Etching Blades (not damascus)

S

scherar

Well-Known Member
A question about blade finishes. I have read, I think, in Ed Fowler's book that he etches his blades to check out something with the heat treatment. Is that the finish that he leaves on them (or anyone else that uses this method)? If so, what is the procedure for this.
-Hand finish to a certain degree, then etch?
-Anything done after the etch, such as buff?
-What is used to etch? (ferric, muriatic?)
-After it is etched, how do you protect the finish until the knife is totally finished? (wrap in tape?)
-Will it work on O-1?

Thanks for any input on it.
 
Basically an etch can be done after a knife goes through a partial quench and temper cycles to show the quench line. When the quench is done with clay, the line is usually called a hamon. It can be done on most any non stainless steel with varying amounts of success.

If you ever get to look at Ed Fowler's knifes, you can see that he takes his knives to an almost mirror finish before doing the etch. The final finish is really up to the maker but IMO, the finer the finish, the better the look. Stephen Fowler has a pretty good tutorial on his site here on KD that shows the process in detail. Check it out and see if it doesn’t answer most of your questions.

Hope that helps,
Carey
 
I did check out his site. I am somewhat familiar with hamons, at least I have an understanding of them. So I guess etching has no place for a blade that is neither edge quenched or clay coated? I typically quench the whole blade, homogenously temper, then come back and "draw" the spine with a torch. Etching won't bring out anything with a soft back draw will it?
 
I really don't think so but a vinegar etch for a few minutes will tell you for sure and it will be easier to clean up if you don't like the results.

Carey
 
The etch shows the transition area between "hard and softer" that occurs during an edge quench. Don't think a fully quenched blade will show anything, but for fun, give it a try. Remember that certain types of steel are deep hardening (5160 for example) and will not show a distinct "hamon, transition line, etc.) even after an etch.
 
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