How do you sign pieces

[Don C Davis]

I am looking for advice on how to sign some of my pieces--I would like to be able to clearly sign my name,date and type of wood. I have tried using a fine tip sharpie with varying results, plus the sharpies seem to die out rather quickly on me. I am thinking whether a good pyrography pen is a good way to go--I got some knowledge from an earlier post by Emiliano.

 

[Lamar Wright]

I use an Archival pen for signing work. I always sign after finish and buff.

 

[Ed Romson]

Based on a military "Challenge Coin" I use this medallion to sign my work. A shallow indent with a forstner bit and some glue on the bottom of the bowl/piece works well

 

[RichColvin]

Based on a military "Challenge Coin" I use this medallion to sign my work. A shallow indent with a forstner bit and some glue on the bottom of the bowl/piece works well
View attachment 26620

Ed,

Those are nice! Where do you get them made ?

Kind regards,
Rich

 

[RichColvin]

Don,

I tried branding, but that rarely worked well.

Kind regards,
Rich

 

[Ed Romson]

I've ordered twice over the years from Gary at
Pinz711@aol.com

Good luck and Aloha
Ed

 

[Emiliano Achaval]

I can’t remember exactly, but we had a thread about this... I think I asked the same... I wanted a branding iron. Several comments said that’s not a personal thing, a signature is better. I now use an engraver, like Betty Scarpino, a Dremel one. Also use, when possible archival ink pen, dark woods like Milo won’t show. Someone said a branding iron you need a good flat surface, something I didn’t think about, most of my work has a round bottom... Has anybody seen how Emmet Kane sign his work? Now, that style! Aloha.

 

[Glenn Lefley]

I can’t remember exactly, but we had a thread about this... I think I asked the same... I wanted a branding iron. Several comments said that’s not a personal thing, a signature is better. I now use an engraver, like Betty Scarpino, a Dremel one. Also use, when possible archival ink pen, dark woods like Milo won’t show. Someone said a branding iron you need a good flat surface, something I didn’t think about, most of my work has a round bottom... Has anybody seen how Emmet Kane sign his work? Now, that style! Aloha.

Do you have a picture how he signs his work?

 

[hockenbery]

Legibility is over-rated

The advice I got many years ago from a famous turner who had juryied my piece into a show was - Make your signature small.

I argued - no one will be able to read it

He told me - everyone will know who you are don’t let the signature distract from the work.

I have found that to be great advice. I use a wood burner work slow and small.

 

[Mike Johnson]

Another option is laser engraving a round disc with your info and insetting the disc into the bottom of your piece. If you have a number of these done at one time the price goes down depending on the quantity ordered. A variety of materials can be used for these items.

 

[odie]

Legibility is over-rated

The advice I got many years ago from a famous turner who had juryied my piece into a show was - Make your signature small.

I argued - no one will be able to read it

He told me - everyone will know who you are don’t let the signature distract from the work.

I have found that to be great advice. I use a wood burner work slow and small.

I am in agreement.......simplicity works for me, too.....I don't even do a signature......only a logo with my initials. Nothing more. I've always felt date, number, wood type, along with a signature, looks cluttered. I do understand that many turners feel all this information looks professional.....and, I can't dispute an opinion with another opinion. I apply my opinion to my work, and what others do is ok by me.

I use a cub woodburing tool that I bought from CSUSA about 30 years ago.....still works fine.

-----odie-----

 

[Bill Boehme]

I have used everything except for the coin, and my favorite is pyrography. Like Al said, work slow and small ... and practice a lot. It's not something that can be done well without practicing signing your name a couple hundred times. Also, you need a pen that has a writing tip and turn the heat way down to the point that you aren't sending smoke signals. Think of it as signing by singeing. Use a very light touch, hold the pen nearly perpendicular to the surface, keep the pen slowly moving at a constant rate. This works best on lighter wood. I used laser engraving for a while, but decided that it made the pieces look like something that was mass produced. An actual signature regardless of how you produce it is much better, in my opinion.

 

[john lucas]

I find it interesting that we tend to put our signature where it can't be seen. Painters throw it right out there and proclaim who they are. I've toyed with that idea but instead tend to make it more subtle and on the bottom of bowl and platters and on the mirror border on my hand mirrors. I use mostly my Dremel engraver but occasionally go with the pyro pen.

 

[Gary Beasley]

View attachment 26623 I find it interesting that we tend to put our signature where it can't be seen. Painters throw it right out there and proclaim who they are. I've toyed with that idea but instead tend to make it more subtle and on the bottom of bowl and platters and on the mirror border on my hand mirrors. I use mostly my Dremel engraver but occasionally go with the pyro pen.

We are simply following the long time example of the high end pottery producers. Many of them use simple logos like Odie and some also embed codes for production dates. This tradition seems to go back as far as the Chinese dynasties.

 

[Lamar Wright]

I am in agreement.......simplicity works for me, too.....I don't even do a signature......only a logo with my initials. Nothing more. I've always felt date, number, wood type, along with a signature, looks cluttered. I do understand that many turners feel all this information looks professional.....and, I can't dispute an opinion with another opinion. I apply my opinion to my work, and what others do is ok by me.

I use a cub woodburing tool that I bought from CSUSA about 30 years ago.....still works fine.
View attachment 26621
-----odie-----

Very clean and neat Odie!

 

[Mark Jundanian]

I brand my pieces.

First, I sat down and came up with a logo. It is based on my initials, but looks more like a symbol. I then had a custom iron made. When applied to the bottom of a bowl the effect is very like the hallmarks seen on fine china or silver pieces. This ends up looking very personal in a way that my name in block letters would not.

The brand I made was about an inch in size and I usually place my mark centered on the bowl bottom.

My last project was a petite bowl with no non show surface. I realized the branding mark was going to be too distracting. I approached the branding iron company and got them to make me another as small as possible, about 3/8 inch.

Then as I continued the project I pondered that even though a discrete size, burning the mark was still going to be more distracting than I would like. I hit upon the idea of using the branding iron to emboss the wood surface.

After carefully positioning the branding iron head on the bowl I used a C-clamp to gently apply increasing pressure and ended up with a very nice and subtle embossed mark.

Pictures show my full brand on a larger bowl and the embossed mark on the little bowl.




I don't add any other info to the piece. I am thinking of numbering my pieces (ink), but for now I just have a catalogue of photos.

Here is a tip that works for me. Whether branding or embossing (and I think this advice applies to pyrography and maybe ink) I always apply my mark when I have finished shaping and sanding the bottom and before completeing the project.

My usual approach is to start turning the wood with the basin surface (top) mounted to the chuck and form the sides and bottom of the bowl. Then these surfaces get sanded. Now before flipping the mounting I apply the mark. In the case of hot branding I can use the lathe tool rest to help me align the hot iron (check the tool rest height before you heat the iron). Sometimes the brand gets poorly applied (even with practice), but since the bowl is still lathe mounted it's easy to sand or carve the mark off and get it right the second time. If the brand is good, lightly sand it to clean up the edges of the mark.

For embossing I have a similar sequence, but had to take the bowl out of the chuck to fit the C-clamp.

 

[Mark Wollschlager]

It sort of depends upon the wood and whether I remembered before I put the final finish on.
Over the last 16 years I found that sharpie sig's fade. The micron permanent .2 markers last longer.
Lighter colored woods I have done pyro with a small skew and the razortip very small writing ball tip.
I like the skew a bit better, most of the letters in my name can be done with a series of straight strokes.
The little ball does not give me as crisp of a line.
On darker woods I use an engraver with a sharpened tip. Sometimes on lighter wood too.
I have tried using the gold stick to highlight the engraved sig, but have had mixed results.

 

[Gary Beasley]

Marks setup makes me think a branding iron designed to fit the tailstock via a morse taper might be a good thing. Holds it straight and you can brand as you finish the bottom.

 

[Martin Groneng]

I'm still a "rookie" turner, almost 40 years of turning and have sold numerous pieces for over a thousand dollars and in most cases because the buyer said the piece was "authentic" because I sign/signature, year and wood on each piece. I have been told many times that if it is not signed, that means "anybody" could have turned it. I totally agree. A "non signed" turning could be fake and in my opinion in most cases any other format looks crappy and takes away from the creativity and workmanship of the piece. I sign in fine writing with a Micron 01 archival ink pen in which the pigment ink is for waterproof and fade proof fine lines. Piece is signed before finishing and have had pieces over 20 years that have NEVER faded. Try it and be proud of your piece that you have "signed"!

 

[Bill Boehme]

I normally just sign and date, but sometimes include the wood species. On my basket illusion pieces there is enough space so I include the title, year, wood, my mark, and signature. An example is shown below. I don't use ink because the pieces are bare of any finish. Maple is great for pyrography since it doesn't have much difference in hardness between early and late wood.

 

[Mark Jundanian]

Marks setup makes me think a branding iron designed to fit the tailstock via a morse taper might be a good thing. Holds it straight and you can brand as you finish the bottom.

I like that idea. I think it could work.

 

[Don C Davis]

Odie, I like that a lot, I have a super simple branding iron with a logo from before I developed one I really like, I suppose I should get a new head for it, if I can remember who I ordered it from
I also I am looking into buying a pyrography(?) pen from PJL....

 

[Gary Beasley]

If you want some hands on with pyrography I have a Colwood Detailer I use for signing with several tips. Im not too far from you.

 

[Mark Jundanian]

I like that idea. I think it could work.

On further reflection, the idea might work well for embossing. But I think it might be problematic for branding.

The iron is very hot, and unless you heated it on the lathe getting it into the morse taper of the tail stock quill, upside right and straight, could be a bit challenging. Heating it on the lathe doesn't seem like a good idea, either. Then, the iron is applied to the wood only for a second of so and that might be difficult to manage with the tail stock/quill, as well.

 

[john lucas]

I had a Colwood and could never sign my name without it looking like crap. I purchased the Optima unit with their writing tip and my problems went away. I think it has to do with what they call recovery time. When you stick the pen to the wood it soaks up heat from the pen. Then unit has to supply more power to get the pen back up to temperature. The Optima does this very very well and makes it much easier to burn a clean line.

 

[Glenn Lefley]

I'm still a "rookie" turner, almost 40 years of turning and have sold numerous pieces for over a thousand dollars and in most cases because the buyer said the piece was "authentic" because I sign/signature, year and wood on each piece. I have been told many times that if it is not signed, that means "anybody" could have turned it. I totally agree. A "non signed" turning could be fake and in my opinion in most cases any other format looks crappy and takes away from the creativity and workmanship of the piece. I sign in fine writing with a Micron 01 archival ink pen in which the pigment ink is for waterproof and fade proof fine lines. Piece is signed before finishing and have had pieces over 20 years that have NEVER faded. Try it and be proud of your piece that you have "signed"!

Odie, I like that a lot, I have a super simple branding iron with a logo from before I developed one I really like, I suppose I should get a new head for it, if I can remember who I ordered it from
I also I am looking into buying a pyrography(?) pen from PJL....

I notice people talk about branding irons not working on woodturnings as they are not perfectly flat. I would just sand the brand tona curve on outside. Then when branding rotate it a bit.

 

[john lucas]

I sign a piece for 2 reasons. When I. See one of my pieces somewhere it's nice to see the date and know when I made it. The other reason is people often see a piece and ask "who made that". If I signed it they know. Now of course all.of mine say lucas. Now that Glen Lucas is spending a lot of time in the States I guess I may have to start using my first name.

 

[Bill Boehme]

I notice people talk about branding irons not working on woodturnings as they are not perfectly flat. I would just sand the brand tona curve on outside. Then when branding rotate it a bit.

I have a branding iron that my wife gave me about twenty something years ago when I was doing flat woodworking. The problem is getting a nice brand after a few dozen uses because the face of the brand develops a slight curve. I would make a bunch of trial brands until I felt confident that I could do it successfully, but invariably the results were a partial brand or something comparable to an overstrike if I tried to fix a partial brand.

If I really was determined to do successful branding I would take it to somebody that does laser engraving. They can scan your design and convert it to a scalable vector graphic. The results are perfect, but looks too machine made/mass produced for my taste. So I discarded that option after having several pieces laser engraved. Here is one of the laser engraved pieces. The picture is much larger than actual size. The smallest circle is about the size of a nickel so the writing is just barely large enough to read.

 

[William Rogers]

For method, I normally use my wood burner. I wasn't successful with the Burnmaster writing pen, but do just fine with the PLJ pens. On dark wood with a hard finish i use a dremel and gold fill as Cindy Droza uses.

I was advised to put my full name on my work as few if any will recognize initials.

I put my name, wood species and have been putting the year, b ut not sure i will keep doing that.

 

[Mark Jundanian]

after a few dozen uses because the face of the brand develops a slight curve.

I wonder why that happened? I haven't experienced the same thing. Was the branding iron particularly small? I can say the irons I have are sizeable pieces of brass.

 

[Fred Belknap]

I use a permanent fine tip sharpie. I find it is best to put at least one coat of finish on before signing. With sharpies which is an alcohol base ink to sign some wood with open pores it will run and blur. I always put one coat of finish over the signature to make it permanent. Small in cursive and print type of wood is all I do.

 

[RichColvin]

The problem is getting a nice brand after a few dozen uses because the face of the brand develops a slight curve.

Bill,

I had the same problem. That’s part of the reason I abandoned that approach.

Kind regards,
Rich

 

[Bill Boehme]

I wonder why that happened? I haven't experienced the same thing. Was the branding iron particularly small? I can say the irons I have are sizeable pieces of brass.

The piece of brass is about 2½" X ¾". Maybe the wattage of the iron is too high and some brass alloys are softer than others.

Rich, thanks for mentioning your experience with the branding iron.

 

[Gerald Lawrence]

My brand did the same thing and have to rock it for complete brand but it is too big for turnings.

 

[Doug Rasmussen]

My kids used to come to the shop with their friends after school sometimes. Everybody wanted to try branding pieces of wood. One time I couldn't find enough wood scraps so I told them to brand some brown cardboard cartons. That satisfied their urge to brand.

The brand head was round with 3/16" high text in a circular pattern, company name, city, etc (not the type of wood because that would have required multiple brands).

Day after that I was branding some product and noticed a few of the lower case letters in the brand were eroded away. My first thought was the kids might have dropped the brand, no, looking closely something in the cardboard had reacted with the brass/bronze/copper (??) of the head eating them away. Never had any problems branding an assortment of hard and soft woods including resinous tropical hardwoods though.


Sorta' along the lines of marking one's work is having an artist's or maker's statement. For a glass gallery we made wood (and occasionally metal) stands for display of high dollar blown glass. The stands raised the pieces up off the shelf so they showed better in gallery lighting than sitting on the shelf. The stands sold well so the gallery wanted an exclusive. But, they required an artist's statement from me. I puzzled over that for a long time and couldn't with a straight face come up with anything philosophical like they wanted about making display stands. My sarcasm always took over, "Doug sees the kinship between wood and money, since money is made from wood fiber".

 

[GRJensen]

On turned work, I use a Colwood burner with a fine writing tip. Fortunately, my penmanship has always been pretty good.

On flat work, I have an electric branding iron. I have tried the branding iron on a few turnings, but it doesn't work very well unless the surface is perfectly flat (which it rarely is).

 

[hughie]

I have a couple of brands and use them on bigger pieces, platters and such. Generally a Dremel and fill the lettering with a Sharpie let it dry and add finish to it. Been thinking of buying a dentist drill as the ultra high speed works better on the hardwood as I seem to have a lot of it. I like the idea of a brand logo just havent really sorted a design out that I like.

 

[Dean Center]

Dental burrs are used in acute medical treatment facilities to remove embedded metallic foreign bodies from eyes. While dentists traditionally used air powered equipment with their burrs, the medical ones are usually driven by a battery operated tool. I have no idea if the speed is similar to air powered, but it's very fast. For those wanting to engrave, a 0.5 mm burr would certainly allow you to write small and fine. Here's an example of a reasonably priced unit:
https://www.amazon.com/Algerbrush-0...&qid=1537407598&sr=8-3&keywords=algerbrush+ii
Disclaimer: I have no idea if this would work for a woodworking purpose. (It's real slick on eyeballs, though)

 

[Mike Peace]

I did a video on this topic a while back.

View: https://youtu.be/4V3WMhlIat4

 

[Donovan Bailey]

I did a video on this topic a while back.

View: https://youtu.be/4V3WMhlIat4

Very very nice video, Mike. Thank you for it. The video prompted me to buy an Optima back when you first posted the video and I couldn't ask for a better solution.