Someone asked about the stencils I was using to mark up the ammo cans and I realized that the post I had about them from years ago apparently got lost in the server migration a few years back. So, let’s rehash it.
First, this isn’t my idea. Someone told me about it and it seemed like a good idea. I take no credit for it.
Required materials:
- Magnetic business cards
- Set of stencils
- Sharpie or other pen
- Xacto knife with pointy blade (or scalpel)
Take your stencil, square it on the magnetic business card, trace the outline of the stencil with the Sharpie, and then carefully cut the marked off areas out of the magnetic business card using your xacto. When youre done you have magnetic stencils that are perfect for marking up ammo cans. Just slap ’em on the ammo can and they stay in place all on their own. How cool is that? Slap ’em on the side of the can, give ’em a blast of spray paint, peel ’em off. Voila!
Now, be smart…some letters are going to be needed more than others. Don’t just fab up 10 numbers, 26 letters, and think you’re done. For example, there are two ‘M’s in ‘ammo’, ‘9mm’ and that sort of thing.. And you probably want doubles on all your numbers unless you think you’re never going to need 11,22,33,44,etc.
being magnetic, these things are perfect for marking up ammo cans.
Good idea, I can use this. Thanks !
Your welcome.
-Someone
I once heard a sheep farmer say he did not spray a number on his sheep but a letter instead as there are 26 letters but only 10 numbers, so he used less paint as there was less doubling up. You know what farmers are like with money.
Cool. Although… why not just write on the card with the sharpie? I’m sure there’s a good reason for it, I just don’t know what it is.
I don’t get the need to cut out one number or letter. Why not just put some Kilz over the surface of the magnetic card and then write what you want with a sharpie? Seems easier to me and more flexible, but have not tried it yet. Don’t get me wrong, it looks nice- just seems like overkill on work and materials.
I think you’re misunderstanding the idea. The magnetic cards are cut to make them into magnetic stencils, they are slapped on the ammo can as shown in the picture and then spraypainted. The stencils are then removed leaving behind a permanent marking.
Now I got it! Thanks for the reply.
I use sharpie pens to write on stored boxes and such. White ones work great on ammo cans. But, I don’t have that much storage stuff and being able to see things at a glance at a distance isn’t a requirement at all.
I can see how if you were going to “go big” your stincels would be an improvement over sharpie sized sloppy handwriting.
Ah! As in the last picture. Now it sounds like a great idea! Thanks for the clarification. Explains why you were referring to them as stencils. 2 of 3 of us at work had the same misunderstanding. 1 of 3 ignored us and did useful work things.
Go to Ebay, by stencil set, problem solved.
Forget the stencils, Just use a black sharpie. They make extra wide tip ones if you need it. Black on olive drab green shows up fine. For some things you may wish to get a label maker like a P-touch from brother. They work well also, but the tape is expensive. Stencils are a hassle and take time to use.
See that last picture in the post? Did you even see the ammo cans in the back had their numbers written on them with a Sharpie? Probably not. But the white-on-green stenciled numbers were clearly visible.