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Digitalwoodshop
02-20-2011, 03:03 AM
I will Title this one IndustriAL uses for the CarveWright....

Tonight I am checking the Forum on my way out.... It has been a long day working on a big order. At first I was planning to cut the Tags on the CW but the Customer wanted the Economy one sided Tag that I can get cut from my supplier....

Woke this morning to heavy winds and the Power was out until Noon. Took 2 hours to whip up the Artwork for this project. Using Find and Replace made making the Art for the other Departments easy.... Even Changed the Color with Find and Replace...

Printing the Actual Tags started at 7 PM and I just finished over 500 tags at 3 AM... During that time I listened to 3 different Fire Calls in the County all after Midnight... All Wood Stove Related... 2 Fires and one back drafted Smoke setting off the Alarm. It's 17 degrees as I type and the wind is blowing.

So here are some pictures of my $5K project... In my Excitement I thought it was a $10K project... That Times 2 Tags.... Got me.... 535 Tags not Fireman...

I have shipped a bunch of stuff this week, all done on the CW....

Here is a GLOAT.... A Fire Dept near Penn State.:rolleyes:

AL

Digitalwoodshop
02-21-2011, 12:13 AM
My weekend was 535 Times MORE Boaring than most people here..... Boaring.... You know the DRILL.........

How was it Jeff Dunham said it... Nascar.... "There making a LEFT Turn".... O' NO.... "There making a LEFT Turn"..... LOL....

It's the Fumes..... 1 AM....

AL

gregsolano
02-21-2011, 02:19 AM
are you carving the numbers and letters with the cw? If so is this the standard material used by engravers? Not looking to hone in on your business, just interested in ways CW is being used.

DurhamDev
02-21-2011, 09:09 AM
I'm also not looking to steal any business - but since I'm in Canada, hopefully that's a non-issue. What I would love to know is how you came across such an opportunity! That looks like a perfect use for the CW!

Digitalwoodshop
02-21-2011, 07:25 PM
Gentleman,

There is always room for competition.... I use the machine to cut FRP or Fiber Reinforced Plastic made by Unisub for Sublimation Printing. That is the Printing on a T Shirt Technology... Using special Ink at $1200.00 for 8 Bags and Special Paper with a Clay Coating I Ink Jet Print the Transfer Paper. Then I place the tags on the sheet and in a 16 x 20 Heat Press at 400 degrees I press the image to the tags in 60 seconds. It is called Sublimation a Scientific Term where the ink goes from a solid to a Vapor to a solid when heat is removed and never having become a Liquid. Sublimation...

So that is the Easy Part.... I can print on Coffee Cups that are coated with a Clear Poly or Mouse Pads, or T Shirts, or any number of things... I got into the business to make Tourist Stuff... Coffee Cups, Clocks, Picture Frames, etc.... I have over $10K in Inventory in pretty boxes with Unisub written on the side.... I bought a case of anything I thought would make money going after the Granny looking for a Gran kid Picture on a Coffee Cup or Mouse pad.... Been doing this since 2007 and my business has had a loss every year after expenses... This year will be different.... Last year at Tax Time I had $19K in Inventory I believe.... Very Little has moved since 2007....

So back in 2007 I was asked to make some Accountability Tags for my local Fire Dept.... Gave away the stuff.... My first Paid Order went well.... But was a inferior product than I make today and I am going to make them new tags FREE in the next few months.... I found the key was doing the Epoxy Dome on the tags.... And the Grommet...

Then I got a email from a guy ordering tags and said why is a Wood Shop making Fire Stuff.... I looked and www.AccountabilityTag.com (http://www.AccountabilityTag.com) was available. Opened it and started adding pictures and now 98% of my business is from someone doing a search of Accountability Tag.. I show up on page 1 with the Big Boys.... Got a email from a Fireman in Haifa, Israel today asking for samples and would I sell them tags.... Sure I will.... I visited Haifa in my Navy Days....

So that leads my to actually start answering your question.... The tags I am using for this $5K order are standard stock 1.5 x 3 tags. They only have a limited number of tag sizes and none in 2 sided... That lead me to looking for a way to use my CW to cut the tags. The First problem was the FEED Rate was TOO QUICK for the Granulated FRP and lots of chipping of the edges making the tag useless... I needed a Maltese Cross FRP cut 2 years ago and cut the wood block then taped the FRP to the wood and used a bearing router bit.

Then I happened on a tip from one of our LHR visitors Lynn.... Select the 1/4 inch ball nose bit and the feed rate will stay in 1st gear.... That is want I call it... If you watch a cut path it would slowly cut the corners then speed up to 2nd gear... By designing the tags with the 1/16 inch end mill, and in my case one from my 912 Rotary Engraver cut in half since it is a 6 inch long bit...

I double stick taped the sheet to a carrier board and made the artwork with the 1/16 End Mill then when done selected all the cuts and assigned the 1/4 inch bull nose. I still cut with the 1/16 inch bit, but the head stays in first gear. This First Gear Trick will only work with assigning a bit.... NOT the Cut Path.... That is a request I have for LHR to Add a Block to the Depth Of Cut Screen LOCKING THE CUT PATH INTO 1ST GEAR.

That leads me to now be able to cut any size tags to meet my needs..... If you look at my Web Site you will see Clocks and Wood Handles for the Accountability Boards. This week I shipped some Accountability Boards and was shocked to see I had used the very last large #3 Grommet... In a bag of 500.... 500 Grommets..... That is a lot of Accountability Boards.....

I have just started to dabble in Glow in the Dark Tags, Reflective Tags, and Heavy Aluminum Tags.... All of which no other company is making yet.... I have a GREAT product and offer a Lifetime Warranty... I sent a order of tags to North Carolina last week where they are getting frustrated with the cheap tags that snap off and they need to order replacement and PAY again...... I live for that type of Customer... One who Appreciates a good Product....

As for Canada... I sold tags to Canada last summer.... At first they ordered the tags then came back.... NO GO... They were mandated to buy Cannadian.... NO USA.... I said I understand.... Two months later the Chief came back and said no luck finding anyone to make them. Can I order them out of my own pocket? SURE... I gave him a discount.... Got a email 2 weeks ago.... LOVE the TAGS... Got money approved to buy MORE from YOU..... So another pending order.... One of my 45 or so work folders...

Got FIRED last week.... A long time Customer Reselling my Tags got tired of waiting... and FIRED ME..... I sent the tags FREE and a "I am SORRY" note but the package was refused.... Sent a Groveling email.... "I am Sorry".... Nothing.... I am a one man shop.... It WAS MY FAULT they FIRED ME.... I understand... I was sick off and on from Thanksgiving until about 3 weeks ago.... Didn't spend that much productive time in the shop... And when I did... I was HERE.....

The tags can be made with a Rotary Engraver or a Laser Engraver.... But the Sublimation lets me do color pictures..... My next purchase will be a MIMAKI UJF-3042 a Flatbed Color Printer with UV LED Cure ink.... It is only $41K..... That is AFTER I finish paying off my Building and Equipment Loan of about $60K.... My Gross last year was $9.5K. I believe this year will be better.... I am getting KNOWN..... So there is ROOM for others... Many Fire Dept's still use Cow Tags.... Plastic Tags 1 to 100.... that go in Cow's Ears.... I get calls.... We can't find Cow TAGS anymore... Can you make us some.... That is how the PHOTO tag came to life.... I am bidding on Accountability Tags for a North Dakota Fire Dept... He asked me to bid as he saw the Photo Tag pictures of the Kindred, ND Fire Dept on my Website and a guy HE went to School with.... He found me by Searching.....

I have Engraving Plastic here and have tried to engrave small letters with the CW.... Anything below 3/8 of an inch on Plastic, I could not make work well.... The Resolution just did not work.... I have a Rotary Engraver and plan to offer plastic Engraved tags in the future just to cover all the price points... I will cut the Sheets into tags with the CW.... I will be making a Vacuum sled with a replaceable top for each size tag.

Good Luck and Thanks for asking....

AL who with a big EGO..... tonight.... You should have seen me a year and a half ago when I was teetering on Bankruptcy due to high Credit Cards.... Put the Credit Cards into my Building Loan and I am operating the business with ZERO CREDIT... If I want it... I need the money in the BANK..... So that $41K Machine.... WAY down the list today....

Without the CW's my business would have gone belly up long ago..... The CW SAVED MY BUSINESS...... in it's Ability to make things I can SELL....

gregsolano
02-21-2011, 07:57 PM
Wow what a great story. I wish you continued success.

mtylerfl
02-21-2011, 08:35 PM
AL,

Thank you for sharing your story with us. I have always loved your candor and "straight-up" way of explaining things so that we can all understand and LEARN from your experiences. You are greatly appreciated!

CarverJerry
02-22-2011, 06:47 AM
That is one good story Al. I had a guy from a mold shop contact me and wanted to know if I could machine these little parts for him with my CW. I just didn't think the CW had the ability to hold a close enough tollerance like what he needed. Being a machinist myself for many of years I don't feel the CW can hold close enough dimensions to be trying to hold +/- .003". It's ok for somethings but not precision making. I do love my machine and wouldn't trade it for anything. Thats my story.

CJ

Digitalwoodshop
02-22-2011, 08:35 AM
Thanks Guys. I do have FUN and I have made a few mistakes along the way.... When the Economy improves the Unisub Stuff might start moving.... But as some have posted here.... Craft Shows are Fickle... I had 5 Shows before Christmas and worked myself into the ground making stuff... The First 2 were at Developments where most owned a second home from New York City. Did very well.... The next 2 I sold less than $20.00 worth of stuff and blew off the last show.... I was already getting Sick and had little energy to waste my time. While I was on limited work hours the work was building up... Now I am trying to catch up....

This Fire Stuff is a Niche Market. My local Barber gave me some great advice one time as I was explaining my business... He said I had TOO Many products, and many that were a hard sell. He said is what you need is 1 or 2 GREAT products..... That is when I started seeking out how to improve my Accountability Tag. I was dipping my tags in Spar Varnish or Poly to help protect them.... Finding the Epoxy Dome was the Cream on the Cake.... So far no one has copied me yet... Not even the Pictures.....

I have other markets I am going to go after soon, even the NAVY.... I have a Great Product in mind for them..... Even with budget problems in the Navy, I believe that they will still buy.... If not now, later.....

We have a Search and Rescue Trailer in our Fire Dept.... I am planning on making a 100 tag system for "Tasks". When the searchers go out they are given a "TASK #" and all Radio Contact is done using TASK Numbers.... Plus when they are back, the tag is clipped on a board. I saw that movie the other day where the Open Ocean Divers, a guy and Gal were left by the Dive Boat overnight in the Ocean.... They Died.... Even a Tag System like I have with Stainless Hardware would SELL for Dive Boats....

OK... More Pictures of my Humble Beginnings....

A Rare Picture of me taken by Chris when I made the awards for the County Fair Fire competition. Chris helped me deliver the stuff.

The Milford first paid Tag order in 3/2008.

My first attempts to cut FRP after the CW was not up to the task.

Sometimes the dates on the pictures show up correct but if the Forum reduces the File Size it puts today's date on the picture as seen in 2 pictures.

AL

Ike
02-22-2011, 04:03 PM
Al you have a smart barber! I sold my unused 48" by 96" Shopbot to buy that cover wagon to sell old fashioned soda along with my signs. My thought were I was tired of people coming up and telling me my signs made with old growth redwood and very expensive finish was too much. Yet in their hand they held a beer with several empty cups stacked under their full cup and a corn dog in the other! Each beer costing them $5.00 for maybe a 12 oz cup and a corn dog that is $4.00! They stand there telling me my sign for $35.00 is too much when they have spent that in beer and food!

I thought by expanding to the drink/food area I would have more money then I knew what to do with! WRONG!!!! Talk about back firing for 2 years my wife dumped money into this business and now we are broke!

What I should have done was improved the sign shop and offered signs that were simple yet nice and affordable! I may have kept the SB or used the money for the improvement! This year after falling I hope to get back on our feet! So as the barber said, stick to a few items and go with it! With my portable sign shop I have signs that range from $15.00 to $400.00 and all mixed with different fonts and trims and on 3 sides of the shop. It went in one ear and out the other when customers would say there is too many choices!

This year the plan is to remodel the outside to attract the attention to customers and then offer the display in price sections. I do not plan on taking any quality away, but I may not worry so much if the redwood is old growth. I found only a few appreciate the higher quality material, plus the finish will still be quality. This time I will not special order the finish and will buy it from Home Depot or Lowes.

I plan on having a value section of sorts offering $20.00 signs with just the last name on a 6" by 24" sign with chop trim and black lettering with one shot of clear. Then I will have another section with artwork for $25.00. I will have this for each size, a 4" to 24" signs ranging from $10.00 to $15.00 and for the 8", 10" and 12".

I will continue to offer the more detailed custom signs, but the ideal this year is to market the affordable sign! I welcome any suggestions, I have been making signs for over 30 years and have had a business mostly part time for the last 27 years and the last 7 full time. I have been hard headed not wanting or thinking I needed to change! I always wanted to put out a quality sign and even though my prices were fair! The other sign makers had cheap signs and they do well! I was told by another sign company that he was into quantity not quality unlike my sign shop!

It took me to being where I am today to swallow my pride and realize my work is only worth what I can sell it for! So I am lowering my prices to sell quantity, but still with quality!

Ike

Digitalwoodshop
02-25-2011, 02:00 AM
Well 6 days ago I got started on this project and I just put the last tag in the UV Oven at 2AM... Took Monday off so 5 work days and so far 57 hours at about 11 hours a day of actual work...

I am down to about 1/4 cup of Epoxy and that has about a 5 day lead time as they make it to order... Called this morning when I lifted the Gallon Can and it was Lighter than I expected... Used about 3/4 of a Gallon of Doming Epoxy for 535 Tags.

All that is left is to spin on 535 one inch rings and clips... I hope I have enough rings?.... Should order some in the morning...

Could ship on Saturday..... That is a lot of Rings.... My thumbs will be a little tender...

On the IndustrAL side of things.... I made 2 more Handles for my Friend at NMFD as two boards got damaged in shipping... I should have used a bigger box.... I will know next time.... Told him to ship them back, I will pay shipping back. I have 3 blanks to make 2 boards in the next day... I need to order a few big $heets soon.... I did insure them but the outside of the box looked good to him.... I will just make new boards and send them... Part of the Learning Curve.... I believe I was wrong not UPS....

Like having to print 12 tags from scratch at 1 AM.... I took them out of the Heat Press too soon.... Before the Timer.... Hence a lighter color of Orange tag.... Well, they will make good samples, they are perfect just look like Tangerines instead of Oranges.... The re Prints came out Great....

Old Dependable cut the Wood Handles the other night without a Whimper... Christine is doing a good job....

AL

Capt Bruce
02-25-2011, 05:59 PM
Evening Al,
I may not be the only one who does not know . . . would you please explain doming epoxy. I've missed it somewhere in all the posts. Thanks

Digitalwoodshop
02-26-2011, 04:36 PM
Capt Bruce,

In that picture in the previous post I take the Printed Tag and with a big plastic needle squeeze epoxy that is like corn syrup on the tag. The Static Surface Tension of the Epoxy makes it forum a Dome like a water drop on a waxed car. The trick is to get just enough epoxy on the tag to make a full dome and not too much that it rolls over the edge. I then put the tags into a UV Oven made from 4 foot Home Depot Black Lights and Shop Fixtures. The UV Light Cures the Epoxy to a very hard durable tag. The only reason I use the Dome is that the Tag is printed with Sublimation, the Heat Press Process. If a tag is colored RED and the edge chips slightly then the white base material shows through... Doming just looks better.... On the back I try to always use a white background to eliminate the Epoxy on the back for both sides... The First 2 orders I did with Epoxy Dome I put Reflective Vinyl on the back with the Station Number. I then Domed over the back. The problem is when the Epoxy runs over the edge it makes a WORT on the under side. It happens in the oven while it is curing and I don't always catch it... When cutting the Wort off, it leaves a UGLY spot that is not clear... When I did that first Hemlock Farms and Blooming Grove order I had about 50% defect with Worts.... It drove me nuts having to do the tags over from the beginning.... So Epoxy is Finicky to work with... But once you master it... It makes a GREAT Product.... You see Doming on Car Logos and Manufactures Logos.

There is 2 kinds of Epoxy for Doming... The UV one part Cure that I use and the 2 part that you mix from a needle tube mixer or pouring 2 together and mixing. I have both and like the simplicity of the UV Cure...

I buy my Epoxy from www.Epoxies.com (http://www.Epoxies.com) and use the 60-7155RCL-22 at about $200.00 a Gal and use a mustard pump from Wally Mart to fill my Syringe. I have a 3 Gallon Painting Pressure Pot that I plan to set the gallon inside and a fill tube to a hose and valve. I will pressurize the pot to press the epoxy out of the gal can. I could pressurize the Gallon Can but if a seam split I would loose my Epoxy.... This way the epoxy stays inside the gallon can inside the paint pot.

There are some really great Videos on you tube about doming... My favorite is this one.... Turn up the Volume...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qOU95LmiL8

After seeing this video and others I traded in my US Cutter Vinyl Plotter un opened for a Graphtec FC7000-60 with the Photo Eyes that let you put a printed sheet back in the machine and with the registration marks on the corners cut out the stickers.... I can print registration marks from Corel Draw and drive the Graphtec with Corel Draw. If someone here is looking for a new money maker... It is a Vinyl Plotter.... They pay for themselves 4 or more times a year if used... I have paid for my plotter about once... As I don't use it as much as I could.... TOO many toys...

IF you use a Ink Jet to print on Sticker material and add registration marks for the Graphtec to cut, know that the Ink Jet ink has a UV Inhibitor in it and if you use the UV Cure like I do... The Epoxy will not cure at the surface of the sticker.... That will result in the Hard Epoxy sliding off like Snow on a metal roof.... The FIX is to place a sheet of CLEAR Vinyl over the printed stickers to act as a barrier... Then Cut in a plotter and Weed leaving just the stickers on the sheet to dome.... Liquid Lens used a 2 part Epoxy that mixes in the long tube needle as you press... The Downfall is the price of the Liquid Lens.... WAY more Expensive..... The UP Side.... I will resist Yellowing in Direct Sun for a long period of time.

That is why I am getting excited about sometime in the future I buy this $41K Direct UV LED Cure Printer.... I could make all kinds of proiducts... Mimaki UJF-3042 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8U-Rr-oge6U


SO Capt. Bruce, that is the LONG answer about Epoxy Domng.... Over 2 years of Trial and Error has gone in to this post with tips and tricks.... The Doming has made my Fire Tags stand out over my Competetors... So far I am the only one doing this for Fire Tags....

Thanks for asking.....

I took pictures of the BIG order today.... Slept in until NOON... so I missed the post office.... Got caught up on my sleep...

AL

Capt Bruce
02-27-2011, 09:25 AM
Thanks so very much Al for that detailed post and the links and photos of your perfected process that you've provided. I guess that now that I know how these domed parts are produced, I know I've seen thousands of them in application but never really understood how they were made. It's amazing to watch the Static Surface Tension cause the domed effect. You are the Master of the Art once again Sir. Thanks for once again helping me learn at least one new thing every day.

Digitalwoodshop
03-06-2011, 01:06 PM
Edit: I took the pictures off this post from earlier with the Tag Pictures of the North Dakota Bid as we will be designing different looking tags and I did not want to confuse the issue. Got the Bid and will go with Photo Tags.

Speaking of making Money.....

Is anyone is interested in becoming a salesman for my tags please contact me....

I would set you up with Sample Tags and Boards... You knock on doors looking for customers or set up the tags at your craft show. Get a Nibble and you send a 3 way email to me... You, the new customer, and ME... I give them the prices and take it from there. When the tags are done I Invoice or Bill the Customer Direct with Shipping it to them. You don't mess with it...

When the bill is paid I send you a check for $1.00 per tag and 10% of the Up Sell stuff like Accountability Boards, Hitch Covers, Clocks.... If you sell $2000.00 worth or $2000 paid to YOU in a year I must issue you a 1099.

It is a Honesty System... I send you a copy of the Invoice with the check.

Interested let me know.... What I like to do is when I am first contacted is get a photo of them and a photo of the patch. I like to make them a Custom Sample Tag with THERE info on it... I don't charge for the Sample Tag.

I want to be in touch with the end user as I have a Lifetime Warranty on the Tags and want them to be able to find me....

I have sold tags through a Fire Store and was FIRED 2 weeks ago... I was late on 6 tags... I was sick and way behind... I take responsibility for being fired as a vendor....

The Bummer is that I do not have the end user info on the tags I have sold them for Warranty.... I will research each one and find them.

So that is why my Business Model is having Factory Direct Salesman looking for Business for me.... I am SWAMPED with requests and I am working through it.... But April to November is the SLOW season for Fire Stuff... So the more people out there beating the bushes for me the better... I am going to blow off the Craft Show Side of my Business this year for the most part and concentrate on Fire Tags....

One member asked what the tags are for?... Well like Brass Tags on a board in a Coal Mine keeping track of all the Coal Miners, the Accountability Tag is used by the Fire Dept to keep track of the Fire Fighter. Names, Numbers, and Colors show Qualifications... I started adding the Picture Tags... FULL COLOR TAGS.... The FIRST in this Industry... At best is the County ID Tags made from Credit Card Material is a big 2nd place to my tags.... I can do a Traditional Photo Tag in a 2 x 3.5 and on the back take a Scan Image of the County Tag and put it on the back.... I have some FD's interested but no orders like that yet.

So if you do Craft Shows or have Fireman Friends... Here is another Income Stream....

That last big order for 535 tags would have resulted in a check for $535 Tags.... And when I talked to the Chief the other day and asked him what happened to the 1170 Tag order we had first talked about..... He said He wanted 4 tags per Fire Fighter and they cut it back to 2 tags and will see how it works. But if the Chief has his way they will order the additional 535 tags in the future....

Contact me through my web pages on the bottom. The Samples I send you will NOT have my Website on them.... They need to contact YOU.... Then YOU contact ME...

AL