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What are your tolerances?

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Chriswagner92

New Member
So I was just thinking the other day when I was putting some cut vinyl on a face, what are the general accepted "off" amounts. I try to get everything as dead on as possible, but it is a little difficult when your ruler has a slight bend to it, or the faces don't have a factory edge on them. When it is impossible to get dead on balls accurate, what is your personal acceptable limit?
 
Biker Scout

Biker Scout

New Member
Well, clearly depends on viewing distance. But I have this ability to see whether things are off even by a hair. I notice it all over town, I can't help it.

But up hill / down hill bother me the most. I usually try to stand parallel to the sign when I'm laying it out to see if there is any slant... even if I'm measuring with a ruler. Because sometimes buildings are crooked, sign cans installed cockeyed, etc.
 
C

Chriswagner92

New Member
I can see how that can get annoying. I just hate when I know something is a little off, even if it doesn't look like it is you know.
 
Biker Scout

Biker Scout

New Member
There is a famous pyramid shaped hotel in my town, and I swear it's tilted. I've mentioned it to a few people and most think I'm just seeing something, like an optical illusion. But I just know I'm right.
 
C

Chriswagner92

New Member
I don't know if it is the photo I'm looking at or not but it looks to me that if you're looking at the sphinx the left side has a more gradual angle to it.
 
Gino

Gino

Premium Subscriber
Oh, I don't know about that.

Left to right for center justification could be anywhere from 1/8" up to 1/4" on a 6' or 8' wide parameter.

1/16" for up and down is too much on a 6" wide piece of even worse on an 8' wide piece

Remember, if you are 1/16" high on the left side and 1/16" low on the right side, you're off by an 1/8" all total. In 24", that's a lot. If you're off the same proportion on an 8' wide, you could be off by 1/2" up and down. Yikes !!

If you measure your distances, you shouldn't really be off by anything, unless you're sloppy. How hard is it to keep something straight ?? I mean, today we push a button, it cuts the stuff straight, we tape it up straight and the only place we have to be careful.... most of you are saying you can eyeball it..... and be off by fractions, but big fractions ??

Not here, unless I'm doing it, but then, I rarely touch this stuff anymore.
 
Biker Scout

Biker Scout

New Member
Chriswagner92 said:
I don't know if it is the photo I'm looking at or not but it looks to me that if you're looking at the sphinx the left side has a more gradual angle to it.
Click to expand...
That would be the direction it's leaning, if you are looking straight on with the sphinx in the front. But off the strip, from behind on Hacienda Ave., from a distance, to me it's more pronounced.
 
C

Chriswagner92

New Member
Gino said:
If you measure your distances, you shouldn't really be off by anything, unless you're sloppy. How hard is it to keep something straight ?? I mean, today we push a button, it cuts the stuff straight, we tape it up straight and the only place we have to be careful.... most of you are saying you can eyeball it..... and be off by fractions, but big fractions ??
Click to expand...

When I go to lay something out on the face, I try to put it ball parked where it needs to be, then I tape both sides so i can move one side without the other getting too far out of whack, then I get the other side done. I always triple check everything and I am generally right on. The difficult part is getting consistent measurements with the tools I have available ( the tape measures that we have are bent and the little clip thing at the end wobbles so I always start at the 1" mark when I can.) When I say I'm off a little, I usually mean going from the computer drawing, where I can get measurements down to the .001, and then bringing those over to the actual face.

For instance, the drawing will have a headline, with a baseline 12" down from the top (36" from the bottom) and be over to the right 4" from the left side of the face. Let's just say I'm 11 7/8" down and 4 1/16" over, would that pass in your shop?

When it comes to stuff like that I get worried, Idk why I just do, even if I know no one would be able to tell driving by at 55 mph.
 
J Hill Designs

J Hill Designs

New Member
Chriswagner92 said:
For instance, the drawing will have a headline, with a baseline 12" down from the top (36" from the bottom) and be over to the right 4" from the left side of the face. Let's just say I'm 11 7/8" down and 4 1/16" over, would that pass in your shop?
Click to expand...

if it was LEVEL at 11 7/8" it would be fine but if one side was 12 and the other was 11 7/8", no way
 
Gino

Gino

Premium Subscriber
Yeah, those kinda tolerances are basically fine as most of us have said. I was talking about baselines being higher on one side to the other. That's a no~no. :wink:
 
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