Fonts for CNC, Name Puzzles and Layered Signs

The first three fonts I put in the shop were about laser and vinyl problems: centers falling out, numbers you can't read from the street, names that cut as eleven loose letters. These three take on different jobs: a font for the CNC router, a font for kids' name puzzles, and a font for layered wood signs.

They are in the shop now as instant downloads: Bitround, Pegnest and Plystack. All three are also in the all-fonts bundle.

Bitround: A CNC Router Font With the Bit Radius Built In

A round end mill can't cut a sharp corner. Carve most fonts and you're left cleaning up every corner by hand, and inlays don't fit. Bitround is drawn so every corner, stroke and gap matches the bit, so pockets, profile cut-outs and inlays cut exactly as drawn.

Each bit size has a minimum capital height:

A script checked these on every character in the font file. Scale up freely. It's for flat end mills only; V-carving is a different process. Always cut a test letter in your own material first.

• Bitround Regular (.ttf for Windows and Mac) and a .woff2 web font
• An alphabet cut sheet (SVG) with every character at 2" tall
• 44 single-character SVG files
• A PDF guide: bit-size table, how the rating works, pocket, profile and inlay tips

Characters: A–Z, 0–9 and & . , - ' ! ? #. It's all caps, so typing lowercase gives capitals. It works with any CNC or design software that uses installed fonts or imports SVG files. If you're weighing a router against a laser for sign work, I compared the two in laser cutting vs CNC routing.

Pegnest: A Chunky Font for Laser-Cut Name Puzzles

Pegnest is made for name puzzles. Every letter is one solid piece with no holes and no thin parts, and matching Pocket fonts cut the board with an even gap all the way around, so the pieces fit.

How It Works

1. Type the name in Pegnest Piece, sized so the capital letters are 3", 4" or 5" tall.
2. Type it again in the matching Pocket font (Pocket 4in for 4" letters), same size and position.
3. Add a board around it, cut the pieces and the board, and glue the board to a backer.

Ready-made EVA puzzle files at 3", 4" and 5" are included to start from. The fit is a 0.02" gap per side before your laser's kerf, so test-cut one letter in your material first. Each Pocket font is made for one letter height, so match the font to your size. The Detail style lets you score or engrave the center of letters like O, D and 8 so they still read clearly.

• 5 fonts (.ttf plus .woff2): Piece, Pocket 3in, Pocket 4in, Pocket 5in and Detail
• Ready-made EVA puzzle files at 3", 4" and 5"
• Piece sheets with every character at 2"
• 228 single-character SVG files (piece and pocket at each size)
• A PDF guide: character map, sizes and fit, step-by-step instructions and safety rules for sellers

Characters: A–Z, 0–9, a heart and a star, all caps.

Plystack: A Layered Sign Font That Stacks

Plystack is four font styles built from the same letterforms: Shadow, Base, Face and Inline. Type your words once in each style at the same size and position, and the layers line up exactly. Cut each layer from a different wood, acrylic or cardstock and glue them up for a bold multi-layer sign.

It works because every style has identical letter widths and spacing, so the layers register by design. The Base and Shadow letters overlap on purpose: weld them in your software and a whole line becomes one backing piece. The Inline layer can be cut as its own piece from about 3" letter height; smaller than that, engrave or score it instead.

• 4 fonts (Face, Base, Inline and Shadow, .ttf for Windows and Mac) and 4 .woff2 web fonts
• 4 layer cut sheets: every character on the same grid, sized for a 19.5 × 11" laser bed
• 6 sample signs with every layer already aligned: HOME, WELCOME, THE SMITHS, EST 2026, MR & MRS and LOVE ♥ YOU
• A PDF guide: how to stack, glue order, minimum sizes and install

Characters: A–Z, 0–9 and & . , ! ' - ♥, all caps.

Which License Do You Need?

Same setup as my other fonts: Etsy doesn't let a digital download change price by option, so each font is listed three times, once per license. The files are the same; the listing title tells you which license you bought, and it shows on your receipt.

If you sell what you make, you want Commercial. Reselling or sharing the font or SVG files themselves is never allowed at any level. The bundle gets you all six of my fonts, these three plus Kerfline, Curbmark and Linkrail, for about 20% less than buying them one at a time, in one download.

Works With

Pegnest and Plystack work in any program that uses installed fonts, such as Cricut Design Space, Silhouette Studio, LightBurn, Inkscape and the Adobe apps. Bitround works with any CNC or design software that uses installed fonts or imports SVG. For anything else there are the SVG files; the laser file formats explainer covers how they fit into a workflow.

How They're Made

I designed these fonts with the help of AI tools and refined them in my shop. They are instant digital downloads; nothing physical ships.