Nameplates on ship model display cases can be a very important feature of the overall presentation. I’ve normally used a professional shop (online) to make these brass plates for me and have always been pleased with their look. As we all know, prices on everything have basically gone thru the roof and these little items are no exception! So, I began to look for a less expensive alternative while maintaining a professional appearance.
While I’ve preferred to have a black nameplate with brass or gold lettering, that isn’t something that’s set in stone – I wondered whether or not the reverse would also look as well. And, that is something that most (if not all) home printers could accomplish without much fuss. After a session in Word using various fonts, I came up with an acceptable (to me!) look for these nameplates and then began to look around for some colored cardstock on which to print them. This isn’t rocket science, so I’ll leave it up to the modeler as to what font, size, borders or no, etc. etc. If you can print out fake news stories, you shouldn’t have a problem mastering this!
Here is what I came up with for my current series of large-scale gun directors/mounts/turrets:
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Using spray adhesive, I mounted the appropriate plate on the base plate as such:
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Locating Nameplate on Base.jpeg [ 50.38 KiB | Viewed 573 times ]
Prior to cutting out and mounting the individual nameplate, I did overspray the cardstock with clear, flat lacquer, but this is not necessary and can be eliminated if so desired. The only thing left to do was to then adhere the model to the base plate and then the display case to the base plate. I have a recycled (saved from being tossed out by corporate!) paper cutter that I used to cut out the individual nameplates from the sheet. Scissors can be used (obviously...
), but if you've had one or two or a six-pack, well....you get the picture
Besides, a trip to the ER to have those pesky scissors removed from your head can break the bank on savings on this little project!
As for materials, my only purchase was a pack of Astrobrights cardstock (#99316) which I bought at Wally World for less than $6.00. It comes in 5 colors – Husk, Grocer Kraft, Honeycomb, Concrete, and Stone. I chose to use the Husk which gave a lighter “gold” look to the plates. I think there are 10 sheets of each color in the pack. I printed these nameplates on an Epson WF-7620 Inkjet Printer.
Here is the finished product awaiting placement on the display shelf:
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Mk. 54 in Display Cube_2.jpeg [ 79.59 KiB | Viewed 573 times ]
Overall, I’m pleased with the results and the cost savings of approximately $40-$50 over purchasing a brass nameplate from a shop. I now have another half dozen or so display cubes to assemble using these nameplates.
Hope this is a helpful hint for saving a few $$ and gives your model display a professional touch!
Hank
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