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I'm working on a 60" x 120" sandblasted sign. the main copy has a Gold drop shadow with black letters. I'd like to make the drop area lower than the lettering. Is there a trick to this or do I have to hand carve the drop area? If I go all flat would you paint the black first than mask or would you paint the gold first? Also is there a good waterbased Gold paint? I'd love to go with real gold but the customer won't go the extra money. Work has been really dead this year. I had to meet the low bid just to get this job but I need the work.
-------------------- Robert Davis Sticky Sam's Signs (828)488-1715 stickysam@dnet.net The Great Smoky Mountains Bryson City, N.C. Posts: 133 | From: Bryson City, N.C. US | Registered: Jul 2000
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posted
two ways to approach this one..... (1) make dimensional 1/2" HDU letters and apply them to your face which leaves the shadow area as a dimensional element from the recessed background. (2) after sandblasting, lower the shadow area 1/8 to 1/4" with a hand router. (takes practice and lots of BONDO). It would be very difficult to lower the shadow area first prior to sandblasting as the HDU has a memory and you would be working against that factor from many angles. But, since the money isn't there for much embellishments, you may as well just make it all flat from the git-go and move on to the next customer that DOES have the money.
-------------------- John Smith Kings Bay Signs (Retired) Kissimmee, Florida Posts: 816 | From: Central Florida - The Sunshine State | Registered: Jan 2000
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Hi Robert, 60"x120" is a good size sign! The first thing is, "I had to meet the low bid to get this job but I need the work." You didn't mention "money", just "work"! When I was starting out, Al Bradt, a sign painter from Elmira, NY, took me under his wing. He told me, "There are two ways to loose money. Work like hell, or sit back and have a cold one". In other words, "I need the work", and by the size of this sign, you will work, but will you make money?
I wish I could see the sign. I can't seem to picture a black letter with a Gold shadow. Is the design supplied by the customer? A shadow should never overpower the letter. I have done shadows on carved signs and they didn't look quite right. I think carving that shadow down would be a major undertaking, considering the size and the priceof this sign. I would like to see the artwork as the colors seem strange to me.
-------------------- Tony Vickio The World Famous Vickio Signs 3364 Rt.329 Watkins Glen, NY 14891 t30v@vickiosigns.com 607-535-6241 http://www.vickiosigns.com Posts: 1063 | From: Watkins Glen, New York | Registered: Sep 2001
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Hi Robert, could you supply some more details?
If I understand it correctly, I would do what John is saying, by cutting the stencil of the text as the drop shadow, and cutting out the letters individually and epoxing them in place.
As far as real gold versus paint, there are many paints out there, but they will not look like the real thing, and will fail quickly in a couple of years, and look worse than you can imagine.
As Tony said, that is a big sign. Charge accordingly.
Good luck.
Bob
-------------------- "The 3-4 minute mark of "Freewill" by Rush.
Bob Kaschak Artisan Sign And Design Peru New York Posts: 1873 | From: Upstate NY | Registered: Jul 2002
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Hey Robert, On of the easist ways to achieve this would be to cut the stencil of the letters and the drop shadow out together with a seam between them (the effect is much better on HDU). Apply the entire text w/shadow to the substrate and then began to blast. When you get about 1/4 inch down, pul just the stencil of the shadow, leaving the letters alone and then finish blasting the remainder of the sign. T
-------------------- John P Meeks The Sign Shoppe, Inc. Everwood 200 Brozzini Ct. Greenville, SC 29615 864-275-5140 Posts: 44 | From: Greenville, SC | Registered: Oct 2004
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sorry... I pushed the wrong button and sent response before complete. The effect is tectured although you can lightly sand the lower part to your liking. This process is real neat for scenes (i.e. mountain ranges, oceans etc...) behind your main info on the sign. Almost like a watermark. Let me know if I need to explain further. John Meeks
-------------------- John P Meeks The Sign Shoppe, Inc. Everwood 200 Brozzini Ct. Greenville, SC 29615 864-275-5140 Posts: 44 | From: Greenville, SC | Registered: Oct 2004
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This is a blasted and carved sign i just completed it is 96"x120". it has a drop shade but it is part of the outline and the letters are carved in. but i think you should cut letters out like John smith recomended and stud mount to face. i used one shot gold paint on my sign and it look good. all the other paint is 100% acrylic.
chris
-------------------- "We have been making house calls since 1992"
Chris Lovelady Vital Signs
NOW WITH 2 LOCATIONS! Tallahassee, Florida Thomasville, Ga.
posted
John Meeks idea sounds like a winner to me, but Tony brings up some good points too...
If the letters are raised, they will make their own shadow, so if the guy isn't paying enough, thats a legitimate corner to cut.. maybe lose the shadow & just paint the returns of the letter gold?
-------------------- Tony Vickio The World Famous Vickio Signs 3364 Rt.329 Watkins Glen, NY 14891 t30v@vickiosigns.com 607-535-6241 http://www.vickiosigns.com Posts: 1063 | From: Watkins Glen, New York | Registered: Sep 2001
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Thanks Tony! So it's gold and green. great talking to you and John today. We got the HDU in today and glued it to a 60" x 120" MDO board. I hope to start cutting mask in the morning. The price for the sign was a little over $90.00 a sq. ft. With no install. It will have a 2" border. We also have two smaller signs with the same copy about 36" long. Did I charge enough? We do need the money. As my buddy Jimmy says I may be broke and tired but I wont be both. Also, the black copy at the bottom was removed.
[ March 18, 2005, 06:57 PM: Message edited by: Robert Davis ]
-------------------- Robert Davis Sticky Sam's Signs (828)488-1715 stickysam@dnet.net The Great Smoky Mountains Bryson City, N.C. Posts: 133 | From: Bryson City, N.C. US | Registered: Jul 2000
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Should have the mask cut today. Was the price o.k.? thanks..
-------------------- Robert Davis Sticky Sam's Signs (828)488-1715 stickysam@dnet.net The Great Smoky Mountains Bryson City, N.C. Posts: 133 | From: Bryson City, N.C. US | Registered: Jul 2000
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The price is fine. We start at $75.00 a sq ft. for 4x8's, go up in price for smaller signs and down some for larger signs. With my methods of construction, I do very well at $75.00 sq. ft. as we can do them quite quickly. This price is a basic starting point for a basic blasted sign. Gold leaf, extra hand carving, 2 stage blasting, special effects all add to my price. By the look of the sketch, your price is great.
-------------------- Dave Sherby "Sandman" SherWood Sign & Graphic Design Crystal Falls, MI 49920 906-875-6201 sherwoodsign@sbcglobal.net Posts: 5397 | From: Crystal Falls, MI USA | Registered: Apr 1999
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