Fast shipping tooling board: Don’t settle for long lead times!


Fast shipping tooling board: Check out our 52-second video to see how we do it!

We understand how important it is to get the material you need, exactly when you need it. That’s why Coastal Enterprises maintains such a large inventory: It’s fast and easy to ship Precision Board that we already have in stock! We excel at rush jobs, short timelines, last-minute orders, and unexpected complications. If your back is against the wall, give us a call! Precision Board is fast shipping tooling board, so click here for free Precision Board samples.

fast shipping tooling board

Large custom-bonded Precision Board step tool

Coastal Enterprises sustains a comprehensive inventory of Precision Board HDU at all times, to ensure that we can meet your needs at a moment’s notice. We make it a point to keep high stock levels of all material: fifteen different densities of High Density Urethane in eight standard sheet sizes, all with thicknesses up to 24”. This makes us extremely versatile in the way we can fulfill orders, since we have such a large stockpile of Precision Board on hand. And since we understand the tight schedule of a typical composites manufacturing or sign-making project, we can work around your timeline to make sure you’re fully supplied with the material you need.

fast shipping tooling board

Custom-bonded blocks in various sizes

Fast shipping tooling board

CNC-routing Precision Board

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On top of that, our highly skilled production team can perform in-house cutting for custom-sized sheets, as well as custom-bonded blocks, step tools, and filament-winding mandrels. Thanks to our experience and technical knowledge, we have specialized production capabilities that allow us to really think outside the box! Give us your craziest idea and we’ll give you a way to make it happen, and fast. Get your free Precision Board samples today, and find out what Coastal Enterprises can do to make your project happen! 

The Sign Invitational Retrospective ( Part 3 of 5 )

So what do you do when your the new kid on the block in a room full of the most creative sign makers in the world? Well, you sit and listen to all of them of course…

That is what I did at least. I have been watching and hearing about the contestants for months, so of course, I was going to pick their brains! Only I really didn’t have to ask or pry they openly started giving tons of advice, tips and tricks right out of the gate. That’s what makes this industry great. They were excited to share their knowledge and thought process and they enjoyed learning about my background as well.

So here is some wisdom bestowed upon me by the Sign Makers and sponsors of the Sign Invitational 2016.

One of the first I met was Roger Cox and Periandros Damoulis from House of Signs in Colorado. We stayed in the same hotel and had lunch together on set up day. I watched for hours as the two of them kept pulling out part after part after part for their sculpture. It took them over 6 hours to put that thing together and was very well worth it in my opinion. I sat next to Rodger at lunch and honestly he picked my brain more than anything. But I learned from Rodger it is okay being diverse. It’s okay to know a little about everything because honestly it is helpful. Rodger told me they had a girl similar at his shop and he thinks its absolutely fantastic at the amount of things she can do.IMG_0052

The next sign artist I met Phil Vanderkratts and Donna Shriver from Signs by Van. They first tormented me by shipping their sculpt with packing peanuts which ended up everywhere…. I have forgiven them for that. Anyways, those two pretty much put a piece of foam in my hands along with a chisel and started showing me how to carve woodgrain. Without hesitation they started right in showing me what to do. We also became Facebook friends quickly and they want me to send them progress shots of my carving. Donna also kept checking up on me since we were two of the few females in this sea of men and we both came from similar background doing graphic design and marketing and now find ourselves sign makers.
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Doug Haffner from Haffner’s Fantastic Creations was my next encounter…. He simply is very entertaining and pretty much a walking sitcom. The things that man says and does are pretty much hilarious. I found myself laughing so hard I couldn’t breath at times. I sat next to Doug at several meals talking Star Wars, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones , Face/Off and Jim Henson and pretty much learned from Doug it is okay to be yourself and to be comfortable with yourself. After all we only have one life so we might as well make it a fun one.IMG_9986

Kellie Miller of Coastal Enterprises was a sponsor and now a woman I can call a friend. She showed me the inner workings of trade shows and showed me around a bit. Kellie gave me some amazing advice since I am just starting out in this field and showed me sometimes dynamite comes in small packages. Her best advice was “Don’t let people walk all over you, they will be surprised at all you can do.”IMG_0099

Peter Sawatzky has a absolute amazing laugh that belongs to a cartoon character. After learning Peter wanted to be a teacher before his recent endeavors, showed me sometimes life doesn’t go how you planned it. He wanted to be a teacher it didn’t work out, it was not for him and now he’s creating works of art daily. Just shows life doesn’t go as planned but sometimes it can put you on the course to something greater.IMG_0050

Dan Sawatzky….. I have been watching and reading his blogs for a few years, back when I first started freelancing for Jim. It was really cool to meet him after following him for so long. Dan is a very down to earth guy and incredibly nice. He helped inspire and get many of the people in the Sign Invitational started in sign making with his workshops. Besides learning he is a cut-throat go-kart driver, Dan put in perspective to me what I really want to do in life. I want to be a artist, simply put and I get to do that everyday here at the shop.IMG_0057

So I learned a lot from all of these wonderful individuals and I hope to keep learning more from all of them.

-Aubrey

Published with permission from Synergy Sign & Graphics. Source.

The Sign Invitational Retrospective ( Part 2 of 5 )

Aubrey Gealsha, our newest team member and Illustrator extraordinaire, took the time yesterday to write about her first ISA visit and getting exposed to the sign industry in such a big way at ISA 2016.

I leave you with the words straight from her mouth. ( She’s pictured on the left… )

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The past two months here at Synergy have been a non stop crazy adventure. We have been working long hours not only as contestants but as event organizers as well. Relaying phone calls, emails to finish up our contest piece.

I honestly haven’t mixed that much clay in my life, and painted so much in one day. It was a learning experience and I pretty much had to jump head first into the sign world, having only been recently hired. I had no idea so much went into each piece and how much is fully involved and used to create these fantastic works of art. Not only is the art that is produce fantastic and amazing, but the people behind the art are equally fantastic and amazingly talented artists.

Over the past week, I had the opportunity to meet and talk with and share meals and fun with some of the top sign makers in the industry. It was fun to pick their brains learning how they found sign making. They equally embraced and welcomed me into this world by giving me tips and trick and open invitations to their sign shops any time. I honestly have never been in the same room with so many talented, humble and friendly people in my life and I am truly thankful for a wonderful experience the Sign Invitational was.

After driving 14 hours to Orlando our adrenaline must have been pumping as we unloaded and unpacked the sign sculptures, many of which I had not seen yet. With each crate being open in the chaos of forklifts, drill, hammers and people running around everywhere. Everyone in the Multicam booth took a minute and stood back to see this art emerge from each crate. Each amazing in their own way and reflective of the style of each sign artist.

I had never been to a trade show in my life let alone exhibit in one and I am very thankful Jim took me along. I learned so much, saw so much and met so many amazing people along the way. I was so inspired and so excited I was sketching ideas on the way home. I was also looking up hand carving techniques to practice on samples of HDU that Coastal Enterprises was so generous to give me.

It was a very eye opening experience and shows that sign making is not all just decals, banners, and car wraps but it can also be considered a true art form in the 3d realm as well as engineering marvels.

-Aubrey

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Published with permission from Synergy Sign & Graphics. Source.

The InterSign Group: Classic Style, Wood Not Required

Photo 11 Finished sign with Mark

Signage professionals and followers of the Coastal Enterprises blog will know the name of Mark Roberts. As the owner and operator of The Intersign Group for thirty-nine years and counting, Mark is an undisputed master of the sign creation process from concept to installation. We like to think of Mark as the embodiment of one of our favorite mottos: “Why use wood?” He has proved time and time again that old standards shouldn’t be followed blindly, creating incredible dimensional signs with the look and feel of wood, but with the durability and customizability of Precision Board. Not only is HDU easy to work with, it is impervious to moisture, rot, termites, bark beetles, and many other environmental hazards that spell doom for a wood sign. Mark’s latest success story comes from Pasadena, Texas, where a local dental practice had its sign damaged by graffiti and asked Mark to design a replacement. Mark saw that their aging redwood sign wasn’t in great shape in the first place, so he decided to go with a material that he knew could stand up to foul weather and long, hard years of exposure: Precision Board Plus. Click here to learn more about The InterSign Group and see some of their amazing custom creations.

Mark decided to use 1.5″ PBLT-15 for this particular project, striking a delicate balance between durability, weight conservation, and cost-efficiency. We think he made the smart choice here; the versatile PBLT-15 is one of our most popular densities for signage, and for good reason. He started out by creating patterns for the sign text, then using his router and Dremel to cut down the surrounding material and create raised lettering. Mark likes to use an emery board to round out the edges of raised letters by hand, giving every sign a highly professional look and feel. At this stage in the process, Mark knew that this sign needed a little something extra, and he decided to go for broke: Instead of leaving a smooth background, he set to work with carving gouges and created a fully custom faux wood grain.

Photo 04 Carving the grain into the high density urethane

Mark creates his backgrounds with great care to make them as realistic as possible, and this time was no different: this was the longest step in the process, but the most worthwhile to the overall project. Check out our blog posts on sandblasting and using our Textured Surface Finish for other ways to create a natural faux wood grain.

Photo 07 Applying the FSC 88 primer

The background was finished, and now the sign needed painting. Mark started off by applying two thin coats of our FSC-88 WB primer to every surface of the sign, and allowed them to dry thoroughly. Afterward, he painted the sign with a latex semi-gloss, a good choice for any exterior signage. After applying a muted beige paint to the letters and borders with a sponge brush, the sign was all but finished.

photo 09 Mark sanding the top of the sign

The only step left was installation. Mark and the InterSign team dug two holes 30″ deep, lined the holes with Sonotube concrete forms, and inserted the sign posts. They carefully added the bags of concrete, simultaneously agitating the concrete and adding water to ensure a rock-solid foundation. Finally, they bolted the finished sign face to the embedded posts, a process made much easier by the relative light weight of the PBLT-15.

Photo 10 Installing the bolts to attach the legs of the sign

There you have it, another incredible signage project by Mark Roberts and The InterSign Group. Every time they complete a project like this, they prove once again that wood is not required to create an elegant, classically-styled sign. All you need is a creative spirit and a steady supply of Precision Board! Click here to learn more about The InterSign Group and see some of their other brilliant HDU creations, and check out the article Mark wrote about this project for Sign Builder Illustrated. Ready to start crafting your own faux wood masterpieces? Click here for a free sample of Precision Board and get ready to modernize your dimensional signage!