Letter Carving

[Biliphuster]

Recently I was asked to carve a sign, so I thought I had better get a bit of practice in the font.

I have carved arial letters before but I think it is definitely worth taking the extra time to do a serif alphabet.The trickiest things are the serifs and the changing width of the curved portions. There is also a tendency to lose the sharp corners when carving a V or W, as the short grain down in the angle likes to break away.

Does anyone else do this kind of thing? It's quite relaxing and a different sort of precision, as you want everything to be crisp but you don't have to perfectly match parts together like in joinery.

 

[custard]

When I trained as a cabinet maker the syllabus included basic letter carving. The logic being it's a way for the independent maker to add a lot of value and put clear blue water between their output and high street furniture.

I was surprised to discover that you don't need loads of specialist carving chisels, just the normal chisels and gouges that you'd find in most workshops will get you started. The tricky and time consuming bit is the layout, but word processing software has made that much easier, and once you've learnt to carve at consistent depths and angles the actual letter carving itself isn't particularly difficult.

Agree, serifs make all the difference, Trajan or Times New Roman are the two typefaces I use most.

 

[xy mosian]

That looks like reasonable carving on/in what appears to be very awkward wood. Is it softish and stringy?
xy

 

[Biliphuster]

The tricky and time consuming bit is the layout, but word processing software has made that much easier, and once you've learnt to carve at consistent depths and angles the actual letter carving itself isn't particularly difficult.

Agree, serifs make all the difference, Trajan or Times New Roman are the two typefaces I use most.

Yes, I printed this out and then stuck down and carved through, before removing the paper with a plane. Sketching out by hand would certainly make this an order of magnitude harder.

That looks like reasonable carving on/in what appears to be very awkward wood. Is it softish and stringy?
xy

It's Kiaat, of which I had some boards left over. I wouldn't describe as soft but it has reversing grain and likes to chip away. I think if I oiled the letters they would show up well, as the end grain darkens well.

The other thing I would say is that smaller is much harder, next time I would double the size.

 

[AndyT]

I've done a tiny bit - a house nameplate for a friend.

I'd echo what's already been said - basic tools are enough, computer lettering helps, and serifs are fun.
The one special extra tool I used was a chip carving knife, but it's not essential.

I painted the inside of the cuts with some quick drying cellulose paint - mostly because I had a little can of it in black. It didn't soak into the grain like water paint would, and has given a nice contrast as the surrounding oak has gone silvery grey.

 

[xy mosian]

That looks like reasonable carving on/in what appears to be very awkward wood. Is it softish and stringy?
xy

It's Kiaat, of which I had some boards left over. I wouldn't describe as soft but it has reversing grain and likes to chip away. I think if I oiled the letters they would show up well, as the end grain darkens well.

The other thing I would say is that smaller is much harder, next time I would double the size.

Well I never have come across Kiatt before, from its appearance I don't think I'll chase any. Have fun.
xy

 

[DrPhill]

Nice work, thanks for posting. This is the sort of thing that I am likely to attempt. I am looking forward to picking up some useful hints on this thread.

 

[AJB Temple]

Good work. I am lazy and tend to use a router to do lettering, but that is very nice.

 

[monkeybiter]

Definitely on the to do list. I reckon, once comfortable with the idea, many tasks/applications would appear.

 

[thetyreman]

I know this is an old one but I'd like to give it a go, my friend very kindly gave me the book 'the craft of woodcarving' by Antony Denning, there's a section on letter carving in there so I've traced the page alphabet with tracing paper, got some blue carbon paper and etched that onto plain paper so I can then stick that onto the wood. I did a test and was surprised at how difficult it is, what woods would people recommend? I tried it on some meranti and it it doesn't seem to be able to get the crispness I am looking for. I'm planning on doing a very simple number plate to go outside for my parents house, the book also includes numbers as well.

 

[MikeG.]

Lime is the gold standard timber for carving, I'm told. I've only done a bit, in oak, because the house is made of oak. It's not particularly difficult, and I mainly used ordinary bench chisels.

 

[kevinlightfoot]

I was apprenticed to a pattern maker when I left school and one of the first things I learnt was lettercarving,if I remember correctly I was taught to carve the word "LINDEN" first of all.That was the extent of my lettercarving tuition and I haven't done any in the fifty years since.Yesterday I decided to have another go with just basic chisels and it was very enjoyable.I am looking for a copy of Chris Pyes book on the subject but not having much joy,if anyone has a copy to sell I would be very interested.I am going to make a sample board like Biliphusters,hope it turns out as well.Regards Kevin.

 

[DTR]

Lime is the gold standard timber for carving, I'm told.

SWMBO would agree, but failing that she's a fan of Tulip too.

 

[AES]

That looks very nice indeed. =D>

I've never tried letter carving but have cut quite a bit of lettering with my scroll saw. As one of the above posters says, the smaller the lettering gets the harder it gets - my smallest effort which produced anything like "success" was with letters about 15mm high. I also found that cutting any word with double letters in it was VERY hard - even the slightest difference between the two stands out like a bulldog's wotsits.

I think I posted it here at the time but can't find it now - my worst job was a small job for my wife's girlfriend, called "Janet" - but this is Switzerland, and they spell "funny" here, so it was:

Jeanette

The 2 "e"s either side of the 2 "t"s were VERY hard to get right - took me about 4 goes.

I realise carving rather than cutting is much different, but as said, I've never tried that, yours look most impressive. Just as a matter of interest, how big are your letters please?

 

[Jacob]

Very nice. I'm jealous it's something I've been meaning to get around to myself.
Really good video here: https://www.finewoodworking.com/2006/10 ... ing-basics

 

[AndyT]

Really good video here: https://www.finewoodworking.com/2006/10 ... ing-basics

+1 for that video. I think it's the one I watched back when I had a go.

 

[hodsdonr]

Kiatt (Pterocarpus angolensis) is a much sought after furniture timber, here in South Africa. And is/was so widely harvested that it is now on the protected list. Kiatt is the Dutch/Nederlands word for Teak, and was given to Kiatt here in Southern Africa because of its similarity to teak from the East. Works well and has a fine finish.

Well I never have come across Kiatt before, from its appearance I don't think I'll chase any. Have fun.
xy[/quote]

 

[woodbloke66]

If you have a mind, wander over to Instagram and have a look at Andy Pickard's carved letter work; very good indeed! - Rob

 

[DannyEssex]

Amazing skill you have, it looks fantastic =D>

 

[AndyT]

I've managed to revisit the sign I carved a few years ago and take a picture of it. The oak has weathered to grey but the cellulose paint inside the letters is holding up nicely.