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Sunday, October 14, 2012

Carving and Gilding a Cedar Sign


Step by step instruction covering the carving, painting and gilding of a Western Red Cedar sign.

By Jim Hingst @hingst_jim

Because of its greater abundance and more affordable cost Western Red Cedar has long displaced California Redwood in popularity. While sign makers have opted for this lower cost and more readily-available wood, they can take comfort in the knowledge that they have not had to sacrifice product performance in their selection. In fact, many argue that cedar may be a better choice for outdoor signage.

One reason is cedar’s flexibility, which gives it greater structural strength. Redwood, by comparison, is slightly less flexible and tends to splinter and crack more readily. That’s not to say that redwood is a bad choice. On the contrary, both species of wood are from the same genus or biological family.  The density of both woods is nearly identical. And both contain similar oils, which make them moisture resistant, fungus resistant and distasteful to bugs. In fact, in the great outdoors cedar will outlast many hardwoods, because the resins and oil act as a wood preservative.

Because it is a softwood with a straight, even grain, cedar is very easy to carve and holds fine detail.  In this article, I will show the steps involved in carving a cedar sign.

Photo A.


Job Layout. 


 In laying out the job, the cedar sign blank was first covered with RTape 4775 high tack appplication tape. As an alternative, Butch “Superfrog” Anton recommends covering the sign black with RTape ProGrade paint mask.

Either application tape or paint mask works fine.  The both the heavyweight paper masking or the paint mask are a great surface for sketching out your design. If  you don’t like the initial layout, you can easily erase the lines and draw a new layout.  The advantage of the paper tape is that it is inexpensive enough, that you can rip it off of the surface of the wood and remask the sign blank and start all over again.

I wasn’t completely satisfied with the typeface that I had initially selected, because some of  the  serifs and strokes of the letters were too narrow.  I redrew the lettering to fatten up the copy.

To transfer the copy to the masked surface of the sign, I use Saral paper, which is like carbon paper.   Available at Dick Blick stores (www.dickblick.com), Saral paper comes in a variety of colors, including black, white, yellow and red.

Photo B.
When you are cutting the perimeter of the sign, take your time.   If your cut is accurate, you will spend less time sanding  to correct mistakes. Use “C” clamps to secure the sign blank when sawing, routing the edges and carving. Put scrap lumber between the jaws of the clamp and the substrate to prevent damage to the sign board. See Photo B.

Photo C.

Routing the Edge of the Sign. 


 After cutting the perimeter of the sign, the edges of the sign were routed to give it a decorative edge.  See photo C.  To ensure uniformity of the routed edge avoid starting and stopping   as you make the cut.  

The First Cut with a V-Parting Tool. 


 After you transfer the copy layout to the application paper,  use your “V” parting tool to first notch the corners of the letters. See photo D. These relief cuts in the corners of the letters prevent the wood from tearing out.
A V-parting tool (or just called a parting tool) is one of the most versatile chisels and is an absolute necessity for any woodcarver.   Most people describe it as two chisels in one tool.  V-parting tools are available with blades at different angles.  Typically a 60º tool is used for carving incised letters. 

After notching the corners, the next step is to use the V-parting tool to cut a groove down the center of each letter.  You will note that I drew dashed lines to indicate where I would make my cuts. While drawing these lines is not necessary for the experienced carver, it’s very helpful for the beginner.

Usually, I don’t use a mallet when carving. Cutting the relief cuts is an exception.  Some carvers feel that using a mallet gives them more contol of their cuts. While mallets are available in a variety of styles, weights and materials, most carvers prefer a simple hardwood variety, and keep both a large and small sizes on hand. Bronze-clad mallets, while being very attractive, are too hard and tend to mash the ends of chisel handles.  Don’t try using your framing hammer either.

Photo D.

Photo E
After making my relief cuts and cutting the grooves down the center of the letters, I used straight chisels, skew chisels and # 2 and # 3 gouges to cut from the perimeter of the letters to the center.  According to Paul White, master wood carver and author of Carving a Traditional Cape Cod Sign, when making these cuts, you should ideally maintain a uniform shallow angle between 25 and 35 degrees. The shallow angle reflects more light off of the surface of the gild. 

Photo F

After roughing out the letters, carefully smooth out your cuts. See photo F.  In carving incised letters, the process begins with roughing out your work,  with a #2 gouge  and then refining and smoothing the rough cuts with a straight or a skew chisel. While many carvers discount the usefulness of skew chisels in carving, their angled blades are useful in getting into tight places.   

Woodcarving Safely: Two fisted carver. 


 Whenever you are carving, it’s a good practice to grip the chisel with both hands.  Keep one hand on the shank of the chisel and the other on the handle. For added control, rest your wrist or forearm on the work surface or your workbench. Keeping your wrist or forearm on the work surface not only steadies your hand and gives you more control of your chisel, but it also keeps the blade at a desirable low angle to the wood. 

By following these rules, you will more accurately control your cuts and cut yourself less frequently. The only time that you should not have two hands on the chisel is when you are using a mallet. In that case, one hand should be on the mallet and the other on the chisel.

As you are carving, keep the edge of the blade on the wood. Making short cuts, slide the chisel or gouge along the surface of the wood. This way, you won’t lose control of your tool.

Finishing: Priming and Painting. 


 For indoor applications, staining and varnishing is a great way to finish a wood sign. Stains can accentuate the grain and bring out the character of the wood.  For outdoor signs, paint is much more durable. A properly prepared and painted cedar sign can last as long as ten years outdoors.

Before prime painting, sand the sign with 150-grit sandpaper.  In finishing wood,  sanding with any finer grit is unnecessary, because your eyes won’t detect a difference in anything smoother. What’s more, the paint needs some tooth to grab onto.  Sanding wood with an extra fine grit paper can actually make the surface too smooth, which can result in paint adhesion problems. 

 Be sure to sand the perimeter of the sign to knock down any sharp edges.    Paint on these edges chips easily, exposing the raw wood to moisture. 

After sanding, blow off any of the accumulated dust with an air hose, then wipe the surface down with a tack rag before priming.

While many sign makers have chosen to use water-based primers, oil-based primers are a much better choice for cedar and redwood, because they do a better job of blocking the tannins in the wood from bleeding through the paint.

For the project in this article, I decided to use two coats of a Zinsser oil-based exterior primer.  So that the first coat soaks in well into the wood, many will thin the primer by 10% to 15%.  Primer is not just cheap paint.  These coatings are formulated to serve two primary functions.  First, the primer seals the wood.  It is especially important that you seal the end grain of any wood, because it accounts for the majority of moisture absorption, which can result in paint adhesion failure.  The second primary function of primer is to securely anchor the finish coat to the wood.   

Whether you are priming or painting, begin coating out the backside of the sign.  Turning the sign over to expose the front side, continue painting the incised lettering first.  As the back of the sign is drying, prop it up on painter’s pyramids.   Make sure that you don’t allow the paint to puddle in the recesses of the carved letters.  After painting the first surface of the sign, finish by painting the edges.  (See photo G.)

Photo G.

Between coatings, thoroughly scuff the painted surfaces with either 220-grit sandpaper or a grey ScotchBrite® pad.  Make sure that you dull any glossy surfaces.    Scuffing the paint puts fine scratches in the painted surface, giving it some tooth so that the subsequent coating has something to bite into.

After priming the sign, you will need to paint it with two to three coats of finish paint.  For this project, we applied two coats of Ronan bulletin enamel, followed by a final coat of 1-Shot lettering enamel. See photo H.

Photo H. 


Gilding the Letters.


Photo I.


Gold leaf is the perfect complement to hand carved letters. When used to decorate exterior signage, gold radiates brilliantly in the sunlight.  There’s nothing like the real thing. Gold paint doesn’t even come close.

A black background is an excellent base for gilding, because any holidays (voids in the gilding) are glaringly apparent. That, of course, is just one point of view. Others use imitation gold as the underpainting for the gilding or tint their size. Size is the adherent that binds the leaf material to the sign surface.    In the minds of many purists, it is better to see the flaws in the gold leaf, instead of disguising these imperfections; and it’s always better to fix your mistake, instead of hiding it.

The type of size that you use is also a matter of preference.  If you are working on a crash and burn project and time is critical, a fast size, such as products from 1 Shot or Rolco, may be your best choice.  In approximately 20 to 30 minutes after brushing the size, it is ready for application of the leaf. 

While this type of size is ready to use almost immediately, its disadvantage is that it only remains tacky for a limited amount of time.  In some cases, that window of opportunity is only open for 20 to 30 minutes. If you are working on a big project, or constantly interrupted as you work, or you just don’t like working under the gun, a slow size might be a better choice for you. 

One of the more popular products is Le Franc’s 12 hour size.  As the name implies, slow size is ready to gild after about twelve to eighteen hours following application.  This window of workability, in which the size is tacky enough for gilding, can remain open for days. You are probably better off, however, if you gild soon after the size is ready. Another advantage is that slow size will produce a more durable finished product.

Whichever size you select, be sure to strain it.  Size right out of the can have contaminants which can ruin your gold leaf job, especially if you are using the really thin, real 23-karat leaf.

Before applying the size to the black incised letters, very lightly sprinkle kaolin powder over the surface of the sign, dusting off the excess powder with a squirrel hair mop brush. Then vacuum off the excess kaolin, leaving a very fine gray haze on the black painted surface. See Photo I.  

Kaolin powder, which is used in the medical field, is very pure and will not contaminate the adhesive value of the size.  Dusting the surface with kaolin serves two purposes. It prevents the gold leaf from sticky where you don’t want it to stick. The kaolin haze also allows you to see where you have applied the size to the letters. As the gold size is brushed on, the haze disappears. Any missed spots are easy to detect. Using kaolin is a better alternative than tinting your size with imitation gold or universal colorant, which can contaminate it, deadening the adhesive properties.

In painting on the size, gilders have a variety of favorite brushes. Some use a lettering quill, which affords good control in applying the size. Others prefer a stiff bristle fitch.  A fitch has a shorter length, and the hairs are much stiffer than the softer squirrel hairs used in making a quill.

Some feel that the stiffer brush does a better job of getting the size into any tight corners, and is better at brushing out any puddling.  Many fitch brushes are cupped.  That means that looking from the side of the brush that its tip has a rounded shape.  The advantage of the cupped tip is that you have better control with the brush and it also allows you to feather the size. 

After applying the size, carefully inspect your work and make sure that the size hasn’t puddled.  Any excessive pooling of the size will drown the ultra-thin gold leaf. 

When working with gold leaf, cleanliness is next to godliness. Your hands are usually contaminated with oils and sweat, which can tarnish the leaf material.  Here are three golden gilding rules:

  • Always wash your hands before working with gold leaf. 
  • Avoid touching the leaf. If you must, wear latex gloves.
  • To transfer the leaf use a gilder’s tip. 

Gold leaf is still available at some sign supply distributors. A book of gold leaf contains 25 leaves, each of which is 3-3/8” x 3-3/8”.   In a book, there is enough gold leaf for you to gild approximately two square feet. 

Using a gilder’s tip, carefully transfer the sheet of gold leaf over the sized area. A gilder’s tip is a very thin flat brush, about three inches wide, used to transfer sheets of gold leaf to the work surface. Traditionally the gilder will brush the hair of the gilder’s tip over his hair.  The brush hairs will pick up some of the hair oils. This gives the gilder’s tip enough tack to pick up and transfer the sheet of gold leaf. This trick works if the gilder has hair and if his hair is greasy enough.

After the gold leaf is transferred, use an artist’s soft mop brush to gently press the leaf material onto the size.  After the leaf is securely adhered to the size, brush away any of the excess gold. This process is known as tickling. See Photo J. After the size has completely dried, the metal leaf is permanently adhered to the substrate. 



Photo J.

If you use a cotton ball to brush away the excess leaf, be extremely careful. Cotton balls may be soft enough for a baby’s behind, but it is often coarse enough to scratch the soft gold and even abrade away the leaf. 

In the sign industry, many sign makers mistakenly use the term burnishing to refer to the process of brushing the gold leaf.  Burnishing is actually a polishing process, which is described in my article on traditional water gilding. When you rub the gold with cotton or a brush, you actually scratch the surface. The more you rub the surface, the less the gold will shine. 

Applying Appliques. 


 To mount an appliqué, you can drill holes on the backside and affix mounting studs, which fit into predrilled holes in the sign panel using a clear silicone caulk.  Or you can secure the applique with Gorilla Glue. 

 Note: The applique was gilded with Dutch Gold. My story, Toning Metal Leaf with Liver of Sulfur, explains how I toned the grapes.  

Final Word: To Clear Coat or Not To Clear


What differentiates gold from other metals is its brilliance.  Clear coating diminishes its shiny surface.  Most gilders regard clear coating real gold as a sacrilege.  

As with all rules, there are exceptions.  If it is likely that the general public will put their grubby mitts on the gilded surface, by all means clear coat it. Remember, while body oil  will not tarnish the gold, it will cause dirt to stick to its surface, making it look discolored.

If you decide to clear coat your work, you have a few options.  For gold leaf projects, Butch Anton’s Frog Juice is always a popular choice as is Rolco’s solvent-based acrylic topcoat.  These coatings provide good protection from abrasion, tarnishing body oils and the degrading effects of UV light

Before using any clear coat, stir the can slowly. Slowly is the operative word, so that you don’t create bubbles in the clear coat. Usually you can use clear coat straight out of the can.  However, over time these coatings can thicken and will require thinning with either mineral spirits or turpentine.  Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s application instructions. After one to three hours, the clear coat should be dry to the touch.  After twelve hours, the clear is completely cured and your sign is ready for delivery to your customer.


Completed  Cape Cod sign after priming, painting and gilding.
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About Jim Hingst: After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.

Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer.  Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.

Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for  publications, such as  Signs Canada, SignCraft,  Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and  Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 325 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published.



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