Custom Badges

Everything You Need to Create Your Own Custom Badge

This page walks you through the entire custom badge process from start to finish. Take your time, read it through, and you’ll know exactly what to send us and what to expect.

STEP 1 — Decide What You Want It to Say

This is where your badge gets its personality. Tell us exactly what you want on it.

• Badge words
• 4x4, offroad, trail names, numbers, coordinates
• Your vehicle’s name
• A bold, funny, or meaningful phrase

Spelling matters. What you send is exactly what gets made.

STEP 2 — Artwork (The Most Important Part)

Your artwork determines how your badge looks in the real world. We don’t pick artwork and we don’t create designs from thin air — this is your product.

Asking us to “just choose something” usually backfires. Styles are personal, and guessing almost always leads to revisions, frustration, and wasted time for everyone.

What we will do is help guide you. If you already have artwork, send it. If you don’t know where to start, we can recommend reputable sites with high-quality graphics.

Those “pretty mockups” are display images only. If artwork needs edits, recolors, or rebuilding, that must be done before sending it to us. There is no magic un-blur button.

This is usually the hardest part of the process, and that’s normal. It’s also where your input matters most. Once the artwork is locked in, everything else moves fast.

STEP 3 — Colors (Read This Carefully)

We work with standard base colors. If you want a very specific shade (lighter, darker, brighter, more teal, more mint, etc.), you must provide the HEX or CMYK code for that exact color.

We do not guess, eyeball, or choose custom shades for you.

A quick reality check on colors:

• Screens display color using light (RGB)
• Our production process uses pigment-based color (CMYK)
• Stainless steel has a mind of its own, and colors can shift slightly

Because of this, what looks perfect on a phone or computer screen may appear a little different in person. This is normal and unavoidable with any metal-based product.

Automotive paint colors and badge production are completely different worlds. Paint codes rarely translate cleanly, which is why we do not offer paint matching.

Even when a color code is provided, an exact match is not guaranteed — but we will get as close as the badge world allows.

STEP 4 — Send Everything for Your Mockup

This step is where everything comes together. Once we have all the details below, we’ll create your mockup so you can see exactly how your badge will look before anything is made.

Please email all of the following to Orders@Custom4x4Badges.com :

• The exact wording you want on the badge (spelling matters)
• Your final artwork file (high-resolution and ready to use)
• Any HEX or CMYK color codes if you are using specific shades
• Any layout notes (edge text, center design, logo placement, etc.)

Mockups are typically sent within 1–2 business days, and requests are handled in the order they are received.

Important: Mockup files are only kept on file for 2 weeks. If you place an order after that time, the mockup will no longer be available and you will need to start the mockup process over. This helps keep our workflow organized and ensures nothing outdated is used by mistake.

The more complete and accurate the information you send upfront, the smoother and faster this step goes — and the quicker we can move your badge into production.

STEP 5 — Approve & Order

Review your mockup carefully. Once approved, you’ll receive an order link. Website orders require mockup upload at checkout. Etsy orders require the approved mockup sent through messages.

STEP 6 — The Behind-the-Scenes Mayhem (Where the Magic Lives)

This is the part no one really sees, and honestly, that’s probably for the best. Once your mockup is approved and your order is placed, it officially enters the shop and becomes our problem in the best possible way.

The door closes, the music goes up, the lights hit just right, and stainless steel patiently waits while creativity kicks into overdrive.

Caffeine is everywhere. Not a casual amount. The kind of caffeine that keeps ideas flowing, hands moving, and conversations way more animated than necessary. Cups get refilled. Then refilled again. Somewhere along the way, someone says, “This is perfect,” and someone else says, “Wait… what if we did this instead?”

Then come the snacks. So many snacks. Crunchy snacks, sweet snacks, salty snacks, and snacks that absolutely did not need to be opened but somehow were. There is a steady rotation of snacking, staring, pointing, nodding, rethinking, and nodding again.

Tools start humming, focus locks in, and the shop gets quiet in that intense, creative way. This is where ideas turn into actual, real-life badges made by fellow off-roaders who genuinely care about how they turn out. There’s no mass production, no conveyor belt, and no “close enough” mindset here.

We don’t share step-by-step breakdowns or behind-the-curtain secrets. That part stays in the shop. What matters is the result. Your badge is built, inspected, admired, inspected again, and then sent on its way ready to be installed, shown off, and talked about wherever your adventures take you.

STEP 7 — Shipping

Once your custom badge is complete, it’s carefully packaged and handed off for delivery. We ship using USPS and UPS, and all available options will be shown at checkout.

You get to choose how fast your badge arrives — standard, faster, or “I need this yesterday.” Shipping speed is entirely up to you (and your wallet).

Keep in mind that custom badges take time to make. During peak seasons, production can take up to 5 business days before your order ships. Choosing faster shipping does not skip the production line, but it will get your badge to you quicker once it leaves the shop.

As soon as your order ships, you’ll receive tracking so you can follow its journey all the way to your mailbox like a true off-road part delivery.

STEP 8 — Install, Admire, Show Off

Your badge has arrived. This is your moment.

1. Clean the area really well. (Alcohol works great — skip the “eh, it looks clean” approach.)
2. Hold the badge up and test the placement. Take a step back. Squint a little. Once it sticks, it sticks.
3. Peel the backing off the adhesive.
4. Line it up carefully. This is not the time to rush.
5. Press firmly and hold for a few seconds.
6. Step back and admire how much better everything looks now.
7. Take all the photos and post them for the world to see. Tag @Custom4x4Badges so we can admire it too.

Congratulations. You just leveled up your rig.