Report on the first Router Magic Workshop in Yarrow

[Dan Sawatzky]

A couple of weeks back we held our first Router Magic Workshop in partnership with EnRoute Pro (SAI Software) here in our studio/shop in Yarrow. My goal was to do a number of things through the weekend. I wanted to inspire others to take a more whimsical but passionate approach to dimensional sign making. We wanted to inspire those in attendance to pull out all the stops and demonstrate to them a FUN side of the business. There are no secrets in our shop and we set out to share as much as we possibly could in our time together. While some time was spent in an informal classroom situation learning how to create textures with the Enroute software and a router, we also squeezed in as many demos as we possibly could, covering sculpting of concrete and epoxy, and faux finishes and lots and lots more.

Many of the highlights through the weekend for me personally were the informal and heart to heart talks I had with fellow Letterheads about signmaking, business, family and life in general. I not only got to share but also learned a great deal through the weekend.

Delicious catered meals were served right in the shop to make the most of our time together. A quick side trip up to Giggle Ridge Adventure Golf Saturday afeternoon for a round of 'winter rules' mini golf provided some fresh air, great fun and plenty of inspiration of just how far we can take themed environments, given the opportunity.

The attendance was limited to 10 people (we squeezed in 11 this go around) to facilitate as much one on one as possible and on account of our available space here in our studio/shop. Tom Penner, the head EnRoute trainer was in attendance and shared the instruction duties with me. It proved to be a good combination with Tom providing a technical approach while I showed a more artistic, learn by doing, pedal to the metal, fly by the seat of my pants method. I also covered how I create bitmap textures in Photoshop and also how to make a router (which loves doing straight precise lines) create "wiggly line" files which look hand done.

Officially we started at 9:00 am each morning and officially ended at 6:00pm, Friday and Saturday and until noon on Sunday. The reality was things started much earlier in the week on an informal basis. Henry Barker from Sweden was the first to arrive the previous Sunday. He wanted to be sure to get over jet lag. Sunday he was kind of out of it but by Monday morning he was up to speed and he joined our crew as we got things ready and finsihed projects in the shop. Others started to arrive on Wednesday and by Thursday afternoon just about everybody had joined in. jEach morning just after 8:00 am things started rolling and went on until almost midnight.

We packed every single minute with tons of learning and plenty of laughs! While Tom and I led the sessions, everyone joined right in, asking plenty of questions and also providing lots of answers. It proved there are plenty of creative solutions to just about every challenge we might face. It was high energy from start to finish!

I was joined by my own crew through the weekend who went far above the call of duty and allowed me to have a relaxed time, fully participating though the weekend. I enjoyed myself immensely! My heartfelt thanks to my wife Janis, and fellow team members Michelle Price, Donna Williams and daughter Rebecca Bermudez for making it so!

Tom Penner from EnRoute did a superb job with the technical training. While I could show what I wanted to do and how we did it in our shop, Tom explained the program in more technical terms and showed how/why it worked.

I would also like to thank all the folks who attended the workshop and made it so much FUN to host!
Chad Mangun, California
Cody Reich, Oregon
Danny Baronian, California
David Harding, Texas
Earl Scott, British Columbia
Henry Barker, Sweden
Margaret McCarthy, Ontario
Parker McWhorter, Texas
Rene Giroux, Quebec
Sal Saia, California
Steve Greer, Ontario

The first workshop proved to exceed all of my expectations. Although there were a few glitches and we can certainly improve on the next one, it went pretty well. The studio/workshop space seemed to work good and we crammed a LOT of material into the time available. I've gratefully recieved lots of positive feedback since the workshop and am taking to heart every suggestion I hear to make the next workshop even better.

The next Router Magic Workshop will be held February 22-24, 2008 and I'm looking forward to it with great anticipation!

-dan

[Danny Baronian]

Router Magic Workshop is a misnomer when the class and instruction are considered as a whole. Just looking at the name of the event, you'd think it was limited to using and running a router. In the end, the name works and covers vastly more than the name implies because while the router did the bulk of the mechanical work, hand finishing and painting made the end result look hand made rather than machine made.

To say "we squeezed in as many demos as we possibly could" is an understatement! I have never attended a class where more information was covered on a variety of subjects and materials in the time allotted. What helped considerably was the catered meals. Well, that's not quite right, some of the lunches were catered, some were cooked by Janis, Dan's wife. At break times, there was home baked snacks... no lunch wagon fare for sure. Aside from one night out to a local restaurant, we were in the shop from 8 am to 11pm every day.

Dan's techniques were shared on his use of EnRoute, a 2D / 3D program for outputting files to the router, and Photoshop it's use to create textures.
I use ArtCam for my routing, and while they both do much the same, there are differences. Part of the time I was mentally converting EnRoute's functions into ArtCam. Fact is, the information was presented in a way that could be used in many other programs.

During the 3 days we covered the software he used to run the router, how files are made and set up - textures in Photoshop, which was an eye opener for me, and illustrator for vector files. In addition to the software, files were sent to the router, explanations on why he chose the equipment he did, how the files were machined, and tooling. Nothing was left out, no questions left unanswered, including pricing and business practices.

After covering software and hardware considerations, we went over materials, paints and painted up pre routed signs and signs made during the course of the workshop. Following that Dan had welded up a short tree trunk from steel pencil rod. Those in the class applied expanded metal, and were shown how to apply and shape cement to the armature. Dan made it look easy, after all he's had a lot of experience. But after watching him feel it's something that would be a good addition to work I already do, and plan on using the method for an upcoming project.

All in all it was a three day workshop in sign making. No, there was no hand lettering - other than those that signed his wall, though he has often employed hand lettering on his projects. But there was a lot of hands on, hand crafted work that would sell well in any market making a big improvement to the vast amount of mediocre signage we see in our communities.

To Dan and his staff, thank you, it was a great adventure! Next time Kathy will be able to share in that experience.

If you're ever tempted to give the course a try, add a few days or more before or after the course, it's a beautiful country up there!

















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[Mike Jackson]

Hi Dan,
Thanks for the post! You are welcome to post here ANYTIME. We could use a few dozen "how-to's" on router work, texturing, and various finishes you appear to have mastered. This forum is open to about any topic related to the sign industry. Thanks for making the post and thanks to Danny for adding the photos.

Oh yes, this forum is not heavily funded by sponsors so people are welcome and encouraged to list specific supplies, manufacturers, software and equipment used in the processes they describe here.

Best regards,
Mike Jackson