Adding a little character to a sign

When working on larger projects it’s the little details that really make the difference for both the client and for us! Our current project is no different. We are creating a “themed” environment for the Fox Island Creamery & Café in Hewitt, NJ.  We’ve  created a nice little storyline and have developed some characters which should make the experience fun for both the kids and parents.

This sign is for a little beaver character that we created and his boat company. The Chubby Beaver Boat Building Co.

We started with a rough sketch, now I knew we would need a boat, a beaver and the back of the sign. So we started there.

Peter worked directly in Enroute Pro to create the shape and used some fun font styles for the carvings. We carved the sign out of 15# Precision Board HDU on our MultiCam 3000 CNC. Once the CNC was done with it’s job Peter hand carved the edges for the “beaver got to it” texture.

 

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We sealed the foam with Aqua Resin, then primed and spray painted our base coat.

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Using latex paint we painted two coats of a darker glaze to get a nice aged look on the wood.086090

Now are sign back is complete and its time to move on to our beaver!

I’ll carve the basics out of 15# Precison Board so I used Mudbox 3D Software to create the body and facial structure of the beaver. Once carved I used Magic Sculpt for the details.

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Hmm, I think my little guy could use some glasses. I’ll use the 3D printer for this little detail. I printed  2 pairs different sizes, the larger ones look best.

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We most definitely need a boat for this sign. This is a perfect task for our 3D Printer as well. I found a basic 3D boat online – downloaded the file and sized it perfectly to fit our beaver. 4 hours later we had our 3D printed boat. I love technology!

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A few more details and paint and we are all done – Can’t wait to hang it!

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Complete

Published with permission from KDF Custom Graphics. Source.

Giving Life to Precision Board

Every year the next generation continues to impress us. After receiving the donated Precision Board Plus from Coastal Enterprises Company, these select creative minds brought life to what was once a block of urethane. Using PBLT hand in hand with 3D Printers, Paper Laser Cutters and CNC Milling machines, the students at Carleton University in Ottawa are working with cutting edge technology. They are incorporating materials and machinery to create amazing works of art.

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PBLT 15 & PBLT 18, along with 3D printing, shows the intricate detail in the ‘Reef Project’

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PB Bond-240 (one part Urethane adhesive) being applied to bond sheets of Precision Board, to achieve desired thickness for this project.   Next step: CNC machining!

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Brant Lucuik, a professional CNC technician, helped the students learn about and use the CNC machine to carve the Precision Board.  There was a combination of densities used for this project. The students used PBLT-10 up to PBLT-20, though PBLT-15 and PBLT-18 were the norm. Everyone was pleased with how easy Precision Board was to work with, “It sands and mills beautifully and I would use it exclusively if I could” said Johan Voordouw, Professor of 2nd year Modeling and responsible for the reef project.

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The students at Carleton used several 3D printers from around campus in conjunction with the Precision Board to create this reef scene. Most of the 3D printers used were “smaller makerbots” to create the coral reef shapes. Superglue was used to bond the 3D art to CNC carved Precision Board.

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Precision Board in conjunction with 3d printing make ideas become reality. For more information regarding these projects, contact Professor Johan at Carleton University. For any more information about a potential CNC project, contact Brant at Carleton University. To find out more about Carleton University, Click Here!

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Sign Builder Illustrated June Cover – KDF’s – Callahan’s Build

Thank you Sign Builder Illustrated Magazine once again  for putting KDF on the cover featuring the Callahan’s Project!  What a fun project this was. Click below for the article.

Sign Builder - June 2015

Published with permission from KDF Custom Graphics. Source.

A Pig… With a Mustache

Not totally sure why but my 8 year old is obsessed with pigs. And if you throw a mustache on it she’s even more happy. So I wanted to make something that we could hang on the wall here at the studio that would make her smile when she visits – and give us a bit of a challenge to make.

I started by finding a basic 3D model of a pig then did a little digital sculpting to make a “friendlier” shape.

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Once complete Peter brought the file into Enroute and sliced it up (no ham or bacon jokes). We cut the basic shape out of two 5″ blocks of 15lb Precision Board HDU then glued them together.

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Now we are ready to shape and sculpt over it.

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We start by sanding and removing material then do a little hand shaping of the foam  – this is HDU and very easy to work with.

Once we have the shape we want we add Magic Sculpt 2 part epoxy putty to create the realistic skin and details.

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Holin is painting away and Peter is making the wood panel to mount our little pig to. Once cut Peter does some more hand texturing to the sides. All primed and ready to go.

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All Painted! Hmm – did we forget something?

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Off to the 3D Printer – I need a mustache and fast!

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Can’t wait to hang him.

– Steve

Published with permission from KDF Custom Graphics. Source.

Where to put all these pens?

The nice thing about having a 3D printer is that as you think of things to make your life a little easier you can just print them!

I’ve had it with pens, pencils and my stylus rolling all round my desk – so I just printed myself a handy little pen holder.

What do you need printed?

– Steve

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Published with permission from KDF Custom Graphics. Source.