That looks good to me Ralph. May have to start a forum for rubber stamping rolling stock And again good idea

I will be checking out office max and staples for stamp for numbering rolling stock and maybe a custom rubber stamp for my RR's name reporting marks and a logo(may need 2 stamp to do this one).

I have a logo in mind for the BFT it will be green and brown, the green will be the leaves of a Buckeye tree and the brown will be the branch and a couple of Buckeyes(nuts, not fans lol).

OK, here's a pretty good outcome after some practice. I took this photo with the Macro setting to answer bil's previous question about how it looks up close. i wasn't ready to do that until now.


Ralph

Killing time in Staples today - I noticed they sold a "make your own stamp" kit for 27$ bucks. It came with two sizes of individual letters and numbers, and a couple of holders where you can arrange the letters to spell whatever you want. The letters are all basic sans-serif fonts, and I am not sure how well the holder holds them in alignment. For those with an extra 27$ to spend, it may be worth buying to play around with.

Ralph Wrote:OK, here's a pretty good outcome after some practice. I took this photo with the Macro setting to answer bil's previous question about how it looks up close. i wasn't ready to do that until now.


Ralph

That. Rocks.

GREAT idea.

Ralph ... that looks pretty good up close! I guess I'll have to take a trip "into the city" (drive the twenty-five miles into Fort Myers) to Office Depot of Offic Max or Saples, whichever one I come to first, and check out some of the stamp pads ... see if they have a white one ... and take it from there!

nachoman Wrote: Killing time in Staples today - I noticed they sold a "make your own stamp" kit for 27$ bucks. It came with two sizes of individual letters and numbers, and a couple of holders where you can arrange the letters to spell whatever you want. The letters are all basic sans-serif fonts, and I am not sure how well the holder holds them in alignment. For those with an extra 27$ to spend, it may be worth buying to play around with.

Kevin, I remember having a kit like that when I was a kid, maybe ten or eleven. I'm sure it was much cheaper back then, like maybe a whole 49 cents! Seriously though, as I recall, the biggest problem with the whole arrangement was keeping all those individual letters lined up in a dead level line. There was always at least one that was an RCH higher or lower than any of the others. But at the time, it was considered a kid's novelty toy, something to keep the kiddies occupied and out of their mother's hair for a couple hours and not something to be found with the office supplies aat woolworth's Five and Dime.

I'll will admit to almost always being occupied for considerably longer than that. :geek:

Ralph, my friend...you are an innovater!
Great idea!
I'm gonna be trying this one!
I'll be needing to letter some pre-WWII era equipment for my free-lance HO road...This might be just the ticket!

This is an excellent idea. Thanks for posting it.

AF350 Wrote:That looks good to me Ralph. May have to start a forum for rubber stamping rolling stock And again good idea

I will be checking out office max and staples for stamp for numbering rolling stock and maybe a custom rubber stamp for my RR's name reporting marks and a logo(may need 2 stamp to do this one).

I have a logo in mind for the BFT it will be green and brown, the green will be the leaves of a Buckeye tree and the brown will be the branch and a couple of Buckeyes(nuts, not fans lol).

You don't need to use ink with a stamp if it is not the kind that automatically inks. You could use model paints and just paint your colors onto the various bits of the stamp to separate green and brown. Use water based paint and mistakes can be washed off before they dry and the stamp is easily washed off after use.

Russ Bellinis Wrote:

AF350 Wrote:That looks good to me Ralph. May have to start a forum for rubber stamping rolling stock And again good idea

I will be checking out office max and staples for stamp for numbering rolling stock and maybe a custom rubber stamp for my RR's name reporting marks and a logo(may need 2 stamp to do this one).

I have a logo in mind for the BFT it will be green and brown, the green will be the leaves of a Buckeye tree and the brown will be the branch and a couple of Buckeyes(nuts, not fans lol).

You don't need to use ink with a stamp if it is not the kind that automatically inks. You could use model paints and just paint your colors onto the various bits of the stamp to separate green and brown. Use water based paint and mistakes can be washed off before they dry and the stamp is easily washed off after use.

I almost thought of that earlier but other thoughts won out

Russ that is a very good adaptation of the stamp Idea, glad you posted it as now we will have infinite colors to choose from I paint on canvas with cheap acrylic paints and mix my own colors often and they are water soluble when wet and have a flat finish to them.

That's a very clever idea Russ!

I should mention that it seems that cheaper ink pads are better. I bought a gel black ink pad at Office Depot that is unforgiving if you make a mistake. attempts to wipe off misprint makes a black smudge that does not come off! I bought a cheaper pad today and find it wipes right of if you clean it in a few minutes.
Ralph

Actually it wasn't my idea. That is the method that manufacturers like Athearn used for years to put names, logos, & data on locomotives and an rolling stock.

Russ Bellinis Wrote: ... That is the method that manufacturers like Athearn used for years to put names, logos, & data on locomotives and an rolling stock.

Right you are Mr. Bellinis! But not just Athearn! "Pad Printing" is one of the most common methods of applying graphics to the majority of consumer products that are manufactured today.

I've watched Ralph develop this concept with a bit of a knowing smile on my face ... how's that old saying go about "great minds?"

I'm still marveling at the possibilities. The printing on the hopper looks great, Ralph!

No new experiments yet but am going to order the office depot number stamp, and go with a local vendor for the custom Name, Call letters and logo

Now that pad printing has been mentioned I have a DVD showing that process being done in China by the Sanda Kan company on model trains. The machine has a pad(flexible silicon ) that conforms over cast in details.

Long live freelancing and scratchbuilding DIY projects

I finally got around to buying one of those alphabet stamps to play around with. The letters all lined up, and it was an appropriate size and style of lettering. I tried white acrylic model paint as "ink" and using clear decal paper, painting a piece of wax paper to use as an "ink pad". The paint just kinda squished to the sides and formed a "halo" around the letters - a big failure. I tried using light pressure, and stamping several times, and nothing changed.

This was laser decal paper, and I may have more success using ink jet decal paper and actual white ink that I may get from the art supply store. Or I may try applying directly to whatever it is that I am trying to letter (as Ralph did).