stone letter cutting tools

["Gordon Brown" <gordonbr@zzzzzzzzzzzzz>]

G'day Norman & all,

As Walter wrote, computer lettering needs to be "reworked" before it is used
for lettering on stone, I have had a few "DISCUSSIONS" with architects over
the years  & have won most, the ones lost they usually complained about
mainly in the spacing between letters. The only way in my opinion is byb
constant practice so that you learn the shapes of the letters. In my
apprenticeship I had to do an hours practice after dinner each night just
marking out letters, at work for the first year I had to lead in all the
letters cut by my father & grandfather, the idea was that paring the lead
around the letters also taught me lettering shape & doing this at least 3
times for every letter, well there was a fair bit of practice done, but I
learned lettering shapes & styles.

I think that after watching artistic letterers like Ian Marr working that
the only drawback was that my hand and subsequent lettering is very stiff &
formal without the free flowing form Ian used. Enough rambling & reminiscing
I think that practice is still the only way to go BUT employers today are
not interested in "wasting time" teaching the "old way".

Regards to all, Gordon Brown.  Inscriptor lapidum.