Speaking from Experience: Tailgate party

WELCOME!

It is hard to believe that it was almost ten years ago I witnessed a CNC router in action for the very first time. I was fascinated and simply had to have one! Although I had been in the creative end of the three dimensional sign business for most of my life I didn't really know what I would do with one of these machines - but I just knew it could do fantastic stuff.

Along with the CNC router I discovered the wonderful material called Precision Board and the glues, primers and other companion products they offer. Since then we have gone through many tons of the material using it in most signs and projects we tackle. This journal will chronicle our many adventures both past, present and future. I'll talk from the perspective of someone who pushes these products to the creative limit on a daily basis. I'll be adding to the stories two or three times each week. -dan

Monday, August 14, 2017

Tailgate party

It was time to fire up the MultiCam CNC plasma once more for the next stage of the little rail truck. I needed to build a functional tailgate. The truck will be powered with a four stroke gas engine which needs lots of air flow. When the weather is warm or I need to work on the drive train I can drop the tailgate. For normal operation there should be plenty of airflow with the open bed and top as well as through the logo which I cut into the tailgate.

The logo is to identify the pike's name... Persnickety & Doodle Railroad. 'Persnickety' is a nod to Janis, my loving wife of 43 years. She has an eye for detail (and accuracy) which she regularly employs. Janis is in charge of quality control. The 'Doodle' part references my drawing - which is one of my passions.

The files for the many pieces of the tailgate were created in EnRoute. They were cut from 3/16" and 1/18" thick steel plate which makes the tailgate sturdy enough to handle anything that might be thrown at it! With the tailgate on it was time to celebrate with a tailgate party.