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Tiki Central / Tiki Carving

Balhi Ha'i sign

Pages: 1 20 replies

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Humuhumu posted on 07/02/2015

I just finished my second carving project -- a sign for the tiki bar.

The wood is a hunk of mystery meat pulled out of a dumpster by a kind employee at a landscape supply yard, a bit of scrap left over from trimming some sort of plank. Alder? Unusually pale redwood? I dunno. The grain was subtle. Didn't seem at all like pine or oak.

All the carving was done using a Dremel tool with a flex shaft attachment.

Here's photos of the project as it progressed:

:down: I created the logo years ago, it's based on lettering from a vintage menu of a place called Bali Ha'i. I drew the lower case "h". I printed it on the inkjet, and then traced it onto the board using carbon paper.

:down: I used a pointy triangle bit to edge a smidge around the letters.

:down: I used a nice, big oval bit to get this fun, rough-hewn texture all around the background... until my bit came flying out of the Dremel and landed somewhere in the yard. Whoops!

:down: While my bit was lost, I switched to cutting out deeply and carefully around the letters using some smaller bits.

:down: Found my bit! Here's the sign after all the carving was completed, and after sanding.

:down: Two coats of Dark Walnut stain.

:down: Three coats of satin finish polyurethane.

:down: One coat of primer on the lettering.

:down: Three coats of gold paint, and the sign is finished!

Next comes getting the sign hung. I need to do some work in the stairwell where the sign will live, mostly mounting lighting directed at the sign.

For my next carving project -- I think I might carve the handle on my ice pick.

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Humuhumu posted on 07/02/2015

A step I didn't elaborate on, that may be worth mentioning in case someone wants to do this themselves: after polyurethane and before applying the coat of primer, I sanded the lettering thoroughly with 220 sandpaper. That smoothed the surface a bit (particularly important since the cleanness of the lettering is supposed to contrast with the roughness of the background, and the metallic gold paint would have made uneven bits really obvious), and also probably improved adhesion of the paint. You should sand between poly coats, too, but the can of poly will tell you that.

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Humuhumu posted on 07/02/2015

Oh! Also, in the photo above where I talk about the "big oval bit" the bit in the picture is not that bit -- it's a smaller round bit I used for doing the lettering. The big oval bit was about the size and shape of an unshelled peanut.

C
cy posted on 07/02/2015

A great looking sign Humu, nice work!

R
RIOTURBAN posted on 07/02/2015

Really nice looking sign!

T
tikitonyd posted on 07/03/2015

Loving this... and totally stealing the process. Thanks!

W
Woodtiki posted on 07/03/2015

Looks awesome!

M
MaukaHale posted on 07/03/2015

The letters really jump off the board!

HOK
HOUSE OF KU posted on 07/03/2015

Beautiful Work! Can't wait to see the Ice pick! :0)

A
amate posted on 07/04/2015

Well done!

WP
Watango productions posted on 07/06/2015

Cool

M
MadDogMike posted on 07/06/2015

I like it! Thanks for sharing

A
AlohaTexasTikiCo posted on 07/06/2015

Wow that looks amazing. I'm a little stunned.

TP
Tiki Phil posted on 07/07/2015

I like it!

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Humuhumu posted on 07/08/2015

Thanks for the kind words, everybody! I think I have all the pieces I need to get it hung, once it's in its spot I'll share more pictures.

T
Thortiki posted on 07/08/2015

Mid Century SLICK. Please post a pic when you've hung it up! (-:

KG
Kahiki Guy posted on 07/08/2015

Looks really good! Thanks for sharing and posting pics of the process.

MB
Monkey Bizz posted on 07/14/2015

I Like it!!

L
LoriLovesTiki posted on 07/18/2015

Very, very nice!

Makes me want to take out our dremel.

TS
Trader Scott posted on 07/22/2015

Thanks Humuhumu, you're instructions are wonderful! I'm working on my own version based off of your steps for my bar right now. I'll post pics of the process when it's ready to hang up :)

F
Fugu posted on 07/28/2015

The sign looks wonderful. Very nice work, and thanks for sharing your techniques!

Pages: 1 20 replies