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An auto parts store customer bought a race car body and is rigging it to look like a finished car to use as a sign for his business. It will be mounted on his roof with a slight tilt. (Driver side front fender down, rear passanger fender up higher.)
He wants advise on car color. Has anyone done anything like this before? I know light backgrounds with dark letters are suppose to be easier to read than a dark background with light letters. But I'm wondering about the car having the sky as part of its backgound. I'm wondering if this is a case where a darker color on the car body would be better.
By the way, it's not going to be lit at night and it's not going to look like a race car... just a car with his business name on it.
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Hi Dave, In my opinion, dark car with light letters. Also depends if the building/roof is light or dark. I would think the car would need to stand out on that as well.
-------------------- Wayne Webb Webb Signworks Chipley, FL 850.638.9329 wayne@webbsignworks.com Posts: 7405 | From: Chipley,Florida,United States | Registered: Oct 1999
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This is very general. Although we are used to reading dark copy on light backgrounds, usually dark backgrounds with light copy have more impact.
The great showcard writers of times past so often used black backgrounds. Many of the effective web sites use black backgrounds.
If the building is a relatively light color and the sky isn't dark brown like that of Los Angeles, a dark vehicle body may well make the sign more noticeable.
Also, keep in mind that Elvis wouldn't be the same on WHITE velvet.
-------------------- David Harding A Sign of Excellence Carrollton, TX Posts: 5106 | From: Carrollton, TX, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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I was thinking along those lines as well. The building is a light grey with a red & black stripe near the roof line. The building is two story for half its length, then one story where the business is housed. The car will go on the one story part. There is also a red canopy over the door.
I'm thinking either black or red for the car color.
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Bob's right. Light copy on a dark background has more visual impact. A dark-colored car will be a stronger silhouette against the sky, while high-contrast white copy will hold its own. You might want to consider something reflective, like aluminum leaf, as well.
-------------------- "A wise man concerns himself with the truth, not with what people believe." - Aristotle
Cam Bortz Finest Kind Signs Pondside Iron works 256 S. Broad St. Pawcatuck, Ct. 06379 "Award winning Signs since 1988" Posts: 3051 | From: Pawcatuck,Connecticut USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Thanks everyone. The info you all gave me was just what I needed. It would have been a real bummer to have to bring that car down again to repaint and re-letter.
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Hi Dave, Althought the car won't be racing, the effect of LOOKING like a race car seems to be the end goal.
Here are a couple of factors I use when doing the real race cars...
Visibility from a distance. Although, this one isn't going to be winning any qualifing runs, keep in mind how far up and away it's going to be seen from. It sounds like the hood or sides will be dominant and you might want to consider how lettering them will be most effective. (Maybe a logo on the hood and their web address or other information on the 1/4 panel.) Color selections. If the customer already has a logo, try to keep within those colors. Sometimes an additional stripe or area of color can add contrast and make the logo more dominant than the car. Use bright, full strength colors, but keep them limited to 4 if possible. Numbers. The standard at most tracks is 18 inch high with a minimum 3 inch wide stroke. (Roof numbers are usually 30" in height) I usually try to bring the interior color of the car out as the numbers. Most race cars today are packaging with wheels. (The Tide car is a great example) Check out some of the packaging inside the parts store and you might find some great colors and ideas right there under the car's nose...
Hope this helps. Rapid
-------------------- Ray Rheaume Rapidfire Design 543 Brushwood Road North Haverhill, NH 03774 rapidfiredesign@hotmail.com 603-787-6803
I like my paint shaken, not stirred. Posts: 5648 | From: North Haverhill, New Hampshire | Registered: Apr 2003
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Thanks for the info Ray, but we are not trying to make the car look like a race car. Although the owner DOES race late model on a short track, he bought a race car body to keep the weight down. He owns a Bumper to Bumper auto parts store and he wanted a car on the roof as a sign simply as an attention getter. Most likely only Bumper to Bumper will be lettered on the side and maybe auto parts on the hood. They use yellow in their logo so we're leaning toward yellow letters on a black or red car.
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blue or grey only.
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