24 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



Charles F. Shiels, Charles F. Shiels & Co., 

 Cincinnati, O. 



T. B. Stone, T. B. Stone Lumber Co., Cincin- 

 nati. O. 



L. 11. Snodgrass, Buck & Suodgrass Lumber 

 Co., Johnson City, Tenn. 



G. W. Schwartz, Vandalia Line, St. Louis, Mo. 



John B. Shotwell, Lumber Trade Journal, 

 New York, N. Y. 



W. W. Stone, T. B. Stone Lumber Co., Cin- 

 cinnati, O. 



C. H. Schatzman, Pennsylvania Railroad Co.. 

 Cincinnati, O. 



F. L. Scott, T. P. Scott & Co., Cincinnati, 0. 



T. P. Scott, T. 1". Scott & Co., Cincinnati, O. 



John D. Spanlding, Southern Oak Lumber Co., 

 Chicago, 111. 



John Slonaker, Mowbray & Robinson, Cincin- 

 nati, O. 



George I.. Smith, Indianapolis, Ind. 



F. E. Stonebraker, Lansing Wheelbarrow Co 

 Memphis, Tenn. 



F. II. Smith, F. H. Smith Co., St. Louis, Mo. 



Carroll r. Sweet, Fuller & Rice Lumber & 

 Manufacturing Co., Grand Rapids, Mich. 



.1. V. Stimson, Huntingburg. Ind. 



\V. T. Sehnaufer, Crescent Lumber Co., Mari- 

 etta, O. 



Gregory S. Stewart, W. II. & G. S. Stewart, 

 Cincinnati, O. 



.1. II. P. Smith, R. M. Smith & Co., Parkers- 

 burg, W. Va. 



L. L. Skillman, Skillman Lumber Co., Grand 

 Rapids, Mich. 



John O. Tate, E. C. Alkins & Co., Inc., In- 

 dianapolis, Ind. 



W. E. Trainer. Trainer Bros.. Lumber Co., 

 Chicago. 111. 



J. S. Trainer, Trainer Bros. Lumber Co., Chi- 

 cago, 111. 



E. J. Thoman, Bennett & Witte, Cincinnati, O. 

 J. E. Tuthill, Cypress Lumber Co., Cincin- 

 nati, O. 



Charles \Y. Tomlinson. Baltimore & Ohio 

 Southwestern railroad. Cincinnati, O. 



Miles V. Todd, Lake Shore-Lehigh Valley 

 Route, Cincinnati, O. 



\Y. E. Talbeit, \Y. E. Talbert Lumber Co., 

 Cincinnati. O. 



F. W. Vetter, Empire Lumber Co., Buffalo, 

 N. Y. 



A. R. Yinnedge, A. R. Vinnedge Lumber Co., 

 Chicago, 111. 



James A. Van Orsdel, John Dulweber & Co., 

 Cincinnati, O. 



J. C. West, 15. M. Smith & Co., Parkersburg, 

 W. Va. 



H. P. Wiborg, Wiborg & Hanna Co., Cincin- 

 nati, O. 



E. W. Wiese. Thomas & Proetz, St. Louis, Mo. 



George S. Wilkinson, Van Keulen & Wilkinson 

 Lumber Co., Grand Rapids, Mich. 



J. II. Wehry, Littletord Lumber Co., Cincin- 

 nati. O. 



S. A. Williams, Williams & Voris Lumber Co.. 

 Chattanooga, Tenn. 



J. N. Woodbury. E. B. Lombard. Chicago, III. 



Wallace D. Wolfe, William II. Perry Lumber 

 Co., Cincinnati. O. 



W. D. White. Mead & Speer Co., Pittsburg, Pa. 



J. B. Wall, Buffalo Hardwood Lumber Co., 

 Buffalo. N. Y. 



Orsop i: Yeager, Buffalo, X. Y. 



Edward J. Young, Brittlngham & Young Co., 

 Madison, Wis. 



HardWood Letters. 



The extensive use of large signs, both 

 for exterior and interior service, has cre- 

 ated a wide demand for hardwood letters. 

 , In the construction of the modern patterns 

 of electrical display signs they are especially 

 valued. These signs are made of hardwood 

 and sheet metal, the lettering of hardwood, 

 with the light bulbs outlining the words. 

 Hardwood letters are also extensively used 

 in the formation of unique interior decora- 

 tions. Mottoes, composed of fanciful let- 

 ters, are seen on the walls of library, den, 

 or dining-room in homes as well as in ho- 

 tels and other public buildings. They are 

 also sometimes used on glass windows, tak- 

 ing the place of the more usual enamelled 

 patterns. The great advertising signs seen 

 on building tops in the cities and along the 

 railway lines are very often composed of 

 hardwood letters. 



During recent years the demand has in- 

 creased in a surprising manner and is now 

 of such importance that the manufacture 

 of hardwood letters should offer a profita- 

 ble field to the woodworking trade. Ash, 

 hickory, white oak, elm, poplar, maple, and 

 in fact nearly all the hardwoods are util- 

 ized for this purpose. The softwoods are . 

 almost never brought into service, since 

 they are more liable to split and chip in the 

 making and will not resist the action of 

 the weather as do hardwoods. It is essen- 

 tial of course to select wood which is free 

 from defects, particularly if the material 

 is to be bent. The bulk of the output is 

 made from straight stock, but most manu- 

 facturers are provided with bending de- 

 vices for the shaping of rounded portions 

 when required. Taking, for example, the 

 most common system of letter construction, 

 the process is well illustrated by the first 

 two sketches accompanying this article. 

 Figure 1 shows one side of the angle form- 

 ing the letter A. The pieces are sawed to 

 the proper length, smoothed on the planer 

 and the top sawed fo'r the juncture with 

 the other section of the letter. Then the 

 sides are mortised for the cross-piece, the 

 cross-piece is inserted and the letter is set 

 up as shown in Figure 2. A few small 



wire nails are driven in to hold the parts 

 firmly, and a very strong article is the re- 

 sult. In some instances glue is employed 

 for securing the joints. If the letters are 

 to be subjected to severe strain when in 

 service, as in signs for exposed positions 

 on tops of buildings, the process of joint- 

 ing shown in ■ Figure 3 is adopted. The 

 union thus formed, with the aid of glue 

 and a few nails, makes a strong connec- 

 tion which will withstand the hardest 

 visage. 



Letters are frequently sawed out in one 

 piece. The stock is first cut into sections 

 as shown in Figure 4, the blank in readi- 

 ness for the sawing. The outline of the 

 desired pattern is then traced on the smooth 

 surface of the blank, the lines followed 

 with a fine saw, producing a very service- 

 able letter in one piece as exhibited in 

 Figure 5. With a little finishing, truing 

 up, etc., the letter is ready for use. This 

 mode of manufacture does not turn out as 

 strong a product as the mortised style, but 

 for some purposes it is quite as satisfac- 

 tory. Great care should be taken to' thor- 

 oughly season the stock before using, as the 

 principal difficulty encountered in the one- 

 piece letter is from warping and cracking, 

 when of course they are a complete loss. 

 If well-seasoned lumber is used and the 

 letters are not of too great size the one- 

 piece article gives very good service. 



Another mode of constructing the hard- 

 wood letter is shown in Figure 6, in which 

 the joints are lapped. The pieces are prop- 

 erly cut to make the lapping unions, and 

 the juncture secured with wooden pegs. 

 The holes are bored through both pieces 

 with a drill and the pegs are hardwood 

 stock and can be driven very securely. 

 The joints are mortised so as to insure an 

 even firmer grip. 



In some forms of electric light displays 

 the stencil type of letter is used, a draw- 

 ing of which is presented in Figure 7. The 

 wood is carefully selected and cut to the 

 required size. These blanks are then 

 marked off with the outline of the letter 



desired. The figure exhibits the manner 

 of making the letter O. A section of the 

 wood is left connecting the solid exterior 

 at the top and bottom as shown. These 

 strips serve to retain the center of the let- 

 ter in position. Other letters requiring a 

 solid center are cut on the same plan. 



While the plain, solid, full-face letter 

 is always best for hard service in the long 

 run, there are numerous calls for those of 

 artistic design for special purposes. A very 

 elaborate pattern is illustrated in Figures 

 S and 9. Carving is often added, in some 

 instances very intricate, which brings the 

 cost of manufacture up to an almost pro- 

 hibitive point, and makes the use of these 

 types rare. Figure 10 shows a letter de- 

 signed for use in an electrical display sign. 

 The little circles are the openings in which 



the globes are screwed and with which the 

 required thread can be tapped very readily. 

 Block letters for electrical signs are usu- 

 ally enamelled, but the work is done 

 at another shop. The manufacturer 

 of hardwood letters seldom has an enamel- 

 ling plant. He prepares the faces of the 

 letters for the application of the enamel 

 by spreading a coat of glue on the knots 

 and defective places. A coat of varnish 

 over all will give a good surface to the 

 letters. 



Figures 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 show some 

 of the types of the cutting tools employed 

 in the making of hardwood letters. The 

 points of the tools must be kept very 

 sharp. They are fitted with adjustable 

 handles and are used in chipping out 

 angles, smoothing off roughness and in cut- 

 ting out the decorations on the fanciful 

 types. An assortment of files forms an 

 essential part of the equipment of the 

 maker of hardwood letters. There are num- 

 berless projections and defects to be gone 

 over and smoothed up, and the half-moon 

 file, Figure 16, the half round file. Figure 

 17, the full round file, Figure 18, the dia- 

 mond file, Figure 19, the common square 

 file, Figure 20, and the oval file, Figure 21, 

 are indispensable in this work. The emery 

 block is also useful. The emery wheel is 

 used to good advantage in finishing off the 

 surfaces of the letters, but there are places 

 which can not be reached with the wheel 

 which can easily be managed with the 

 block. Steel wool is employed with good 

 results in treating the surfaces of letters. 

 Figure 23 shows a bit of this material. 

 Common sandpaper is used in putting the 

 finishing touches on the letters. 



