blade etching question

[Michael Minto]

when those of you who do etch a full tang knife (before attaching the handle scales, i'm assuming), after sanding the handle scales, i'm sure the etchant color comes off of the exposed tang. do you "re-etch" the exposed tang, gun blue it, or do anything to color the shiny metal that no longer matches the blade? thanks.

 

[Chris Railey]

I have two methods. One you guessed I use gun blue to color the edge of the spine and tang. My other method is easier. I simply sand the etch off of the edgs of the spine and tang so it all matches. The small contrast area is nice to my eye. Just make sure to sand flat so you do not remove etch from your blade. I would be happy to hear other methods too.

 

[Michael Minto]

thanks, chris. i thought about sanding the entire blade spine, as well, nice to hear someone else's brain "works" in a similar manner, haha. i have 2 that i'm working on, and will do one each way to see how it looks. i'll post a pic in a couple of days.

 

[JeremyBartlett]

What I do is finish the handle, then coat it with a dark nail polish, a lot of people recommend clear, but i like to see exactly where its applied. I will then etch the blade again then remove the nail polish with acetone

 

[Gliden07]

Another way to do them is prior to etching, finish handle and fit for Corby fasteners, etch them reattach handles after etch is complete.

 

[Michael Minto]

Here's a couple of pics showing the hamon and spine, after "re-etching", which I decided to do on both blades.