Ontario License Plate and KeyChain Generator

If you want to create one for the other provinces or motorcycle plates, look into the files for this model.

BLENDER INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Move your desired letters from the selection of meshes provided. You have to align the origins of the letters with the origin of the appropriate alignment boxes using the alignment functions in the "ALIGN TOOLS". Adjust the z height of the letters as necessary to achieve the look you want.
   
   Click on the letter that you want ---> Shift-click on the alignment cube that you want ---> go to the menu below --->Click "Align Loc + Rot"

   

1. Use the Geo node modifier panel to customize your plate. Select the letters that you moved in place using the eyedropper.

1. Export to STL or file of choice. Make sure to select "Selection only" and "Apply Modifiers VIEWPORT". FOR AN UNKNOWN REASON, IF YOU EXPORT WITH RENDERED VIEW, IT WILL NOT WORK PROPERLY!!!

The export usually takes around a minute on my computer to export the file, so be patient.

PAINTING INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Print with matte white PLA and seal the print with a layer of Mod Podge glue/craft glue.

2. To speed up the curing, I recommend blasting the print with a heat gun or hair dryer in a well-ventilated area. Mod Podge does not smell very good when heated. Wait for AT LEAST 1 hour if you don't want to do this. Remove any excess ModPodge Glue with your finger before drying. Paper towel will leave a fuzzy residue, so avoid that.

3. Use a blue Sharpie to highlight the blue details once the model is dry to the touch. Just dab the tip LIGHTLY on the raised areas of the model slowly until all the detail is captured. Take your time AND DO NOT PUT TOO MUCH PRESSURE WITH THE SHARPIE.

4. Remove and scrape any excess Sharpie or bleeding with a hobby/XACTO knife.

5. ((Optional but recomended)) Seal again with Mod Podge to prevent the Sharpie from bleeding in the next step

6. IF YOU IGNORED THE PREVIOUS STEP WAIT 2 DAYS FOR THE SHARPIE TO DRY. Spray with 2K Clear gloss spray paint to achieve a really nice finish that emulates the metallic sheen of a real plate. Be careful not to overapply, as the solvents often will cause the Sharpie to bleed all over the place, especially around the Ontario signage and small lettering.

PRINTING SETTINGS:

1. Print upright as shown to capture as much detail as possible. If you did not apply the tapering or extrusion to the text, you will lose detail in the final model due to extrusion inconsistencies.

2. Print with 2-3 walls. No Infill needed.

3. FOR KEYCHAINS PRINT IN 0.12MM LAYER HEIGHT OR LOWER.

 IF YOU HAVE STRINGING OR EXTRUSION ISSUES CAUSING THE LETTERS TO BE ILLEGIBLE ---> PRINT SLOWER! I had to print this at 10mm/s on my Ender 3. USE A BRIM

1. IF YOU ARE HAVING TROUBLE WITH THE RAISED DETAILS BEING TOO SHALLOW FOR YOUR LIKING ----> Scale Y Axis to 150% or more in your slicer.

2. The model generated by Blender will most likely not be manifold and will have duplicate edges. If prompted by your slicer, just click "Repair" to fix it automatically.

3. Set seam to aligned back. Paint seams if necessary.

HOW IT WAS MADE.

1. The plate was 3d scanned with my Metro X scanner to test its full-field colour scanning.

2. The model was cleaned up in Blender. The mounting holes were removed and the lettering flattened in sculpt mode for the keychain model. 

3. The text was created by taking pictures of the "Driver Gothic" font and placing it through an image-to-SVG converter. https://picsvg.com/

4. The SVGs were converted to curves in Blender and cleaned up. The curves were solidified and remeshed. All the text was scaled to match the license plate dimensions and reference photos. Each letter was assigned a vertex group with a value of 0.

5.  The vertex values were then modified and displaced based on their distance to the blank plate created from the scan. The created mesh often has self-intersecting areas that are remeshed.

6. The rest is already explained.