Tailgate lettering
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New User
Joined: Apr 2014
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Tailgate lettering
I work in a sign shop and a customer came in looking to get the lettering put back on his F150 tailgate
cant for the life of me find a vector or font to plot it out of vinyl, just pre assembled decals off ebay which is not an option and a couple threads that directed me here but just tell of masking and painting the letters on
any help will be GREATLY appreciated
cant for the life of me find a vector or font to plot it out of vinyl, just pre assembled decals off ebay which is not an option and a couple threads that directed me here but just tell of masking and painting the letters on
any help will be GREATLY appreciated
Cargo Master
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 3,417
Likes: 32
I work in a sign shop and a customer came in looking to get the lettering put back on his F150 tailgate
cant for the life of me find a vector or font to plot it out of vinyl, just pre assembled decals off ebay which is not an option and a couple threads that directed me here but just tell of masking and painting the letters on
any help will be GREATLY appreciated
cant for the life of me find a vector or font to plot it out of vinyl, just pre assembled decals off ebay which is not an option and a couple threads that directed me here but just tell of masking and painting the letters on
any help will be GREATLY appreciated
There are other vendors that sell the letters. You'll probably have to find a tailgate to measure for yourself if you want to sell them as well.
Junior User
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 96
Likes: 0
From: Monticello, Arkansas
Jeff's Bronco Graveyard sells the decals. I don't think that is what you are looking for. Are you needing measurements of the letters F-O-R-D on the tailgate?
73-79 Truck Tailgate Letters White
73-79 Truck Tailgate Letters White
Fleet Owner
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 20,678
Likes: 83
From: NorCal
Guys, guys, guys........The OP is looking for a vector (digital line) drawing of the tailgate letters so he can plot it on a CNC cutting machine. The file needs to be coded with starting and end points, direction, lengths, widths, angles, etc....
Postmaster
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 2,553
Likes: 10
Not a direct answer but I masked and painted mine. First I painted the base color. One day later, while the paint was still somewhat soft for "bite", I masked the "FORD" with premium no creep tape and a small pair of scissors to cut the curves of the letters. Several hours of masking later I shot the white FORD. After one day of dry time I pulled the tape. It looks great with lots of compliments and has held up very well for several years.
FWIW I shot the white in Rustoleum Industrial Enamel since the OE white was $110/Qt. The base paint was OE match acrylic enamel.
FWIW I shot the white in Rustoleum Industrial Enamel since the OE white was $110/Qt. The base paint was OE match acrylic enamel.
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Cranky Old Guy
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 3,562
Likes: 6
From: Raphine, Virginia
First off, I have no idea what is involved, but a local business "SignMaster" can recreate anything I take a picture of and a couple measurements. I've had a couple things done over the years that are not standard fonts or reproduced commercially. Not much help, but it is possible. Maybe there is a "signmakers forum".
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MSEE
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 10,386
Likes: 35
From: Austin, TX
If you work in a sign shop, you likely have access to vector-based drawing tools (Corel Draw, etc) and the know-how to use them. Consider asking the customer to detach the tailgate and bring it in for you to measure everything yourself.
Looks like HIO had the same idea. You can also pick up a set of the ready-made decals and digitize those like he mentioned if that's easier, but I didn't have good luck with the set from JBG. I tried those out a few years ago and they looked terrible. Some sections were too skinny, some too fat, etc. The entire logo looked inconsistent and nothing like the stamped lettering. I might have gotten a bad cut. If I had the option for a stencil like raven3 mentioned, I'd go for that instead.
Looks like HIO had the same idea. You can also pick up a set of the ready-made decals and digitize those like he mentioned if that's easier, but I didn't have good luck with the set from JBG. I tried those out a few years ago and they looked terrible. Some sections were too skinny, some too fat, etc. The entire logo looked inconsistent and nothing like the stamped lettering. I might have gotten a bad cut. If I had the option for a stencil like raven3 mentioned, I'd go for that instead.
Hotshot
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 14,333
Likes: 247
From: Stanley, VA
X2! I would love to find an adhesive backed stencil so I could paint the tailgate letters. It would save a lot of masking.
Cargo Master
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 2,099
Likes: 8
From: York, Pa
Rather than deal with a awkward tail gate I think I would buy a set of decals and just measure them.
We bought 2 sets from these guys for 73-79 and another set for 61-66.
1973-1979 Ford Fleetside Tailgate Letter Decals
Also tried the Bronco Graveyard set and they are terrible. The font I think is what belongs on Ford farm equipment not trucks.
We bought 2 sets from these guys for 73-79 and another set for 61-66.
1973-1979 Ford Fleetside Tailgate Letter Decals
Also tried the Bronco Graveyard set and they are terrible. The font I think is what belongs on Ford farm equipment not trucks.
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