I would never want to own or run my own hardware store, as inventorying and stocking all those small parts would drive me crazy. Working in my dad’s auto parts store as a youth broke me of any desire to do that type of work.
我从来没有想过要经营一家自己的五金店铺，因为盘点储存这些小部件会使我发疯的。年轻时在我父亲经营的汽车零部件店铺工作，打破了我对这种类型工作的向往。
However, I am a hardware nut just the same, and as a sign maker I could not do my job or make my business run without a considerable array of hardware. And, not all the items we depend on can even be purchased at a typical hardware store. Some of it we actually make, or at least have made for us.
然而，我是一个五金器件迷，作为标识制作商，如果没有足够多的五金器件，我就无法完成我的工作或扩展我的业务。同时，不是所有的五金器件都能够在特定五金店内买得到。有些器件都是我们自己制作，或者让别人为我们做。
Let's take a look at some of the special hardware, shop-made and otherwise, which allows us to do our work professionally and efficiently every day.
现在我们来看看其中一些店铺制作的特殊器件，有助于我们专业高效地进行作业。
I keep two large organizer trays in my truck at all times, and many of the assorted screws, rivets, anchors and so forth in these trays are used on our installations. But, for letter install jobs, there is one type of spacer or letter support piece we could not live without that we probably couldn’t purchase but we make and keep in stock at all times. These are the little “Z-brackets” that support flat metal, flat plastic or even formed plastic letters that are often mounted on metal building facias. The standard metal building has ribs that protrude exactly 1,” and these z-shaped sheet metal brackets are just right to hold a letter fast in areas where there is no rib to rivet or screw to.
我在卡车里装有两个大托盘，里面有各种螺丝、铆钉、锚等用于安装过程的器件。然而，对安装发光字项目而言，缺少一种垫片或发光字支撑片是没有办法完成安装的，这种器件买不到但我们可以制作出来。它们是小巧的“Z型托架”，用于支撑金属板、塑料板或是安装在金属建筑招牌上的成形塑料发光字。标准金属建筑招牌上都有凸出1英寸的肋条，这些Z型金属托架就是将发光字准确地支撑在肋条以外的位置上。
Made from 1” x 3” strips of .063 (usually pre-finished) aluminum, we simply make as many as we may need on a small sheet metal brake. The strips of aluminum are sheared to size, maybe 100 at a time or so, and bent at the 1” and 2” mark to form a “z”. Several can be bent at once, lined up in the brake and formed a dozen or more at a time. These are very simple, and easy to produce, but many letter install jobs could not be done without them. And if a sign shop does not own a shear and small brake to make them, a local sheet metal shop can easily do the job. (The price will be better, however, if there is some quantity involved.)
我们用1英寸x3英寸条状.063铝型材（通常是经过预先加工的），在小型金属板闸上制作足够多的Z型器件。条状铝型材一次被剪切成大约100个小片段，然后在1英寸和2英寸的位置将其折弯成“z”形。一次可以折弯好几个，然后在板闸内排列整齐，一次就能成型十多个。这些器件非常简单且易于生产，但是许多发光字安装项目缺少了这些器件是没有办法完成的。即使标识商铺没有大剪刀和小板闸来进行这项作业，当地的金属板材商铺也可以很轻松地完成这项工作。（当然，如果数量够大的话，价格也会更优惠。）
Some fabricated signs we produce use another small hardware item that we would never find on the shelf anywhere. These are small tabs cut from 1/8” or 3/16” thick steel that are used to hold a typically double-sided metal sign face in welded steel tube frame. Several are required per job, and these small parts are a fairly precision-made item best cut on a waterjet (though a high-definition plasma table might be able to make them).
我们生产的其他组合标识使用的是另外一种小型器件，这种器件在任何货架上都找不到。它们是用1/8英寸或3/16英寸厚的钢制品切割成小标签，用于将特殊双面金属标识固定在焊接钢管框架上。通常一个项目需要几个这种器件，这些小器件是用水射流切割技术切成相当精细的样式（一台高清等离子切割台面就能满足）。
I set up a file that connects these little parts in a strip, which actually makes them cut faster since there is just one pierce to cut the entire outside shape. Each one has its own hole to accommodate a #10 machine screw. The hole is .22” in size to allow room for paint or powder coating of the frame. These little items are just right for securing a double sided metal sign face, or a sign face made of laminate or even MDO, and they are small enough to not be visually significant (or can later be painted to match the face).
我将这些小部件集合在一起进行排列，这样就可以在只有一个冲孔工作时，能够更快地将其切割完成。每个器件本身都有适于#10机器螺丝的孔。这个孔的尺寸为0.22英寸，便于对框架进行喷漆或粉末涂层。这些小部件只是用于固定双面金属标识表面，或层压板标识表面和MDO标识表面，并且小到看不见（或之后被喷涂成匹配标识表面的样式）。
Since we fabricate virtually all of our sign frames, we have some flexibility and that includes the option of making folding signs of various sizes. A pair of some small metal hinge parts welded across the top of two sign frames provides for a “handle-hinge” on most any size folding sign we want to build. These 3/16” or ¼” thick steel parts can be produced on a high definition CNC plasma table very fast and from simple flat bar stock or scraps of plate metal. The hinge is just a 5/16” diameter bold, 8” long, along with a nylock nut to keep the hinge from ever loosening.
由于所有的标识框架都是我们自己制作的，所以我们在制作折叠不同规格的标识方面都有很大的灵活性和选择性。焊接在两个标识框架顶部的一对小型金属铰链，为我们想要制作的多种折叠标识提供了“手持铰链”。这些3/16英寸或1/4英寸厚的钢制品可以通过高清CNC等离子台面快速地生产出来。此铰链粗度为5/16英寸，长为8英寸，上面还有一个尼龙自锁螺母，防止铰链松动。
There are one or two types of signs we make that have a detachable post, and one other item we keep on hand are simple shop-made wing nuts—or actually wing bolts—that are used to tighten the sign post in place or, when loosened allow the sign posts to be removed for transporting or storing. These are cut in wingnut shape, and have a square hole for the shoulder of a carriage head bolt. The bolt is permanently welded in place on the back side of the wing. Items just like this would be nearly impossible to find, but easily made at any CNC cutting shop.
我们制作的其中一种或两种类型的标识，包含一个可拆卸的标杆，该标识上应用的五金器件是简单的翼形螺帽或翼形螺栓，它们是用于将标识上的标杆拧紧在适当的位置，或者是当标杆松动时，可以将标杆移除掉以便运输或储存。这些器件被切割成翼形，且都有一个适用于马车头螺栓的方形孔，该螺栓被永久地焊接在翼形的背面。这种类型的器件很难找得到，但是在任何CNC切割商铺很容易就能做出来。
In fact, with a few feet of 8” wide flat bar, 3/16” thick, taken to a vendor that does CNC cutting (waterjet or high definition plasma), a good quantity of each of these products could be made and put in stock for less than $200. The cut file can be designed with graphics software, and each item tabbed together. The tabbing together of parts keeps them from being lost or dropped out during cutting, and makes the cutting faster since there are far fewer pierces through the material. When the file is exported to a .dxf format, it will be compatible with the software the cutting vendor will be using.
事实上，供应商用CNC切割技术（水射流技术或高清等离子技术）对8英寸宽、3/16英寸厚的扁平钢条进行作业，短时间内就可以生产大量的产品，并且成本还不到200美元。切割图案可以用图文软件进行设计，并且将它们合在一起贴上标签，防止其在切割期间丢失或脱落，使得切割速度更快。当切割图案以.dxf格式导出时，它就会兼容切割供应商使用的软件。
Recently we did a job for a company called KoneCranes, which involved a cutout version of their logo made from basic ¼” thick PVC sheet. For this job we made a version of mounting hardware that works in a number of situations, and various materials. None are simpler to work with than PVC, which glues well and bonds permanently with regular plumber's PVC pipe glue.
最近，我们为KoneCranes公司制作了标识，由基本1/4英寸厚的PVC发泡板切割成他们的标识样式。在这个项目中，我们制作了一种适用于多种情况、各种材料的五金器件。没有比PVC发泡板更简单的制作材料了，只用普通管道工使用的PVC管胶水就能将其永久地粘牢。
The small clips that made mounting this type of sign a cinch were made from a strip of ¼” PVC 1” wide and another ½” wide glued together with one edge flush. This composite strip was cut into small pieces about 1” in length. A few of these clips were glued in place on the back of the parts of the logo along a straight an inch or so from the top edge. A few more were glued backward along the lower part of each element just as spacers.
这种五金器件是由1/4英寸宽和1/2英寸宽的PVC发泡板粘合在一起，然后被切成大约1英寸长的小片段，能够简化标识的安装过程。少数器件从标识背面顶部边缘开始以大约一英尺的间隔被固定好。多数器件被固定在标识较低部分的后方作为垫片。
After shaping the same clips a bit on a belt sander to make the fit a bit looser and smoother, a hole was drilled in each, counter sunk for a mounting screw to fit flush. These clips were mounted on the customer's wall, finger part pointing up, on a straight line and spaced to match the mounts on the back of the logo sections.
在带式砂磨机上将这些成型器件加工地更松弛平滑之后，再将其钻孔，使其适用于安装螺钉。这些器件被安装在客户的墙上，与标识背面为一个手指的距离。
At the jobsite, the installation goes incredibly fast, as only about 10 small holes were drilled into the sheetrock wall, and a small plastic anchor was pushed into each hole. The clips were screwed into place, and the logo sections were merely slipped over them into place. The fit is snug enough that they seem permanent, but only gravity and a small amount of friction hold them there. It is a 15-minute install, but leaves the parts handsomely offset from the wall ½” and no visible hardware shows at all.
在安装现场，由于石膏灰胶纸夹板墙上只有大约10个小洞，每个小洞安装一个小塑料锚，因此很快便可以完成。这些器件被嵌在墙上，然后将标识部分准确无误地嵌在器件上面。这种安装方法非常恰当，可以用很多年，但它只是依靠重力和摩擦力来支撑的。安装过程只需15分钟，标识部分距离墙面1/2英寸且看不到任何五金器件。
One last thing I'd like to mention on the subject of sign maker's hardware are some plastic containers with screw on lids that sure come in handy at our shop. These inexpensive wide-mouth plastic jars, which come in various sizes, are perfect for carrying a quantity of a specific screw or rivet to an install job, or even for safely transporting a small amount of touch up paint to a jobsite with no risk of spilling.
关于标识制作商使用的五金器件，我们店铺有现成的装螺钉的带盖塑料容器。这些价格便宜的塑料广口瓶，包含各种尺寸，非常适合装一些特殊的螺钉或铆钉，或者是装入少量的润色油漆，将其运输到施工现场，没有任何溢出的风险。
We keep several sizes, and they come from Uline, a company that puts out a full size catalogue of primarily shipping supplies, which includes containers like these. These plastic jars are totally waterproof and rainproof, which is great for a guy who may load his truck today and not make it out to the jobsite until day after tomorrow. And they are inexpensive enough to keep a good stock on hand all the time.
我们供应几种不同尺寸的塑料容器，它们产自于Uline公司，该公司供应任何型号尺寸的运输物资，其中就包含这种塑料容器。这些容器都是完全防水防雨的，并且价格便宜、便于储存。
I admitted to being a hardware nut, and I guess I am, and there is no end to the purposes for which we need hardware, especially in the sign business. Being well equipped for each task, even if that means sometimes producing what we need, is a significant factor in getting our jobs done correctly and quickly, so we can get on with the next project sooner. And getting on to the next project sooner is what it takes to keep our sign business healthy and in the black and improves the bottom line.
我承认我就是五金器件迷，并且在五金器件的需求方面永远没有尽头，特别是在标识行业内。每个项目都配备齐全的设备对快速准确地完成任务来说很重要的，只有设备齐全，我们才能更快地迎接下一项任务。而更快地进行下一项任务就能够保证我们的标识业务健康地发展，并且是可盈利的。
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