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Has anyone "Silk Screened" panel placards? I have friend down the street that does T-shirts. In talking to him it is clear to me that one might not be able to use the same #mesh. Chime in here if you have anything.
I had a set of panel placards made for another aircraft. I took the job to a graphics place that did everything from banner signs to small self stick decals. They came out well and were not that expensive. The material they used was a self adhesive plastic
or vinyl.
Here is a picture of my wife silk screening markings on my Pacer panel. The silk screen was made in a Speedball silkscreen kit using their Diazo photo emulsion process. After the screen was made, it was cut into sections for different parts of the panel. You can see she has taped a piece of silkscreen on and is applying the paint using a pink eraser as a squeegee. The paint is acrylic artists’ color. After the screen is lifted, the lettering can be inspected. If it is not perfect (usually it was) , it can be wiped off with a damp cloth, the screen washed out and another try made. The panel has been in use for about 15 years. The lettering has held up and still looks very professional.
The silkscreen mesh was whatever Speedball sells -- I don't recall we had a choice.
The lettering was created on the computer and printed to paper. Then it was transferred to a transparency at Kinkos. This was used with a flood light to expose the silkscreen.
That is very interesting Bob. I assume that is how Piper did it as well. I use vinyl lettering that I get from Aero Graphics and then shoot a clear coat over it. This would save a step and look more original. I would be interested in what I would have to have to do my placards this way.
I'm going to get some mesh and give it a try. My friend, Steve the T-shirt guy has the emulsion and the light table for burning screens. His heat setting ink may work just fine too.
I think Clayton has the right idea about having the screen professionally made. Creating the silkscreen is a one shot deal -- even if you do other panels the screen can be reused. Applying the paint wasn't hard, and the acrylic artists color was easy to work with. But if you plan to ink the panel yourself, I would include some practice placards on the silk screen to experiment with. It is important to get the consistency of the paint right -- too thick and the letters are not fully formed, and too thin and the letters get too thick. But this is not rocket science, and since the acrylic paint is thinned with water, it is easy to experiment. If you mess up, just wipe it off with a damp rag, clean and dry the silk screen and try again. The other thing to practice is lifting the silk screen after the paint is applied. The previous picture I posted shows how my wife used making tape to make a hinge to lift the screen without smudging anything. Good luck.
Bob
I had Aerographics make some placards for my Vagabond with printed letters on a clear vinyl decal. White is the only color they can print on the clear vinyl that is opaque, so for opaque lettering in other colors they can print the white first and the other color over it. The yellow lettering on mine came out looking very good. Marilyn handled my orders and was extremely helpful and patient in working with me to make sure I got the decals (the panel placards and others) exactly the way I wanted them. I've had other items custom made for my aircraft where I only wish I had gotten that kind of customer service.
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Panel Placards
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