As you can see, the font spacing issue is being repaired.
The spacing is better, but I think the letters are still a
little out of proportion. Specifically,
* 'c' is a little bit too narrow, compared to letters like d and e
* 't' has a long tail, and the crossbar looks a little low
* To me, the cross in 'k' is a bit too low, and the letter itself is a bit narrow
* Is it me, or is the stick of 'r' a bit thin?
You also mentioned, in your message, using outlines and shadows. Given that the letters are quite compact, I think drop shadow, as in the example above, might look a little better.