Carving in Coffee wood from southern Indiana

[aaasigncom]

this heavy plank of wood is thought to be over 60 years old. it was warped with a rough saw mill cut before i surfaced it with a 1.5" tool. We are really an electric sign manufacturing company but really enjoy doing something a little different. thanks for looking - tony rogers @ AAASIGN.com

[chiloquinruss]

Is that the natural color of coffee wood? It's a great color for a sign and of course a great carve job as well. Very nice. What did you seal it with? Russ

[aaasigncom]

yes the natural color - i always spray zinser shallac (on everything wood) for the first coat. shallac always brings out the color and grain. after that you can clear it with anything. it was super easy, the magic is in the software. i have attached a pic of the wood prior to surfacing. notice the sawmill blade marks. thanks for your comments. tony

[gc3]

That's a great looking sign. What kind of machine is shown in photo 3? Did you use Vcarvepro to design the carving?

Gene

[nailzscott]

I had heard that it may be tough to get a clear finish to hold up for very long in the direct sun. Any secrets, recommendations?

[aaasigncom]

GENE its a shopbot want to be - i purchased to wrong brand - bad tech support & broken promises --- SCOTT yes your right, nothing gets past the UVs. i tell people it need to be recoated every 2 years. in fact, i set a reminder in my contact database to call them 2 years later looking for maintainance and new sales. tony

[nailzscott]

Thanks Tony. I know Minwax has a Helmsman Spar Urethane that has some UV blockers, but I have not had anything in the weather long enough to see if it works well.

On the Coffee wood - I have a small pile of this wood and it is pretty dense and good looking stuff. The grain looks sort of like oak. Mine has some small worm holes in it, but I saw some cabinets made from the same stock - and they look great. I never heard of it before getting this pile from a guy I know but am anxious to use it on a project.

[zeykr]

Scott,

Helmsman does not hold up well in direct sun and weather - maybe a year if south facing and a little more if northern exposure.

Take a look at sikkens cetol products - pricey and do darken wood more than helmsman even with the natural color, but holds up much longer than polyurethane or oil type finishes in my experience. Sikkens also has a clear door and window finish that is supposed to be good. Have a can I've not tried yet - it's very pricy compared to helmsman.

[carlhopkins]

your sign looks real good.
coffee wood how appropriate for a "bed and breakfast".
I use FUHR products every day for all of my projects. I just did some signs for a truck and I am curious to see just how well the 260 holds up.

[gc3]

Scott,

Helmsman does not hold up well in direct sun and weather - maybe a year if south facing and a little more if northern exposure.

Take a look at sikkens cetol products - pricey and do darken wood more than helmsman even with the natural color, but holds up much longer than polyurethane or oil type finishes in my experience. Sikkens also has a clear door and window finish that is supposed to be good. Have a can I've not tried yet - it's very pricy compared to helmsman.

...you got a nice machine list goin', how 'bout a photo of the new one!

Gene