Router sign writing

**joe greiner** · 31st March 2008, 10:03 PM

Originally Posted by ssgt

... First I make a banner using aerial mt bold for the letters, transfer that to the timber ....

Transferring the text to the timber can be purgatorial with a ball-point pen or such.

Here's an easier and very precise way to do it:
Prepare the text in a programme that allows flipping the image, such as MSPaint, to produce mirrored text. Print the image via laser printer, or make a photocopy from other type print. Attach the printout face-down on the timber with tape or staples outside the text region. With a clothes iron set at the highest temperature (usually "Linen"), go over the back of the printout. Laser or photocopy toner is an acrylic emulsion, and the high temperature melts it onto the timber. For best results, the timber should be baby-butt smooth, e.g. by scraping. A final scraping or sanding may be needed after cutting the letters to remove any toner not cut away.

Best to do the ironing while SWMBO is away for a while. One of my mates gets unlimited grief when he washes car parts in the kitchen sink.

Joe

**Wood Borer** · 31st March 2008, 10:57 PM

Good tip Joe.

Here are two signs I made for a mate a few weeks ago.

I made the template from MDF after using Corel Draw to make the templates. As I was using template guides on the base of the router, the MDF template had to be 1.6mm (from memory) larger than the finished signs. Corel Draw has a contour feature which you can use to create an external contour around your shape.

As my shed is still in progress but not far off now, I thicknessed the redgum using handplanes.

**ssgt** · 1st April 2008, 10:11 AM

Joe, thanks for the tip sounds excellent will use it for my next sign.
Woodborer that is some very nice work indeed, well done.

**Wood Borer** · 1st April 2008, 10:58 AM

I neglected to mention that I use hot melt glue for the "island" bits.

For example, the letter O. I rule lines on the piece of timber to routed so that I can glue the middle piece onto the work and route around it. The hot melt glue is reasonably soft and can be removed using a hot air gun but the hot melt glue will hold the router template follower steady.

All the work is in the template. Once the template is made, any mug can run the router within the template.

Keep your templates though, there might be several hours work in each template compared to several minutes work routing each final sign.

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