Critique Request My first attempt at motorcycle engraving...

[Paulie]

Hi all! Being a motorcycle fanatic myself all my life, admiring the chopper-bobber-caferacer-hotrod scene from early childhood. I guess this was because the whole 'chopper' culture involves a lot of personal taste & creativity -especially for customizing- no matter what's the medium: frame rebuilding, bodywork shaping, special painting, engraving, etc. I always appreciated this as a form of art. Since I joined the Engravers cafe, I had the pleasure to see different engraved m/c parts by some members. I just had to try this myself! With this try out on a H-D derby cover (found on ebay) I learned a lot about aluminium engraving. The most difficult part was 'using' the copper layer under that dechromed surface All critiques welcome

 

[Willem Parel]

Wow Paulie, that has become a beautiful cover, I like the colours and the design is great.
Congratulations !!!

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Smokin' ....move over Easy Rider

Looks great

Cheers
Andrew

 

[mrthe]

very very nice Paulie i love the design!

 

[Sam]

Well done Paulie!

 

[Arnaud Van Tilburgh]

Looks great Paulie

arnaud

 

[Keith]

Looks great!

 

[mtgraver]

Great job Paulie, now you need the rest of the bike!
Mark

 

[JJ Roberts]

Motorcycle Engraving

Paulie your first attempt at motorcycle engraving turn out great,don't make it your last.J.J.

 

[Christopher Malouf]

Hey Paulie ... that's fantastic. As you know, the copper/brass look has a cult following in custom chopper building.

If you haven't cut the lettering yet, I would cut them out to get contrast in depth so they are viewable from every angle. Great interpretation of flames using scroll.

Chris

 

[Paulie]

Thanks for viewing & for the positive comments, guys! This was my first 'aluminium engraving' attempt, hopefully it won't be my last. Next time I 'll look out for a clean polished aluminium cover (to avoid the dechroming).
Chris, I did not cut the lettering because I wasn't 100 % sure about the text yet, 'Choppers Rule' or 'Choppers Forever', 'Choppers till death'? I also have to put my logo on somewhere, think I'll try to fix a (dechroming) error with that, where the copper was eaten away too. When the piece is totally finished, I will post an extra pic soon! Greetings, Paulie

 

[monk]

certainly a job to be proud of. it just "belongs" on a bike. how do you do the chrome removal ?

 

[Paulie]

certainly a job to be proud of. it just "belongs" on a bike. how do you do the chrome removal ?

Thank you, monk! The de-chroming procedure is very much the same as removing rust but with different chemical. First, degrease completely and scrub thoroughly with detergent. Mix 1 cup of Muriatic acid with 3 gallons of water in a plastic bucket. NOTE; ALWAYS ADD ACID TO WATER. NEVER WATER TO ACID !!! (It WILL explode) Hang two or three copper wires (#12 or larger) around sides of bucket (I used a piece of copper pipe). Connect these to ground of battery charger. Hang item to be dechromed in fluid with positive lead connected. Be sure part doesn"t touch ground wires. Within a few seconds or minutes, depending on thickness of chrome, it should come clean. More or less time as required. When finnished, wash parts in mild soda water solution to nutralize acid. (Do this right way to prevent rust) As with any caustic acid, handle with care (I found this info on a British classic car forum). Greetings, Paulie

 

[Frank P]

Goe bezig Popol
proficiat maat, k wou dat mijn eerste werk er ook zo goe uitzag:clapping:

 

[dimovengraving]

Looks great Paulie

 

[Christopher Malouf]

Hey Paulie, thanks for the de-chroming recipe. Gotta try that one.

I've always liked the "Ride or Die" saying .... here it is in urban dictionary: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=ride+or+die

Have fun and happy cutting my friend!!

 

[Paulie]

Hey Paulie, thanks for the de-chroming recipe. Gotta try that one.

I've always liked the "Ride or Die" saying .... here it is in urban dictionary: http://www.urbandictionary.com/defin...rm=ride+or+die

Have fun and happy cutting my friend!!

Hi Chris, no thanks! I learned so much about m/c engraving & other engraving techniques by reading all the info, tutorials, posts & threads on both forums, all thanks to the knowledge-sharing engravers like you! 'Ride or die', that's a clear statement, bro!! The only problem: it's a very short phrase, I have 2 banners to fill. The process of de-chroming is some kinda 'hell of a job', I lost an amount of copper layer just because the chrome gets black when falling of the piece while hanging in the acidic solution. One needs a ventilated area (or outside the workshop) to de-chrome, too (bad for the lungs, I guess!) Keep up the great work, greetings Paulie

 

[tim halloran]

Paulie: There's an old Biker saying, Live To Ride- Ride To Live. I've done a lot of motorcycle parts in my career and have used this saying numerous times. Your derby cover looks great, so stay with it.

 

[Paulie]

Paulie: There's an old Biker saying, Live To Ride- Ride To Live. I've done a lot of motorcycle parts in my career and have used this saying numerous times. Your derby cover looks great, so stay with it.

Thanks for the compliment, Tim! The Eagle with 'Live To Ride, Ride To Live', that was the saying on my old 1980 Shovelhead-FLT's points cover, it looked like a relief engraving but it was a casted aftermarket cover, I guess. Anyhow, it still is a very good biker saying, it should fill the 2 banners completely & with the same amount of lettering. Greetings, Paulie

 

[Paulie]

"Choppers Forever"!

Hi folks! Here's a quick update of the finished piece. All critiques welcome! Greetings, Paulie