How do you engrave on really hard metal

SalihKara · Feb 1, 2015

Today one of my customer brought me a knife and told me that it is a special steel and hardened by some special techniques.

I don't know about metarials much but it was really hard, harder than all the steel that I have seen by now.

I was not able to engrave it and I ruined the knife.

I was able to make some very weak scratchs on it no matter how much pressure I use

What do you do to engrave those kind of things.

DKanger · Feb 1, 2015

What do you do to engrave those kind of things.

You engrave them BEFORE they are hardened.

Mike Fennell · Feb 1, 2015

You may be able to salvage the knife by using acid to remove the scratches and to create a scene. Materials and instruction are available from Cronite Corp. Antonio Montejano creates beautiful scenes on knives with these methods.

Type his name or the words "acid etch" into the search window above to access all the information you will need.

silverchip · Feb 1, 2015

Sorry to hear about your luck, bet that you will have something to say about engraving on a blade next time. If they could make it annealed and soft enough to engrave before handing it over to you and then have them be responsible for the hardening process, might be a better way for you.

atexascowboy2011 · Feb 1, 2015

Remember to make a test cut, before accepting the commission !

monk · Feb 1, 2015

even with annealing, some of the blades i did were absolute buggers !

Southern Custom · Feb 2, 2015

Sorry you had to learn that lesson the hard way. Always research the material you are working with before starting to cut. Sometimes even a test cut can be misleading. If you don't know, don't cut. It can be a VERY costly mistake.

monk · Feb 2, 2015

mikes' idea is a viable one. but, if you're unfamiliar with acid etching, you may well make a worse mistake than your first one.

dlilazteca · Feb 2, 2015

Mike Fennell said:
You may be able to salvage the knife by using acid to remove the scratches and to create a scene. Materials and instruction are available from Cronite Corp. Antonio Montejano creates beautiful scenes on knives with these methods.

Type his name or the words "acid etch" into the search window above to access all the information you will need.

Well you pretty much said you ruined it, now, so one would assume you have to replace or pay for it, might as well try to save it, as with anything else read and take safety precautions when using the acid, I have not tried it yet, but like anything else it can be done and done safely, its not rocket science, although some make it out to be the most dangerous thing you'll ever do, right Brian.

Just do your homework and you'll be fine, oh Brian also recommend you wear your Sundays best when you do, you would need to ask him on that piece of advice.

Ron Spokovich · Feb 2, 2015

The answer to how you engrave really hard steel, is. . .you DON'T! The term 'hard', and the term 'tough' mean different things. I've cut the bevel or spider gears used in automobile differentials, hundreds of them. They are a very tough steel, and when surface hardened, the surface is almost like glass while the inside is very tough. Your finished knife is similar, in that regard, and on the surface, it'll defy anything you do. If you did manage a cut, it'll most likely chip. Do a blade in its dead soft state, or annealed. Most likely, your customer had no idea that it couldn't be done, normally. Acid etching is one alternative to your situation, and the other is to return the blade to him. Probably you didn't know the score, but knife blades can't really be done after heat treatment. A high speed tool, with diamond wheel, really isn't engraving. Sorry about that, but that's the way it works.

McAhron · Feb 3, 2015

If its an expensive knife,a knifemaker will be able to refinish it.

LVVP · Feb 8, 2015

Better do not touch, more profit for you

Dani Girl · Feb 10, 2015

Can we see a picture of what's being discussed? Might prompt some ideas that just the description doesn't

Danae.

How do you engrave on really hard metal

SalihKara

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DKanger

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Mike Fennell

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Southern Custom

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