What’s Wrong with this Picture? 5 Common Lettering Mistakes
5 COMMON LETTERING MISTAKES
As I was walking to the grocery store a few days ago I noticed a sign with a special K, but not like the breakfast cereal that I was going to the store to purchase, special because at least one of its letters was wrong. Is it just because I design and sell signs that everywhere I go in Virginia I notice these things?
Notice the letter “K”. Now see below to identify the problem…
It got me thinking that I should post a blog about other common lettering mistakes I have seen, and you would be surprised by the level of brands I’ve come across with problems. We use the term “FCO” that stands for “flat cut out” for non-illuminated wall letters that don’t have fabricated and welded returns (we call letter edges “returns”). We manufacture flat cut out aluminum letters in-house on our own CNC router machine. Once the letters are designed, cut, and drilled for mounting studs, they are typically primed and painted. Pre-spaced patterns are made for the lettering and our skilled installers mount them according to approved design drawings, leaving little room for errors in misspelling, wrong fonts, or any of the other font problems shown here. Internally illuminated wall letters are called channel letters, and although I’ve never seen a fabricated channel letter with any of these mistakes, I guess anything is possible depending if you use Uncle Bob or a dependable custom electric sign company to do the sign job!
By the way, not only is the “K” special on the picture above, but so is the “A” and the “S”. See if you can identify 3 common errors within the space of 4 wall letters on one sign!
#1:
#2 and #3
#4
#5
Another thing I’ve noticed with wall letters that could pose a negative branding issue is rust lines showing up below each hidden letter stud. This is a sign that steel studs were used by the installers. To prevent unsightly discoloration, always make sure your sign contractor uses aluminum or galvanized studs and architectural-grade clear silicone adhesive. Even though the studs are concealed behind the letters, it won’t take long for ugly corrosion lines to appear on the wall.
If you liked this, here are some more sign tips:
