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A summary of sign blogs with links to related articles for our business sign customers.
You never seem to have enough characters for a changeable letter marquee sign. Most character assortments provide more vowels and primary consonants than the lesser used alphabet. But if they give you more of one character it is at the expense of another. Most sign writers resort to being creative and turning their P's upside down for B's, or add some black tape to an F to make an E.
The only solution is to buy a larger kit. But you should never do more with what you can do with less. So how do you determine the correct font size for a changeable letter marquee sign?
The smaller the letter height then the more characters you can fit on a line. The larger the sign then the more letters you will require as well. One other factor to consider is the font style; you can fit more condensed style letters on a line than a normal style letter.
To start, determine how big your sign is by measuring the marquee's lineal feet. Huh, nobody told you there was going to be math? A lineal foot is figured by (number of rows on sign) x (width of marquee sign) x (number of sides). For example, a double sided 4 feet by 8 feet sign with 5 lines of letters is , ( 5 rows) x ( 8 feet) x (2 sides) = 64 lineal feet.
Then multiply the lineal feet by a letter height multiplier from the chart below to determine the MINIMUM font size for your marquee. For example, an 8" letter has a multiplier of 4. So 4 x 64 lineal feet equals a minimum 256 character set. We would recommend getting a 300 piece kit.
We have found that you should round up to the next kit size so you don't run short. You usually will get a better quantity price break and save money on shipping.
We offer marquee sign kits with a predetermine assortment of characters that satisfies most business requirements. Our commercial sign letter kits include letters, numbers but only a few punctuation. You should determine if your organization needs more characters or symbols. We are happy to custom pull the letters for your kit, a pizza restaurant may need more Z's.
| Letter Size | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| 4" | 5 |
| 6" | 5.5 |
| 6" Cond | 7 |
| 8" | 4 |
| 8" Cond | 5.5 |
| 10" | 3.5 |
| 12" | 3 |
| 15" | 2.5 |
| 17" | 2 |
| 24" | 1.5 |
Posted: May 1, 2009
Marquee signs are used for community centers, theaters, church signs, school signs, business signs and sidewalk signs. Marquee signs display messages with changeable letters that typically slide into grooved tracking. Each changeable letter is screen printed onto plastic and is available in different sizes, gauges and styles. Select the right size letters for your marquee or your message could end up going completely wrong!
Posted: January 27, 2014
How many letters do I need for my directory? Deciding on which directory board letter kits to buy can be tough, especially when it's not known for sure what the sign is going to say
Posted: February 15, 2013
Small sign shops have always been asked to be a 'jack of all trades' and digital signage is no exception. We will need to not only know the design and marketing abilities of LED signs, but also the software and hardware technologies involved
Posted: March 22, 2013
When planning a marquee sign, you need to first consider the viewing distance of your audience. This will affect both your budget and the size of your sign. As a rule of thumb, for every one inch of sign letter height, a customer can read the sign message from 10 feet away. For example, a 6 inch marquee sign letter can be read from 60 feet away. For passing motorists, you will want a little taller sign letter for the same effect.
Posted: March 5, 2015
Even though LED signs are showing up everywhere, many people still love the old school feel of a letter board with push in letters. Getting enough numbers, periods or dollar signs can sometimes be tough when you're making a board for records or prices.
Posted: November 24, 2014
Banner Board letters from yesteryear are getting harder and harder to find. The letters below are plastic and have plastic clips on the back to attach to the metal board. The boards look similar to the inner copy boards used with metal church letters, but the letters are much different.
Posted: June 23, 2015
Pronto Sign Letters were used on Zion Lutheran Church marquee sign to announce their service hours in Wisconsin. The eight inch tall letters can be easily read from 150 feet away. Pronto sign letters are available in six different sign fonts. The ADM style shown here are the widest and easiest to read. It is best to use big wide letters if your marquee is set back from the road and motorist are passing at a high rate of speed.
Posted: February 21, 2014
We are often called by churches all over the United States looking for a replacement board that works with their metal letters from many moons ago. Often times, the person in charge of changing the church marquee sign is left with the task of finding new sign letters and refurbishing the sign board. But because it an existing marquee sign, the previous church committee person had not left information as to where you can buy sign letters.
Posted: February 27, 2015
Theater Marquee Letters are great for old style marquees that are set up with Slotted Tracks. We offer Slotted Theater Marquee Letters, Slotted Marquee Sign Track and the Change Pole Arms for Theater Marquee Letters. No more scary ladders!
