Superior Ambulance Roof Sign

A

Andrew W. Blenko

I am restoring a 1976 Superior 54" Cadillac ambulance. The previous owner had created a new roof sign on the front of the ambulance, but the name he used (Baldwin) has no meaning to me and I would like to redo the sign to simply read "AMBULANCE." I just discovered that the existing lettering is die cut vinyl applied to the outside of the glass, although my recollection is that most cars leaving the factory had the lettering in a dark orange (almost red) applied (painted?) on the inside/outside (?) with semi-transparent paint. It would be pretty easy to have a sign maker prepare pre-spaced vinyl lettering to apply to the outside, but I would like to make the the sign as original as possible.

Does anyone have any knowledge of how Superior did these?

Thanks in advance.
 

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The first sign in Black above "BALDWIN" is what I have now. the photo below "Rescue #1" was original from the Superior plant in 1972.
 

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It was my understanding the they were just stenciled on the outside. As i recall the inside is white. How thick the pant is would determines how much light comes threw the letters. A sign shop would be able to do them with material that will last.
 
I have one of those signs hung on my living room wall. It's original and reads emergency. Lettering measures 3 inches tall and 1/2 inch thick. Lettering is fire engine red. The white looks like a porcelain white. As far as I can see, the sign was made with clear acrylic. All the painting was done on the back side. First the lettering which I assume they used a stencil, then white over everything.

If you really want to get fancy with replicating it, you could have someone cut the acrylic with a cnc machine For a perfect fit and a factory original look. Might be spendy though depending on who you take it to.

I do agree with Ed. You could probably just have a sign shop replicate them.
 
The original method was to use a mask with the name they wanted to use, and they would spray the clear panel with red translucent paint after it dried the stencil or mask was removed. Then the next step was to spray white translucent paint onto the entire back of the sign and wait until it was fully dried. It was then mounted on the vehicle. This isn't a difficult task to complete, but it is time-consuming, and most sign-makers don't want to take the time required to do the work properly. I was going to have new signs made for my 1978 Superior Ambulance, however, the cost outweighed the benefit, so I left it for the next owner to make the sign that he wanted.

Here is a thread about signs that will answer some of your questions.

Translucent paint for backlit sign?

Who makes a good outdoor translucent paint for back-lit signs? We are refurbing an existing back-lit fiber glass sign and removing all the old paint with paint stripper, which is taking it off really clean and quickly. Does Matthews or One shot make a paint that would be good for this? The...
www.signs101.com

Here is the product that you will need to purchase.

Lacryl® | Products | Refinish

Lacryl is a translucent air-dry acrylic lacquer that provides durable, fade-resistant color for plastic signs, including polycarbonate and acrylics.
www.ppg.com
 
Paul Steinberg said:
The original method was to use a mask with the name they wanted to use, and they would spray the clear panel with red translucent paint after it dried the stencil or mask was removed. Then the next step was to spray white translucent paint onto the entire back of the sign and wait until it was fully dried. It was then mounted on the vehicle. This isn't a difficult task to complete, but it is time-consuming, and most sign-makers don't want to take the time required to do the work properly. I was going to have new signs made for my 1978 Superior Ambulance, however, the cost outweighed the benefit, so I left it for the next owner to make the sign that he wanted.

Here is a thread about signs that will answer some of your questions.

Translucent paint for backlit sign?

Who makes a good outdoor translucent paint for back-lit signs? We are refurbing an existing back-lit fiber glass sign and removing all the old paint with paint stripper, which is taking it off really clean and quickly. Does Matthews or One shot make a paint that would be good for this? The...
www.signs101.com

Here is the product that you will need to purchase.

Lacryl® | Products | Refinish

Lacryl is a translucent air-dry acrylic lacquer that provides durable, fade-resistant color for plastic signs, including polycarbonate and acrylics.
www.ppg.com
Click to expand...
Thanks Paul. Your explanation agrees with my recollection. Hard to imagine a "reverse stencil" back in the days before computer graphics.

I may just take the easy way out and have vinyl cut and applied to the outside. Hoping I can get translucent letters as you mention.
 
Might want to consider making those signs out of lexan. Stronger than standard plexiglass and also more scratch resistant. Considering it will be on the face of the car, it would be a good idea in case a rock or something flies up at it.
 
Andrew W. Blenko said:
Thanks Paul. Your explanation agrees with my recollection. Hard to imagine a "reverse stencil" back in the days before computer graphics.

I may just take the easy way out and have vinyl cut and applied to the outside. Hoping I can get translucent letters as you mention.
Click to expand...
I still have 3 NOS of these reading EMERGENCY and I would be willing to sell one. Be patient, as I am not on here very often.
 
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