Etched number plates..

[adrian]

Actually does any one know the font for steam engine number plates by chance.

I thought it was Gill Sans typeface*, which seems to be the consensus here BR(W) Steam Loco Livery 1948-64 and from John Isherwood Font/typefaces used by LMS, SR and GWR - Modelling Questions, Help and Tips

As John indicates there are various flavours of Gill Sans typeface, he created his own medium weight for his transfers

Mac OSX include a Gill Sans typeface - which apparently is the monotype version.
Which cut of Gill Sans is it that is included on a Mac?

This is what I get using regular and semibold weights


For a little light(!) background reading on Gill Sans for typeface enthusiasts
Typotheque: Eric Gill got it wrong; a re-evaluation of Gill Sans by Ben Archer

*n.b. to be pedantic (and I hope I'm correct!!) the style of the letters and numbers are a typeface not a font, the font is a specific implementation of the typeface, point size, spacing etc.

 

[mickoo]

Adrian you're probably correct, I just call all text thingamajigs fonts as probably do a great many people, but inside the industry there's probably many different names for bits and bobs.

Just tried Gill sans in Autocad and it looks ok to me

Failing that you could easily make up your own numbers by making them as actual shapes, then you could control your weight and subtleties and simply scale to suit your model scale.

MD

 

[Steph Dale]

Mick,
Yep, it should be Gill Sans. But it's not a font I've got on my PC so I'd either have to get hold of it or develop the characters; both of which would take a little time.

I'm also unlikely to be ordering any suitably thin material over the next few months, and certainly not a sheet's worth.

So for me it makes far more sense to get the plates made up, it'll be cheaper and quicker I suspect.

Rob,
I'd forgotten about Narrow Planet, thanks for the reminder. I'm likely to try Severn Mill first, but it's good to know there's a fall back.

Steph