Metal marquee letters?

[Jay Selway]

Anybody have any experience making them? Would love to pick your brain if you have.

Looking to make some large, steel (or aluminum) letters, with lights, and channels. Going for the vintage style. Curious if I need to weld, or if there is an easier way to make them.

Thanks!

[Joe Pelonio]

I used to order them from a colleague that does neon and other electrical work, and have helped make them. He used aluminum, and riveted the letters together,
I cut the acrylic faces on the laser. The problem here is that the cities all require UL approval and a licensed electrical contractor to install, so I had to sub it out.

[Jay Selway]

I used to order them from a colleague that does neon and other electrical work, and have helped make them. He used aluminum, and riveted the letters together,
I cut the acrylic faces on the laser. The problem here is that the cities all require UL approval and a licensed electrical contractor to install, so I had to sub it out.

Would he laser cut the aluminum for the letters? Or did he cnc plasma / mill?

[Ross Moshinsky]

Would he laser cut the aluminum for the letters? Or did he cnc plasma / mill?

The pros buy rolls of thin aluminum/steel and they bend the form. Then stick your wood/acrylic/whatever in the form. How they bend and seal is dependent on what they own. Some do it by hand and some have a very automated process.

If you google metal marque letters, you will find several DIY write ups on how to make these using tools most people have in their garage.

[Joe Pelonio]

No laser, no CNC, to this day he is cutting with air shears, using paper patterns printed on the plotter, and sheet metal bending equipment. Until he found me, he cut the acrylic by jigsaw.

[alex naumenko]

I do have experience in channel letters.