How Are These Made...

[Derek Arita]

At first glance I thought these might be made with a router jig, but up closer, they look more like they were done on some kind of CNC. Any thoughts?383958

[David Bassett]

Not enough resolution to tell, but the lettering and design looks like things done on a laser cutter. The thickness & some of the sharp inside corners on the edges make me think they might be cut out on a scroll saw. (Though a laser can cut thinner material and with the right bits, plus careful programming, a CNC router can do lettering and pretty sharp inside corners.)

[Mark Bolton]

As David says, some variables there that would probably tell the tale if you could zoom in a bit. If the letters are fairly shallow and even in depth likely laser. If they were CNC'd there would be some tell tale signs (pun intended lol). Signs like this before CNC were often done on a pantograph or free hand. Since putting in our CNC we get quite a lot of requests but when you set an hourly rate for your machine, and then the post processing (sanding, painting, clear coat) it can be a bear to be in the consumers price point.

I have no idea of the operating costs of a laser with regards to consumables and perhaps with a single face finish, pre-applied, they come off the laser and out the door. That sure would be handy.

[Art Mann]

Those signs were cut with a CNC router. I would bet money on it. The width and depth of cut is too substantial to be cut with a laser and it isn't easy to paint laser engravings. The reason I am so confident is that I carve signs that look very similar to that for people just every once in a while. They are easy to do with a little design skill and the right equipment.

[Derek Arita]

Can they really be done free hand with a router? I'd think it would be tough to control.

As David says, some variables there that would probably tell the tale if you could zoom in a bit. If the letters are fairly shallow and even in depth likely laser. If they were CNC'd there would be some tell tale signs (pun intended lol). Signs like this before CNC were often done on a pantograph or free hand. Since putting in our CNC we get quite a lot of requests but when you set an hourly rate for your machine, and then the post processing (sanding, painting, clear coat) it can be a bear to be in the consumers price point.

I have no idea of the operating costs of a laser with regards to consumables and perhaps with a single face finish, pre-applied, they come off the laser and out the door. That sure would be handy.

[Mike Cary]

I don’t know how these are done, but I have a carve Wright machine that could knock them out easily.

[James Zhu]

Can they really be done free hand with a router? I'd think it would be tough to control.

Yes, it can be done using Shaper Origin, the world's first handheld CNC router.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLy2jg5-SD84OCbiiDoOAJA/videos

[Jim Becker]

Most likely, those are CNC cut. Yes, there are other ways to do it, but chances are these days that it was CNC.

[Mark Bolton]

Can they really be done free hand with a router? I'd think it would be tough to control.

Given the font and looking at all of them my gut reaction would be no to a hand held router. That said... I have been to numerous craft fairs where there is a booth and a guy, two, or three, standing in that booth with stacks of precut blanks. You walk up to the booth, pick from a half a dozen fonts on display, write down what you want on a piece of paper, they look at it, grab a blank, and using a hand held router free hand your sign. Its 35 miles faster than any CNC could ever produce the sign. Having not seen it I wouldn't think its possible. I couple that with things I have seen done in Mexico and overseas that makes my $100k investment in a CNC seem questionable.

As I've said. People ask for these type of signs all the time. If you account for an hourly rate for design, blank preparation, tooling costs, pre-and-post finishing, electricity, machine, and so on.. it gets me head scratching as to a more profitable way. I could easily see non v-carved signs being much faster to make with pre-cut guide bushing templates on a conventional router if your labor costs were in the $1 an hour range. A pile of harbor freight routers, some 1/4" ply templates, and cheap labor and you could out run a cnc pretty quick.

[Rick Potter]

I have seen booths like that, where they do it like Mark said. I watched, and they were using PC 690 routers with home made dust collection free hand. They could carve a Pine tree in one minute. So could I, if I did it for hours every day.

Scorch the letters with a propane torch, or paint with a spray can, quick sand and a shot of laquer.

This was about 10 years ago.

[Mark Bolton]

Those signs were cut with a CNC router. I would bet money on it. The width and depth of cut is too substantial to be cut with a laser and it isn't easy to paint laser engravings. The reason I am so confident is that I carve signs that look very similar to that for people just every once in a while. They are easy to do with a little design skill and the right equipment.

Given they all have identical backgrounds and look shallow in was wondering if the light color wasn't just a thin laser cut veneer that was glued over a pre cut blank. The multi colored portions and the "order now, pick up later" would also speak to laser cut puzzle parts cut from various pre-colored veneers and then glued onto the backing substrate. Was just a guess. But there is no "order now and pick up later" in a walk through marketplace that allows for a 5 color paint job.

[Rick Alexander]

I don’t know how these are done, but I have a carve Wright machine that could knock them out easily.

I always loved the concept but did they ever get the CW to work reliably? I heard a LOT of bad press about them but that was years ago.

[Bradley Gray]

I also think it is likely these were hand done.

Practice makes something.

[Andrew Joiner]

The sign on the countertop in the pic says "Carved Freehand". Translated to us probably means a handheld router without templates.

[Mike Cary]

I always loved the concept but did they ever get the CW to work reliably? I heard a LOT of bad press about them but that was years ago.

My mom gave it to me, she lost interest. I sent it in and got it refurbished and tuned up. It's a toy. It makes signs easily, carves simple stuff. The software is basic and they charge you for add-ons and patterns. Some people are really into it and can do lots of stuff, I keep it pretty basic. Its fun to throw a carving on simple projects just for fun.

I wouldn't buy one, but when they're free its hard to complain.

[Derek Arita]

The sign on the countertop in the pic says "Carved Freehand". Translated to us probably means a handheld router without templates.

Didn’t even see that sign. My sister sent the pic and asked if I could do that. That’s why I’m here. If it’s freehand, I’ll give it a go. Worst that could happen is I waste a board. Do you think pine would be least “grabby” cuz it’s soft?

[Bradley Gray]

I would make several blanks and get a brand new bit.

I think you'll want a bit with a point so you can vary the width by slightly tilting the base.

[Mark Bolton]

Didn’t even see that sign. My sister sent the pic and asked if I could do that. That’s why I’m here. If it’s freehand, I’ll give it a go. Worst that could happen is I waste a board. Do you think pine would be least “grabby” cuz it’s soft?

When I would watch the guys at the fair freehand the signs I spoke of, having run a router I was utterly amazed. Like I say, they had a half dozens signs with different fonts and you could pick your font. So they knew these fonts by heart and I guess muscle memory. The last time I saw these at a fair was long before CNC was even remotely available in a home shop and they, at that time, could have easily out-run what our CNC could ever produce at this very moment. Now Im sure there were variations in size and accuracy but as far as churning out signs, I couldnt keep up with the CNC even if we populated the entire table with sign blanks in a fixture.

My suggestion would be of course sharp bit, and keep the base of your router waxed very well. That way the base will glide along the work effortlessly. We wax all our tools and it makes a huge difference. Beyond that Id say you'd better have a good sense of spacial awareness, penmanship, and several scraps. Staring at the cutter trying to follow a pencil line I dont think will work out too well.

Post your results.

[Mark Bolton]

And there you have it:
https://youtu.be/SV8RFKwXuMc