Rocco

Hi Can anyone tell me the right color red and blue translucent vinyl for the "new" Pepsi logo? We have a local ice cream spot that recently changed from Coke to Pepsi and we have to replace the graphics on a couple of lit cabinets. The customer sent me the logo in various formats but it didn't specify the correct colors. I've searched but keep getting CYMK, etc. for the older logo - 2022 or so. Thanks!

Darn! That customer of mine has an OLD corrugated sign faces with cut out letters. Oh well, i guess he'll have to accept a flat face. Thanks

Nice, Where did the corrugated plastic come from? I have a potential job where the customer wants to recreate his old sign that was damaged.

I went and compared to the Atlantic City show it was huge. This was my first national show, even after being in the sign game for close to fifty years. I was speaking with folks from Ruggles who said it was much smaller than the Vegas show. They said it took them a day and a half to just walk up/down the aisles at the last Vegas show. it took me all of Wednesday afternoon and Thursday afternoon to wander around and I know I didn't see it all.

is anyone going? I have never been to the Vegas show and figured i'd give it a shot in orlando. Plus I can visit my brother and also some friends while there to make the trip worthwhile in case the show is a bust. Look for a fat, balding old fart wearing an Abco Signs t-shirt. ;)

Razor, you carpooled with Fred Flintstone too?

TBH, even after doing signs for a zillion or so years, I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of using that system. IDK if the tensioning instructions from signcomp will be helpful but this was on their site. The last section mentions using a screwdriver to depress the clip like with the plastic ones but IDK how that will work if they are rusted. However i didn't see pricing on the site and replacement clips might not be available anymore. https://www.signcomp.com/media/201509081009-CTS Tensioning Instructions.pdf

It does look like flex material. Without seeing the whole side I'm only guessing so... i would drill a hole in the cabinet (under the molding and then fill with silicone) and look inside. Hopefully there are extruded clips/bars holding the face taut so a whole section can come off without dealing with a multitude of clips. From the angle of the photo I'd say this is a signcomp bleed frame. Are there black plastic clips in the gap above/below the face? if so you can remove them with a screwdriver - assuming the whole thing doesn't come off. I'd sure there are videos on tensioning signcomp extrusion kits that can show much better than i could explain. A tensioning tool signcomp will make re-installing the clips easier but again a screwdriver can do the job, just a lot slower. Anyway, that's my guess!

Good morning Does anyone have any info on Forge Signworks from northern NJ? i just got an RFQ and haven't heard from them before. Thanks!

The pack-rat portion of my tired old brain is yelling at me to not sell the punch. However I haven't used it in at least four years. A new D punch from Signcomp is ~$450 so make me a reasonable offer and you would pay shipping from 08002.

Perhaps a downtown service vehicle? i saw this on a recent trip to San Francisco. You could drive right into malls. And that city is not anywhere near as bad as many reports make it out to be. My wife and I never felt unsafe for a second. Now the hills on the other hand are a killer! Nobody who lives there would need cardio.

Thanks for the replies. This job finally became a push-thru face when the client wanted the letters to protrude no more than 1/4" beyond the facade. Sigh. the life of a sign-guy, er um sign-person. Only another 35-40 years and i can retire!

I'm sending you the artwork. Thanks!

Thanks. I did contact them after your recommendation. Thier lead time might be too long but I'll keep them in mind for future jobs.

Hi all, I'm working with a contractor for a set of letters for inside a mall. Long story made short, they originally asked for 3/4" FCO letters, which I priced and they accepted. Then they realized that the customer expected these to be illuminated. The facade won't allow for a push-thru cabinet so I got a cost on some 2" deep illuminated letters. Now the mall pushed back saying that they has only approved 3/4" thick illuminated letters. I've seen them and even installed some but none of my normal sources can make these in time. The specs are 2.5" tall sans serif letters (10 letters) with 8" tall Roman letters (3 pieces). The store opens at the end of August. HELP!!!

Ah OK. It's been one of THOSE days where I've been banging my head against the concrete wall that it is the Philadelphia Streets department. I just need some aspirin.

Let me get this right. So about 60-90 days for payment when the paperwork says 30 days? That's fine, I think that I'll pass on that deal. As it is, I have as much work as I can handle with customers who pay on time. Or did you mean they pay on average in 60 days. Even then, that's twice the stated terms.

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Does anyone know of a source for textured 1/4" thick aluminum sheets? i got an RFQ for a sign for a state park and they are looking for something that looks like rough cast iron. Yes I could always just take a hammer/chains and "age" it, but if i can get it already textured that would save a lot of time in fab. Thanks! Rocco

I just got a vendor packet from these folks but they aren't in the review list. Does anyone have anything to say about them? Thanks Rocco

I just got another of those dreaded "need a quote on a large project by EOD tomorrow" emails. It's a full rest stop worth of signs to be installed (several weeks work) on the turnpike and a job that I'd love to get. The customer sent it after hours yesterday and wants a price back by EOD tomorrow. Even if I had nothing else going on, I'd want at least 2-3 days to give an accurate quote. For example, I'm sure to have questions that would need to be answered about the drawings they sent. OK, enough of a rant. My real question is, why do these large companies wait until the last possible moment to send out an RFQ for a large project? I've always thought that it's because they got pricing they didn't like from their normal vendor(s) and are hoping to get a last minute cheap price. I'm not accusing anyone of trying to catch someone unprepared, but they had to know this quote date was coming up. Yes I could just throw a high number at this job but that never works out. Thoughts? Thanks!

Back in the late 90's, before i ended up buying the family business, my parents talked to several different business brokers. it took nearly almost two years to find one that was trustworthy. One just wanted to sell us a book about the history of the business, another couldn't get any interested buyers, some just want to put your business up on a website, etc. I eventually bought the family business (still not sure if that was a good idea or not) and we worked out our own terms. Plus there was no brokers commission. One of my realtor customers is also a business broker and we're supposed to get together. With COVID on the wane, I hope to meet him farily soon. Maybe one of your customers is a broker as well as a realtor. I suggest that you reach out to SCORE and get some free help. SCORE is part of the SBA and it's all free and the people are eager to help you. Eventually I am going to have to sell and have been doing monthly zoom meetings to go over that subject, plus lots of other "stuff". I'm now 63 (and wish I had contacted SCORE thirty years ago) and figure I can afford to retire in another 35-40 years. :) Go to the SBA website and search for what you want and they'll match you with someone. I'm in the local chamber of commerce and another business owner told me that it took him 3-4 years to make one of businesses "bankable" because most buyers don't have the cash to buy you outight. They will have to go to a bank for a loan so all your books, inventory, etc. will have to be set up so a banker can understand your business and approve the loan. I'm supposed to catch up with that guy and get more details but we never seem to be at the same meetings. Again, SCORE will have people who can give you better information than "some sign-guy on the internet". What I can say that I've been upgrading equipment, having things serviced professionally, keep the trucks on regular maintenence schedules, etc. When I bought the business, most everything was old and run down but I was used to it and knew what needed to be replaced right away and what could stay. No one will want a business where a lot of equipment is close to the end of it's useful life. "New and Shiny" sells better than "old and dusty" even if the old stuff is better than the new. Best of luck!

And another late entry. I was looking for a USA made drill press because my old one is ready to be replaced. I found Kalamazoo metal muncher (https://www.kalamazoometalmuncher.com/product-category/machines/hydraulic-shears/) and they say their products are still USA made.

It's a thought. I'll ask my digital print guys. I don't have a printer because within a ten minute drive there are four sign shops who have one. it's one less piece of equipment to maintain! Trucks, plotters, CNC router, etc. are enough of a headache.

Hi all, I have to replace some faces on an existing Olive Garden channel letter sign. Does anyone have the specs for their vinyl - both the green and perf brown. They gave me PMS colors but nothing close comes up in the 3m color charts. Thanks!