A sign of the times
As far as my woodworking goes, there was always a time and a place for it. My workshop, before children. I can seriously count the number of creations over the last few years on one hand; as a closed fist. Lately the space has just become a bit of a dumping ground.
Just the state of it
I try to take some pride in keeping the workshop clean, the machines serviced & the tools sharp; ready for the next project to come through. This has not been so of late. All attention has been focused elsewhere so it’s been more a case of walk in, put down, walk out. Terrible but effective in a sense. So I guess it’s fitting then that I had to carve not just time, but also some space out of the chaos to bring this sign into being.
I’d recently put my hand up to help at the local kindergarten my son attends and was roped into some work straight up. The kindy was fortunate enough to have a cubby house built and donated, that just needed a few finishing touches. After making and installing some weathering flashings, properly fitting the door, and laying a vinyl floor inside; there was a spur of the moment special touch requested, a custom timber sign to cap things off. And so the build begins…
Like all good jobs, this one starts with due diligence in the offcut corner. There’s never the Perfect Piece for any particular project. One can usually only find what’s workable and go with it; much like life in general I suppose.
A strange but useful looking piece jumps out of the pile
Unsure what I was making at the time to create an offcut like this, something not wholly rectangular where I decided I wanted three factory edges I suppose. In any case, this peculiar piece has more than enough of what I’m chasing. It’s an external grade 18mm (~3/4”) hardwood ply that looks like it had AB or BB faces.
It’s a sign, so there’s lettering involved; and for that, I’m using a stencil set. There’s a bit of tooling and setup involved with these, but they make it a real breeze once organised. The stencil kits come with the letter templates and a guide bushing; just add plunge router with a guide base and the correct cutter. The bushing fits to the guide base and the cone/stick looking thing is used to centre the bushing to the router collet.
The original thirty second brainstorm pitched a rectangular sign and either end of that offcut would have suited this just fine. But as I mulled it over later, something a little more embellished was taking shape, and that chunky bit in the centre was looking the business. So I went ahead and cut that straight out. I guess I exercised a little creative licence on my part there, going outside ‘The Brief’ and all. Maybe also a little subconscious impulse, to do something actually interesting. winking smiley face
So ‘The Plan’ here, was rather fluid. Starting with the verbal idea and evolving as I made some quick sketches. There’s a ‘feeling’ or a ‘mindset’ here; embodying the difference between constructing a piece from dimensioned shop drawings, to building something straight from your mind’s eye.
One is like a march in formation, where rigidity and refinement create a certain elegance.
The other is like a nature stroll, there’s an outcome in mind but it’s a freeform experience. Each step flows into the next; shaped by a rhythm of ideas that reverberate towards the final destination.
Both paths can result in beautiful pieces. Both have their own quirks and surprises.
Surprise! Change again here
With the words laid out, there was still space for days; more so, as the letters come out smaller than the guides (because the stencils suit the bushing). The kit only comes with so many of each letter and some must be done in two passes, but you get the idea. With so much extra room, I decided to play it by ear and mix things up a bit more.
The lettering and design lines are only partially visible there, but the fit and feel of everything seemed right with this new layout. Time to start spitting chips; and not in a bad way. To begin, the stencil is taped down to the surface, holding it in position. I used this very last minute, of course, to move the lettering towards the base further. Such that the bottom edge of the stencil overhung the edge of the sign some. To give a more even feel to the space around the letters here.
Once set, it’s a case of carefully plunging the cutter in to set depth and tracing the letters. There’s a small amount of slop between the bushing and the stencil edges so it pays to trace the full perimeter around each letter to ensure there are no thin spots. Seen in the pictures, the first pass has been laid out with ‘T’ and ‘H’ used in ‘THE’ and the first pass stencils for ‘G’ & ‘R’ setup in ‘GUMTREES’, including some blanks to maintain spacing of already used letters ‘T’ & ‘E’.
After this first pass has been made, the letters get re-arranged and swapped out for their second pass. Take the whole setup and cutting here slow & steady. One issue in particular, the tape holding down the stencils has a tendency to catch on the router’s guide plate; adding significant resistance to steering the router. It’s better to retract the cutter and deal with the tape than just try a full send and force the router around; risking it jumping out and damaging the stencil and job. Or so a friend tells me anyway.
Great, the lettering has come out nice and crisp & the spacing really suits the layout. Next stop, bandsaw. This could of course be cut out a few different ways, but I’d say the bandsaw is best choice. A jigsaw or coping saw would get it done but there’d be issues. The reciprocating action of a jigsaw would tearout fibres of the front ply on the upstroke, marring the finish. The coping saw would be quite the workout for such a long cut and would probably end up getting bogged; where material would bottom out in the throat of the blade. They’d also both have work holding issues; the jigsaw in particular. So all aboard the bandsaw express.
The downward cutting action of the bandsaw alleviates the tearout issue; this will be wholly confined to the unseen back. The piece also naturally sits, and wants to remain, on the table; so work holding isn’t a problem. This allows all focus to be towards carefully cutting the lines; and careful cutting it is. A thinner, less aggressive blade, 6mm (1/4”) wide x 6TPI is a good all-rounder. Allowing good curvature cutting while maintaining mostly sharp lines on the straight sections. The sign cut out well and the slits into the canopy of the trees adds texture and depth to what would be an otherwise boring blob.
Any remaining pencil lines get rubbed off and the face gets a light sand, 120G on a foam float, with the grain. This removes any stubborn pencil lines and remaining fibres around the letters. From the photos, it’s evident that the cut lines are not perfect. Turns out I’m not the machine I think I am sometimes.
Some work on the bobbin sander cleaned the worst off but the tight inner sections are particularly difficult to clean up. It could be carefully hand sanded but there’s a significant time investment there for little return. So, we’ll just hide it in plain sight.
The square edge left from the bandsaw gets a small roundover. Not enough to look radiused, just enough to soften the edge and hide some of the cut marks. This in turn, helps with the next step – black paint. Two coats of black, gloss enamel, applied to the letters and around perimeter.
Looks like I’m headed back to Kindy myself, to re-learn colouring inside the lines
A little bit of spillover isn’t all that much of a problem, another light sanding with the float brings up crisp edges all around. The painted roundover has also now created a sharp black border that really makes the shape pop. So much so, that the tree on the right sticks out a bit; being on the piss and all. Oh well, nature was always more about familiar uniqueness over perfection.
This is the sign you’ve been looking for
For final treatment, a sanding pass with 240G on the float and for finish, I’m using a two-part Sikkens system. Partly because it has played well with the paint in the past; but mostly because it was already sitting on the shelf. One generous coat of the HLSe primer followed by two coats of the Cetol topcoat finish the sign off nicely; though, they each have a stain in them. I’ve found it best to brush both the primer and topcoat for application. Be sure to apply to the painted areas also but wipe away the excess, particularly out of the lettering. Applying with the brush at a low angle helps to reduce the amount of product left in the letters during the later coats.
Lastly the sign needs some way of hanging on the building. For something like this, I’d normally bend up two sections of sheet metal into a ‘J’, to create a French Cleat type arrangement. This stops any sway and makes it easy to get, and keep, the sign level/plumb. For expedience here though, I just grabbed the nearest thing and converted a strike plate from a barrel bolt latch into a keyhole hanger. Fix that straight onto the back of the sign and we’re done.
The thing came pre-bent and drilled … would’ve been rude not to use it
Hang it on the wall & good job, well done. Time to head back to the madhouse.
Having a threenager and a baby at home over the past year hasn’t afforded a moment for woodworking. In this season of my life, time will be short and duty long. I accept that and still relish this growth opportunity.
The wood in my store is mature and will wait patiently. Right now, the saplings need my attention.
Kind Regards,
Walker
July 2023
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