Thanks to Shaun Hughes who worked out the details for this set up and shared it on YouTube, I was able to piece this pneumatic engraver together in about 6 hours using parts acquired on eBay and scraps from around the shop. For 15 years, I have sporadically engraved flintlocks, tomahawks, and knives using the hammer and chisel method coupled with limited push engraving to add shading. I never really considered buying a pneumatic engraver because most of the long rifles that I engrave already have the inlays set in the stock and cannot be easily mounted in a ball vise – so I usually engrave standing up walking around the work. Price was another factor – I simply could not justify the expense of a pneumatic system given the limited amount of engraving that I do.
The set up pictured below cost me around $100. It consists of a small 12 volt tire pump that I modified to suck and push air, a D/C to A/C converter, a speed controller, and a small 12 volt fan to keep the pump cool – all of which are mounted in a plywood box. I made the hand piece on the metal lathe and designed it to fit a standard quick change tool holder. It’s basically a tube with a piston and a spring in it (see expanded view). Basically the push/suck motion of the pumps piston is transferred to the piston in the hand piece via the air tube. The hand piece piston then strikes the end of the quick change tool holder which holds the graver – basically creating a small hand held jack hammer. The speed controller controls the speed of the pump piston and is infinitely adjustable from zero up to speeds far too fast for engraving. The stroke length of the piston in the hand piece (which controls the impact power) can be adjusted by screwing the handle in or out. I have also made a couple of pistons of different weights to experiment with.
I have no way to evaluate or compare this set up with other pneumatic engravers since I have never even held one in my hand, but I am amazed at how well this contraption works. It has ample power to engrave brass, mild steel, copper and silver. I don’t think I would try to hog out a dugout canoe with it but it will certainly cut smooth controlled lines. The hand piece is also a lot easier to control than a plain push graver. I have only fooled around with it for a few hours but I can already tell that it’s going to come in handy. For me, I don’t think it will replace the hammer and chisel method for laying in main design elements but I think it will be of great help when it comes to fine shading. While push engraving in copper silver or gold is easy, I have always been somewhat up tight when it comes to pushing lines in brass and mild steel. There is a lot of pent up energy there and it’s sometimes easy to slip. This tool will alleviate that and make it easier to consistently space shading lines. I plan to make a foot pedal or perhaps a hand control like the one John Schippers illustrates to further control the impact speed. I also plan to forge some small chisels and gouges to fit the hand piece for wood carving.
So if you enjoy tinkering around with things take a look at Shaun Hughes YouTube channel. He has posted instructions on how to build one of these as well as a drawing of a hand piece. I think I had more fun building this than I do engraving!
The set up pictured below cost me around $100. It consists of a small 12 volt tire pump that I modified to suck and push air, a D/C to A/C converter, a speed controller, and a small 12 volt fan to keep the pump cool – all of which are mounted in a plywood box. I made the hand piece on the metal lathe and designed it to fit a standard quick change tool holder. It’s basically a tube with a piston and a spring in it (see expanded view). Basically the push/suck motion of the pumps piston is transferred to the piston in the hand piece via the air tube. The hand piece piston then strikes the end of the quick change tool holder which holds the graver – basically creating a small hand held jack hammer. The speed controller controls the speed of the pump piston and is infinitely adjustable from zero up to speeds far too fast for engraving. The stroke length of the piston in the hand piece (which controls the impact power) can be adjusted by screwing the handle in or out. I have also made a couple of pistons of different weights to experiment with.
I have no way to evaluate or compare this set up with other pneumatic engravers since I have never even held one in my hand, but I am amazed at how well this contraption works. It has ample power to engrave brass, mild steel, copper and silver. I don’t think I would try to hog out a dugout canoe with it but it will certainly cut smooth controlled lines. The hand piece is also a lot easier to control than a plain push graver. I have only fooled around with it for a few hours but I can already tell that it’s going to come in handy. For me, I don’t think it will replace the hammer and chisel method for laying in main design elements but I think it will be of great help when it comes to fine shading. While push engraving in copper silver or gold is easy, I have always been somewhat up tight when it comes to pushing lines in brass and mild steel. There is a lot of pent up energy there and it’s sometimes easy to slip. This tool will alleviate that and make it easier to consistently space shading lines. I plan to make a foot pedal or perhaps a hand control like the one John Schippers illustrates to further control the impact speed. I also plan to forge some small chisels and gouges to fit the hand piece for wood carving.
So if you enjoy tinkering around with things take a look at Shaun Hughes YouTube channel. He has posted instructions on how to build one of these as well as a drawing of a hand piece. I think I had more fun building this than I do engraving!