's done by a PC on vinyl does not mean it's right, I get alot of work because someone with a PC & software can not create a advertisement and business do want advertisements not just a sign.