New to Printing Own Signs etc...

[Ray Von]

Hi all, so I'm now the proud owner of a printer - my first!  I'd like to take the opportunity to start producing my own signs and things for my layout.  

There are a couple of problems though.  Firstly, I have literally no idea where to begin!  Secondly, I don't own a computer - I have, however, successfully paired the printer with my phone and tablet.

If anyone has any advice for a complete newby, it would be greatly appreciated! 

Edited January 11, 2021 by Ray Von

[Jonboy]

Which model of tablet do you have as this will determine which software you have available?
 

Are you looking to design your own or print out photos of real signs, or downloadable kits?

 

Have you tried printing anything out to ensure you are happy with the quality and basic print process? If not it may be worth using the scale scenes free sample or similar as a test piece: 

 

https://scalescenes.com/test-print/ 

 

https://scalescenes.com/product/r024-weighbridge-or-coal-office/

 

[Ray Von]

11 minutes ago, Jonboy said:

Which model of tablet do you have as this will determine which software you have available?
 

Are you looking to design your own or print out photos of real signs, or downloadable kits?

 

Have you tried printing anything out to ensure you are happy with the quality and basic print process? If not it may be worth using the scale scenes free sample or similar as a test piece: 

 

https://scalescenes.com/test-print/ 

 

https://scalescenes.com/product/r024-weighbridge-or-coal-office/

 

Thanks, so it's an Android phone (Motorola) and tablet (Nexus 7)

I'd like to do a mixture - make my own station signs / company signs etc but also print real world examples (Railfreight etc...)  

I have an illustration app on the tablet which I'm sure could be applied to make basic (Helvetica) signage.  

 

[dasatcopthorne]

Scalescenes have a download for station signs in all regions.

 

You can enter you own station name and send to your printer.

 

Ordinary plain printer paper is good for a lot of things but the best printouts will be on Matte Photo paper or similar.

 

Be careful if you printer make uses water soluble ink!

 

Best of luck.

[Dave John]

I'd agree, a good quality matte photo paper makes a big difference. They also seem to be manufacturer specific, so maker As printer works best with maker As paper. 

 

These were done on an Epson printer which uses liquid inks;

 

https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blogs/entry/20738-some-poster-boards/

 

 

[Ray Von]

20 minutes ago, dasatcopthorne said:

Scalescenes have a download for station signs in all regions.

 

You can enter you own station name and send to your printer.

 

Ordinary plain printer paper is good for a lot of things but the best printouts will be on Matte Photo paper or similar.

 

Be careful if you printer make uses water soluble ink!

 

Best of luck.

Cheers, that was going to be my next question - what paper! 

[Ray Von]

2 minutes ago, Dave John said:

I'd agree, a good quality matte photo paper makes a big difference. They also seem to be manufacturer specific, so maker As printer works best with maker As paper. 

 

These were done on an Epson printer which uses liquid inks;

 

https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blogs/entry/20738-some-poster-boards/

 

 

 It's a Canon, I only have ordinary paper at the moment and I'm unsure if the ink is water based or not...

[Sol]

Ink jet printer and Scalescenes  outputs for example , are best sprayed with a matt varnish  both sides to prevent any leaching of colours if using any water based glue with them.

[dasatcopthorne]

-i have an HP printer and use Epson matte photo paper. It gives good definition on printing. 

 

I'll  find the details for you.

 

Dave

[pheaton]

12 hours ago, Sol said:

Ink jet printer and Scalescenes  outputs for example , are best sprayed with a matt varnish  both sides to prevent any leaching of colours if using any water based glue with them.

second this as it will also prevent bleaching due to UV as well...which inkjet printers tend to have issues with after a couple of years, laserjet printers tend to last a lot longer

[stewartingram]

Scalescenes printing - I use A4 size self adhesive labels to print on. No problem then with using adhesives. After construction I then matt varnish the whole model, usually with a "domestic" varnish (think of Wickes, B&Q etc).

 

Stewart

[dasatcopthorne]

Here's what I use for anything I want to use in my modelling.

 

I search the www as I needed to re-stock and found Epsom's own site had a deal on.

 

Best of luck.

 

Dave.

[JZ]

I make a lot of my own signs and decals. All printed on a HP Envoy 5010 inkjet printer. Print off on what's required for the job, whether it be plain paper, 160gm card, self adhesive, photo paper of whatever, always seal with lacquer, matt or gloss. Various fonts can be downloaded for free and if it requires a special background, I just search in Google Images. I always scan decals and signs that come with kits, as they can often be adapted to your layouts circumstances.

[Ray Von]

I'd like to interject with thanks at this point, printed my first scalescenes sheet just now - using my phone!

Adobe Reader app is required (from Google Play) then it was just £2.99 for an A4 sheet of era appropriate signage (with customisable station signs.)  Well pleased.

Ps, once the sheet is downloaded it's yours to use as many times as you wish.

Edited January 12, 2021 by Ray Von
Typo

[stewartingram]

On 12/01/2021 at 10:03, stewartingram said:

Scalescenes printing - I use A4 size self adhesive labels to print on. No problem then with using adhesives. After construction I then matt varnish the whole model, usually with a "domestic" varnish (think of Wickes, B&Q etc).

 

Stewart

I forgot to add, I don't use cardboard, but use plastic card instead. Easy to stick together with liquid poly etc. Almost like building an Airfix kit!