Finishes

The industry's highest-quality finishes provide Matthews etched plaques with an incomparable air of beauty, sophistication, and prestige. Choose the finish that best matches your stylistic goals and visual intent.

Raised Area Finishes

• Satin: Used primarily in interior applications, a satin finish will reveal the metal's natural color with subtle horizontal or vertical grain lines.
• Polished: Used to remove oxidation and create a reflective surface, polished metals are buffed to a high luster and then coated with lacquer to prevent further oxidation.
• Fully Painted: For fully painted metal signage, zinc is the recommended choice. Raised areas may be painted with any of Matthews' standard colors (custom colors also available). Multiple colors may be used on the same plaque as long as the colors are separated by a recessed area.
• Random-Orbital: This multidirectional finish is typically used in high-traffic areas as it is ideally suited to hide fingerprints and smudges and requires minimal cleaning.
• Oxidized: A natural finish produced by forcing the oxidation of the metal; primarily used with brass and bronze alloys. A range of oxidized finishes can be achieved and are specified as light, medium, and dark. It is important to note that an oxidized finish should not be used if a consistent color is needed, as each oxidized plaque is a work of art and has its own unique character and color variations.
• Faux Metallic Finishes: Used as an alternative to true metal compositions, etched zinc is typically used as the base metal and all raised areas are tinted to achieve the look of stainless steel, copper, bronze, brass, pewter, nickel, or silvertone. 

Recessed Area Finishes

• Painted Colors: The recessed areas of all Matthews etched plaques may be painted with any standard color (custom colors also available). Multiple colors may be used on the same plaque, as long as the colors are separated by a raised area.
• Texture Paint: When a textured background is required, a variety of textured paints are available for recessed background areas on all available metal plaques.
  

Edge Finishes

Standard finish on square and bevel edges is satin. Optional finishes include polished, painted, and sandblast.

Clear Coatings

Protective clear coatings are used on all metals except stainless steel and polished aluminum. Clear coatings are available in gloss, semigloss, or flat lacquer. For exterior applications a high gloss is recommended, and for interior applications a semi-gloss is recommended.