A-Board Printing London
020 3375 6674 info@silverimagelondon.com Open 24 hours, 7 days a week — call or email and we will tell you what is possible today.
A-boards and pavement signs printed in London the same day. Snap-frame A-boards in A2, A1 and A0 and water-base swing signs for exposed pitches — supplied as complete kits, or as waterproof poster inserts for the frame you already own. Inserts are synthetic, not paper: they stay flat and legible in the rain until you change the message. Collection round the clock or courier across Central London.
Every job is quoted on its specification. Tell us the size and the pitch and we will come back with a firm figure.
What a pavement sign does, and why the insert decides everything
A pavement sign stands perpendicular to the foot traffic, which is the whole trick: shop windows face people who have already stopped, while an A-board catches the ones still walking. It is the cheapest street-level advertising a London shop, café or salon can run — provided the thing inside the frame survives the weather.
That is where most pavement signs fail. A paper poster inside an outdoor frame absorbs damp within days: it swells, buckles against the cover sheet and bleeds at the edges, and the sign starts advertising neglect instead of lunch. We print inserts on waterproof synthetic polypropylene with UV-cured ink — the sheet does not absorb water, stays dead flat inside the frame, shrugs off sunlight, and survives being swapped and re-inserted for as long as the promotion keeps changing.
Where they work: cafés, pubs and restaurants — daily menus and offers at the door; retail and salons — promotions and walk-in availability on the approach; estate agents and services — featured listings by the entrance; and events — queue direction and check-in signage outside venues and hotels.
| Option | Poster size | Where it earns its keep |
|---|---|---|
| A2 snap-frame A-board | 420 × 594 mm | Arcades, doorways and tight pavements where a bigger frame blocks the walkway |
| A1 snap-frame A-board | 594 × 841 mm | The London standard: readable across the street, light enough to carry in at closing |
| A0 snap-frame A-board | 841 × 1189 mm | Wide pavements and forecourts where the sign competes with traffic, not pedestrians |
| Water-base swing sign | A1 or A0 panel | Exposed corners and windy pitches — the base fills with water on site, the sprung panel gives to gusts |
| Insert only | A2, A1, A0 or custom | New message for the frame you already own — same-day and the cheapest way to stay current |
Frames, inserts and the anti-glare cover
The snap-frame A-board is the working standard: an aluminium double-sided frame whose rails hinge open by hand, so the poster changes in a minute with no tools. The water-base swing sign is the answer for exposed pitches — the hollow base travels empty, fills with water on site for serious ballast, and the panel sits on springs so gusts rock it instead of flooring it. Other frame styles are quoted on request; if you already own a frame of any make, we print inserts to fit it.
Every kit includes the clear anti-glare cover sheet, and it earns its place twice: it keeps rain, dust and street splash off the print, and its matt surface stops the sign turning into a mirror under sun and streetlights — a glossy cover on a bright day is unreadable from exactly the angle most people approach.
Pavement rules are the buyer’s half of the bargain: keep a clear walking line past the sign — boroughs typically look for around 1.8–2 m of free footway — stand it against your own frontage rather than at the kerb, keep clear of crossings and tactile paving, and bring it in overnight. Each borough publishes its own rules and some require a licence; five minutes on your council’s website before the sign goes out is cheaper than a removal notice after.
Turnaround and delivery
Poster inserts are a same-day product: the synthetic media is stocked, the ink cures instantly and the cutting happens on the same floor. A file approved in the morning is normally ready the same afternoon, subject to capacity — and because the workshop is staffed through the night, files and approval by 21:00 are printed overnight for a morning delivery. Complete frame-and-poster kits ship the same way while frames are in stock. There is no fixed cut-off: capacity decides, so call at any hour and you will get a straight yes or no on your deadline.
Courier delivery runs across Central London — the City, West End, Canary Wharf and Southwark are daily routes — typically within 1 hour of dispatch. Collection from the counter is available around the clock, which is how a café owner picks up Monday’s menu board on Sunday night.
Artwork specifications
Rail overlap, bleed, colour, resolution, file format
Pavement distance is kind, close-up is not — test your poster insert’s DPI.
| Requirement | What we need | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Size | Exact A-size — or the visible opening of your own frame | Frames vary; the visible poster area of an owned frame is the measurement that matters. |
| Rail overlap | Keep text and numbers 15 mm inside the edge | The closed snap rail covers the outer 10 mm on all four sides — a phone number at the edge disappears under aluminium. |
| Bleed | 3 mm on every edge | The poster is cut to the printed edge; bleed is what keeps it clean. |
| Contrast | Big type, few words, high contrast | The reader is walking. A pavement sign that needs to be studied has already been passed. |
| Colour mode | CMYK, not RGB | Brand colours shift in an automatic RGB conversion — send Pantone references where the colour is the meaning. |
| File format | PDF preferred at 150 dpi final size — but send what you have | Every file is checked here before production; if something will not survive at full size we say so before printing, not after. |
Before you upload
- Export a print-ready PDF, fonts converted to outlines
- Keep phone numbers and offers 15 mm inside the edge
- Say kit or insert-only — and the frame model if we are matching one
- Double-sided? Send both faces, or say if one repeats
- State the deadline — morning deliveries print overnight
Q&A
Can you print A-board posters the same day?
Yes. Poster inserts are a same-day product: printed on waterproof synthetic media, cut to A-size and ready for the frame within hours, subject to capacity. Files and approval by 21:00 are printed overnight for a morning delivery, and complete frame-and-poster kits go out the same way while frames are in stock.
What size A-board is most popular for London shops and cafes?
A1 - a 594 x 841 mm poster - is the working standard for London pavements. It is big enough to read across the street and light enough for staff to carry in at closing. A0 shouts louder but needs more pavement; A2 suits arcades and doorways where space is tight.
Are the poster inserts waterproof?
Yes. Inserts are printed on synthetic polypropylene film, not paper, with UV-cured ink. Paper posters absorb damp inside the frame, swell and buckle within days outdoors; the synthetic sheet stays flat and legible until you choose to change the message, and it survives being swapped repeatedly.
How do I change the poster in a snap frame?
The four aluminium rails hinge open by hand - no tools. Lift the rails, take out the clear cover sheet, swap the poster, put the cover back and snap the rails shut. Allow a minute per side once you have done it twice.
What stops a pavement sign blowing over in wind?
Weight and the right frame. A folding A-frame suits sheltered high streets and arcades. For an exposed corner or a windy forecourt, use a water-base swing sign: the hollow base travels empty and fills with water on site, and the sprung panel gives to gusts instead of toppling. Whatever the frame, bring it indoors overnight.
Can I order poster inserts for a frame I already own?
Yes, and it is the cheapest way to keep a pavement sign working. Measure the visible poster area or tell us the frame model, and we print same-day replacement inserts in A2, A1, A0 or a custom size - the frame stays on duty, only the message changes.
Often ordered with this
Key facts: ordering tonight
- Open 24 hours, 7 days a week, including Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays.
- Print production runs 24/7; the walk-in counter serves the day and evening, and the status bar at the top of the page shows live whether it is open right now.
- Files and payment received by 21:00 → overnight production for delivery before 9am the next morning, subject to that night’s capacity; we confirm at quotation whether the run fits.
- No fixed overnight cap: tell us the quantity and we say at quotation whether it can be done in time.
- Overnight jobs are normally couriered to arrive before your office opens; collection is arranged around your arrival time — call before you set off after 8pm so the job is bagged and waiting at the counter.
- No minimum for walk-in jobs during the day — one copy is a normal job. Out-of-hours collection or delivery carries a £95 minimum plus courier if required.
- Same-day and overnight courier delivery across London, most often EC1–EC4, W1, WC1–WC2, E14 and SW1.
- Exhibition delivery to ExCeL, Olympia, the Business Design Centre and other venues: send us the hall, your stand number, the named person on the stand and their mobile, and the build-day or opening time you need it by; we deliver to the stand.
- Send what you have: we check the artwork before anything goes on press and tell you what to fix; a print-ready PDF (CMYK, 3 mm bleed) is the fastest route.
- Quotes come with a secure payment link — Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal and Klarna; production starts once payment is in.
- Courier delivery within London is usually in the region of £35–45, depending on the postcode and which courier is free; the exact figure is on your quote and is added to the job price.
- A proof is available on request; when we design the artwork you always get a final proof to approve. Print-ready files are printed on site and our operator checks the run against a printed proof sample before it leaves.
- Before we accept an urgent job we look at what could go wrong with the file, the stock and the finishing, and plan so that a reprint would still fit inside your deadline.
- Every order has a dedicated member of staff and an agreed completion deadline; we do not run an e-commerce queue, so the time we give you is for your job.
- Bank transfer is accepted alongside the payment link: tell us when you have sent it — the job goes to production once accounts confirm it has arrived.
- Outside London and towards the M25 courier costs more: we check with the couriers and confirm the price with you before booking.
- A double-sided kit includes two printed inserts and a clear anti-glare cover sheet for each face.
Tell us the size and the pitch
Poster size, kit or insert-only, single or double sided, and where the sign will stand — that is the whole specification. We come back with a firm price and check the artwork before anything is printed.
Open 24 hours, 7 days a week. Call before you set off after 8pm so we have your boards ready at the counter.
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