How to frame a 17 foot subway blind?
November 29, 2022 1:46 PM Subscribe
I'm a huge subway aficionado, and I am strongly considering buying for myself a Toronto subway blind (link) which was previously used on TTC trains to show the final stop of a subway. Unfortunately it's 17ft long, and my ceiling is nowhere near that tall. How can I display it?
I'd love a method where I can rotate through the different signs, and my ceiling is tall enough to display 7 of the 14 at once. But I don't want it to get damaged as well. I've wondered if I can attach them to some sort of rolling blind mechanism so I can cycle through it as I desire, or if there's a double-sided frame so I can rotate it at will. I also think showing 4 stations at a time would be less overwhelming for a wall, but, again, there's a problem with rotating through all the options that way.
Anyway, I'm clearly at a loss. Any creative suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
I'd love a method where I can rotate through the different signs, and my ceiling is tall enough to display 7 of the 14 at once. But I don't want it to get damaged as well. I've wondered if I can attach them to some sort of rolling blind mechanism so I can cycle through it as I desire, or if there's a double-sided frame so I can rotate it at will. I also think showing 4 stations at a time would be less overwhelming for a wall, but, again, there's a problem with rotating through all the options that way.
Anyway, I'm clearly at a loss. Any creative suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
I have no idea how feasible this would be:
Attach the top and bottom of the blind together so that it forms a loop. Maybe attach them both to a clear sheet of thin plastic (acetate?) that overlaps the ends by a good 10+cm.
Get a bunch of rollers, the bigger the diameter the better but no smaller than 10cm.
The visible side will have the blind stretched along the front of the rollers, depending on how many rollers you have this could end up showing somewhere between 4 and 7 stations.
The non-visible side will have the blind looping through the rollers so that they have a longer path to travel.
Attach a motor to one of the rollers so that it can keep the blind slowly moving so that no section is always being curled up on the rollers. You may want to wrap this roller in something so that it is a bit sticky so that it can advance the whole blind.
The rollers at the top and bottom would need to stick out a bit more than the ones in between because I think those ones might rotate in different directions. You could probably work something out with gears so that the motor could advance all of the rollers at once.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 2:37 PM on November 29, 2022
Attach the top and bottom of the blind together so that it forms a loop. Maybe attach them both to a clear sheet of thin plastic (acetate?) that overlaps the ends by a good 10+cm.
Get a bunch of rollers, the bigger the diameter the better but no smaller than 10cm.
The visible side will have the blind stretched along the front of the rollers, depending on how many rollers you have this could end up showing somewhere between 4 and 7 stations.
The non-visible side will have the blind looping through the rollers so that they have a longer path to travel.
Attach a motor to one of the rollers so that it can keep the blind slowly moving so that no section is always being curled up on the rollers. You may want to wrap this roller in something so that it is a bit sticky so that it can advance the whole blind.
The rollers at the top and bottom would need to stick out a bit more than the ones in between because I think those ones might rotate in different directions. You could probably work something out with gears so that the motor could advance all of the rollers at once.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 2:37 PM on November 29, 2022
Building a box like this one seems ideal
posted by Adifferentbear at 3:05 PM on November 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by Adifferentbear at 3:05 PM on November 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
So your Ask prompted us to purchase one of these signs ourselves... I've always wanted one and we are both into Toronto memorabilia, and the added bonus of a renovation coming together with a need for new and exciting decor!
The plan is two 3' motorized shades as contemplated by TWinbrook8 but rather than looping, we will attach one end to each shade such that the exposed part of the sign is 4-5' long and it rolls between both. Since we're renovating and he is wiring, we will wire for the shades and also for a light directly behind the middle sign, to illuminate our stop. We can move the shades to alter the stop that lights up.
posted by dazedandconfused at 3:33 PM on November 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
The plan is two 3' motorized shades as contemplated by TWinbrook8 but rather than looping, we will attach one end to each shade such that the exposed part of the sign is 4-5' long and it rolls between both. Since we're renovating and he is wiring, we will wire for the shades and also for a light directly behind the middle sign, to illuminate our stop. We can move the shades to alter the stop that lights up.
posted by dazedandconfused at 3:33 PM on November 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
I know someone who had a similar one from the front of an NYC train--she mounted it in a box a bit like the one Adifferentbear points to above, and then fitted that into a wall with a bathroom behind it, facing out--the bathroom light was the backlight for the roll. (If you were going into the bathroom for a while, you could turn the crank to display #2, which never failed to get a laugh.)
posted by miles per flower at 6:14 PM on November 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by miles per flower at 6:14 PM on November 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
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posted by TWinbrook8 at 2:31 PM on November 29, 2022