:i3ood LETTER1N
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is Restrained
YNTHETIC enamels applied Sunder normal painting condi- tions (at temperatures not less an 60 degrees F.) should set hard nough overnight to enable the next tage in the work to go forward. his is flatting in preparation -for ttering and other decorative work. When time allows, it is better to at the . whole vehicle before the ignwriter starts Work than just to repare a few panels. There are A/o methods of flatting synthetic narnel: (a) By means of fine pumice owder, and (b) with 320 wet and ry abrasive paper used in conjuneon with .soap.
. As the final stage of the work follows the completion of decoration and a clear varnish has to be applied, great care must be taken to ensure that the surface is not scratched.
, Pumice po,wder is first moistened and applied to the paint film by use of a felt pad or -a piece of thick . cloth folded in the form of a •pad. The work is wetted with a sponge and the pad rubbed over it evenly . until all gloss disappears. All traces of pumice powder must be removed by the use of plenty of clean water and the body well dried with a chamois leather before it is left in the hands of the signwriter.
Flatting with 320 paper and soap must also be &tie cleanly, and each section must be washed after flatting and drying off. After the flatting is complete, the vehicle must be left entirely to the signwriter.
The typical painting job we are
using as an example in this series is a vehicle, that gives ample scope for display work, as on the cab alone there are four panels which may be used and on the body there are, of course, two sides and a tailboard available for, lettering. In the conventional layout for, .say; a haulier, the name is written diagonally across with the address in the left-hand top• and right-hand bottom corners. The telephone number is placed on the forward panel.
The front panel on each side of the radiator lends itself admirably to ,a monogram or a fleet number. Where a monogram is employed on both Sides of the radiator, it is usual to substitute the fleet number on the forward panels for the telephone number and to locate the telephone number on the cab doors.
The sides and tailboard of the body are available for a considerable amount of lettering and, where the name is not to be included in the layout, the firm's businesS particulars' are usually displayed in fairly
heavY For 'instance, both sides May Carry the words "Haulage Contractors" and the tailboard the firm's name' in large' letters Without any prefi-x-----for . example, . just "Smith."
When contemplating a new style of layout for a fleet of vehicles, it is as well to give the sigm:vriting.,contraCtor fairfy good notice, so that, haying all the particulars on paper, .-he-Can prepare a snitable. design to
be ,approved before. the work is executed. If the vehicle should have a .rather unusual style of body, it would also be useful for the signwriter to see the vehicle before he prepares his layout.
This is important where the body lettering is concerned, as it'would be most annoying to discover that an approved design would not be capable of being transferred to the body without the actual lettering crossing the ironwork, hinges, etc. In bodies with sides constructed of tongued and grooved boards, the display should be designed to avoid both the grooves and the ironwork, although it is often hard to do so.
Avoid Futurism The trend of modern alphabets must be followed with restraint when the decoration of commercial vehicles is carried out, partly because the first rule of lettering is legibility and partly because the lettering is usually seen while the vehicle is in motion and, therefore, must be capable of being read at a glance. Ultra-modern lettering may be suitable for a fixed sign, but as a rule it is not suitable for vehicle work. The aim should be a happy medium between our fathers' over-fondness for script and the p,oster-writers' advanced styles.
When in doubt as to which alphabet will look well on a vehicle. remember that well-executed sans serif or plain block will always be suitable, preferably unshaded. The old-fashioned vogue for multi-shaded and blended shading is now outmoded by the simple yet pleasing aspect of an alphabet such as the late Eric Gill's sans serif.
Much information about vehicle lettering and samples of alphabets may be obtained from good books on the subject, of which there are several on the market , Contrast the Aim The colour of lettering for vehicle work is always limited by the background. Some colours, especially the reds, leave little choice, as only light colours and gold leaf offer sufficient contrast The present restriction on the application of gold leaf, except for export work, makes it necessafy to use paint of a shade as near as possible, to gold, and some signwriters are extremely competent at it.
Unshaded white letters always look well on red and may be varnished with confidence, as the synthetic-resin varnishes are extremely pale and cause no apparent discoloration. Pale colours, such as the light greens, creams and white, may carry a darkcoloured letter that is extremely legible by contrast.
Where speed is important in vehicle painting, probably the most easily attained contrast is a black letter on a light background, because only one coat is needed. With a vehicle painted dark blue, dark green or black, the lettering must have at least two, and, in the case of white, three, coats before complete opacity is reached.
The painter must remember that what is apparent solidity of colour in lettering when the paint dries flat, may not be so satisfactory after the varnish is applied, and, when time and price allow, the safest plan is to have three coats for white lettering.
Many fleet operators find it convenient to use transfers for names on panels or monogram, and the nationalized concern now carry the R.H.E. transfer.
There are two types of transfer in general use. One is known as a slide-on transfer. it has merely to be soaked in clean water for half a minute and applied direct to the panel. The backing paper then slides off with a firm pressure, and the transfer, when dry, does not move under the varnish brush.
Its main disadvantage is that positioning is usually a matter of guesswork, because chalk marks or guide lines on the panel are easily effaced by the wet transfer. Only. experience brings success.
Varnish transfers are more generally used, and the method of application is as follows:—Examine the transfer to ascertain at what point the double backing paper may be opened a little, position the transfer on both doors and mark the spot with lines or by means of whiting
brushed over ffre,edge of. the tra-nsfi leaving the outline on the panel. Next apply gold size on the face the transfer to the whole desig 'taking great care that 'no size ru over the edges. Leave it until it tacky and apply the transfer to ti panel as accurately as possib] smoothing well with a clean cloth f two or three minutes to ensure go( adhesion.
The second backing paper m; now be peeled carefully away, lea ing the first backing paper, which of tissue, still fixed to the fransh When possible, leave this for 10 4 15 minutes and then soak it well wi clean water, when it will be tout that the tissue paper comes awi readily. Finally, wash the pant well to remove a slimy substan which, if left to dry, is hard to shi
Overbinding to be Avoided Whilst the use of gold size, bo for fixing transfers and for bindii lettering colours in turpentine, customary, it should be pointed o to signwriters that they must n overbind colours, because unle completely oxidized by a dryir time of at least 12 hours, the pow( ful solvent action of the synthel varnish may work up the letterii and ruin both this and the varnishin Fine lining of vehicles is a matt for an expert coach painter, and done competently, enhances ti appearance of the vehicle by etre( ively filling a blank space. If experienced liner be not available, ti vehicle is better left unlined.
The next article in this series w deal with the final work before ti vehicle is ready for the road.