Last sign of the month

[joewino]

Yesterday we installed this double faced dimensional sign - the last job of the month.

It's 2'x 2' - two pieces of 1.5" Corafoam back to back with all-thread extending out through the bracket. Everything was done on our ShopBot with the exception of the sanding of the heart shape.

The bracket is four layers of .75" MDO - all cut on the ShopBot to insure that the holes for the all-thread all lined up perfectly.

The sign was finished with Porter acrylics and the copy is gold leaf.

Cost: $1,000.


6095

[jamesgilliam]

Ray, Fantastic job on this sign as always. What software did you use to get the background? James

[joewino]

James - I use ArtCam Pro and just import a black and white .jpg file of a piece of sandblasted redwood. ArtCam figures out the tool paths from the black and white images and the ShopBot does the rest.

I used an 1/8" ball nose bit.

[joe]

Yep, Ray is up to his usual beautiful work. Wish I'd done it.

[john_r]

Nice Sign Ray,
Did you cut this in one piece or glue the pieces on? Did you cut the whole sign out with a 1/8 ball nose?...How many hours did it take?
OK I'm done asking a bunch of questions...

[jhicks]

Looking Good Ray!
Great design masterfully executed and priced right to make a happy customer and a happy sign maker.
Not familiar with porter acrylics but will look into it. Always trying to dial in the "perfect paint" system, methods and suppliers. We are moving toward one shot for our next project and maybe then Porter.

Can you tell me why you settled on porter?
Thanks

[joe]

Jerry,

Many Letterheads have moved over to Porter Paint for a couple of reasons. Their darker colors like red, Blue, and Greens really cover in a couple of coats. Also the colors are fully saturated, better than regular house paint and last and last.

Most of Porter dealers are listed under PPG Paints. Try the following store in your area.
INDUSTRIAL PAINT SALES
497 W WRIGHTWOOD AVE
ELMHURST, IL 60126

The reason we use One Shot now days is for handlettering. That old time paint moves further and further back on our shelf. I bet Ray has the same experience. We still love it though. The smell reminds us of our youthful sign painting days.

[joewino]

Thanks for the nice comments. The client was pleased and we now have several more signs to do for them, but none are dimensional (but they do pay the bills).

J. - the two 2' x 2' panels were cut side by side on the ShopBot, but the red heart shapes were cut as separate pieces, carved, and then added to the sign.

Only the textured background was cut with a ball nosed bit - all the flat portions are the original surface of the material. The edge was smoothed with a .75 round over bit and then the panels and heart shapes were cut out with a .25" end mill.

Total time was about six hours, using a 25% stepover. I don't normally pay much attention to the time it takes - just turn on the ShopBot and go on about doing other things.

Jerry - OK, how many hours do you have? The acrylic paint question has been discussed among sign makers for years, especially on the Letterville forum. I've been "preaching" the use of water based paints for exterior signs for a long time.

One Shot Lettering Enamel has been the old standard of the sign industry for decades. With more federal regulations and changes in formulas the paints are no where near what we used thirty or forty years ago. They fade more quickly and chalk badly (especially the darker colors) within a few months, at least here in Texas.

While the solvent based paints were declining, the water based acrylics were improving. About 20 years ago I began experimenting with various water based paints to finish our sandblasted redwood and HDU signs. I liked the softer look of the latex paints and then noticed how much longer they were lasting compared to the solvent based types.

One of the giants of the dimension sign industry is Gary Anderson (Bloomington, Indiana) and we have been great friens for a number of years. In fact, I will be spending three days at his home this weekend.

Gary has advocated water based paints for years and developed a line of dark, deep colors that could not be duplicated in any other brand of acrylics other than Porter. Like Joe said, they cover easily in two coats and retain their color for years. We also use Sherwin Williams Super Paint for some colors - mainly because their store is just around the corner from my studio, but their darker colors take four or five coats to cover well.

We spray the background colors with a HVLP gun and then brush on the small panels and trim work with a regular trim brush made for water based paints. Mack Brush Company also makes a line of lettering brushes with synthetic "hair" for use with water based paints. They work surprisingly well.

If you have any other questions, I would be glad to tell you what I know....and what works for us.

[brian_h]

Ray,

Thank you, thank you, thank you, for all the details, including the price.

[donchapman]

Once again, Raymond, I'm inspired by your talent and sharing. You make it look so easy, but I know it's backed by many years of hard work and maybe even learning from a mistake or two. You are also fortunate to have your highly skilled son working with you. You two are quite a team.

[joewino]

Thanks all.

And Don, it's quite a bit more than a few. Over the years I've done just about everything the wrong way a time or two.

And yes, I am very fortunate to have Mike. He does most of the dirty work.