Custom Firefighting Plaque
Fabricating a custom firefighting plaque requires two major steps, in this case, CNCROi.com does the easy part, cutting it out from a laminated board the customer provided and then engraving details onto it… finishing is the hard part that the customer will finish on their own account.
As mentioned, the customer is the one who laminated two boards of curly Maple together, so my first task in order to produce the absolute best custom firefighting plaque blank for them to work from is to flatten both sides and make them dead-parallel.
The router doesn’t really care if things are flat or not when it comes to making projects such as these but the laser does, as the results of the engraving are affected by the focal distance between the head of the laser and the (in this case) custom firefighting plaque below, so going flat is one less issue I need to contend with regarding a consistent laser engraving at CNCROi.com.
When it comes to flattening, you can really appreciate having the under-gantry bright LED lighting, as it shows you right away, any inconsistencies, voids or marks that make me want to go just a little deeper to remove from the board using flattening.
This isn’t the first, nor will it be the last time, that we make a custom firefighting plaque blank, processes and machinery may change through the years, but the basic approach remains the same.
After the custom firefighting plaque board is flat on both sides, it’s time to cut out the shape as big as possible on the CNC router table at CNCROi.com, I’ve cut a few of these over the past few years, and there really is no other way to properly cut these accurately without this machine in our shop.
There are a lot of wood chips made during the CNC routing process at CNCROi.com, even with a powerful dust extraction system, there is still a lot of wood created carving out this custom firefighting plaque blank.
CNCROi.com can go as highly detailed and material specific as you want when it comes to making a custom firefighting plaque.
You have to remember that the Thermwood CNC router I’m using for this project is 5ft x 10 ft, so this plaque that’s under 2ft square more than fits on this table, and the reason for the consistency in the finished blank is because this table is 12 000 pounds with a solid gantry, so the results are fast and impeccable!
When it comes to honoring the remarkable men and women who put their lives on the line to protect others, a custom firefighting plaque can serve as a powerful symbol of gratitude and appreciation.
More than just a decorative item, a personalized plaque can capture the essence of firefighting and become a viral sensation, spreading awareness about the courageous work these heroes undertake every day.
I’ve been making these Maltese crosses for a few years now, here’s how we made it with our old CNC router, which did a very fine job as our Thermwood did in this case, which replaced it.
The iconic Maltese cross, a universal symbol of the firefighting community, is prominently featured in all CNCROi.com custom firefighting plaques as it represents the virtues of loyalty, perseverance, bravery, and sacrifice.
Now that the CNC router end of things is finished, it’s time for CNCROi.com to do the laser engraving work, no inks or dyes are used to create the contrast you see here, but the client will be doing a resin fill on this, so I’m going extra deep into the Maltese cross blank so they have plenty of give when it comes to final sanding of the finished piece.
As a woodworker myself, I can appreciate customers who want to work on their passions themselves, so this why CNCROi.com has no problem being only a cog in a larger wheel because everybody wins.
Of course, CNCROi.com can also make custom firefighting plaques out of metal or anything else you may want, that’s the nice thing about having a healthy diversity of machines and production processes.
The laser engraving process on this custom firefighting plaque blank is no different than what we’ve done a million times on other projects at CNCROi.com, but this is where a blank becomes symbol to the person who will ultimately receive this.
I didn’t perform additional sanding or finishing on this custom firefighting plaque because again, the customer will be doing this, so I’ll let them professionally finish this however they feel fit.
When it comes to making blanks like this, CNCROi.com has done a variety of them for a whole host of other industries and verticals, corporate through institutional, and each one has it’s nuances and special aspects that make it stand out.
As mentioned, resin will be poured in all the carved and engraved areas of this custom firefighting plaque, as such, depth is important but with the cost of epoxy resin, going too deep ends-up costing a lot of money, so there is a fine balance to maintain.
Custom firefighting plaques can be made in a variety of ways, here’s a “simpler” one that didn’t involve routing it into a Maltese cross ahead of time.
You can really see the unique grain pattern of this curly Maple on these close-up shots, they are not machining marks from our router and thus, all the way through the wood.
I did the engraving of this custom firefighting plaque in two passes for optimal speed to depth, and I didn’t do any sanding after the custom firefighting plaque done because, like the router blank, the customer will put their elbow grease to get it to the exact way they want it to be.
A custom firefighting plaque, thoughtfully designed and personalized, has the potential to capture the hearts and minds of people who come into contact with it, and whether you want CNCROi.com to make a complete plaque or just part of it for you to finish, we are fine either way.
By incorporating meaningful symbols, personalization, and emotional storytelling, this plaque becomes more than just a decorative item—it becomes a symbol of gratitude, respect, and admiration for the extraordinary work done by firefighters.
Need a custom firefighting plaque? Contact CNCROi.com right now!