Stamp or Etch ?

D

dancalvin

Well-Known Member
My question is ; which is the best way to go , stamping or electrochemical etching ?
I've been leaning toward getting a tang stamp made .
Is etching as complicated as it seems ? Also seems to me , I could mess up easier than using a stamp .
Next , who is a good source for stamps ? I've found a few suppliers for etching supplies .




Thanks Dan .
 
Etching is more complicated than stamping but easier to fix when you mess up.
Notice I said when you mess up, not if. Ha Ha.
If you etch get your stensils made by Ernie Grosspitch, He's the best. And follow all the advice he gives and do a LOT of experimenting before you etch a knife. And get multiple stensils made because you will ruin some and the do wear out.
 
Etching is the way to go. It's not that difficult if you can count and lift your hand.
With a stamp, you'll enjoy the frustrations of double, misalligned and partial marks unless you build a jig/press. With that said, I got my stamps from Henry Evers Co in providence, RI. Probably the top of the line as far as stamps go. As stated, you'll need to practice with both methods.

Rudy
 
I don't know the anser, but Bob Loveless in his book "How to Make Knives" says, "I've never liked the idea of stamping highly- stressed too steel, ..." and etched all his blades since 1966.
 
I saw a knife somewhere that was etched on the spine , I really like that look . Is a spine logo the same process to etch ? Can the spine by stamped ?
 
dancalvin said:
I saw a knife somewhere that was etched on the spine , I really like that look . Is a spine logo the same process to etch ? Can the spine by stamped ?
Click to expand...

Yes they ca be etched on the spine, and it's realitively easy to fix that spot if you mess up. Of course they can be stamped on the spine as well.
 
I have and still use my first stencil Ernie made for me after etching over 200 knives youd think it would be no good but it works just like new. I might have a life time supply with the 10 stencils that came on my one sheet. He told me wash the stencil with dish soap and dry it gently and it will last alot longer after each series of use . Kellyw
 
I use an etcher because my mark isn't likely to stamp well.

This is an old set of videos showing how quick it is for me:

[video=youtube;sv8qU7keFWs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sv8qU7keFWs[/video]
[video=youtube;3DWNBOvIqRw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DWNBOvIqRw[/video]
[video=youtube;Z1mZGe9PJmc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1mZGe9PJmc[/video]

This is what you can do with it:

_MG_7975.JPG
 
I just changed over to an etch, and I like it better than the stamp that I had used for many years, it is still in good shape, but I have had double marks, light marks, and slanted marks. If you go with an etch, have Ernie make your stencils, great guy to deal with, and he makes a great stencil.
Dale
 
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