Sign Material? Simple Question from a Biginer

[rtfosmoe]

All,

This might be a stupid question, but what soft wood does people use to make signs. I know about sign material and MDF, but does anyone uses anything else like Pine or Cedar?


Thanks,

Rich

[Brady Watson]

Many use Western Red Cedar.

-B

[garyr6]

I would say it depends on the location of the sign. Outside, cedar is good, inside on the den wall, just about anything goes. Most times, if it will screw down on the bot, then somebody has made a sign out of it. So get you scrape out and practice. You will learn which wood types cut clean, look good and which you don't prefer.
Good luck and don't forget to lost your results.

[t_vandemark]

We use western red cedar all the time. I find it can be a callange to carve. It has a tendancy to have a lot of chip out. But i still love the look and natural colors of WRC. I know Joe C. has posted about being very happy with yellow pine. I've also carved douglas fir, not sure how it holds up on exterior signs though.

[joe]

Richard,

Listed below are a half dozen or so that fair well for exterior use. There are lots of wonderful woods for interior carving but don't stand up well to the elements.

In general, the best woods for exterior use are those that have an interlocking grain pattern which holds them together during the changing seasons. The weight or density is a poor guide.

Some of my Favorites:

Kiln dried Redwood.
Western Red Cedar (Canadian Clear Heart)
Cypress
Vertical Grain Yellow Pine
Osage Orange
Teak
Mahogany

Joe

[Bob Eustace]

Richard the big hazard with signs is the "fuzzies". Its very disheartening to cut a lovely sign in 15 minutes and then spend hours sanding and even then it isnt super crisp. So what everyone has said is spot on. I have found hardwoods carve best with many having near zero clean up. Cutters hold up quite well on hardwood and rayher oddly dull cutters yield a better finish in hardwood. Cptres is one of our favourites plus the termites never touch it! You can think about the new enviro deck planks made from milk bottles and ground up bamboo. This stuff machines like a dream BUT a hot dun can make it bend unless screwed to a flat face. You can guarantee this stuff with total safety. Signs are a lot of fun and Joe has made it into an art form!

[Hizsigns]

Looking for folks who are familiar with HDU products. Currently using SF4 / 15 and machine very well but delicate when finish sanding. Smooth surface finishes are a bear to get a clean flat surface. Sanding creates noticeable waves and on Signs between letters is really difficult to get into. Anyone have suggestions on finishes for HDU? Mostly all Signs will be outdoors.

[dlcw]

Richard,

Listed below are a half dozen or so that fair well for exterior use. There are lots of wonderful woods for interior carving but don't stand up well to the elements.

In general, the best woods for exterior use are those that have an interlocking grain pattern which holds them together during the changing seasons. The weight or density is a poor guide.

Some of my Favorites:

Kiln dried Redwood.
Western Red Cedar (Canadian Clear Heart)
Cypress
Vertical Grain Yellow Pine
Osage Orange
Teak
Mahogany

Joe

Another good wood for outdoor signs is white oak. Make sure not to use red oak. I've used white oak on many outdoor signs and it stands up to the elements really well (hull and deck planking on USS Constitution is made from white oak). It carves really well too leaving clean crisp lines. Finish it with an exterior grade natural oil. I use Cabots Australian Timber Oil.

[bleeth]

15 pound is about minimum and the more dense products will have a smoother finish. Precision Board makes a primer that works very well. HDU is not really the right product for "Glossy flat" work. Instead of having your backgrounds dead flat if you design in some texture to them on purpose it will save you big time. So will cutting pockets for your letters andcutting the letters seperately and prefinishing before assembly.

[curtiss]

Letters will cut cleaner in Quarter-sawn wood. A

[joe]

Richard,

Have you considered PVC? It's one of my favorites.

[chadagmsign]

Looking for folks who are familiar with HDU products. Currently using SF4 / 15 and machine very well but delicate when finish sanding. Smooth surface finishes are a bear to get a clean flat surface. Sanding creates noticeable waves and on Signs between letters is really difficult to get into. Anyone have suggestions on finishes for HDU? Mostly all Signs will be outdoors.

Agreed on sanding between letters. Have you played with any texturing or 3D we try to stay away from smooth backgrounds and try to texture or 3d to eliminate most sanding. We currently use Dunaboard which have had the best luck which is a light green HDU. I can try to get a hold of my supplier to see if can find out more details if you prefer. There are so many factors to consider when doing smooth backgrounds with hold downs, table surface, and moisture.

hope this helps!!

[joe]

I'm in full agreement with Chad when it comes to adding a little texture to overcome the difficulties of HDU. Your choice of SignFoam is a good one but as Chan mentioned Duna is much better.

After years of using HDU I must say it's one of the most difficult materials I've found to finish. That along with it's difficulty with screws and bolts has ended up with us leaving the material as a good option.

Here's a follow up photo, from the previous post, showing how a finished PVC sign can look. Please not the border shading to bring contrast to the letters.

Joe