routed signs and water base paint

[geb]

We will be entering routed signs, doing pretty much basic routing of lettering with kiln dry pine boards. Is this considered by those who route daily who route different or similar material I describe, a good idea using water base paint as a finish top coat for exterior signage? What about water base paint on mdo, non routed signage?

I welcome any opinions. Thank you for your time.

George

 

[Sandman]

I highly recommend going with latex since standard sign painters paint has become, let's see, how can I put this nicely, oh yeah, useless. Just don't buy the cheapest latex you can find. I only use Porter Acri Shield when I can find it or Sherwin Williams Resilience, their top of the line latex. Latex also works fine for MDO but if you are going to attach vinyl lettering to latex you can only use gloss. Even the gloss is not as vinyl friendly as Alkyd enamel so too aggressive transfer tape will pull the letters off during install. One trick I used with great success for painting flat bottomed routed letters was Dupont Centauri Automotive paint. It is a single stage paint that is meant to be thinned 50/50 for spraying. You load it (not thinned) into a plastic bottle with a needle nose tip and flow it into the letters about a sixteenth inch deep. Push it around with the tip until the whole bottom is covered. Make sure your board is level so the paint doesn't pool to one side. The solvent in the paint will evaporate overnight and leave a flat shiny painted letter. It is lacquer based so make sure the bottles you use can handle lacquer. My favorite is Clairol Tint and Toner bottles. They are available from beauty supply houses so if you know a beautician they can order for you.

Edit: I'm not really a new member. I've been here for many years, just haven't visited or posted much. Been in the sign business since 1982.

 

[Gino]

Pine is about the worst lumber you can use for this, unless you're setting up a stand at a flea market and selling 'house numbers' or 'welcome' signs. It's the wrong grain first of all and even though it's dried, it won't last long outside. It will rot and mildew in no time. My neighbor got one and it's not even two years old and I just replaced it for him. He got it before he knew me. As for paints, we still have a sh!tpile of old 1Shot paints.... the good stuff. That's basically all we use, unless we're doing solid color stains.

How big will these signs be ?? Are you gonna be gluing them up and using biscuits or what ?? There's more behind this kinda sign, than just routing into wood.


The only latex we use is the primer. Generally, Jay Cooke's stuff.

 

[TimToad]

Unless you are an expert wood joiner and have advanced tools and skills in gluing up boards for exterior use, save yourself a lifetime of trouble or redos and switch to HDU-High Density Urethane for your primary substrate. I can only see using actual wood for a routed sign if the client is seeking a natural finish that reveals the color of the wood itself. You may as well sandblast a wood panel for the same effect.

The drop off in stability and paint adhesion and retention in wood is so huge compared to HDU, its not worth building a dimensional signage business around.

Why rout a texture into wood that will be susceptible to splitting, raising of the grain, checking, etc., when you can achieve the same texture in foam with more production speed, less wear and tear on your CNC and VERY expensive bits? No two wood boards are the same or level and you will have to surface every panel flat in addition to routing your textures. HDU sheets come dead flat and ready to be textured with no advance surfacing or joining required unless you go over 4'x8' in size.

Plus, you can use acrylic/latex primers and paints on the HDU with far superior results and longevity.

Most "latex" paints have additives meant to improve scrubbability and will repel vinyl letters like oil on water.

For sandblasted wood signs, use transparent or solid color stains. Wood needs to breathe and has a high rate of expansion and contraction. The harder and less resilient finish you apply to wood, the greater the risk of failure.

 

[geb]

Thank you all for the replies. I agree with and have experienced much of what is said. I have green people I'm trying to appease, and they go against everything I've learned and thought about the industry I've worked in now for many years. Guess I'm getting old.

George