thor2015

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About thor2015

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  1. Thanks for sharing, lmlost!
  2. Rodger, I understood the point you were trying to make. My possession of any copyrighted logos has simply been for personal restoration projects where I have owned the item and the logo was either badly damaged, missing or removed in the process. Also, anytime I undertake any project like that I do look online to see if I can find any licensed replacements for sale. I am aware that just because I can Google and download it does not make it free for me to use anywhere and how I want. I know regarding copyrighted materials that even giving them away for free to others is a violation and until I can talk to a qualified legal consultant on how to ensure I have the proper permission I use extreme discretion. Dan, I never had any desire to get rich. I just got tired of trying to bring prototypes to manufacturing companies and being shown the door without any discussion. I'd hear things like the quantity desired was too little without any discussion on what the minimum quantity was. I'd hear that the project wasn't worth their time even though I had never told them what I was willing to pay. I also heard other excuses along the way but those two were the most common. So, I decided to do it myself and cut out the middle man and in the process offer up a place where people could bring their own custom creations and have them done with someone who was willing to take the time to work with them.
  3. Rodger, This is the problem with our legal system. The worst company I've heard of so far is Harley Davidson. In doing my research I read a post made by a guy who was approached by a Harley Dealership to make some Harley decals. When Harley Davidson found out, they sent the C&D to the sign maker. It would seem to me that a system that makes sense would have taken action against the Harley employee. You have our system spot on, but it still makes no sense. In your example the department responsible for issuing permits should have been responsible since not only is it their job but they should be more in the know about specific permit laws. Liquidfusion's post also brought up another interesting point. It is mentioned that a contract was drawn up and agreed to. If I read it right however, it seems that the contract didn't do any good in the end and the order still has to be redone. What is the point of drawing up a contract if the customer gets to alter it in the end?
  4. Great post! I agree- at least the first part should be made a sticky. I've always found that "friends" and "buddies" come out of the woodwork if they know you have something they might need. True friends will be interested in making the project fair to you in return. Regarding copyrighted materials, I have them but they are strictly for personal use. I will, however cut a logo if I have the prior written approval from the copyright holder. I came to the realization that if I cut a copyrighted image for a friend, I would be digging a hole for myself and opening myself up to the "you did it for xxx... why not for me?" questions. I've heard stories of people who have clipart CD's with copyrighted logos doing great business until someone shows up undercover, buys a decal and comes back with a court order. This is usually accompanied with a hefty fine and the confiscation of equipment. I still have a bit to learn regarding copyrights and how to tell if the approval is legitimate so for the time being copyrights are on my "do not cut" list for anyone. Quality materials FTW. When I first started getting into this I found some "cheap" vinyl at Hobby Lobby. Fortunately I didn't have any orders then to fill but it was a pain to weed and wanted to tear especially on the small details. I ended up throwing out the cut roll and returning the other. Proper equipment also goes a long way. Again, when starting out I heard of people using old credit cards as squeegees. I did a few runs this way until I purchased an actual squeegee and it made a HUGE difference not only in the final application but it made the small details of my vinyl adhere much better to the transfer tape and was less headache to peel off of the backing paper. Start slow, and if not experienced get your practice by investing in personal projects. Before I touched anyone's car I applied vinyl to my own over and over again until I could produce repeatable quality. It cost me a few bucks in vinyl, but it was worth it to become experienced in the process before I had to learn the hard way on someone else's stuff. Again, I still have some things to learn but I know what those things are and will not experiment on a customer's property to figure it out. One final piece of advice I have is to try and get a color chart especially if you don't have a fully stocked inventory. Since I am not yet doing this full time, I have had people approach me on the fly for a project. The color chart is VERY useful when letting them pick out colors. Oh, and I must belong to a rare church. Mine ordered 250 decals from me and gladly paid 2.50 each for them. After coming here and reading some of the posts I realize I can probably come down a bit but at least I wasn't asked to do all of that for free and was more than fairly compensated.
  5. thor2015

    Waterslide Decals

    Waterslide decals are generally used in permanent applications where they are applied to the base coat and then cleared over and the detail of the graphic is too high to warrant painting. When the clear coat is applied, it builds around the decal and leaves an uneven spot that must be polished out. The painter must be sure to spray enough clear to come up slightly higher than the height of the decal. This ensures when the high spot where the decal sits is sanded off level there is still clear coat covering the entire area. Vinyl would not be good for this because it is a thicker material than waterslide and would take a few more coats to build to the thickness of your typical vinyl decal. I've seen waterslide used on motorcycle tanks before and guitar headstocks but I'm not quite sure what materials are used by helmet manufacturers.
  6. thor2015

    What vinyl would I need UT Longhorns

    Got my samples in today, and nut brown is the closest match I can find to the burnt orange color in the Oracal 651 series. Even though the color says brown it does have an orange tint to it.
  7. thor2015

    What vinyl would I need UT Longhorns

    H and H sign supply has sample sheets of the Oracal 651 vinyl for 1.49 per 12" x 12" sheet or a 5 pack for 4.95. You can also order color charts from them that will eliminate discrepancies in monitor calibration. I too am looking for the correct burnt orange color, but think that the answer is going to be in another color besides orange. Nut brown looks close, but it could be my monitor is just off calibration. Another color I've looked into is 3M's terra cotta color available in cast vinyl. I may just order some samples of orange and a small roll of terra cotta. If all else fails, perhaps a local sign company can provide you with some samples or a color chart to look at.
  8. thor2015

    any one got any General Lee stuff

    Here is a quick mockup of the roof flag, again done in layers so you can cut each color individually. Couldn't find measurements, so this will have to be rescaled to fit accordingly. General_Lee_Flag.eps
  9. thor2015

    any one got any General Lee stuff

    Here are the numbers. These were scaled from a screen shot I took off the "Carnival of Thrills" episode during season 3. The original file was too big to send so I scaled these down. Lock the aspect ratio and expand the height to 19" and the rest should fall in place. I also did the graphic in layers so that the white and black can be cut separately. general_lee_01_small.eps
  10. thor2015

    One of my first cuts with my Graphtec

    Thanks. Yeah, the front half of the car is a little beat up as well but like I said it is fixable- it will just take some time. Also, if anyone else wants the 01 graphic I would be more than happy to share it.
  11. thor2015

    Graphtec CE5000-60 noise question

    Cool, thanks. As I said I am really happy with the machine- especially how it cuts small detail.
  12. Ok, so a little back story first. In November going to work on a rainy day my tire decided to blow out. Going about 60 mph, my Camaro hit a ditch with a nice 45 degree incline. The car, needless to say went airborne and jumped over a driveway and landed halfway into the next one. When I tried to get out, the car had taken down some metal posts and the rocker panel was jammed into the door so I had to climb out the window General Lee style. The good news is the back pain has healed and the car looks to be fixable. In the meantime, it is sitting in my garage so I decided to decorate it (at least temporarily) with some vinyl cut with the new Graphtec I got over Christmas.
  13. Been using the cutter for about a week, and love it now that I have good software to use it with. I did have one question, and this may be perfectly normal but I wanted to make sure. The plotter cuts evenly across the entire 24" width and I can do great quality cuts on both large designs and small letters. However, when the blade is up and the cutting head is moving from one end to the other, there is a slight groaning noise that is being emitted. For the larger designs I've been setting my speed at 10 and for small letters I have it set at 5. If I do a cut that goes across the entire 24" roll there is no noise so long as the blade is down. It isn't a horrible noise but still noticeable. The head also moves smoothly (i.e. does not seem to be a stripped gear or belt). Just wanted to know what others have experienced with their Graphtecs. As I said, I love the cutter and want to make sure it stays around for a long time by taking care of it. Thanks! -Jeremy
  14. thor2015

    registration color

    I am using Adobe Illustrator CS4, and when I create and object and select its stroke color to the "Registration Color" swatch, it will only show up in the layer I originally drew it in instead of applying it to all layers. I've also tried checking the "All Printer's Marks" option from the Marks and Bleed menu in the print dialog but I still cannot get the registration color to apply to all layers. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. EDIT: Seems like registration marks are not meant to be used with layers but color separations instead. Sorry for the misunderstanding- this is the first time I've used this feature.
  15. thor2015

    Graphtec CE5000-60 margins

    Thanks, guys. I've read about the cutting strips getting damaged so I am doing test plots with paper and the pen tool. If the pen tool runs off the sheet, there's a little ink to wipe off but no permanent damage to the strip. I'll also look into Signblazer as well.