westycapri
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 263
Club RR Member Number: 105
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Number Plateswestycapri
@westycapri
Club Retro Rides Member 105
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I want to change my numberplates back to a 1970s/80s style but not sure what I should be aiming for. Anyone able to shed some light on the styles of numberplate ie pressed metal, plastic either raised letters etc... and show some pics. I know it's not going to be a black background. Not much came up on a search apart from links to custom plate sellers
it's to go on a 1978 transit.
cheers
Josh
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@fantasticmrford 1984 Ford Capri 2.0s 1978 Ford Transit Autosleeper 1975 Landrover Series 111 Dormobile
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The oldest cars I've had date back to '78-79 and they all had modern type perspex plates, though it's possible that they were subsequently sold by dealers who updated them. I've a vague recollection of my Dad's Hunter (MLA 960P) having plastic letters on a metal background but I was very young.
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Jaguar S-Type 3.0 SE
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Number Platesfr€$h&m1nt¥
@freshandminty
Club Retro Rides Member 99
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My 1977 (R reg) dolomite had metal plates with raised plastic letters clipped onto the plate.
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Pressed Aluminium plates were available at that time as well.
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,712
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Number PlatesDez
@dez
Club Retro Rides Member 34
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At that age I'd go for either relective aluminium backplate with riveted on raised plastic letters, or pressed ally in a pre Charles Wright font for them to be 'period correct'.
Somewhere like tippers should be able to help, they are quite pricey though.
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,712
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Number PlatesDez
@dez
Club Retro Rides Member 34
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At that age I'd go for either relective aluminium backplate with riveted on raised plastic letters, or pressed ally in a pre Charles Wright font for them to be 'period correct'.
Somewhere like tippers should be able to help, they are quite pricey though.
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1900sr
Part of things
I like Mantas me!
Posts: 875
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Acrylic plates came in about 1976 I think (I looked it up a few weeks ago as I have a 1977 Manta with what I think are original dealer acrylic plates), but you could have had rivetted plastic letter plates, or pressed ones as well. I think if it were me with that age of Transit I'd look at DMB www.dmb.uk.com/cat/122/dealer-sets and if you're lucky they'll be able to do a set of period correct acrylic plates with the original supplying dealer details on them.
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vulgalour
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 7,082
Club RR Member Number: 146
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Number Platesvulgalour
@vulgalour
Club Retro Rides Member 146
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There's minor difference between new classic plates and original classic plates too, it depends how picky you want to be. Modern perspex types would have a slightly different font to the new one and often had square corners with a bevelled edge rather than the softer rounded corners on reproduction plates. They tended to be more rigid and slightly deeper too. Pressed steel plates, as Dez points out, were also a different font to modern ones, very distinctive particularly if there's a 4 in the reg. I've got some buried in the garage, these are the best I could find online. For raised digit plates, old ones had square corners and a 'pitched roof' type bevel on them where modern ones have a more rounded bevel and rounded corners. Quite often, originals would have a little pressed square in the bottom middle with the plate maker stamped into it. This is an original one, as found on my mid-70s Renault. This is a modern raised digit plate.
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PHUQ
Part of things
Posts: 859
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My '78 Marina had the aluminium plates with raised plastic letters, 1980 Dolomite had the "modern" acrylic ones. Both from the supplying dealers and so almost certainly original. Dolly has now got repro raised letter ones (originals were starting to suffer so removed for safekeeping).
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Last Edit: Oct 5, 2016 19:03:17 GMT by PHUQ
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westycapri
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 263
Club RR Member Number: 105
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Number Plateswestycapri
@westycapri
Club Retro Rides Member 105
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Excellent thanks. I realised there were some font changes but didn't realise the potential variation of them all and the details around thickness etc...
I was really struggling seeing it on the net so having some detailed answers is a great help. I'll probably go for acrylic with raised letters as I think was said would suit the van best.
Cheers
Josh
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@fantasticmrford 1984 Ford Capri 2.0s 1978 Ford Transit Autosleeper 1975 Landrover Series 111 Dormobile
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retrolegends
Club Retro Rides Member
Winging it.....Since 1971.
Posts: 3,714
Club RR Member Number: 94
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Number Platesretrolegends
@retrolegends
Club Retro Rides Member 94
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1974 Hillman Avenger 1500DL1992 Volvo 240SE1975 Datsun Cherry 100a flying custard1965 Hillman SuperMinx Rock N Roller1974 Austin Allegrat Mk1 1.3SDL1980 Austin Allegro Mk3 1.3L1982 Austin Allegro Mk3 on banded steels2003 Saab 9-3 Convertible 220bhp TurboNutter1966 Morris Minor 1000 (Doris) 2019 Abarth 595C Turismo (not retro but awesome fun) www.facebook.com/DatsunCherry100a
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PHUQ
Part of things
Posts: 859
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Meant to say, the Dolomite ones are from Tippers if I remember rightly. Very nice they are too.
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1900sr
Part of things
I like Mantas me!
Posts: 875
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Excellent thanks. I realised there were some font changes but didn't realise the potential variation of them all and the details around thickness etc... I was really struggling seeing it on the net so having some detailed answers is a great help. I'll probably go for acrylic with raised letters as I think was said would suit the van best. Cheers Josh Acrylic are the plastic ones without raised letters as DMB would do, the font changed in 2001 but DMB would offer the old font. The raised plastic letters are usually on aluminium plates, such as Tippers would do. This is my Manta with what I believe to be it's original 1977 dealer plates
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Last Edit: Oct 5, 2016 22:33:04 GMT by 1900sr
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1900sr
Part of things
I like Mantas me!
Posts: 875
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My Viva with it's original rear plate and it's replacement front plate from Tippers The Tippers plates don't have the BS AU145a mark on them as the original would've had, but they're pretty good and not stupidly dear.
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Last Edit: Oct 5, 2016 22:39:48 GMT by 1900sr
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slater
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 6,390
Club RR Member Number: 78
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Number Platesslater
@slater
Club Retro Rides Member 78
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There are many many different fonts applicable to pre 2001 plates. Before that date each plate manufacturer use its own font. Theres some epic ones out there in both pressed and perspex. Even the plastic letter types are different depending on who manufactured them. I once went round a scrappy and took all the plastic letters to make up my own in the future but didn't get very many that matched! Sold them on eBay in the end for a very healthy profit so can't complain.
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ChasR
RR Helper
motivation
Posts: 10,192
Club RR Member Number: 170
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Number PlatesChasR
@chasr
Club Retro Rides Member 170
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From when I have looked at cars with the correct plates on, one of them being hoopsontoast 's Dolly Sprint which as far as I know was on its original plates (Leyland symbols with a Millhouse dealership reference on it) that was Acrylic with the wider and older Charles Wright font, not the pressed plates. With that said, it seems you have a few choices, but if it were me I'd go acrylic with the old wide font. They are also cheap to get if you are not fussed about dealer insignias on the bottom. If you are however DMB Graphics are your people to call .
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Hi, Virtually all commercial vehicles had pressed plates fitted because they were a lot more robust and helped with the 'parking by feel' brigade. A quick straighten out and sent on their way.
Colin
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From when I have looked at cars with the correct plates on, one of them being hoopsontoast 's Dolly Sprint which as far as I know was on its original plates (Leyland symbols with a Millhouse dealership reference on it) that was Acrylic with the wider and older Charles Wright font, not the pressed plates. With that said, it seems you have a few choices, but if it were me I'd go acrylic with the old wide font. They are also cheap to get if you are not fussed about dealer insignias on the bottom. If you are however DMB Graphics are your people to call . Blimey ChasR, how do you remember that? I don't even remember that much about any of my cars! 1980 Triumph Dolomite Sprint by Robert Seymour, on Flickr
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ChasR
RR Helper
motivation
Posts: 10,192
Club RR Member Number: 170
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Number PlatesChasR
@chasr
Club Retro Rides Member 170
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Oct 10, 2016 13:01:35 GMT
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From when I have looked at cars with the correct plates on, one of them being hoopsontoast 's Dolly Sprint which as far as I know was on its original plates (Leyland symbols with a Millhouse dealership reference on it) that was Acrylic with the wider and older Charles Wright font, not the pressed plates. With that said, it seems you have a few choices, but if it were me I'd go acrylic with the old wide font. They are also cheap to get if you are not fussed about dealer insignias on the bottom. If you are however DMB Graphics are your people to call . Blimey ChasR, how do you remember that? I don't even remember that much about any of my cars! 1980 Triumph Dolomite Sprint by Robert Seymour, on Flickr It's my wierd and strangely good memory! If only I put my mind to better things... Honestly? I like seeing a bit of history with cars. Alot of the moderns I have owned have the plates removed with people not liking the plates with dealership stuff on. For me it's part of the car's story and history
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