Anyone Know of a Good Place for Low-Volume Custom Badges?

[kennith]

I could go the vinyl route, but it would be pretty cool to have an actual enameled badge, but nobody actually tells you what it costs. There's a point at which I think the cost will out-weight the fun factor, but I'm not sure where that is just yet. I thought I'd look into poking fun at the Rabbit thing, if the VW purchase works out this week.

I was thinking this would be cool, either in polished aluminum with black line detail (kind of like the Rabbit badge on the 2019s; but I don't know how to describe it), or full enamel. It can be simpler than this picture, obviously:



Just an idea, mind you. If it's not too bad, it would be a fun thing to slap on the ass to have the Rabbit lineage with a little more geeky attitude.

I'd pay a few hundred for a metal enameled badge like that, but I don't know if that's enough.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[mgreenspan]

South Korea. That’s where you can get loads of this kind of stuff made cheap by people who can communicate in English. It won’t be China cheap, but it also won’t be China cheap.

 

[kennith]

South Korea. That’s where you can get loads of this kind of stuff made cheap by people who can communicate in English. It won’t be China cheap, but it also won’t be China cheap.

That's one of the few nations within which I've never conducted any manner of business whatsoever.

I have zero contacts there; not even military.

It's not like I can sell Jazz Jackrabbit badges; as I think it's still protected IP, so I'd only really need two of them. One to put on the rear, and another as a spare.

Even if I could sell them, there probably aren't too many in the world that remember the character, at this point.

On a side note, I don't know who's responsible for that graphic, but they did a damned good job cleaning it up for reproduction while retaining the style.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[ukoffroad]

small batches of enameled badges are going to be expensive I would assume, Vinyl is cheap and fast.

 

[kennith]

small batches of enameled badges are going to be expensive I would assume, Vinyl is cheap and fast.

I think it'll be too small for vinyl, but I'm going to check, as I need to hit the vinyl place anyway to arrange for tint. If not, I'll print some to test out sizing. I don't think a decal will have the visual effect I'm after, though.

If it can be around two inches tall, there are pin places that will hit that mark for a reasonable charge. It all depends on what looks right on the ass of the car. I may have to draw my own to get a more lateral posture, as I think that will make more sense back there.

The objective is to actually look like a special factory badge; rather than some crap just stuck on the back.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[kennith]

It looks like I can have it done for around $450, even if I order only one. I wasn't expecting it to be less than $200 or more than $500, so that's not a surprise.

If I carved it myself I'd burn that much time easily. We'll see how much I like the car, because I really do want to add a bit of silliness.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[mgreenspan]

You can definitely get that cheaper in Korea. Want me to ask someone there to see if they can get it done?

 

[kennith]

You can definitely get that cheaper in Korea. Want me to ask someone there to see if they can get it done?

If it's not out of your way, sure. It might be a few weeks before I do it, but it won't hurt to ask.

I really do want to put a badge of Jazz Jackrabbit back there; even if I change the design a bit. Might go for a more lateral pose, depending on how the prints look back there. It may make more sense to go wide rather than tall.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[mgreenspan]

How big? I’ve asked a friend to see how much with the image you posted.

 

[kennith]

How big? I’ve asked a friend to see how much with the image you posted.

I've got to print out a few sizes and see them on the car when it shows up, but I don't think it will eclipse three inches.

Somewhere between two and three at the greatest dimension, I should think. Any image I choose will feature the same colors and similar complexity.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[robertf]

SLS and polish would do. Doubt theres 2 people alive that even recognize what that is so batch manufacturing wouldnt be wise

Shapeways can do it without having to talk to humans

 

[kennith]

SLS and polish would do. Doubt theres 2 people alive that even recognize what that is so batch manufacturing wouldnt be wise

Shapeways can do it without having to talk to humans

Eh, I could probably sell a few hundred of them, but I don't own the IP. I just want one or two for myself, though.

If everyone else has one, it kind of defeats the point.

What I want to do is make my own little "limited edition" to enjoy. That's all.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[mgreenspan]

For reference the friend of mine in Korea immediately knew what it was when I asked if he could see how much it would cost. Should know in a few days on how much a 3”er will be.

 

[kennith]

For reference the friend of mine in Korea immediately knew what it was when I asked if he could see how much it would cost. Should know in a few days on how much a 3”er will be.

Three inches is about ten bucks an hour unless he's got boobs; then it's a luxury experience.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[kennith]

I'm working on it. I'm going to fire off a couple of different interpretations to stick on the car when it shows up and decide what I think will look good.

I think it'll be here next week, but I can't be certain. It depends on how fast they do whatever they need to do.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[kennith]

The car isn't here yet, but this is probably the final design:



When the car shows up, I'll have the dimensions after a little printing and thinking.

It'll be available as a normal image in any format, as well as a vector file. I'd prefer the fully filled (or "hard enamel" as I understand it) sort of badge.

Not sure why it's called hard enamel; or perhaps I misunderstand the term but you may know what I'm on about. It wouldn't have depressions in it with just enamel at the bottom; it would be filled all the way like a vehicle manufacturer badge. I don't know how the heck to describe that beyond "like BMW; not Porsche".

This configuration lets me go a bit larger without it looking strange or taking up too much space under a tail light.

For now, here's the list:

Green: Two shades.

Red: All the same.

Pink...ish: All the same.

Blue-gray: All the same.

The yellow isn't really required, but would be nice.

All in all, hopefully there will only be five colors; depending on whether or not yellow is a big deal. The level of detail depends on what's possible within reason. Some of the folds and stuff may not be reasonable at all. I've no idea, but I've seen some pretty darn detailed badges at Disney and places like that.

Here's an illustration of the type of enamel job:



I don't know why the hell it's called "hard", but that's what I'm after, if I've got a choice. Obviously I'd prefer black lines if possible; or silver if not. Gold wouldn't look right.

Cheers,

Kennith