Stencilling Equipment and Techniques

[David Dunlop]

As you may have noticed recently on Tony Baker's fascinating Blitz restoration thread, the subject of stencil making equipment came up. Sooner or later, we all run across a piece of military equipment to restore that requires appropriate markings, be it a 10-Ton Prime Mover or a wireless set Spare Parts Box, so Tony and I thought it might be a good idea to set up a new thread where we can all consolidate our accumulated expertise on this subject.

Please feel free to contribute your experiences, be it free hand design work or finding the latest stencilling machines. Decals and things related would probably also be a great fit here. As we all know, MLU makes things sooo much easier for us!

David

[Private_collector]

Absolutely spot on, David. As for myself, I don't believe I could restore my vehicle without the depth of support from the folks here on MLU.

When doing the signage for my restoration truck I decided on using vinyl numbers for the doors and nose panel. I made this choice based on likelihood of me stuffing up sprayed stencils. The vinyl is neat and consistent in appearance, but does not have the same look as stencilling would. In fact, I think I will use stencils in future, now that I have had a little more experience in last couple of years. If you DO wish to use computer cut numbers/lettering, be aware that both white and black vinyl film are available in matt finish. I couldn't get that at the time I wanted to, so spent some time lightly sanding the vinyl before applying it to the vehicle. Not a fun job. Incidentally, the D ^ D marking on the side curtain curtain was done by stencil I hand made. Not very neat, but functional. Now that I have acquired a sign cutter, any future marking will be done as a stencil. Stencilling is easy if using the right materials. On canvas any vinyl film can be used to make the stencil, because it won't be difficult to remove the film from canvas, but I would be reluctant to use standard vinyls on paint. The solvents in paint may cause them to release from the surface OR the adhesive could seperate from the film, making a real mess on the paint surface. I have had this happen when applying the 9th Division marking on my green truck.

The numbers on my grey truck are also vinyl. I don't have any issue using this method on that truck, because it is not presented with the same desire for originality. It's my daily driver, (well, not literally) so gets knocked around a bit. The second photo above, shows the TAC sign for 29-46 Infantry Battalion. Vinyl film was used here also. I did ask the sign place who did the artwork for me if they had stencilling material, but they did not have any of that material. In fact they had didn't even know of a cuttable material for making stencils! I find that quite remarkable.

The final photo shows the stencil applied to my fuel tanks. I ordered this from a UK business that specialises in military vehicle signage. They offer vinyl signs, single use stencils, and the type I ordered, oilboard. The oilboard stencils are a thicker material, and can be used over and over again, provided care is taken when removing from the surface it had been applied to. The only drawback I can think of is that oilboard is not particularly flexible. You will have difficulties getting this stuff to go round corners or compound curves. For that matter, it doesn't like being applied to rough surfaces either, and may lift up in places during the stencilling process. Another option is a product called Paint Mask. It is thinner than oilboard, has greater flexability, better adhesion, and can be manipulated easier. The down side is, it is a single use product. Not such a problem if you can make your own, and if you need to purchase from a sign company, it shouldn't be much dearer to order multiple copies in one order.

[rob love]

Here at the museum we used decals for a short while, but have replaced pretty much all of them with either stencils or, in most cases, sign painting. We will generally either use the stencil to mark out the numbers or symbol we want. We use a laundry pencil to outline. For paint, the sign paint, which comes in little pint cans cannot be beat. It does not run, and can be had in off-white, which gives it a vintage look. Don't cheap out on the brush either. Lots of light and a steady hand, and the stencilling begins. Clive is far better at it than I am, but mine is getting better.

For larger or non-standard decals, printing it out on the computer then cutting out the letters works very well, as you can adjust the lettering to whatever size you like. Again, this is just for tracing out before hand painting. A day ot two later, a cloth with some water will remove any of the laundry pencil marking that remains after the painting.

Problem with spray painting is you will always have some overspray, or the paint will sneak under the stencil. Back in my armoured corp days, we used to use a small piece of sponge wrapped in electrical tape like a mushroom, and do the pitty pat thing. Makes for a neat texture, but again, the paint tends to sneak under the stencil a bit.

Another tip is if you are painting stencils on a door, and the door can come off, then take it off and put it on some saw horses. Far bet6ter to do it right the first time than have to live with amateur workl.

[Private_collector]

The application of vinyl signage is simple, but does require close attention, in order to achieve best results.

All vinyl films require a backing tape, and this is applied over the entire surface of the signage, after you have removed all unwanted areas, such as around lettering or portions of vinyl inside letters/numbers. For example, removing the material inside the letter D. This is known as Weeding. Once you have carefully weeded everything you don't want on the surface, apply backing tape over the entire sign. This is best done in one length, but depending on width of the application tape itself, may require more than one strip. Application tape comes in a range of widths, and should be purchased in a width comparable to height of your lettering (if single row). It comes in two main varieties, paper and clear. The paper is more difficult to see through, naturally, and if using this type it is best to align the tape with top or bottom edge of your sign, so you have a reference point when applying. The other type is clear backing. The obvious advantage of this type is greater visibility when application, and is best used if you need to align to something which would be under the tape during application. Personally, I use the paper backing tape. It has a very desirable property of coming away easier from the lettering after application of sign, if you spray water or application fluid onto it.

This is applcation fluid. It is sprayed onto the surface to take the sign, and sometimes onto the back of the lettering itself. It makes things sooooo much easier, because it eliminates adhesion between surface and lettering. Spray a light coat of application fluid onto the serface where sign is to be applied, and you can move the entire sign around until you are satisfied with the location. Please read the instructions carefully. I don't use store bought app. fluid, in preference of plain water with a VERY small amount of kitchen detergent. Just a drop or two suffices my needs.

Once you are happy with sign alignment on the vehicle, you can begin permanent placement, by removing all space (and application fluid) between the lettering and vehicle surface. Starting at the centre of the sign, gently but firmly run a squeege from centre to edge of sign. There is no rush here, and it is important to be thorough. If done correctly, all air and fluid bubbles will be removed from beneath the lettering. Take care not to press so hard that the sign moves while using the squeegee. You can use a stiff piece of plastic as the squeegee, such as a credit card sized 'loyalty card'. You know, the kind of card businesses offer frequent customers. A body filler applicator can also be used, but it is VERY important that the edge contacting the sign has NO rough areas, or you may damage your sign. I use a purpose made vinyl sign applicator. Once again, you have a choice here. Some come with a layer of felt on one end, to minimise potential for sign damage. This is my personal preference. They are inexpensive and can be found on internet auction sites (you know the ones I mean!) all the time. They are only a few dollars each. Although other things can be used instead, I would highly recommend purchasing one of these applicators. They last indefinitely if used carefully. When I first started making vinyl signage, over 20 years ago, applicators didn't have the felt!

For convenience, you may wish to purchase a sigm application kit. This one is around $20 - 30 including postage.

Once you have squeegeed the sign completely, you can begin removal of the backing tape. As I have said, I prefer the paper type, and here's why. I spray some leftover application fluid (or just water might be best) onto the surface of the tape, and wait a minute of two. It makes removal of the tape much, much, easier. Gently start lifting the backing tape from one end or edge. You should do so in a manner that allows you to look under the tape where it is coming away, to see if your lettering is lifting as well. If it is, stop immediately, and run the squeegee over the application tape again. Repeat the process until all tape has been successfully removed. Once it is lifted away, DO NOT SQUEEGEE AGAINST THE LETTERING ITSELF. If any further pressure is needed to keep lettering against the surface, and it shouldn't at this point, gently use a finger with the nail side acting as your squeegee. Be gentle for christ sake! You may ruin your good work if you press too hard.

At this point you should be finished. Don't get the vehicle wet, and don't put it in direct sunlight for several hours. Hopefully you won't have any air or fluid bubbles under your lettering, but it is quite possible this can happen. You can do one of two things. You can simply ignore the bubbles, and see if they resolve over a few days. Most small bubbles will disappear within a week. The vinyl will 'breathe', and fluid bubbles in particular will dry up. If the bubbles are bigger, or contain air, you can put a very small hole in the vinyl and let the air/fluid out by gently pressing towards the cut in the material. I use a scalpel point, but the sharp point of a box cutter blade or sharp pin will o the same thing. Be careful not to press hard enough to go into the paint surface beneath the vinyl. If done carefully, the cut or pin-prick will be virtually invisible.

[David Dunlop]

When working on my M38CDN many years back, I made my own hand cut stencils out of glossy Manila stock, exactly like what was used in office file folders. It was available in any art supply store in roughly 3 x 4 foot sheet stock.

To solve the paint bleed problem Rob referred to, I discovered using rubber cement worked beautifully. No bleed and the stencil can be reused easily many times if needed. The trick is to get the largest bottle of rubber cement you can find and work fairly quickly, as the solvent in the cement is very volatile. The larger the bottle, the bigger the applicator, so you can cover more of the back of the stencil, faster.

Once you have sorted out locating where the stencil needs to go on the work face, lather the back with the cement and press it firmly in place, squeezing all the excess cement out from under the stencil. It only takes a couple of minutes for the cement to dry and you can very easily wipe the excess away with your finger. Apply the paint, either spray, brush or sponge, and let it dry well. Then remove the stencil. There may be bits of cement stuck to the edges of what you just stencilled but in a day or two you can rub it away with your finger to tidy it up. Once the stencil is off the work face, you can rub the old cement off the back and it is ready for reuse.

David

[Mike Cecil]

I very nicely ask my wife to draw up and apply any signage I need ......



Mike

[Hans Mulder]

There is a company on Vancouver that has produced some stencils for me, out of plastic. Cost about $100 for formation, division, WD number, etc stencils.

[Bob Brown]

Reading over the thread I see about everything that I have tried.

What I have found works great is this. I have a vinyl stencil plotter for making decals. Not hard to find. Any sign maker has one. I don't want a decal on the paint I want it painted on...so

What I do is I use a non permanent decal stock and do the decal on it. I then take out the letters (opposite of what you would normally do). This will leave you a stencil that you position and stick onto your vehicle. As I leave a couple of inches of material I mask (butcher paper) with green painters tape around it on the decal.

I have hand painted and I have spray painted. Both have looked good.

Let it dry a little bit before you pull the stencil off. Nice shape lines.

[Ron King]

I have seen simple paper stencils work well.
The secret is using a small foam hand roller to apply the paint to stop the paint creeping under the stencil.

[Rob Fast]

here's what I accomplished today. Not done yet, looking for some RCA stick on decals for the story board. Cheers Rob

[rob love]

Rob

For the RCA decals try here:
http://www.rcakitshop.net/shop/decal-red-over-blue

[welbike]

Well, I've been applying most markings etc. usually myself, and am not bad at it, as a lot of people aske me to their vehicles, problem usually is that it's too nice! during wartime conditions there were no perfect brushes and stencils with glue on the back etc. etc. so overspray, ragged edges etc. is all possible, even from the factory it was not always perfect, just study lots of wartime pictures, never copy someone elses restored vehicles, they may have gotten it wrong somewhere too.

Favourite method is also as described above, make something up in the PC, print it out, and cut out with sharp knife, then copy onto the part, I usually use lead pencils for that, the softer the better, it can be removed afterwards with soapy water, and that is what was used during wartime too, so most original, even if you later still see traces of it.....

Here a sign I just did a couple weeks ago for my Canadian field workshop display;



I have 3 different sizes of those heavy US manual stencil cutters, that are always in the way, wherever you put them, but are very handy for all sorts of texts.

Cheers,

Lex

[gary_bath_jr]

Hey All

We have a company here that will do stencils made out of magnets, this would work perfect for anything to go on a vehicle like unit markings, etc. You could likely get individual numbers made up so that you could have different numbers on the doors.

I used to use stencils like this with a company I used to work for and they work really well and last a long time, all you would need is to know what font to use and they can make any size stencil you want. The other good thing is if you don't seat it perfectly you can get overspray.

Gary