# Channelview HS Band Sign



## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

I am making a sign to donate to the benefit for the Channelview, Tx high school Band Relief Fund Benefit. We have lived in CV for over 30 years and our girls all went to the high school. We now have grandsons attending there.

I carved the sign out of MDF. After a couple of coats of Shellac, I painted both sides yellow. Then I covered the front side with clear, removable contact paper. 

I designed the sign and created the toolpaths in VCarve Pro v9. The bulk of the waste was removed with a .25 inch downcut end mill. That made for a smooth cut. A .125 inch end mill did a cleanup pass and a 60 deg v groove bit with a .020 flat tip did the detailed carving. After removing the sign from the CNC, I cutaway the tabs and smoothed the edge with a flush trim bit. A small round over bit eased the edge on the top edge. Love having dual routers ready to go at a moments notice.

Currently, it is sitting on the patio while a coat of Shellac dries. After some light sanding, I will spray all exposed areas with the blue color, and do a little touch up with the yellow (the edge needs the yellow sprayed first).

More pics to follow.


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## Shop guy (Nov 22, 2012)

Like the signs, Mike.


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Fantastic job Mike , looks great ! And for a good cause too


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## tomp913 (Mar 7, 2014)

You're a good guy Mike.


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## woodknots (Mar 7, 2012)

Real nice sign, Mike. That incident hit close to home for you, so hopefully your involvement in the benefit will give you a bit of healing. Pulling for you and the families and kids at the school and in the community. Nicely done.


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Nicely done, Mike, nicely done! 

David


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## Marco (Feb 21, 2009)

Good job Mike


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## hawkeye10 (Jul 28, 2015)

MT Stringer said:


> I am making a sign to donate to the benefit for the Channelview, Tx high school Band Relief Fund Benefit. We have lived in CV for over 30 years and our girls all went to the high school. We now have grandsons attending there.
> 
> I carved the sign out of MDF. After a couple of coats of Shellac, I painted both sides yellow. Then I covered the front side with clear, removable contact paper.
> 
> ...



So mike the clear shelf paper is still on the yellow right? You then will spray the blue and after that remove the shelf paper. Is this close to being right?


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

hawkeye10 said:


> So mike the clear shelf paper is still on the yellow right? You then will spray the blue and after that remove the shelf paper. Is this close to being right?


Yes. Hope to finish it tomorrow.


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## honesttjohn (Feb 17, 2015)

How do you get the mask to stick so good?? Mine usually has a few tight places that take the mask off and I still have to sand some. The mask is good for the majority of the carving.

Looks Good. What'd you trace the bird from?


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## Multiwood (Feb 24, 2013)

Nicely done Mike.


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## marecat3 (Nov 30, 2010)

looks great


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

honesttjohn said:


> How do you get the mask to stick so good?? Mine usually has a few tight places that take the mask off and I still have to sand some. The mask is good for the majority of the carving.
> 
> Looks Good. What'd you trace the bird from?


I used downcut bits for the end mill toolpaths. That worked great. I did see one small piece lift on the "e" that I will have to touch up. The mdf cut smoothly. I sprayed the Shellac before starting, and then sprayed the bare mdf again to seal it.

The Falcon was an image I found on the internet that resembles the one in their school logo.


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## Potowner1 (Feb 17, 2011)

Nice job Mike. I hope the band kids can recover quickly from this tragedy, there were pictures on the national news shows and it was not a pretty sight. Good for you on helping them on their recovery journey. Some of these kids go on to the performing Marching Arts and it's very entertaining to watch. See DCI.org.


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## MEBCWD (Jan 14, 2012)

Great Job Mike. That should bring some good money to the cause.


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## TenGees (Sep 12, 2012)

Nice looking sign, Mike. Looking forward to see it finished.


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

In spite of getting sick over the weekend, I still managed to finish the sign yesterday. Waiting for a call so the lady from the booster club can pick it up. Like mentioned, I hope it sells well. We will find out Saturday.


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## MEBCWD (Jan 14, 2012)

Nice paint job. That should bring some good money to the Band Relief Fund and should make the new owner very happy.


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## Gaffboat (Mar 11, 2012)

I like that, Mike. They'll love it.


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

The lady that picked it up today is on the Booster Club. She said she would take a picture of it and show the other members at their meeting this weekend so those that couldn't make the Fund raiser could see it. Hmmm, sounds like I have an unpaid sales rep! :surprise::grin:

So I told her I have several designs and another sign in the works for a teacher at our local junior high.


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## honesttjohn (Feb 17, 2015)

Take advantage of an opportunity whenever you can.


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## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

Today was the benefit for the Channelview HS Band. The BBQ plates went fast. I settled for a hamburger instead.

My sign sold for $65.00 USD. I was disappointed but I could tell there weren't any deep pockets in the crowd today. I am just happy I could make a contribution.

Now saying that, The Booster club lady was tickled to see me show up and drug me over to talk to another lady. They said people had been talking about the sign all morning. Tracie already has an order waiting in her email to send me. One fellow got sniped at the last minute so they pointed him to me. He wants a sign.

I don't have any business cards, and no bsns name. But I did find a handful in the console of my truck from my sports photography days, so I handed them out and told the people I still live at the same address and have the same phone number and email. And Tracie said "and I know where he lives". :surprise::grin: She's a hoot!

...and then along came Jones. Slow walking Jones. Actually he is a principle at one of the local elementary schools and we have known him a long time. He wants a sign, and feels pretty sure some of the staff will want one also.

And a lady asked about a sign with a big "S" for her last name. She got a card also.

And a lady asked about rustic signage. She got a card also!:surprise:

So, I guess we will see. Promises, promises.


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## Shop guy (Nov 22, 2012)

You may have to become a full time sign maker, Mike.


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