Richard Shead
Slipped Anchor
And the moral of that story is:
Don't go into flag production or you won't be able to afford a car!
or go into flag production just before 9/11...!
The Forum Burgee.
- Thread starter hlb
- Start date
or go into flag production just before 9/11...!
boatone
Well-known member
Forum Flag flying at a Thames rally in 2008 - think YBW got it made originally to fly on their stand at SBS. Dunno what happened to it, seem to remember someone didn't get it back to us after a later rally at Windsor.
Birdseye
Well-known member
ctva
Well-known member
Well, I just saw my first Forum burgee at the weekend and jolly nice it looked too. Being flowing by Aquaplane and Lady Stormrider in Craighouse so went over, introduced myself and had a good chat.
Looking forward to getting mine at some point.
Looking forward to getting mine at some point.
henryf
Well-known member
You are probably thinking it’s all gone a bit quiet on the burgee front. A mere forty nine pages in and progress is being made. We have been working hard to try and re-create the burgee along the lines of the original BoatOne designed HLB produced and delivered offering.
We actually used one of the original burgees kindly loaned by the Natural History museum as the basis of our project. By “used” we really mean pulled apart so if anyone’s Mum is handy with a sewing machine do let us know otherwise we are going to lose our deposit
After long discussions with the production company and some forumites, we have decided to make a couple of minor changes.
Changes
The original material was cotton twill. Experience has shown that this is inclined to be affected by rain and sun. The production people cannot guarantee either the structural stability of a sample of cotton twill we tested, the colour fastness, or continuity of supply - it is an increasingly rare material at the required weight. A sample has been prepared using a heavyweight polyester cloth of the same colour, and we are happy with the result of this material.
The edge piping on the original was a different colour from the mouse design; so in the sample we have made sure that both are the same colour.
The size of the burgee has been increased slightly by an inch in the hoist, and two inches at the tip. This preserves the original shape and meets the demand for a slightly larger burgee.
There is no change in the design and the use of an advanced CNC embroidery machine has enabled fine details of the design to be carried through on both sides of the burgee. The thread once again is polyester with an expected extended and more stable lifespan over cotton.
Production
Stitching details have been changed after a prototype was subjected to accelerated weather and wind testing. In the absence of a wind tunnel based Xenon-Arc test chamber we took a slightly more holistic approach and fastened it to big Dave’s Iveco Stralis lorry for a week as he drove up and down the M5.
The tip will have reinforced double seams, and the line at the hoist will be sewn into the seam then re-enforced at the top and bottom - the main points of stress.
We are going with a toggle at the top. It seems that most burgees are produced with a top toggle and a line at the bottom. If there is a very strong feeling for a line top and bottom this could possibly be introduced on a second production run.
Price
We need to finalise exact costs but at this stage we are confident the price, inc P&P within the UK will be less than the appliqué version supplied as a one off at the moment. We need to confirm the toggle / fixing method before a price can be given but we are probably looking somewhere mid £20 ish delivered.
We are going to order a large enough quantity to ensure competitive pricing for what will be a high quality item. To a certain extent, this is a bit of a gamble on our part. The production people, anticipating further production runs in future are offsetting the relatively high cost of the initial design and production setup which is jolly decent of them.
Rollout
From signing the contract, delivery of the first batch is expected within about four weeks or so. By this time an on-line ordering system will be in place and it will be possible to acquire your very own embroidered burgee using the magic of the internet. You can’t help feeling that this was the very reason Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented it.
Other Forum Mouse products
Sticker
This is a standard self-adhesive "cling" screen print of the burgee, with a white rectangle at the bottom, so that a forum ID name can be added if required. The design allows for this white rectangle to be removed if required. Size of the sticker will be a bit larger than that of standard business card. Price will be about £2 each, but this has to be finalised when the samples have been tested and proved in a marine environment.
Clothing
We are considering baseball caps and sweat shirts with Tipsy Mouse.
A couple of pictures of a development sample.
Henry
We actually used one of the original burgees kindly loaned by the Natural History museum as the basis of our project. By “used” we really mean pulled apart so if anyone’s Mum is handy with a sewing machine do let us know otherwise we are going to lose our deposit
After long discussions with the production company and some forumites, we have decided to make a couple of minor changes.
Changes
The original material was cotton twill. Experience has shown that this is inclined to be affected by rain and sun. The production people cannot guarantee either the structural stability of a sample of cotton twill we tested, the colour fastness, or continuity of supply - it is an increasingly rare material at the required weight. A sample has been prepared using a heavyweight polyester cloth of the same colour, and we are happy with the result of this material.
The edge piping on the original was a different colour from the mouse design; so in the sample we have made sure that both are the same colour.
The size of the burgee has been increased slightly by an inch in the hoist, and two inches at the tip. This preserves the original shape and meets the demand for a slightly larger burgee.
There is no change in the design and the use of an advanced CNC embroidery machine has enabled fine details of the design to be carried through on both sides of the burgee. The thread once again is polyester with an expected extended and more stable lifespan over cotton.
Production
Stitching details have been changed after a prototype was subjected to accelerated weather and wind testing. In the absence of a wind tunnel based Xenon-Arc test chamber we took a slightly more holistic approach and fastened it to big Dave’s Iveco Stralis lorry for a week as he drove up and down the M5.
The tip will have reinforced double seams, and the line at the hoist will be sewn into the seam then re-enforced at the top and bottom - the main points of stress.
We are going with a toggle at the top. It seems that most burgees are produced with a top toggle and a line at the bottom. If there is a very strong feeling for a line top and bottom this could possibly be introduced on a second production run.
Price
We need to finalise exact costs but at this stage we are confident the price, inc P&P within the UK will be less than the appliqué version supplied as a one off at the moment. We need to confirm the toggle / fixing method before a price can be given but we are probably looking somewhere mid £20 ish delivered.
We are going to order a large enough quantity to ensure competitive pricing for what will be a high quality item. To a certain extent, this is a bit of a gamble on our part. The production people, anticipating further production runs in future are offsetting the relatively high cost of the initial design and production setup which is jolly decent of them.
Rollout
From signing the contract, delivery of the first batch is expected within about four weeks or so. By this time an on-line ordering system will be in place and it will be possible to acquire your very own embroidered burgee using the magic of the internet. You can’t help feeling that this was the very reason Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented it.
Other Forum Mouse products
Sticker
This is a standard self-adhesive "cling" screen print of the burgee, with a white rectangle at the bottom, so that a forum ID name can be added if required. The design allows for this white rectangle to be removed if required. Size of the sticker will be a bit larger than that of standard business card. Price will be about £2 each, but this has to be finalised when the samples have been tested and proved in a marine environment.
Clothing
We are considering baseball caps and sweat shirts with Tipsy Mouse.
A couple of pictures of a development sample.
Henry
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Aardee
Well-known member
Looking good! - Thanks for all your efforts Henry.
Cardo
Active member
You're making the burgee larger than the existing one? I have to say, the current one is quite big enough for those of us with "bargain bucket" boats. Anything larger will probably look silly.
The quality of the burgee in your images looks nice, but the mouse does look rather lost in all that blue. Could the design not be enlarged to fill the space better? One of the main complaints about the original burgee was it was quite difficult to make out the mouse; in this version it looks like it's even smaller in comparison to the size of the burgee.
The quality of the burgee in your images looks nice, but the mouse does look rather lost in all that blue. Could the design not be enlarged to fill the space better? One of the main complaints about the original burgee was it was quite difficult to make out the mouse; in this version it looks like it's even smaller in comparison to the size of the burgee.
Whitelighter
Active member
Looks Good Henry.
I will have one of the new Burgees as soon as. Just tell me where to post the used fivers
I will have one of the new Burgees as soon as. Just tell me where to post the used fivers
Richard Shead
Slipped Anchor
Can I have one in red?
andy59
Well-known member
Looks good Henry , thanks for the effort . Beers are on me at the boatshow .
. Beers are on me at the boatshow .SLC
New member
BIGGER
And there are LESS champagne bubbles in the glass.:ambivalence:
Looks good. can't believe people are complaining about being 2" too big. Whatever next?
And there are LESS champagne bubbles in the glass.:ambivalence:
Looks good.
can't believe people are complaining about being 2" too big. Whatever next?prv
Well-known member
That's an impressive duplication job :encouragement:
Pete
:encouragement:Pete
Prhperio
Member
Excellent job… thanks for all the hard work Henry… looking forward to seeing it in the flesh :encouragement:
bigwow
Well-known member
Is hlb asleep?
rafiki_
Well-known member
Yes, nice work Henry.
Wandering Star
Well-known member
+1 although I agree with the poster who felt the mouse would benefit by being larger, it does look a bit small against the background, however nice work and look forward to being able purchase one when they become available.Yes, nice work Henry.
Searush
New member
Yes, buy your bleach & dye from a Woolworths near you.
boatingdave
New member
I'll purchase one
boatone
Well-known member
Can't believe how complicated this has become - please dont wake hlb, he needs the rest !
henryf
Well-known member
Thanks for all the comments.
All I heard was, "mumble mumble mumble, I must buy you a drink at the boat show Henry, I want a customised burgee in red and money is no object."
The picture is of one of the prototypes so the final item will differ slightly. The mouse design is larger on the finished design.
I shall post up a link to the ordering interweb portal.
Henry
All I heard was, "mumble mumble mumble, I must buy you a drink at the boat show Henry, I want a customised burgee in red and money is no object."
The picture is of one of the prototypes so the final item will differ slightly. The mouse design is larger on the finished design.
I shall post up a link to the ordering interweb portal.
Henry
Last edited:
