Restore Red/Black & White/Black number plate

lepoatnam

I have a set of old style plates that came on my classic but the reflective back on the them is completely gone. I have a set of Silver on Black plates which are perfect but I was wondering if it was possible to get the reflective material to put on the original plates.

Anyone restored a set of plates?

carchaeologist

Yes, a few times. Takes some time but worth it if the original plates are complete but shabby. Too many cars out there with cheap modern pressed plates.
Dismantle the plates and take the plastic letters off by popping off the rivets on the back with a small screwdriver. Take care not to break them as it's easy to do it. What I do is sand down the face of the plate removing all the white flaky aluminium corrosion, doing this properly will help the new reflective material stick well and help stop more corrosion behind it after. You don't have to remove all the old reflective material.
Go to your local signwriting shop and ask nicely, they should have the reflective material you need. Cut thus to shape and stick it to the plate, making sure that the plate is well cleaned down first. Make holes with a screwdriver at the points where the letter pins poke through, push through the letter pins then refit the rivets at the back, you might have to straighten these out to get them to hold. If some if the of the pins or rivets have snapped I use some clear sillicone at the back of the letters to get them to stick safely.

You can clean the letters with swarfega and a good nail brush if needed too.

lepoatnam

Thanks a million, the plates are really shabby and the pressed Silver/Black ones are lovely but I would like to revive the old ones. Will have a go at them as soon as I get a chance and post the results here, I know exactly the place to get the reflective material too.

Much appreciated.

carchaeologist

Good stuff, I'll post pics of mine when i dig them out too.

shagman

Do you know if it's possible to buy the plastic numbers/lettters anywhere?

carchaeologist

shagman wrote: »

Do you know if it's possible to buy the plastic numbers/lettters anywhere?

Im not sure of this, if you really get your anorack out you'll find theres many different types of plastic letter, it depends on the plates size and age.

3nero

shagman wrote: »

Do you know if it's possible to buy the plastic numbers/lettters anywhere?

if you have the original numbers, i can cast copies in resin

carchaeologist

3nero wrote: »

if you have the original numbers, i can cast copies in resin

That's a good option alright. Friend of mine is a modelmaker and said the same to me before.

Max_Damage

These lads make them: http://www.eireplates.com/samples.asp

macplaxton

Max_Damage wrote: »

These lads make them: http://www.eireplates.com/samples.asp

Those digits look like 3 1/8" tall to me :rolleyes:

This fella does them: autojumbler.ie - Paul McNaughton (not used him myself)

Rubbish photos on his website though. Plates 3,4 and 5 from the top are the correct height 3½" digits.

carchaeologist

^ what he said!:D

kev1.3s

I think I may have posted these images before, but I really hate those pressed grey and black plates on vintage cars! I only had an earlier type pressed type plate but I managed to find the letters i was looking for in white and I painted them black and put them on a new plate I also used a soldering iron to secure the plastic lugs in the holes.

3nero

carchaeologist wrote: »

That's a good option alright. Friend of mine is a modelmaker and said the same to me before.

and i am a model maker who has offered this service before :P

acier

Does anyone know where I could get a full set of letters and numbers like those in kev1.3s photos? I'm going to cast some in aluminium but need them to make the moulds.

macplaxton

kev1.3s wrote: »

I think I may have posted these images before, but I really hate those pressed grey and black plates on vintage cars! I only had an earlier type pressed type plate but I managed to find the letters i was looking for in white and I painted them black and put them on a new plate I also used a soldering iron to secure the plastic lugs in the holes.

Nice work, but is that just red paint on that backing plate, or is it retro-reflective? (hard to tell in those pics)

acier wrote: »

Does anyone know where I could get a full set of letters and numbers like those in kev1.3s photos? I'm going to cast some in aluminium but need them to make the moulds.

Don't know where you could get a full set, but those digits are identical in style to "ACE" peak aluminium ones. But if you have no joy here, find a UK supplier of pre-1963 plates that had 3½" digits.

Here's some ACE 3½" peak aluminium digits:


Top one is 3 1/8" UK plate - Hill's plastic semi-peak digits.
Bottom one is Tipper's Gothic 3½" aluminium peak digits:

kev1.3s

to be honest I wasn't too concerned about the plate being reflective i just painted it with satin red and painted a black rim on it.

Eireplates

We can supply the 3 1/2 " rivited digit plates as well.

macplaxton wrote: »

Those digits look like 3 1/8" tall to me :rolleyes:

This fella does them: autojumbler.ie - Paul McNaughton (not used him myself)

Rubbish photos on his website though. Plates 3,4 and 5 from the top are the correct height 3½" digits.

macplaxton

Eireplates wrote: »

We can supply the 3 1/2 " rivited digit plates as well.

Many thanks for the info. Good to know.

May I ask, what sort of 3½" digits they are? Peak? Semi-peak? Plastic? Aluminium? Font type?

May be if you put up a photograph of 3½" digit sample too

Eireplates

We can supply the plastic digit 3 1/2 inch plates with white of silver digits, they have a flattened profile.

They are plastic.



We can also do the Ace Peak plate but they are very expensive.

macplaxton

Eireplates wrote: »

So going by that "J", The 3's, 6's, 8's, 9s amongst others letters/digits are of the more rounded shape compared to the squarer appearance of the ACE type font.

Princess HLS

Here are the plates that I have on my motor:

carchaeologist

^ why the odd spacing? And is that a Fiat 130 in the background?

Max_Damage

carchaeologist wrote: »

^ why the odd spacing? And is that a Fiat 130 in the background?

Looks like a Ferrari 400.

PaulK_CCI

Max_Damage wrote: »

Looks like a Ferrari 400.

It's a Fiat 130 Coupe allright, but I can understand the mixup because they are both penned by Pininfarina

macplaxton

carchaeologist wrote: »

^ why the odd spacing?

Thumbs up for reflective plates, thumbs down for the mis-spacing. Even original reg cars had AB nnnn and nnnn AB issues.

lepoatnam

Link to pics in boards.ie album didn't work will fix and repost

8~)

Cool - they're those plates that are invisible to speed cameras.

TRNIALL

With those Plates on at least he wont have to pay Toll Fees:D.

lepoatnam

Got the plates restored so here is an update:

Here are the before photos:




And the finished results:

carchaeologist

Well done, wish more would do the same when possible instead of putting on those nasty silver on black plates.

TRNIALL

Nice Job,well done.