g'day,
just doing an install at the moment, and i want to have a raised Z logo on my false floor. done a search but can't find exactly what i'm after - which is how to do it.
from what i can gather, you get thin mdf, cut the shape/pattern/logo you want, glue that to the false floor, then cover with vinyl, pushing it to the edges. is that it?
i did a search on the net and saw that people had done it with the logo cut out in vinyl, then vinyl stuck over it, and people had also done it with sound deadening material.
will thin vinyl be ok, as in 3mm thick?
how do you push it in, i'm guessing with a ruler or flat head screwdriver. will have to do a few practice runs i think
any help or info would be greatly appreciated.
cheers.

I've only used mdf.
but i'm sure vynel will work as well and most likely be easier to work with.

When i re did my commodore roof liner i put raised flames in it.

I was told by the trimmer i got the head liner material from that they used card board from a normal card board box (the type that has the corrigated section in between two flat parts) and to run around the edges they use the smallest open end spanner they have at the shop.

The spanner has a rounded surface to run smoothly along the outline but has a sharp enought side on it to push the material right into the corner for best contact.

When i did it i just kept running the spanner along the edge for about 10 minutes after i put the material on the roof liner, I did this just to make sure the contact adheasive had pleanty of time to join.

Yeah, using vinyl as the logo for embossing is fine, but I usually use two layers of vinyl (for extra thickness). This looks a bit better than a single layer IMO, and it's also easier to press out. I prefer vinyl embossing rather than MDF cause it feels better and gives a more natural, soft shape to the graphics. I would use MDF as a medium only if you were going to do complex shapes that needed to stay defined, which is y some ppl may prefer MDF over vinyl underlays.

Interesting, sorry if this O/T

Do u heatgun to stretch the vinyl over the logo? i have been working with alot of woodwork but i never try this before

Cheers

i did a mockup of a door trim i want 2 do. i used speaker carpet as thats what i had lying around. i used a 2nd layer of the carpet for the raised sections( and 1 3rd layer for double raised)

u could use high density foam or 3mm mdf. here is a pic. i desinged the flames cut them out glued them on and then layed the final layer over the top and pressed it into the edges with a thing that look like a pizza cutter but is actually for pressing in the spagetti tube stuff that goes around the out side of old screen doors? anyways its a blunt pizza cutter basically.

here is a pic.Click to view attachment

i've got some black vinyl and made a cardboard logo but i don't know what glue to use

I use contact adhesive - you put it on each part, then when it's tacky bring them together starting one end, going to the other, and press the air out as you go.

make sur eyou buy some good contact adhesive.
selleys makes some good stuff.. don't buy cheap stuff... as with anything use the right tools. do the right job.

Dynamat is a very good and quick way to get a great result

Heres one I did

Just giving this a bump i might need to refer back to it a few times

Mods - can this thread (with pics) get moved to the tutorial section, or could one of the pro's write up a good tute for embossing with dynamat and vinyl? I'm sure we could all use the knowledge and the photo pointers...

cheers

TL

One tip that I have heard is to make a reverse of the pattern that you finally want onto vinyl. Then lay the vinyl down where you want it and temporarily secure it. Once that is done fill in the empty areas of the vinyl with bog. Remove the vinyl and you will then have your pattern to vinyl over. Now the cool thing about doing this is that you can then fade the pattern into the background by selectively sanding the areas you want faded.

It's obviously more work to do it this way, but you can come up with some cool effects (eg flames fading into the background).

does it really have to be vinyl or could it be suede or leather

Were you referring to what I said mate? If so, yes you could use anything. Obviously leather may be a little thicker and harder to cut/shape than vinyl, but it would work fine.

this is very interesting. Could anyone savvy on the topic write up a tutorial??

ive gotta do some embossing soon, so while im at it i might use a few different methods (dynamat and mdf), and do a photo log and write a tute, ill see how i go.

Nice easy way is to use your carboard or mdf or masonite, but when working with vinyl try and get a heat gun when going around the edges at vinyl can streatch and with heat its heasier to work with, the spanner idea is great as well to get nice crisp edges

Click to view attachment

That was my first attemp, ran out of glue half way through so thats why in between the ///// doesnt stick so well but the rest is pretty good.

I just got 3mm mdf and cut out my panel got an old alpine sticker that was lying around stuck that onto the mdf cut each one out with a jig saw sanded each one glued them onto my mdf panel, then covered it all with glue then put the vinyl over it and used a spanner.

G'day guys, I have only just got around to joining this forum, so hello i guess

I am currently underway a boot install and so far shes looking good. I am working with MDF and glass and for show I may be interested in some raised lettering. When i finish i hope for the a smooth, painted surface and i wanted to stay away from vinal, carpat and really any other upolstery.. I was wondering simply, is it possible to glass over raised leters and designs. Even if i simply just resin over the letters and leave the matting out- it's not like they need to be there for structural strength right?

Would this still work? I was hopeing for an effect like the pioneer box posted above. The only probs i can see is when it comes to sanding/bogging the finished product....would this process make the raised letters 'blurry' or less crisp?

Thanks for the help in advance, you guys seem a good bunch- i would appreciate any suggestions...

Cheers, Eric

this is speaker box carpet

with speaker box carpet under neath. dynamat woudl work well as well. ive tried mdf cutouts and its too sharp and ive tried foam and its too soft.



this was my 1st attempt too jsut on a scrap piece of MDF.

Click to view attachment

You could use what the fibreglass suppliers call "Facing tissue" or Angel hair to cover the letters. Its basically very fine fibreglass mat. Although you may not even need that to be honest, but it may smooth everything out nicely for you.

What is the vinyl that everyone keep mentioning. Is that like the lino you put on kitchen floors? Or something else?

Its like imitation Leather.

Similar looks to leather, but cheaper

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vynil

Ah yes - "Pleather"