Registration numbers

[Speed Racer]

Progress!!
The V-drive splashes Sunday!

What are the smartest boat owners on the net all doing about Registration numbers for vintage Donzi's?
Is there a font that matches the Donzi Sticker?
How did you make yours look good?!

Thanks!
Garry

[MOP]

Do you have a vinyl sign shop close by, the one out by me has a great book with a ton of fonts that they can program into the machine.

[Conquistador_del_mar]

Garry,
I spent an hour one night finding a font on my computer that was almost exactly the Donzi script, except for the horizontal line in the Z. Unfortunately, I can not find where I saved it now. You can save some time if you go to the windows file folder in "my computer" and you will find the fonts folder. You can click on any font and another window will open with examples of the type. Hope this helps. Congratulations on completion! Bill

[Ghost]

No matter what, I would take a good picture from an angle where the lettering is equidistant from the camera, and sit down with MS Paint and just try a bunch of fonts. (One hint, you can type text in a box, that overlays your boat's picture using the clear background option, and just keep hitting the down arrow to move thorugh all the fonts. No burden of mouse clicks, just down arrow and see them all. Saves a LOT of effort sampling them.)

With that, you can find what you like. Do it with the right picture and you can see almost EXACTLY what the real thing will look like. Font, size, spacing, color, text effects, everything.

As far as style advice, I know this sounds funny, and is certainly subjective, but I think that matching the registration font to the boat's logo font rarely looks right. And not because the font match isn't close or even dead on, but just because the effect doesn't work. (This may be different with Donzi's font, which isn't overly-decorative.) But in general, I can't say I remember seeing a font-matched registration that I thought looked quite right. Possibly in part because the eye tends to ignore the plain-jane fonts--just a guess.

This is even more true for the hail port on most boats, when the name appears above the hail port on the transom. Matching the font for the name to the font for the boat's brand logo can often work. But for some odd reason, putting the hail port in a plain font like Arial, NOT matching the font of the name right above it, virtually always looks better to me. And this was not my instinct at all. (Donzis usually have pipes and a busy transom without room for all that stuff anyhow, so this may not matter.)

Multiple lettering shops have, completely independently, told me the same thing about using plain fonts for registration and hail port. I didn't really believe it til I tried it myself. But when I sat down and tried samples using MS Paint, IMO the pros were right and I was wrong.

Definitely subjective, but I offer it up because had no one ever said it to me, I'm not sure I'd have ever even tried it, much less figured it out for myself. But once I pulled up MS Paint and started trying lots of fonts, it was SO true for my eye.

[VetteLT193]

Tidbart's boat has some nice letters on it, with a reflective outline... look at pics in the ditch run thread, events forum.

Although, basic white from Wal Mart looks nice if you take your time applying it and get the premium 3M stuff.

[Pismo]

My Donzi insignia is silver with a black border so I did reg #s of silver with a black border. Turned out well. Not the clearest picture but you get the idea.

[CHACHI]

White with black outline.

Ken

[Speed Racer]

Great advice.. As usual!
I will post some shots of the big day.. If I don't sink the thing!
:boggled:

[Carl C]

I love these numbers! They don't comply completely with the regulations but I have been checked by several police agencies including the U.S. Coast Guard and no one mentioned it. These are sold at various boating supply stores.

[mattyboy]

IMHO
on a 67 v drive I would not put anything on it that doesn't look era correct

I mean you have gone thru all that work to get her back in shape

I would go with plain white block letters

[Speed Racer]

Very Nice...
I would worry about not conforming to the 'contrasting color to background' rule though.... Nice looking!

[Speed Racer]

IMHO
on a 67 v drive I would not put anything on it that doesn't look era correct

I mean you have gone thru all that work to get her back in shape

I would go with plain white block letters

The background is white..?!?
Red better than black, I am thinking!
GG

[mattyboy]

sorry thought your hull sides where red , on white I would go with the color of the deck stripe is that red?? then use red letters

[mattyboy]

again just MO but don't put the letters too far back i think the look better up front more like this boat

http://www.donzi.net/forums/showthread.php?t=29555&highlight=original

[Speed Racer]

Good call..
What do you reckon? They start about even with the lifting ring on the old ones?
That one has the forward lifting ring, but it looks like they start about 1/2 way or so forward on the deck..??

[Barry Eller]

A local graphics shop did mine with brushed chrome and a black border. Matches my "DONZI" well. "YIPPY-KAI-YAY" on the transom is the same.

[mattyboy]

Good call..
What do you reckon? They start about even with the lifting ring on the old ones?
That one has the forward lifting ring, but it looks like they start about 1/2 way or so forward on the deck..??


that is also an 18 let me look for some older 16 shots

[mattyboy]

heres my 67
let me find some more




http://www.donzi.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=40881&d=1228148527

[Carl C]

"FU" Ya gotta love it :)

[mattyboy]

two more 67 16's

the green boat has the numbers slighty back further

[Just Say N20]

two more 67 16's
the green boat has the numbers slighty back further


:fam: "the green boat"

That's my boat now! I was thinking I should call it Mintellow. It is Yellow with a hint of minty freshness. Sorry.

No numbers on it now.

Matty, NY really issued your 16 registration numbers that ended in FU?

[mattyboy]

those numbers were on the boat along time before I got it
in NY as long as the boat is reg'd in the state the numbers stay with it thru ownership changes the only way to change them was to reg'str in another state then re reg'str in NY

the FU was fun while it lasted

[Donziweasel]

I was thinking I should call it Mintellow

Or "Mildew"........:bonk::):wink:

I really do like the color of it. :):yes:

[JustMercMe]

Always liked this style and I gotta thing about contrasting colors using nothing but whats on the boat already....Don't ask...drives the wife crazy!
Thought I was gonna have a problem with the 22 being that its Grey and silver but nobody has written me a ticket yet.....& I dig the look!

http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l195/itchysnrvous/IMG_0007.jpg
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l195/itchysnrvous/Donzi/DSC00010.jpg

[Ghost]

"FU" Ya gotta love it :)

LOL, I had the same thought--like, is that std on all NY reg #s? :)

[mattyboy]

read those numbers out loud to a cop that has tied off to you after he pulled you over for not having reg numbers,

owning a donzi $20k
a full tank of gas $80
saying ny 1506 FU to a cop $150 fine and time served :tongue:
the look on the cops face priceless

[Speed Racer]

heres my 67
let me find some more




http://www.donzi.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=40881&d=1228148527

Damn that is one beautiful 16....
I am thinking the consensus is to start them at the lifting ring, and go forward from there....

[mattyboy]

Damn that is one beautiful 16....
I am thinking the consensus is to start them at the lifting ring, and go forward from there....



Please don't remind me :( I miss that boat

this might sound funny but the letters look like eyes to me sorta reminds me of the snearing teeth and eyes on the front of the p 41's flown by the flying tigers in WWII over China. it makes the boat look mean if the are too far front it looks crosseyed, and too far back they don't look right either.

but that is me

[Speed Racer]

Say, What is that chrome fitting furthest aft on the deck?? I only have a bow light and a lifting ring..??

GG

[mattyboy]

Say, What is that chrome fitting furthest aft on the deck?? I only have a bow light and a lifting ring..??

GG


the fitting directly above the reg numbers??? if so those are flush fender holders that recieve a snap ring pin which was attached to the fenders so all i had to do was snap the pin in and then pull em out when not needed

there were four on each side and made puting fenders out easy, Donzi puts something like it on the new ZX boats but they are much more heavy duty then mine

[Speed Racer]

Those are cool...

No, I meant the one that is just aft of the filler, on centerline.
GG

[mattyboy]

Gotcha

that is a perko removeable angled white mast light I never used it the white light always got in my eyes so I used the light back on the stern

I was going to try and fly a pennant from it but never found the right size pennant or a mast that would fit in the holder