Typical Font size for panel lettering

[CharlieWaffles]

Im working on my lettering for my panel and I wonder what size people are finding work well for their panel. I'm concern that my fonts could be too small or large to be realistically used in production. I am using mostly 14 points and occasionally 12 point fonts.

[Flyguytki]

I was going to go with 14 as well for the switch labels and then 12 for the Safety warning placard. I wanted to get them all printed on vinyl decals however with the font being so small it was going to be something close to $200 to get them printed and the scraps picked out. I went a different route and am having a pin stripe artist paint them, we will see how it turns out.

-david

[VETE76]

i used
http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3...K8BC31gv)&rt=d

amazing! looks very professional!! i used white letters on black and visa versa because my panel is black. worked perfect. if your switches or cb's are spaced 1/2", or 1" or whatever, apart, u can program that into the 150 and print a single tape with box borders or not. they are cheap and hey resell on here fast.
fred

[flyboy1963]

You are a bit limited with letter sizes and fonts, but the labels on my 6-year old -9a are in fine shape, even being stored outside all that time.
I can't believe that the little white laels next to my fuel filler were still pretty much intact when I updated them this year to show mogas etc.
the clear ones on the panel are fine....I even had to MOVE one of them...it just peeled cleanly off, and I re-attached it in another spot!

another choice is to layout all your labels and placards, and have a sign shop print them on a large format digital printer. You can get 2 of everything, in case you mess up. The layout can take some time, so don't expect it for free, but you can control the size, colour, and font 100%.

be aware some of the restriction placards have a minimum size ( 3/8" or something here in Canada). Most just say, "must be clearly visible to the passenger....." etc.

[krwalsh]

I'm dropping my black anodized aluminum instrument panel off at the laser engraver this morning. Here's where I ended up:

I laser engraved all of the Carling Contura rocker switches with function, ON, and OFF. The lettering on the switches is 0.090", which is roughly 6.5 point font. All of the lettering on the panel for switch functions which are NOT on the rocker switches (Ignition switch labeling, dimmer switch function, etc) is also 0.090". The PASSENGER WARNING is at 0.20", or just over 14 point font, but the wording underneath "THIS AIRCRAFT..." is at 0.09" The fuel selector (RIGHT, LEFT, OFF) is at 0.20."

The Rocker switches are filled in with white enamel paint, and the black anodize obviously turns white when it is laser etched, so they stand out quite well.

Here's the Fuel Placard:

[rleffler]

Most of mine are 12pt font. The N# is 36pt.

Just print them out and experiment on what looks best for your panel.

My pictures aren't the greatest, but it will give you an idea.

The lettering is dry transfers that you can have made at any printer or graphic design shop. In my case, It was a fixed rate for everything I could fit on a single sheet of paper.

[Jkkinz]

I printed mine mostly at 12 font. The N number and passenger warning were larger.
I used Microsoft Word to type a page containing all the labels that I thought I would be using on the panel. I then emailed the attached document to Stein and he printed the page on decal paper. Looks nice!

I just finished painting and lightly sanding my panel. I plan to apply the decals this weekend. Once they are dry, I will clear coat over the paint and the decals to seal and protect them. If it comes out like I expect, it should be a nice professional looking job.