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Saw This Commemorative Portrait
Ronald Reagan wore many hats before he was elected the
40th president of the United States in 1980. He was a
sports announcer, motion picture and TV actor and
governor of California before his election to the
presidency at age 69. Your friends and customers who
admired the late president will appreciate this portrait
of him wearing a cowboy hat.
You
can make the 11" x 14" portrait shown here or a smaller
9"
x 10" version. If you prefer, you can use 1/8"-thick
plywood instead of 1/4"-thick plywood.
Whenever you are cutting a pattern that you know will be
popular, cut at least two at the same time, especially
if you are cutting plywood. This stack cutting technique
not only helps to support the fragile pieces but also
gives you a second project without seriously slowing
down the rate of speed at which you feed the wood into
the blade. Cutting two of these portraits at the same
time reduces your cutting time by 50 percent.
Step
1: Preparing and adhering the pattern.
Photocopy the pattern. Using temporary bond spray
adhesive, transfer the pattern to the wood. Remember to
spray the pattern, not the wood, with the temporary bond
spray adhesive. If your pattern lifts up or tears as you
are cutting, try covering the entire wood cutting
surface with painter’s tape. This tape is typically blue
and leaves little to no residue when removed. Spray the
back of the pattern and the surface of the painter’s
tape with a heavy coat of temporary bond spray adhesive.
Then, place the pattern on the top of the painter’s tape
right away for a good bond.
If
you decide to stack cut, place a few wood blanks under
the top piece and tape the surface of the cutting area
with 2" clear packaging tape. I wrap about 2" around the
back side. The tape sticks well, will hold a stack
together and is easy to remove. The tape also helps in
lubricating the blade so the wood won’t be as likely to
burn.
Step
2: Making blade entry holes.
Next
drill your blade entry holes in each cutout section of
the pattern. Choose as large a bit as you can for easy
blade feeding.
Step
3: Cutting the pattern.
Cut
out each area, starting from the center of the pattern
and working out to the four edges. As you move from the
center to the edge, cut the area closest to the one you
just cut.
Step
4: Removing the burrs.
Once
the cutting is done, remove the tape. On the backside of
the portrait, remove any burrs caused by the blade. I
use a rotary tool with a small drum sander attachment
held at about a 30-degree angle to the wood and lightly
go over each cutout area. Wear safety goggles and a dust
mask if you try this.
Step
5: Sanding the project.
Using
a palm sander, lightly sand the front surface of the
wood with a few grades of sandpaper. The weight of the
palm sander is distributed, so it does not tend to break
the fragile pieces of the portrait. Be sure you don’t
push down with too much pressure. The weight of the
sander itself is usually enough pressure. I start with
100-grit sandpaper, move to 150 grit and finish with
220.
Step
6: Applying a protective finish.
Spray
a clear coat on the surface of the wood to protect it
from the sun or leave it as it is.
Step
7: Framing the portrait.
Hot-glue the background felt or material to the wood on
the back side and insert the portrait into a frame
behind glass. A black background material will create
greater dimension in your finished portrait, especially
if you buy your frame and no matte is used. If you use
1/4" stock and the wood bulges out a bit from the frame,
you can install a wire hanger and two cushioning tabs
(self-adhesive) on the bottom two corners of the back of
the frame opposite the wire hanger. This will lift the
frame away from the wall enough to make room for the
bulge on the back of the frame. Be sure to sign your
work. |
