# My First Efforts At Signs



## Frankj3 (Oct 6, 2014)

*My First Signs*

I received a Cedar family name sign from my neighbor as a gift. It was his first attempt at a sign....and it was nice. A year later I decided to try my hand at it. I figured I am a machinist so I got this. Right?

I had my Water Oak tree trimmed and kept 2 logs. I cut them up and made my blanks.

Here are some pics of my first efforts. I sold the welcome sign and the cross together in our church bazaar auction for $70. I was proud. Now I have orders for 7 crosses and 1 welcome sign. Let the fun, the learning and the wood chips begin!

I used Helmsman Exterior Gloss to finish them.

Any and all critiques welcomed. I'm a big boy and can take it.


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## Frankj3 (Oct 6, 2014)

If this is a duplicated posting I am sorry. My first attempt was from my phone but it did not appear in the listing....

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I was given a wooden family name Cedar sign by a neighbor. It was one of his early attempts and it was good. So being a machinist, I figured I can do this.....I got this, right?

I had our Water Oak tree trimmed so I kept a few large limbs. I sawed them down to blanks and away I went.....

I recently read (after I had made these signs) I should have started with something soft like Pine. Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained....I didn't know I wasn't suppose to learn using Oak.

I sold the welcome sign and cross as a group in our church bazaar this past weekend. They brought in $70......I was surprised.....I figured $40 tops.

Well, now I have orders for 7 of the crosses and 1 of the welcome signs.

I gladly welcome all critiques and criticisms. I'm a big boy and can take it.


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

I'm liking the welcome sign , nice work


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## Salty Dawg (Jan 24, 2014)

Looks good, gonna be trimming that tree a lot.


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## old55 (Aug 11, 2013)

Nice jobs.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Good thing you ignored convention.


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## Wood Chip (Apr 10, 2011)

Nice. Let's face it, anyone with a router and a template set can make a respectable word sign. It gets interesting, and in my opinion more valuable, when the letters are freehand like yours. 

I especially like your creative approach to the cross. I can see why someone paid $70. To add even more value, you might use wood that has some meaning. Religious orgs like Olivewood from the holyland. Or maybe a plank from a much loved landmark that's being demolished.

You're off to a great start.


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## Frankj3 (Oct 6, 2014)

Thanks! I still have a lot to learn.


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## KomputerMan (Mar 3, 2014)

Did you make them using a plunge router or chisels??? I really like the idea of using a log to put a design into. I'll have to try that with one of my designs in the very near future!!! Thanks for the idea!!!


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## Bodger96 (Mar 18, 2014)

Welcome Frank, nice job on the signs.

Regards Bob


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## Frankj3 (Oct 6, 2014)

Thanks guys.

I have fixed base routers only. So I just made a lot of small 1/8" or less deep cuts.

My boards all have a kerf cut.....they are not flat. I think this adds a little character to the board and adds a lot of challenge to my abilities. Cutting the deep pockets of the cross were a challenge. I found that worrying about the depth of the most shallow part of the board worked best. So I made a lot of shallow cuts based off this part of the board.

I just bought a Ridgid 1-1/2 HP compact router. I'm hoping it will help with my lettering and numbers. I also have a Dremmel to help clean up cuts.

I will be leaning on you guys for a lot of tips and tricks in the future.

Frank


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## Frankj3 (Oct 6, 2014)

Wood Chip I will keep those comments in mind. I'll look around Houston for some Olivewood.

Thanks again.

Frank


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## KomputerMan (Mar 3, 2014)

Wood Chip said:


> Nice. Let's face it, anyone with a router and a template set can make a respectable word sign. It gets interesting, and in my opinion more valuable, when the letters are freehand like yours.
> 
> I especially like your creative approach to the cross. I can see why someone paid $70. To add even more value, you might use wood that has some meaning. Religious orgs like Olivewood from the holyland. Or maybe a plank from a much loved landmark that's being demolished.
> 
> You're off to a great start.


Spot on Gary. My Grandparent lived in a house for 50 years and had a huge sycamore tree growing on their property. I would love to get a branch from that tree and do something with it too.

Fixed base router and a Dremel eh??? I gotta try this!!!


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## rcoups (Nov 16, 2014)

Your signs look good to me, Frank. I'll try it someday, but I'm just gettin' into the whole wood thing. I am a retired Mold Maker ( that's like a machinist in the glass business.) Wood seems more challenging since you can't weld your mistakes, you have to learn how to hide them.


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## Frankj3 (Oct 6, 2014)

rcoups said:


> Your signs look good to me, Frank. I'll try it someday, but I'm just gettin' into the whole wood thing. I am a retired Mold Maker ( that's like a machinist in the glass business.) Wood seems more challenging since you can't weld your mistakes, you have to learn how to hide them.


RCOUPS - I am a machinist by degree and trade but now I work in sales. I work for a 3rd generation family owned machine shop. A lot of your and my work skills come into play in wood. But you are right. We can't "weld" up our mistakes......but we can hide them any number of ways. It just takes some thinking outside the box.

One trick I will offer - *NEVER* discard all of your sawdust. Keep some from the project you are working on. You can mix it with wood glue to make a filler.....then you can sand the filled part, paint it, and hide your mistake right under their noses. :laugh:

If you are like me, you are accustomed to working with extremely close tolerances. Try not to be that critical. I like to work with +/- 0.005" tolerances with wood. Sounds like a mile wide tolerance doesn't it? LOL

Good luck and have fun.


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