Choosing Letter Thickness and Height

Two Numbers That Drive Everything Else

Our letters start at 6 mm thick and 40 mm high. Those two numbers set the cost, the fixing method, the lead time and — more than anything else — whether the sign reads from where people actually stand.

Get them settled before you ask for a price, because every other decision depends on them.

Start With Viewing Distance

• Letter height is a function of how far away the reader is, not of how much wall you have. A name that has to be read from across a car park needs a different height from the same name above a reception desk.
• Measure the real viewing position. On a high street the reader is usually on the opposite pavement, not directly underneath the fascia.
• Where a name has several lines at different sizes, fabricate the whole set as one job so stroke weights stay visually consistent between lines.

Then Choose Thickness

• 6 mm is the minimum we work in, and it is enough for most flat-cut letters at ordinary heights.
• Go thicker where the letter is large, where the edge is a visible part of the design, or where the sign is within reach of the public and will get knocked.
• For built-up and box letters, the number that matters alongside thickness is return depth — the distance the letter stands off the wall. That is what creates the shadow line, and if the letter is to be lit, it is what determines whether the face lights evenly.

Where Material Changes the Answer

• Stainless steel is heavy. Above a certain height the fixing — and the crew carrying it up the scaffold — becomes the limiting factor rather than the metal.
• Aluminium weighs far less at the same size, which is why very large facade letters are often specified in lacquered aluminium rather than steel.
• If the brand colour matters more than the metal finish, aluminium lacquered to a RAL or Pantone reference is usually the more honest answer than a painted steel letter.

Putting It on the Drawing

Send vector artwork with the cap height marked, the material and grade named, and the colour reference quoted. We return an approval drawing showing thickness, return depth, finish and the fixing detail.

Nothing is cut until that drawing is signed off. Fabrication then runs 5 to 7 days.