Ever wonder how to make beautiful bumpers like ours? Here are our steps to beautiful bumpers. Special thanks to Kelsey Draus (former mentor) and Dagney Paskach (alumni) for creating this guide.
Materials
- Bumper Material: “Red” and “Royal” – Sports Twill with Non-Adhesive Backing
- Number Material: ¾ yard White Boat vinyl
- Adhesive for Numbers: E-6000
- Mounting Latches: Slide-Snap Draw Latch
Steps
- Print and cut out stencil for numbers, numbers should be 4 inches tall, ½ inch stroke, font is impact
- Trace stencil onto white vinyl
- Make sure it is being traced in mirror on the back side so that none of the tracing pen/marker/pencil shows on the final numbers
- Cut the wood for the bumpers- check the specs in the manual
- Figure out what style of bumpers is desired:
- Continuous: Like the ones from 2013 or 2016, these are the ones Aren preferred. (Note: These steps can also be slightly modified if your bumpers wrap around and are on 2 or more sides – ie. a L or [ shape.)
- Tape noodles together so that you have 2 verrry long noodles which wrap all the way around
- Tape the 2 long noodles together
- Lay the cut boards into the frame and hold the bumpers onto the wood; mark so on the noodles where the ends of the wood are
- Tape the noodles onto the wood
- Check the location/check to make sure they will work
- It usually works best to leave a little extra room between the wood pieces, the fabric will make it fit a little tighter
- Lay the fabric out straight on the table
- Lay the noodles/wood thing onto the fabric, noodles down wood up
- Start in the middle, staple about a foot of one side
- Pull tight and staple the other side
- Continue doing that, staple one side, and pull tight then staple the other
- Once you get to the ends, fold it in, then pull it tight and staple. Leave a bunch of room on the ends then trim the excess after it has been stapled.
- Regular bumpers: The ones with 4 separate sides
- Cut the wood so that it fits into the frame
- Cut the pool noodles the same length as the wood.
- Cut a little piece of noodle that is the same height as the wood (should be like 5 inches tall ish)
- Depending on the length and how they fit together, you can either put a whole piece vertical at the ends or you can put half a noodle on the ends (check the bumper rules)
Notes/Lessons Learned
- Remember- if you are making the kind where the wood and whatnot fits into the frame, the wood should fit, but don’t forget to leave room for the fabric
- Don’t get that sticky fabric. It’s terrible.
- Don’t be afraid to use a lot of tape when putting the noodles together and taping them to the wood.