Our US flag is made from A36 structural steel c-channel. Welded parallel with alternating contours, the red stripes are flat-side-forward while the white stripes are inset, making the red color really stand out in front of the white. The star field is heavy-gauge sheet metal, with a white background paint and a blue laser-cut steel overlay for a 2-layer star field. The laser-cut star overlay is attached to the flag using round-head machine screws.
Sizes
The standard size flag is 26″ x 48″, made from 2″ x 9/16″ c-channel. The common sizes are:
- 39″ x 74″ – 3″ x 1 3/8″ c-channel, weight approximately 280 pounds
- 26″ x 48″ – 2″ x 9/16″ c-channel, weight approximately 90 pounds
- 19.5″ x 36″ – 1.5″ x 1/2″ c-channel, weight approximately 50 pounds
- 13″ x 24″ – 1″ x 1/2″ c-channel, weight approximately 25 pounds
Other sizes are possible, c-channel is available in many sizes. See here for an example of possible metal sizes: https://www.metalsdepot.com/steel-products/steel-channel The standard for US flag dimensions sets the width to be 1.9 times the height, so to calculate the size pick your channel size, multiply by 13 to get the height, then multiply that by 1.9 to get the width. We round the width to the nearest convenient inch.
Every flag is hand-made so actual finished dimensions vary slightly, expect up to 1/4″ variance in the total finished dimensions.
Prices
Prices for the flags are somewhat variable depending on the options and configuration you choose, an exact quote will be provided once we have all your order details. Prices generally fall into these ranges:
- 39″ x 74″ – $1499-$2199
- 26″ x 48″ – $999-$1499
- 19.5″ x 36″ – $799-$1299
- 13″ x 24″ – $499-$799
Roughly 50% of the cost is the raw metal, and about 25% of the cost is paint and related material. Metal costs are variable so we will give you an exact quote once we have your details and can determine the market cost at that time.
Mounting
There are two primary options for mounting – specify which option when ordering.
- Wall hanger bracket
This mounting option includes a heavy steel bracket which you will attach to your wall or other mounting surface. The flag then hangs on this bracket, which is invisible from the front once the flag is installed. There are spacer bolts at the bottom corners which can be adjusted to make the flag sit plumb against the wall. There will be about a 1″ gap between the wall and the back of the flag. - Bolt-down
If you choose the bolt-down option we drill a 3/8″ hole in each corner of the flag so you can bolt it to whatever surface you want – a wall, fence, furniture, or whatever else you desire. This option allows you to have zero space between the back of the flag and the wall (remember that the 7 red stripes will have the open face of the c-channel on the back, so there will be open spaces there). Your bolt heads will be visible from the front. If you want no visible opening against the wall, we can put a thin frame around the entire flag, but beware most walls are not flat! If you order the lighting kit, that will cover the sides and hide most of the gaps on the back side of the red stripes.
Note that the wall hanger bracket cannot be removed from the back of the flag without cutting, so you cannot convert a wall-hanger flag to a bolt-down flag without adding about an inch of space between the wall and back of the flag.
Lighting
Remember, if you have a US flag outside at night, it must be lit. If you don’t have an easy way to throw some light on your flag at night, add our lighting kit. This is a frame which covers the top and the left and right sides and has some mounting tabs you can use to attach rope or string lights. There are a ton of cheap options for lights – search Amazon or ask us for suggestions. These things change often so it’s tough for us to say from month to month what might be available. We like a solar-powered rope light which can be cut to length and has a detachable solar module, any rope light set with 1/4″ or 3/8″ tubing should work. The lighting kit also has the benefit of covering the sides of the flag, making for a cleaner mounting look especially if you’re using the bolt-on mounting option. We don’t cover the bottom of the flag to avoid having water collect there.
Shipping
We box or crate everything for safe shipment. Smaller flags are boxed with plenty of padding to protect from impacts and other shipping damage. Bigger flags are shipped in custom-made wood crates with internal foam padding. This increases the shipping weight, but we want the product to get to you in pristine condition.
Unfortunately, shipping is expensive. Given the weight of these flags, shipping sometimes requires special arrangements and freight services. Smaller flags ship UPS or Fedex and may cost up to about $120 for ground shipping the 26″x48″ flag. Bigger flags will require freight shipping, and may require a fork lift or other special handling to unload when delivered to you.
The Process
All parts are stripped of mill scale and cleaned, cut to size, then MIG and spot welded together. Everything is sanded smooth and cleaned again to make the flag paint-ready. All welds are on the back side of the flag so there will be no visible welds from the front, leaving clean sharp lines where the edges of the channel butt together.
Once assembled and cleaned, the flag gets a heavy coat of primer, which is then sanded and cleaned to leave a smooth sharp surface for the basecoat paint. The entire flag is painted with a pure white 2K Urethane basecoat. Once set the white stripes are masked, then a deep red 2K basecoat is applied to the 7 red stripes. A heavy coat of clear covers the entire flag. The laser-cut star field is given a primer coat then a deep blue 2K basecoat, followed by a heavy clear-coat. Once all the paints and clears have thoroughly cured, the star field is screwed down over its white background.
Once the paint has had a chance to cure it is cleaned again, any imperfections are repaired, and the flag is ready to ship.
