Album

https://photos.lecki.online/s/banners

Intro/History

I initially started with just a single level and handheld:

Then added the legs to raise the message up while retaining ease of use:

So now I had two banners but it required four people to hold them:

So, I came up with a double-level idea. Two banners with only two people holding with one hand each:

Time and Cost

Doing everything freehand for the banners above would take about 4-6 hours each and each of those banner blanks is about $60.

The new method of using a projector, takes about 2-3 hours, half the cost, is much easier, and allows for fancy fonts and simple graphics:

· https://photos.lecki.online/s/simple-graphic-fox

· https://photos.lecki.online/s/simple-graphic-logo

It also avoids freehand font scaling mishaps:

Frame (smaller than mine)

PVC pipes are sold in 10-ft lengths. I cut them down to 8-ft for easier storage and transport. You need a few inches on each side to either hold by hand or attach connectors for the legs, so the banner must be slightly shorter than that, say about 7 feet, leaving 6 inches on each side. Max of 7'6" in length to leave 3 inches on each side to hold it.

* This is NOT my preferred design, just slightly easier to make, although smaller. Mine is in the next section below.

Single

Double

Single with height extensions I needed this recently when cops said I couldn't have it 6-ft tall in front of the door because tall people would have to duck their heads.

Frame (my preference)

I wanted my banners longer and decided to extend the horizontal pipe.

So I added an extension 3 feet long, making the horizontal pipe 11 feet long, which leaves 6 inches on each side if the banner length is 10 feet

Attachments

I carry two loose couplings and two taped with gorilla tape to the 3-ft extensions. The taped couplings are used most often, and the taping keeps it connected to the extensions allowing movement only from the other side. The loose couplings are only sometimes used if I need to raise the frame in case the 6-ft height is insufficient. Cops sometimes complain about that.

You can see how well-worn these pipes are. This makes it much easier to disconnect but when you first get them new, it might be a struggle sometimes, so two people will be needed to maximize leverage. This is also why I suggest wearing them down a little bit by scratching the ends on a hard surface, like rough concrete.

Elbow connectors are used to attach legs to the horizontal bar:

Tee connectors are used for the double-level frame:

I also scratch the inside of connectors to make them easier to take on and off:

My normal carry

· 4x 8-ft 1-inch thick PVC pipes

· ↑ they ↑ are bundled with bungee cords to make them easier to transport

· 2x 3-ft PVC pipes with nothing on them

· 2x 3-ft PVC pipes with couplers attached and taped to inhibit removal

· 3x PVC T-connectors

· 3x PVC Couplings

· 3x PVC Elbows

· Several 10-inch Mini Bungee Cords – used to tie the bottom of the banner to prevent flapping in the wind: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EC2CG9U

· Only two of each connector is normally used but I carry an extra of each just in case they break, which has happened before when a person opposing our message broke it on purpose

Banner Canvas - Ripstop Nylon

I used to use 13-oz vinyl material but I now prefer the cheaper Ripstop Nylon fabric.

A local to me store that carries it is Discount Fabrics. They have it at 58" wide and sold for $7.50 per yard.

For a 10-ft long banner, I need 3 yards +12 inches. Because the width is 58", I can cut it length-wise and end up with TWO 10x2 banners for $22 or $11 each

I take this to a seamstress who has experience working with nylon. This material behaves differently than cotton, so some special process is required. All the mods I need, she does for $25 per banner. That's including the cut, the pocket, and the little loop on the bottom to attach to the leg and prevent wind flapping. This makes each banner cost $36 ($11 for the raw fabric) whereas the vinyl I used before was $60 each.

Although vinyl is opaque enough where you can a different message on each side. But nylon, being translucent, makes the message pop more if lighting in in the back:

Pocket

The pocket sewn on top needs to be a minimum of 4" for the horizontal pipe to go through, including the coupler with tape that makes is thicker, so make sure the pocket is at least 4 inches.

Loop

The little loop on the bottom, I've seen it done in different ways but I think this one will be the most resilient. As you can see below, there is some sort of fabric sewn on the corner to strengthen it and prevent tearing under pressure that strong winds can apply

Projector

I have this one: Cibest W13-S

It was inexpensive and can project the entire message I want on a 10-ft banner, despite some limitations.

About $40 on Amazon:

· https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CCXYZXKB

· https://www.amazon.com/CiBest-Projector-Upgraded-Portable-Compatible/dp/B0DRCRK3BQ

* Canvas for this projector MUST be 1280x720 in JPG or PNG format

For 10x2 banners, to maintain that ratio, less than half of the height is used 1280x256

But the canvas must remain the full size or else the projected image will be stretched.

So, make a 1280x256 square inside the 1280x720 canvas and use that as your banner canvas.

For banners of different sizes, the ratio must be adjusted accordingly.

Canvas template for a 10x2 banner: https://nextcloud.lecki.online/index.php/s/getX4LorJCKQFQL

You can download this and use in an image editor of your choice. I happen to use the free Paint.NET app but almost any editor can be used with a PNG file format source.

Tripod

Flexible desktop tripod to adjust the banner angle as needed.

About $10 on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0756CGNMX

When designing the banner content, you must use the exact size of 1280x720 in JPG or PNG format canvas on which you then make the design. Anything smaller will get stretched and anything larger won't load.

Digital banner design

Here's the banner template I use to create the designs.

Remember that the image given to the projector needs to be 1280x720 (the entire outlined square) but the 10x2 banner canvas is just the white part, that's where the message goes.

The gray MUST stay, though:

https://nextcloud.lecki.online/index.php/s/getX4LorJCKQFQL

Paint

I use acrylic paint. The combination of this on nylon canvas, it doesn't leak through so it can be painted on a delicate surface, like a table or carpet.

I contacted the manufacturer, PLAID, and they confirmed no animal products in *any of the color dyes, including red. Btw, Natural Red 4 is made from bugs, specifically the cochineal insect. This paint is free of that.

The Apple Barrel brand is their cheaper option but has less pigment so is not as thick. The FolkArt brand is thicker with significantly more pigment, almost too thick at times, though. Both are made by PLAID with the same ingredients.

* All colors are plant-based except "Milk Paint" which has casein in it – WTF?

· https://www.amazon.com/Apple-Barrel-J20404-Acrylic-Assorted/dp/B0018NBUPCd

· https://www.amazon.com/FolkArt-Multi-Surface-Paint-4656-Black/dp/B0716YD5PY

I mainly use black, red, and white, but they come in many other colors.

I use black for most of the text, red to highlight some, especially negative words, like "TORTURE"

White I use sometimes to make small fixes. Often probably too small for anyone to notice but it bugs me.

Just letting you know it is an option if you're as annoyingly perfectionist as me ;-)

Fabric Medium additive for acrylic paint

One thing someone mentioned to me the other day is to prevent the acrylic paint flaking off nylon canvas is to use a fabric paint additive, such as this:

https://www.amazon.com/Liquitex-Professional-Fabric-Effects-Medium/dp/B001US2NRO/

This will prevent the flaking. This was not an issue on vinyl canvas but it is on nylon so I'll have to start mixing it in to prevent this:

Physical banner painting

Canvas prep

Hanging on a wall works slightly better for outlining with a sharpie, versus a garage door since it's not flat, so much of the tracing is done on a hanging fabric. But I don't have ~15 feet away from a wall with nothing on it or in the way. With a fresh sharpie, though, it's not a big deal, especially on such a plastic-y canvas:

Project the image and outline

The distance needed between the projector and canvas is ~15 feet, depending on the width.

The projector, detailed above, is mounted on a very flexible tripod that allows for fine angle adjustments:

At this point, I only mark the letters with a sharpie. I will outline the entire letter, if the font is important. Such as with VOGUE to match their style. When it doesn't matter, like OMNI, I just one-line the shape of the letter.

Painting

I use brushes in either 1.5" or 2" thickness for the text and ½" for fixing mistakes with the white paint.

The Omni banner text is 1.5" brush and those in the History section at the beginning are 2"

I recently started using these foam sponge wedge "bushes" to make custom fonts sharper than is possible with brushes.

* Though this is not necessary, it's just another one of those annoying perfectionist things, like the white paint fixes I mentioned earlier.

Lighting

For night demos, I use a flood light that works great.

This one is shining from the front since this is the vinyl canvas. If it was nylon, it could be lit from the back.

This lamp is great – it's cheap, very light, adjustable angle, can be charged by USB-C or the built-in solar panel, and it can even be used as emergency power bank to power up a cell phone:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CZ921PQZ

***

Please reach out if something is unclear:

peter@animalrightsactivism.org