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Hi, I'm routing 9 inch letters out of 1/2 inch PVC. Can I spray paint these and get a decent finish? If so, what brand/type of spray paint would you recommend? Also, I plan on mounting studs to the back of these, then mounting them to steel siding on a pole building. Will expansion/contraction a concern? Thanks!
-------------------- Tim Whitcher Adrian, MI Posts: 1546 | From: Adrian, MI | Registered: Mar 1999
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Tim...After routing...use automotive catalized spot putty to smooth the edges of the letters. Sand the edges and the faces. spray with catalized automotive primer. Let dry over night and sand. Spray with either acrylic enamel or basecoat/clearcoat.
You will end up with a finish that is a smooth as a babies butt and as shiny as a new car!
That system works for me and my customers are happy.
As far as expansion is concerned... I screw the studs into the backs of the letters and then drill the building face slichtly oversize and attach the letters with "construction grade" adhesive. I tape the letters with duct tape overnight to hold them till the adhesive sets. No expansion problems so far on letters that are up for 5 years.
-------------------- Dave Grundy retired in Chelem,Yucatan,Mexico/Hensall,Ontario,Canada 1-519-262-3651 Canada 011-52-1-999-102-2923 Mexico cell 1-226-785-8957 Canada/Mexico home
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I've been cutting sign blanks from an old piece of PVC that I pulled the letters off to see how the stuff would work on the router table (beautifully). I've been painting it with Krylon Fusion and it appears to stick great. It is holding up to being bent good too. It's only been on there a month or so so I don't know what will happen to it down the road.
Dave's way really sounds like a better way to go. Good automotive paint has got to last longer than Krylon.
[ September 18, 2003, 05:59 PM: Message edited by: Patrick Whatley ]
-------------------- Pat Whatley Montgomery, AL (334) 262-7446 office (334) 324-8465 cell Posts: 1306 | From: Wetumpka, AL USA | Registered: Mar 2001
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We scuff the pvc surface with a fine abrasive pad and spray with acrylic latex house paint. If the letters are up high we don't do anything extra to finish the edges other than painting them. To install we use a vhb double-face tape in addition to silicone adhesive (make sure you rough sand the back side of the pvc letters so the silicone can bite into it). We've been installing with this system for at least 5 years with good success.
-------------------- Jean Shimp Shimp Sign & Design Co. Jacksonville Beach, Fl Posts: 1285 | From: Jacksonville Beach, Fl. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Matthews Paint manufactures a product called Tie Bond. Once the letters are cleaned up, de-burred, edges scraped with a cabinet scraper or knife, clean the letters to remove oils & dust. Tie Bond can then be applied (sprayed,) and dries quickly, usually in 20 minutes or less depending on the thickness of the coat. Tie Bond seals the letter edges well; although, Matthews prefers to categorize the product as an adhesive. A few careful passes over the edges & a wet coat over the letters has worked well for me. Tie Bond is a clear material formulated to increase adhesion between the substrate and the finish coat over hard, slick plastic, and couldn’t work better for PVC. Once the Tie Bond is dry, I spray Matthews acrylic polyurethane of any color with catalyst, matting clear, reducer & accelerator. I couldn’t be happier with the performance and ease of use of the Matthews polyurethane line. I use it on nearly everything but sprayed illuminated faces. Well I still roll the 4’x 8’s when I can too.
-------------------- Dave Parr Sign Painter USA Posts: 709 | From: USA | Registered: May 2003
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Oh, ...mounting? Roy Frisby has the holes, make sure you buy them undersized for the backs of the letters, so the stud can thread it's self in. Also be sure to buy them under the depth of the PVC, in this case no deeper than 3/8". Just chuck the studs in a battery pack drill & screw them in. Set the clutch on a very low number so when the screw bottoms out it won't dimple the front of the letter. Buy three or four holes per letter, and use your choice of adhesive. A few dabs of silicone adhesive near but not close to the edge of the letter, in three or four places around the letter is all that is needed. The more you put on, the harder the letter is to remove when that time rolls around. You can tape the letters as you go if you like, usually not necessary if the pattern is accurate & you don’t use much of an oversized hole in the metal. By the time you’ve finished installing the letters, you can usually go back to the beginning and start pulling the tape. Another great adhesive is Sherwin Williams clear paintable siliconized latex caulk. You wouldn’t think so, but this is a tougher adhesive than silicone once it sets up.
Do I get a commission Roy?
(edited because it was miss leading, )
[ September 18, 2003, 09:19 PM: Message edited by: dave parr ]
-------------------- Dave Parr Sign Painter USA Posts: 709 | From: USA | Registered: May 2003
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