The dreaded beer sign. I know, I know. Most of the time it's not worth it to even replace or repair them. And if they're painted, or too long, or you have a 'collector' who's a tire-kicker it just ends up wasting your time. Sometimes we are lucky enough to have the same signs and 'cannibalise' them to make one good sign, sometimes we can send the work to someone else. Either way, there's something I wanted to bring up.

Time and time again I see people asking if someone has an extra unit or pattern for a specific unit on a beer sign on other forums and it got me thinking. Do we have a database of patterns for beer signs like budweiser, corona, bud lite, etc. or could we use one with .ai or other vector files to do so? Is it even worth it or are we beating a dead horse with companies coming out with LED beer signs now?

My disdain of beer signs is usually less about the signs themselves, although they are--at least in more recent years--not built well at all, but more about the typical customer who seeks a beer sign repair.  Except for the true collectors who have a genuine vintage sign and understand what is involved, the typical customer, to be blunt, wants it fixed but doesn't really want to pay for it.  When you quote the cost of a new tubing unit, the response is often along the lines of, "the whole thing only cost a hundred dollars!" and so they simply won't foot the bill for a proper repair.  Again, there are some who are serious and are willing, and willing to learn why the cost is what it is.....but more often not, so I typically would not see the wisdom in trying to compete in the low ball arena. 

However, there is some merit to try and obtain popular units from the (often free) broken signs that turn up and save them as a possible future sale of a used replacement unit.  There is also merit in keeping patterns of anything you do end up making or even potentially making patterns of all the units in a rare old example even if it is only in the shop for a transformer....simply because you never know when they might come in handy.

Lastly, although many are probably long gone, I have seen some beer sign patterns and jigs (YES, many were jig bent!) that were discarded by the manufacturers when they shut down or moved on to a new ad campaign....so you may find some that way as well.

That's a good question Nick. As far as I know, nothing like that exists...a pattern database of sorts. I think it's hard to know what would be in most demand. Maybe the Budweiser bow tie? I've seen people looking for that one a lot. But to Robert's point...I have found it to be the same experience..that folks usually do not want to spend what I would charge to fix a beer sign. Unless maybe they got it for free. I usually say right up front that it's not going to be cheap to get their sign working and will probably cost more than whatever they paid for it. I don't do many of them. Although, I recently did one, for my nephew, and I didn't charge him for it but the damn thing took me 8 hours from start to finish. It was A LOT of letters..LATROBE BREWING COMPANY..2 broken units. I think there does seem to be an uptick in the collecting of beer signs though. Maybe because they aren't making them with neon so much anymore, so now they are more desirable. One other thing I've seen recently is folks wanting to learn neon so that they can fix beer signs but what's funny about that is beer signs are one of the more trickier things to fix, often with tiny, lowercase lettering and multiple units, kinda weaved together in a way where you practically have to take all the tubes off just to get to the one that needs fixing!

That is crazy how many more people are coming into wanting them fixed, but that don't know about the cost. Also the jig thing I've always wanted to see in action! 

Maybe in the future we can figure something like that out, or even on here if there's someone that's in need of a pattern or tube to be sent to them in the mail? I guess that could also just be THIS forum haha. I like the potential for .ai files but also seems tricky. 

And to your point, Eve, it's crazy how much MORE tricky these tiny letters on beer sings can be and take even longer. That's why most places now just have a bunch of old ones they cannibalize from if it's a matching sign/unit. 

Straight up front with them. Is this sentimental or did you get it from auction for next to nothing. I will troubleshoot it for $25. If they fix it that is applied to the final balance otherwise they lose it. Tell them average repair for a tube starts at $150 and usually it weeds out the tire kickers. Make them sign a disclaimer that if they don't get it from 30 days after you call its getting trashed. Although I will take any good parts or tubes and hang them on the wall. 

I too hate fixing beer signs. Usually they are covered in crap and wernt really cared for at all.