I’m trying to reproduce the graduated scale portion of the drift scale for my tail turret project.
I have made a printable pattern with Autocad, but I’m stuck trying to replicate the way it might have been produced.
It looks like it’s made from 3/32″ Lexan/Perspex type material with the printing on the reverse.
Any suggestions?
Regards,
By: turretboy - 7th June 2007 at 15:03
Thanks Steven,
I was originally thinking of silkscreening, but wasn’t sure.
The texture of the top is smooth, the lettering may be very lightly engraved on the reverse side. It’s hard to determine because the original that I have been working from is still mounted on another turret.
I would like to try and have the graduations & lettering lightly cut into clear plastic and apply a coloured finish on the reverse. I’m not sure if the colour would show through clearly in the machined areas. It’s definitely worth a try.
If not, I’ll try a lamacoid.
Cheers,
By: StevSmar - 5th June 2007 at 23:04
Hi Turretboy,
A silkscreening process was probably used to paint a mask onto clear perspex. Have you tried silkscreening companies?
Hard to tell from your picture if the lettering is “indented” into the surface. If it is then plastic is available with a different coloured core that you can router into. In the electrical industry they are called “lamacoids”. It’s possible that the companies that produce lamacoids could use your CAD drawing?
Good Luck,
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June 5, 2007 at 9:25 pm