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Aircraft Engravers

151 North Granby Rd.

Granby, CT 06035 USA

Phone: (860) 653-2780

Fax: (860) 653-7324

Email: info@engravers.net

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Engravable Plastics



Metals

Matte

Lexan

Textured

Ultra-Matte

Painted

Thickness

.020", .032, .062"

.020", .032, .062", .125"

020",

(.010" Special order)

.062", .125"

.032", .062", .125"

N/A

Surface texture

Varies from smooth to slight grain texture and from matte to glossy.

Smooth, non reflective, not glossy.

Matte/velvet, slightest texture .0005”

Textured with peaks and valleys .010” on depth

Smooth with non-glossy finish

As painted

Surface Engraved

Front Engraved

Front Engraved

Reverse Engraved

Front Engraved

Reverse Engraved

Front Engraved

Scratch

Resistance

Medium

Medium

Excellent

Very Good

Medium

Very Good

Compressibility

Medium

Medium

Excellent

Medium

Low

Depends on paint

Hiding finger

prints

Mostly poor

Medium

Excellent

Excellent

Medium

Excellent

Contrast of

text

Medium to Poor

Excellent

Medium

Excellent

Very Good

Excellent

Colors

available

Good

Very Good

Excellent

Good

Good

Excellent

Multiple text

Colors in same piece

None

Very Limited

Excellent

None

Excellent

Very Limited


The Pros and Cons are very subjective to each application


Metals

Matte

Lexan

Textured

Ultra-Matte

Painted

Pros

This material varies widely on all aspects depending on the color and surface texture


Super sharp contrast between text and color. Great for use in night/ IFR flight readability and low cabin lighting.

Excellent in most areas. Tuff as nails in durability. Multiple colors in one placard.

Durable, hides most scratches and all finger prints

Very clean, sharp text. Multiple colors in one placard.

Looks as if it came from the factory as original equipment. Exact match to your paint colors.

Cons

This material varies widely on all aspects depending on the color and surface texture

Does not have the highest scratch resistance

Contrast MAY be a concern in low light / night flight

Limited colors, does not come in a thickness thinner than .062”.

Limited colors, does not come thinner. Scratches and dents moderately.

You have to paint the panel before it's engraved.


When choosing colors, remember that black goes with all the instruments and radios. Trying to match our plastic to your interior color scheme can be very frustrating. The shade and tones are nearly impossible to match exactly. A gray paint color with a hint of red looks nothing like one that has a green or blue tone, even though they are all gray.

Matte Lexan Textured Ultra-Matte Metals

Material Choices

By far the two most popular materials used by Aircraft Engravers customers are Matte and Lexan. Highlighted in bold below, both materials come in the .020” thickness.


Each material type has pros and cons as to the contrast between the text and the material colors, durability, scratch resistance and esthetics of their look.


For a fuel selector, Lexan would be the main choice because it wears like nails. It’s reverse engraved, meaning that the text is engraved from the back surface, hence the text can’t be worn off. The engraved text and graphics can be painted any color needed.


However, in low instrument panel lighting and night IFR conditions the Matte material is the clear choice, specifically black with white text for the highest contrast. Also this black Matte matches the look of the gauges and instruments best.

Material Choices Painted