Apparatus forming three dimensional sign display character

Abstract

A relatively thin thermoplastic sheet material, vacuum molded to form a sign letter base including hollow wall members and hollow light-fixture supports upstanding from a single-thickness horizontal bottom member. The base inverted forms a mold itself for receiving a flexible plastic foam inserted to a suitable height and disposed within the vertical walls and fixture supports for providing compressible elasticity to the thin molded sheet in predetermined locations for enabling cooperative interaction of the same with retainer members used to secure a display sign face and gas filled lighting tube structures in proper location onto the base. A rigid polyester resin is cast as a ring encircling the letter walls, located and supported by the flexible foam to stabilize and support the thin nature of the base. Rotatable tube positioning platforms journaled in frictional interference to the light fixture supports, receive upstanding display-tube grippers adjustably positioned above the platforms by a collinear array of breakoff spheroids integrally shouldered one from the other. The grippers expansively displace by action of tube-forced insertion to recoil around the tube in holding engagement aided by a plurality of resilient tine sectors deflecting longitudinally of the tube to buoy the same in light resilient interference.