Photo courtesy of Ed Carr

To the best of my knowledge, this sign was never cataloged, as the number 18 illuminated sign was, but was sold to Authorized Service Center operators, much like the other signs were sold to retail dealers.  I understand that the only thing the Authorized Service Center operators got for free was a decal to identify them as such. 

From the details listed in various auction sites about this item and similar items, it appears that the signs were made by Neon Products of Lima, Ohio (now defunct).  The number 18 retail dealer sign was cataloged in 1954 and 1956, but auction site data shows that one of these service center signs was marked as  "Recd. Sept. 1, 1953", which leads me to believe that both signs were probably available at least from 1953 through 1956.  No dimensional data was given for the cataloged sign, but information from auction descriptions indicates that the the "retail dealer sign" dimensions were 19" x 10" and the dimensions of the "service station" sign were 25 1/4" x 10 1/2".  Allowing for some slight discrepancies in the measurements, I would bet that the end caps may be the same, with the width being the only difference in the two signs.

Thanks to Daryl Olszeski and Ed Carr for their assistance in preparing this page