Some of the most passionate people out there are those who love their classic motorcycles and those who love their classic signs. Combine these two interests, and to quote a vintage candy bar adage, you’ve got two great tastes that go great together.
一些喜欢老式摩托车的人喜欢把自己的店面打造成自己喜欢的风格，他们店里的标识都是既与摩托车相关又充满的复古色彩，因此在大多数摩托车店标识总是格外的引人注目。
Flying G Vintage Motorcycles in Joaquin, Texas specializes in classic motorcycles. Owner Luke Garrett collects, rides, and restores vintage motorcycles, particularly those in the Blackout SignsIndian® lineup (Chief®, Scout®, etc.). When Garrett needed a new sign to place above the front door canopy at his shop, he wanted something colorful that would stand out, something iconic that is associated with motorcycles, and something classic-looking that emphasizes the past.
住在德克萨斯州华金的Luke Garrett有家老式摩托车的店，他专门收集老式摩托车，尤其是BlackoutSignsIndian®系列（Chief®，Scout®等）。 有天Garrett觉得在他应该在店门口放一块引人注目的广告牌，于是他就想：为什么不把店面标识做成颜色鲜艳的复古风呢？
Garrett hooked up with Jay Gordon, owner of Blackout Signs & Metalworks in San Marcos, Texas, for this sign request. When it comes to custom signage, Gordon’s shop does it all—conception, design, hand painting, fabrication, install, etc.
JayGordon是德克萨斯州圣马科斯的消隐标识制作厂商。标识的构思、设计、刷漆、制造、安装等都是Jay Gordon的店全权操办，Garrett认识JayGordon后，两人一拍即合，马上着手标识的制作。
It really helped that Gordon is a die-hard fan of classic signage, particularly the “old-school method” of sign making. Blackout Signs & Metalworks eschews technologies like computers and CNC routers when it comes to production. “Most everything we do is done by hand—using tools like grinders and welders,” he says.
Gordon是复古标识的铁杆粉丝，他还对老派的标识制作工艺颇有研究。金属消隐标识在生产方面避开计算机和CNC路由器等技术。他说：“我们所有的程序都是用手工完成的，比如磨床和焊工。”
Blackout Signs His shop favors creativity and artistry over cookie-cutter jobs, which is one of the reasons they enjoy working with the classic style of neon for their clients. This aspect was also one of the things that attracted Garrett to reach out to Gordon.Gordon is a self-professed “gearhead” as well, so he approached this project as if it was something that he would hang on the front of his own shop.
Garrett选择JayGordon的工作室还因为他们更倾向于创造和艺术的发挥，千篇一律的机械制作早就不能满足Garrett的需要。因为Gordon也是一个复古风的忠实粉丝，JayGordon就立马开始准备材料，Gordon及其认真，完全把这次的标识当挂在自己店面一样。
“I love all things old and engine-driven,” he says. “And it really helped that [Luke] came to us at the start with a great-looking logo for use as the centerpiece of this sign.”
Garrett说：“我喜欢所有复古的玩意儿和机械引擎之类的东西。JayGordon从一开始就带着一个漂亮的设计初版来找我，这个初版对后续工作真是太有帮助了！”
Gordon and his creat Blackout Signs and Metalworks (Gabriel Hedrick, Jason Lambert, and David Perez) used plenty of neon colors for this project—Novial Gold, Horizon Blue, Cobalt Blue, Orange, and Off-White.
Gordon设计的金属消隐标识使用了大量的霓虹色--砂金色、地平线蓝、钴蓝、橙和米白。
While the art for the logo was one pre-selected color, Garrett gave the shop free rein on which other neon colors they could use for the sign. “We wanted the wings and outline of the sign to ‘pop’ and draw one’s eye inward,” says Gordon.
JayGordon让Garrett自由选择霓虹灯的颜色。 Gordon说：“我们希望标识的翅膀和轮廓能够具有吸引力，能一下子抓住顾客的眼睛。”
The sign features an inner-welded one-by-one-inch aluminum frame. The faces and returns were built out of .063 aluminum. “We used One-Shot lettering enamels, spraying the can and hand-lettering the logo,” says Gordon.
标识正面用铝制成，内部焊接的一英寸铝合金框架。 “这个标识镀了瓷，还用了罐装喷漆和手工刻字。”Gordon说。
The finished neon sign consists of roughly sixteen to eighteen units. It measures five feet tall, nearly seven feet wide, and six inches deep.Blackout Signs & Metalworks was able to knock this project out within five weeks. Gordon says that the biggest challenge wasn’t the build but rather the delivery and installation. “It was a five-hour drive from our shop to his, and the whole backseat of our truck was stacked with glass,” says Gordon. “The drive out there was nerve-wracking.”
“要完成这个霓虹灯标识需要16到18种模组，整块标识有5英尺高，近7英尺宽，6英寸深。虽然这块标识在五周内就能完工，但对我们来说最大的挑战不是制作，而是交付和安装。从我们的工作室到他的店需要开5个小时的车程，我们卡车的整个后座都载满了需要安装的玻璃管””Gordon说，“真是太伤脑筋了。”
Gordon says that for nearby installations, they’ll leave the glass on the sign for these short trips. “However because of the long drive we were facing, the risk really wasn’t worth it,” he says. “So we attached the glass pieces out at the Flying G motorcycle shop. But other than that, everything about this project was pretty straightforward.”
说起将要面临的安装问题，他们表示在其他短途运输的订单中玻璃管一般都是提前装好，因为这次的路途太长，不值得为玻璃管冒险，所以他们打算抵达Garrett的店后再进行安装。除了玻璃管之外，其他一切都不是问题了。
Blackout Signs For this storefront wall-mounted sign, Gordon and his installers used ladders to climb up onto the metal canopy, where they bolted to the building a bracket they had fabricated. “On that bracket, we had threaded 1/2-inch studs that line up with the frame of the sign,” he says. “Doing this makes mounting easy, as long as the frame is square in the sign and you level out the bracket.”
这次做的标识是壁挂式，Gordon和安装人员用梯子爬上屋顶，在那里他们用螺栓把标识固定在建筑物上。“在那个支架上，我们有一个1/2英寸的螺柱，正好与标识的框架对齐。”他说，“这样安装起来简单，只要框架能平稳的支起标识就可以了。”
No exposed clips or brackets can be seen by onlookers. “We fed the wire through the building with weather-tight conduit and tied it into a junction box that was already in place,” says Gordon.
标识的支架和固定夹隐蔽在后面，这样顾客在正面就看不到后面的支架。Gordon说：“我们用防雨的导管将电线穿过建筑物并将其绑在接线盒中。”
Blackout SignsGarrett found Blackout Signs & Metalworks via their Instagram page for this job. Gordon shares that their photo- and video-sharing Instagram account has proven a boon to business. “We like its ‘gallery’- style layout and its ease of use,” he says. “You can write as little or as much as you want about the project, but visually, it’s always very effective.”
Garrett是通过Instagram找到 Gordon来完成这项工作的。 Gordon说：“标识完工后，Garrett在Instagram上发布了标识的照片和视频，对我们来说真的是一个很好的宣传，我们也非常喜欢制作这种风格的标识。你可以根据自己的需要主导设计，标识看起来是非常吸引顾客的。”
The timing of the install was perfect, as the client was hosting a big party at his shop later that day. “[Luke] told us how happy he was with the sign and showing it off to his guests,” says Gordon. “I imagine having that warm neon glow lighting his shop really makes him smile.”
Gordon安装的时机非常完美，因为Garrett当天在他的商店举办了一场大型聚会。 Gordon说；“Garrett告诉我们他非常喜欢这个标识，那天晚上他向客人们展示了新标识，这个霓虹灯标识把整个店照的光彩熠熠。”
