Hi, I'm a new sailboat owner..she is a 25" O'Day without a name. I would like to name her Luna Llena but am not sure what size space/letters I should use. The transom has the outboard right in the middle, so I think I have about 2 square feet to work with...I want the lettering to look nice, but since they are so expensive to buy, I want to get the size correct on the 1st try! any suggestions? I would like to also have the name put on one of the sides an am not sure how to go with that as well. Is it traditional to put the name on both sides, or is one side okay? Thanks for your help to the newbie......Connie
letter decals for naming the boat/what size?
- Thread starter Connie
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![IMG_1465[1].JPG](/data/attachments/23/23413-b1a1df071d37a2977619b116c589b00a.jpg)
![IMG_1466[2].JPG](/data/attachments/23/23414-8f8d84aacd9f697299afe4ea7b1577f8.jpg)
I'd go with both sides. I don't think it's all that expensive. There are many online with programs to play with designs and different fonts. I found a local sign shop that gave me a good deal. Hull numbers, boat name and home port.
You can put the name in the middle of the hull or on the quarter. I put mine on the quarter. Less chance to get messed up when docking.
Walk around the marina and boatyard and look at the boats to get an idea on size. Spend a little thought on fonts. Bold, italics, all capitals, lower case, spacing, shading?
I went with just shading to define my letters. Remember shading can be in 4 directions.
I picked mine (lower right) because it showed off the shapes of the letters the best.
Imagination
Rich
You can put the name in the middle of the hull or on the quarter. I put mine on the quarter. Less chance to get messed up when docking.
Walk around the marina and boatyard and look at the boats to get an idea on size. Spend a little thought on fonts. Bold, italics, all capitals, lower case, spacing, shading?
I went with just shading to define my letters. Remember shading can be in 4 directions.
I picked mine (lower right) because it showed off the shapes of the letters the best.
Imagination
Rich
I would put the name on both sides like what is shown in Rich's picture. I went to a sign shop and had them install the name "Trinkka" on both sides of my boat years ago. I think it cost me about $65 back then. They talked me into using a certain color that they didn't have in stock. It may have been cheaper if I'd have bought a vinyl color that they had, provided I liked the color. Then, when I bought my Sturdee Cat boat, I wanted to name her "Polly" and I went to another sign shop that was operated by a fellow I knew in the town where I worked. He showed me how to install the name on my boat and I saved money by having a name with few characters, available vinyl color, and doing the installation myself. It's really not that hard. I put the name "Polly" on the transom because I didn't have a need for an outboard on that boat and the rudder didn't obstruct the name. The transom is wide on a catboat and I was able to get away with it.
Technically, size is only critical on Documented boats. Most owners use either 3" or 4" letters for names on their boats if not Documented.
On a Documented boat, the Name and Hailing port MUST be in letters at least 4" high. The Hailing Port must include the State abreviation as well, and the Name and Hailing port must appear together (not with name on the topsides and hailing port on the stern, as some boats have.)
If you choose to put the name (and port) on the sides, I'd definitely put it on both sides so that the boat can be identified from either side. If the name is on the transom, then putting it on the sides would be optional.
On a Documented boat, the Name and Hailing port MUST be in letters at least 4" high. The Hailing Port must include the State abreviation as well, and the Name and Hailing port must appear together (not with name on the topsides and hailing port on the stern, as some boats have.)
If you choose to put the name (and port) on the sides, I'd definitely put it on both sides so that the boat can be identified from either side. If the name is on the transom, then putting it on the sides would be optional.
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