Engraving House Numbers - How to?

[Gone2dMtns]

Most of my woodworking can be classified under the "construction" category so I'm not really up to par on the finer details of craftsmanship. I would like to make a house number sign out of a piece of white oak and have a couple of questions;

1. What type of router bit would be appropriate?
2. What & how to make a template for the numbers.

This is a one shot kind of deal so I didn't want to purchase one of those sign making template kits.

Thanks,

Mike C.

[Splinter]

Mike, you don't need to buy a sign making template. I will upload a picture of a house sign in a few minutes and explain how I made it.

[Gone2dMtns]

Originally Posted by Mike Davis

Somebody here has a CNC router that would do that for you. I can't remember who it is.

Anybody know?

Mike, I appreciate the suggestion on farming it out... but it would deprive me of the pleasure of learning something new. Then again, maybe after spinning through several attempts I'll woe the day I ever thought of it.

[Splinter]

Below is a sign I made for a Habitat for Humanity house that I am helping with. The wood is cypress and the letters/#'s are 4". I traced the letters/#'s on the wood using carbon paper and a stylus (a pencil will work also). Then I used a 1/4" trim router freehand with a 12" clear plexiglass base that I made along with a Freud #19-106 dish carving bit. It is easier than it sounds.

You can also get sign making bits from www.pricecutter.com and other internet sites. I got the gold paint, carbon paper and stylus from a craft shop. You can use your computer to print large font letters/#'s then trace them on your wood. Free templates.



There are some other freehand signs in my phot gallery under Misc.

[Gone2dMtns]

Originally Posted by Mike Davis

I hope you didn't skip over my first two suggestions and think that was the only thing I said.

No Mike... the V-groove/freehand technique came through loud and clear. That with Splinter's suggestion on computer printing the numbers sounds like a good place to start. I'll throw some pine on the table and give it a whirl.... then try it on the oak when I have my confidence up. I guess I was initially thinking that freehanding would require major amounts of dexterity. I'll go slow and see what happens.

And thanks to Splinter for taking the time to post the pictures. That gave me a nice "visual".

[RandyJ]

If you have a laser printer, you can print the sign in REVERSE TEXT

and use an iron to transfer the image to the wood. No carbon paper or tracing required!
HTH
Take care,

[Gone2dMtns]

[quote=PappyJ;93741]If you have a laser printer, you can print the sign in REVERSE TEXT

and use an iron to transfer the image to the wood. No carbon paper or tracing required!
quote]

Uhhhh, ok... how do I do that? You're speaking of "mirroring" the text, right? I can't seem to find that option.

[Gone2dMtns]

I hate to sound like a DA, but what software? And where's the 'Flip' command?

[Gone2dMtns]

Originally Posted by Mike Davis

I don't know a thing about Windows so if that's what you have, I'm no help.

There's been a lot of times I wished I didn't know anything about Windows either. Ok, so the Photoshop hint got me on the right trail. I don't have any photo editing software, at least nothing that can manipulate text, but I do have some Microsoft products that have WordArt... which can be mirrored, flipped, or whatever. My initial attempt was with some text which I couldn't do anything with. So, I'm glad that we got that worked out.

Thanks for your patience.

[rbdoby]

Mike C.

If you can't figure out how to flip your image just print the image right reading and use 3M spray adhesive (the removable type) to glue it to the wood. When finished routing it will work as a mask if you are going to paint the letters. Let the paint dry and peel or sand the paper away. 3M Spray Adhesive is available at Lowe's. It's also good for gluing sandpaper to a block for detail sanding. Handy stuff.

Rick Doby

[christopheralan]

Easy trick to reversing text:

Type whatever you want to use into a regular Word document. Use the ruler bars to size the letters to what you need.

Hit "Select All"
"Copy"
Open Microsoft Paint
"Paste"
It might ask if you want to increse the bitmap, select okay.
Go to Image, Flip/Rotate, Flip Horizontal.

There you go.

You don't have to have another expensive program or download anything. Everything you need to do this is on your computer.

[adowden]

Mike,

I made a white oak sign about a year ago. I printed out the right numbers and traced them on the wood with carbon paper. I freehand routed them with a 1/4" straight bit (I would have used an upcut spiral bit if I had it.) I then got into the tight spaces with my dremel tool and a small router bit. I did use a v-groove bit for the arrow. I colored the inside of the numbers with a Minwax dark stain marker and used Cabot Australian timber oil (I love this stuff).

Amy

[Gone2dMtns]

Originally Posted by adowden

Mike,

I made a white oak sign about a year ago. I colored the inside of the numbers with a Minwax dark stain marker and used Cabot Australian timber oil (I love this stuff).

Amy

Hey Thanks Amy! That's exactly what I want to do. A couple of years ago a friend of mine purchased an engraved sign that had the contrasting stain to highlight the letters. It made such an impresssion I thought that someday I'd like to do the same.

Question: Did you throw a coat of poly on top of the stain or do anything special for preservation?

Been a little busy this week but I plan on zipping over to Klingspores to pick up a router bit or two and hopefully by next week I'll have something to show for.

[adowden]

Mike,

I think I stained the engraved part, put on one coat of the timber oil, and then touched up the stained part one more time with the dark stain marker. The directions for the timber oil say one coat only because it is tung oil, linseed oil and a hardener. Supposedly, you can re-apply the finish without any prepwork (but I haven't tried it yet). I love the color of it on oak. Good Luck!

Amy