Help, please: How is this accomplished, Polish specific engraved areas only

dlilazteca

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How can I accomplish this, does it start all matt and then areas are polished or is does it start all polished and areas around are then matt finished?

Would it be possible to polish only the areas that are engraved, (this is what I want to accomplish). If I owned a matt finished firearm I would like to only polish the engraved areas, what would I need to get into the tight spaces?

For the Jokester please dont reply with small fingers...hahahah

Smith-And-Wesson-Custom-Engraved-Model-60-6ce829a27c1c1868d57ed90774131628a-thumb-0-0.png

thanks all
 
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monk

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polish first, do your engraving, carefully maskout the areas to remain polished. assure your mask is sufficient to withstand the blasting. then blast away.
 

Sam

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Artist frisket paper is good for masking. Blast with a Paasche Air Eraser and glass beads.
 

dlilazteca

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Wow, thank you all for the advice and help, a true lesson learned. Applause to all of you!

Saludos,

Carlos
 

mitch

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Be aware that light blasting gives a pretty fragile finish - if it is actually used & carried.

Scratches really show up.


Brian

yes, especially freshly blasted surfaces done with sharp media, as opposed to glass beads. back when that was in vogue in the '80s, i would make sure it was very clean after blasting- NO residual grit media- and then give it all a good rubbing with an oily finger to knock down the sharp fragile peaks. even then, a nice, even, smooth matte finish scuffs & scratches with a dirty look. we all loved the cool two-tone appearance (and no background removal!), but it did not wear well at all.
 

Beathard

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Seems like the solution to the wear issue would be to lower the background and the bead blast it.
 

pilkguns

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I hate to disagree with Sam, but I have had two of the Paasche s and absolutely hated both of them. They alway jammed multiple time a session. The Badger blast units I have have been flawless. never had a minutes trouble with.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Sam

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I hate to disagree with Sam, but I have had two of the Paasche s and absolutely hated both of them. They alway jammed multiple time a session. The Badger blast units I have have been flawless. never had a minutes trouble with.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Scott: I'd like to try one of the Badger mini sandblasters.

I've only had the Paasche and one of the reasons it's worked for me is because I have some super fine glass beads that Old Dominion Engravers gave me a jillion years ago when I was complaining about the Paasche jamming. So having the right size beads is obviously important, and I don't know what grit size they gave me.

If the Badger is more forgiving then that'd be a better choice. It's a PITA un-jamming the Paasche in the middle of a job :mad:
 

Sam

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I should add that years ago Tim Herman sent me some artist frisket film for masking and it worked great. He's an airbrush artist and used it when painting. After applying the frisket I use a surgical scalpel (disposable plastic handle type with a straight blade) and very carefully slice through the frisket into the engraving cuts and peel away the frisket with a pair of tweezers. Be careful not to slip with the scalpel or you'll be wasting time doing repair work.

My straight blade scalpels look similar to this:

 

pilkguns

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these are scalpels I used for many years, I used to get them from an eye surgeon friend by the bagfull. they are very fragile and the a bit too much pressure could send the blade winging into outerpace

unfortunately my source has retired and Ihave been making mini scalpels from dental burs the last year or two.
 

Doc Mark

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There is a specific frisket knife that has a tiny blade that can rotate as you move your hand around the curves in the design. The blades are replaceable and it works wonderfully. It's marked "PROEDGE" and the phone number stamped on the handle is1-800-828-2468. I'll check if this is still available.

I just did a quick search and didn't find the same Proedge knife that I have. However, X-acto has a similar knife that looks identical to mine. Here is the link. http://www.chicagoairbrushsupply.com/xcrswknx.html
 
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Beathard

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Carlos why don't you get one of each, the paache and the badger. Them you can do a review video and send the one you don't like back.
 

Sam

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I have the swivel model as well and never could get used to it. Perhaps an ultra precision one could be made. Mine sticks and grabs.
 

Big-Un

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I've had a small swivel knife for many years, used it when airbrushing, and really liked it. It takes a little getting used to as the handle needs to be kept vertical in order for the blade to swivel properly. Plus, you need PATIENCE to use it!

Bill
 

JOSIAH HANLEY

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i have the paasche sand blaster paid ?$100. for it and i have one from harbor freight paid ? $20. for it both work good just don't reuse the glass i got mine from rio grande
 
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AndrosCreations

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I have a small bead blast cabinet I bought from Rio grande about 4 or 5 years ago... called a Cyclone. ...and I bought the media from Harbor freight. It works pretty well but you have to try to keep moisture out of the beads or it wants to clog whatever youre using (this could have been Scotts difficulty with the air eraser.)

I mask with clear packing tape and cut with an exacto knife under the scope. Yes, its very tedious work, but if you need that blasted look than its worth it for me. I'll often blast a relieved background. If the blast surface is higher (and subject to wear) then its going to get scratched as its so delicate and "corruptible". Its been a valuable tool though I only use it a small portion of the time... but when I do... nothing beats it.
 
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