Frequently asked questions

No. We cut 316 marine-grade stainless (1.4404), which carries 2 to 3 percent molybdenum — the element that resists chloride pitting in salt water. It is the same specification used for standing rigging, cleats and deck fittings. Cheaper lettering is usually 304, which has no molybdenum at all and pits within a season or two, staining the gelcoat below it. We back our letters for ten years against corrosion.

Height is your choice, but width follows from the typeface, and the difference is bigger than most people expect. The same name at the same height can be twice as wide in one font as in another.

The design page measures your actual name in your actual font and shows the finished width in inches and millimetres before you order. Enter the space you have on the transom and it will tell you the largest height that fits. We never squeeze a typeface to force a fit — squeezed letters look wrong and stay wrong for ten years.

2 mm suits most names up to about 10 inches. It sits flush, stays light and looks clean.

3 mm is the middle ground. It throws a visibly deeper edge line than 2 mm without the weight or the cost of 5 mm, and it is the sensible pick between roughly 8 and 14 inches. It runs about a third more than 2 mm.

5 mm is the choice above 10 inches, or when you want the lettering to throw a real shadow on the hull. A large letter in thin plate can look flimsy from the dock. 5 mm costs exactly twice the 2 mm price.

All three are the same 316 steel and the same mirror polish — thickness changes how the name reads from a distance, not how long it lasts.

Your letters in solid 316 stainless, mirror polished with clean deburred edges — each one wrapped separately with the protective film still on the face.

A wooden mounting template, included with every order. Cut to your exact lettering and spacing. See below for what it does.

Printed fitting instructions are in the box as well. That is everything — the letters, the template and the instructions.

Sealant, surface wipes, tape and gloves are available as the Installation Kit, and a polish and cloth set for keeping the mirror finish as the Care Kit. Both can be added to your order or bought later.

What to use. Either 3M VHB marine double-sided tape, or a marine polyurethane sealant such as SikaFlex 291 or 292. Tape is faster and cleaner and suits letters up to about 8 inches. Sealant holds better on large or heavy letters and on a surface that is not perfectly smooth. Both are stocked by any chandlery, and the sealant comes in our Installation Kit. Never use silicone bathroom sealant — it will not hold and it stains gelcoat.

1. Clean the area. Wash, then wipe with isopropyl alcohol. Let it dry completely. Wax or polish residue is the single most common reason letters come loose.
2. Position the wooden template. Tape it to the transom, then step back thirty metres and look. Check it against the waterline, not against the deck edge — on most hulls the two are not parallel.
3. Apply the adhesive to the back of each letter, keeping about 5 mm clear of the edges so nothing squeezes out where it shows.
4. Set each letter through the template and press firmly for thirty seconds. Work from the middle of the name outwards.
5. Remove the template, then peel the protective film from the letter faces.
6. Leave it 24 hours before washing the boat or launching.

Fitting takes most people under an hour. If you would rather not do it yourself, any boatyard or detailer will fit them in a single visit.

The template is the part that makes a professional result possible without a professional. It is cut from wood to your lettering — your name, your typeface, your height, your spacing — and every letter has its own place in it.

Why wood and not paper. A paper sheet stretches when it gets damp, tears when you pull the tape off, and curls in any wind on the dock — and every millimetre it moves shows up as crooked lettering that is permanent. Wood stays flat and stays true. You can clamp it, tape it, rest it on the rubbing strake, and it holds the whole name at the exact spacing while you work.

How it is used. You tape the template to the hull and check the alignment from a distance before any adhesive comes out. Each letter is then set into place through the template, so it can only land where it belongs. When the last one is in, the template lifts away and the spacing is exactly what you saw on screen when you ordered.

Keep the template afterwards. If a letter is ever knocked off, it puts the replacement back in precisely the same spot.

Every order is made to measure. We cut, polish and dispatch within 5 to 10 days of your order, then ship tracked. Transit time comes on top of that and depends on your country.

Shipping is free worldwide. For the United States we ship FedEx DDP, so duties and taxes are already in the price and there is nothing to pay on delivery. Elsewhere, import duty or VAT may be charged by your own customs authority.

Yes. Individual letters follow a curve where a single plate cannot. Our letters are flat, so choose a size that suits the curvature you have — if you are unsure, send us a photograph with a tape measure in frame and we will advise before cutting.

Yes, at no extra charge. Send the font name or the file with your order and we cut from your artwork. Crests, monograms and yacht club emblems are quoted individually.