Where to acquire legal pressed metal plates?

[mybrainhurts]

shakotan said:

corozin said:

There is no such thing as pressed metal plates that are legal. The law dictates construction material cannot be metal

Incorrect.

Pressed plates are perfectly legal.

Can you please point our where in the Display Of Registration Marks Legislation it says that metal is not allowed as a number plate substrate.

That's been dealt with already. Try to keep up at the back....

[Riley Blue]

We may have established that pressed plates are legal but have we agreed whether they're in good taste or not?

[TooMany2cvs]

Riley Blue said:

We may have established that pressed plates are legal but have we agreed whether they're in good taste or not?

If they're fully legal - including the correct typeface - they're not exactly massively visually different from plastic ones at a glance. Sure, if you get them at the right angle, then you'll see the letters are raised by a mm or two... But that apart...

[GrumpyTwig]

Riley Blue said:

We may have established that pressed plates are legal but have we agreed whether they're in good taste or not?

They've always looked cleaner and neater to me, as long as they aren't accompanied with silly spacing, fonts or backgrounds they look better than plastic ones and are more reflective too it seems. Not sure why anyone would think they look bad tbh

[832ark]

TheAngryDog said:

sparks_E39 said:

832ark said:

Unless period correct I always assume massive bellend when I see pressed metal plates.

But why? If legal what's the issue?

Because PH. He needed to be controversial to try and appeal to some PHer's.

Not at all, just the type of car you usually see these nailed to, diesel VAG stters with stickers that say things like "no smoke, no poke". Normally badly driven by mouth breathing s.

[HedgeyGedgey]

832ark said:

Not at all, just the type of car you usually see these nailed to, diesel VAG stters with stickers that say things like "no smoke, no poke". Normally badly driven by mouth breathing s.

Nice stereotype, not at all prejudice........

[InitialDave]

HedgeyGedgey said:

Nice stereotype, not at all prejudice........

That kind of is a pretty good depiction of the "non classics" I've seen black plates on.

[HedgeyGedgey]

InitialDave said:

That kind of is a pretty good depiction of the "non classics" I've seen black plates on.

But someone has posted a picture of their Mercedes-Benz with pressed plates? Last time I checked they're not part of VAG?!?!

[InitialDave]

HedgeyGedgey said:

But someone has posted a picture of their Mercedes-Benz with pressed plates? Last time I checked they're not part of VAG?!?!

Read what I wrote.

[KevinCamaroSS]

TooMany2cvs said:

Riley Blue said:

We may have established that pressed plates are legal but have we agreed whether they're in good taste or not?

If they're fully legal - including the correct typeface - they're not exactly massively visually different from plastic ones at a glance. Sure, if you get them at the right angle, then you'll see the letters are raised by a mm or two... But that apart...

I am still not convinced that they are legal. The requirement is to be 'made from' retro-reflective material, metal is not. Applying a coating may comply, but would need testing by the BSI before being accepted or not.

[AJB88]

KevinCamaroSS said:

I am still not convinced that they are legal. The requirement is to be 'made from' retro-reflective material, metal is not. Applying a coating may comply, but would need testing by the BSI before being accepted or not.

Applying a reflective film to front of a metal plate is no different than applying a reflective film to the back of an Acrylic plate.

[Leptons]

AJB88 said:

KevinCamaroSS said:

I am still not convinced that they are legal. The requirement is to be 'made from' retro-reflective material, metal is not. Applying a coating may comply, but would need testing by the BSI before being accepted or not.

Applying a reflective film to front of a metal plate is no different than applying a reflective film to the back of an Acrylic plate.

Hmmm, Aluminium is a reflective material when polished. Acrylic is not reflective, the reflection comes from the coating applied to the back of the plate.

I run them on a car and a van, I've had no trouble so far and have driven past loads of Trafpol. However my mate (he's on here) has been told his weren't reflective enough.

If I get pulled I'll be telling them I'll see them in court.

[GrumpyTwig]

Leptons said:

AJB88 said:

KevinCamaroSS said:

I am still not convinced that they are legal. The requirement is to be 'made from' retro-reflective material, metal is not. Applying a coating may comply, but would need testing by the BSI before being accepted or not.

Applying a reflective film to front of a metal plate is no different than applying a reflective film to the back of an Acrylic plate.

Hmmm, Aluminium is a reflective material when polished. Acrylic is not reflective, the reflection comes from the coating applied to the back of the plate.

I run them on a car and a van, I've had no trouble so far and have driven past loads of Trafpol. However my mate (he's on here) has been told his weren't reflective enough.

If I get pulled I'll be telling them I'll see them in court.

Must have been poor quality, mine are way more reflective.

[AJB88]

GrumpyTwig said:

Must have been poor quality, mine are way more reflective.

I ran mine for 10 years no issues at all. Thinking about it got pulled over 2 days after picking new car up and they didn't mention them then.

[B'stard Child]

corozin said:

There is no such thing as pressed metal plates that are legal. The law dictates construction material cannot be metal

Oh dear - do I need to remove the metal plates from my 1972 Opel

If I did does that mean I have to replace them with plastic or can I replace like for like?

[shakotan]

GrumpyTwig said:

Leptons said:

AJB88 said:

KevinCamaroSS said:

I am still not convinced that they are legal. The requirement is to be 'made from' retro-reflective material, metal is not. Applying a coating may comply, but would need testing by the BSI before being accepted or not.

Applying a reflective film to front of a metal plate is no different than applying a reflective film to the back of an Acrylic plate.

Hmmm, Aluminium is a reflective material when polished. Acrylic is not reflective, the reflection comes from the coating applied to the back of the plate.

I run them on a car and a van, I've had no trouble so far and have driven past loads of Trafpol. However my mate (he's on here) has been told his weren't reflective enough.

If I get pulled I'll be telling them I'll see them in court.

Must have been poor quality, mine are way more reflective.

Retro reflective and reflective are not the same thing.

[SS2.]

shakotan said:

Retro reflective and reflective are not the same thing.

Quite. The requirement is:

BS AU 145d said:

3.7 Retroreflection

Reflection in which the reflected rays are preferentially returned in directions close to the opposite of the direction of the incident rays, this
property being maintained over wide variations of the direction of the incident rays.

[Hol]

I believe after reading all comments that some people have confused 'metal' with 'Black Background' when commenting, as it was never made clear in the original post that white/yellow backgrounds were to be ordered (or not).


Back when I got my first RWD Escort (albeit very second hand) it was a 1974 car and came with raised reflective pressed metal plates (white backing at the front yellow at the back).

Ironically, everybody at the time was replacing with 'newer looking' acrylic flat plates, but I see no reason why those original white/yellow jobbies are not still legal today, given that particular cars age.



However, I also know of someone in the mid 90's who put acrylic black and white plates (Pre 1973 style) on a 1983 XR3i and he was quickly tugged and fined.

so, I think 'black background plates' irrespective of the material used have always been illegal on post 73 cars.

[xjay1337]

corozin said:

There is no such thing as pressed metal plates that are legal. The law dictates construction material cannot be metal

You, along with many others , are so full of st.

[Longtime Lurker]

Although not pressed Arnold Clark put metal plates on a lot if not all of the used cars that they sell.