ASH-2 Electro etching

[Niddhogg]

I was going to strip the ASH 2 as soon as I used it the first time and saw how much drag the coat put on the blade, but wanted to keep the BUSSE logo on the side. I have tried acid etching before with my Battle Saw (Which didn't work for me), and decided to try my hand at electro-etching.

The steps are pretty simple (Hell, they must be if I figured it out!)
Get your materials- you'll need some cotton swabs, vinegar, salt, a power source (I used an 18v screw gun battery, as dual 9v's weren't doing it for me), alligator clips wired together x2, and a surface to etch on. I used my kitchen table with a rag underneath the blade.

Attach one end of each clip to each appropriate lead
Attach the - lead to a cotton swab, the + to the blade
Attach the - gator clip to one end of a cotton swab as close to the very tip as possible
Attach the + gator clip to the blade close to the logo. I think the closer the better, and I changed its position halfway through, which seems to have made a difference.
Dip the - charged swab in a saturated salt/vinegar solution
put more solution on the logo
rub the swab into the logo gently, you should see some bubbles and a little bit of smoke
rinse/repeat until you're done. I used both ends of about 8 swabs on this one- the S's lost the coat inbetween them and that was my stopping point.

since threads are useless without pictures.....

Finished product


Probably not the safest thing in the world to do........

 

[zmbhntr]

Great job, it turned out great!

 

[jamtga]

I use a motorcycle battery charger. I also, (just incase,,,) or if im making a custom stencil kinda, tape off the area with electrical tape. Like in this case i would do a rectangle around the logo incase of any weak paint, to keep bleading of the etching to a minimum. But its so much faster than acid. Which i still use often. But good job.

jamtgagar@gmail.com

 

[jamtga]

This is an esee 6 i electro etched then blued. I made the pattern by cutting pieces out of electrical tape.

jamtgagar@gmail.com

 

[rcb2000]

Nice! I used a 9 volt battery with surprisingly good results.
Cant wait to see that ASH2 all cleaned up, I really should have grabbed one

 

[Niddhogg]

Nice! I used a 9 volt battery with surprisingly good results.
Cant wait to see that ASH2 all cleaned up, I really should have grabbed one

I think I've got it about as cleaned up as I can with the dremel, at least for now. Need to try my hand at hand sanding, think it'll look pretty nice polished up!

 

[trukreltrog]

Nice, going to have to try that on my NMFBM,,,

 

[SpyderPhreak]

The only reason this worked in your case was because the solution completed the circuit. It would work a LOT better if you would attach the + lead to a bare metal spot on the blade, because then the electricity would flow from the swab, through the solution, and into the steel in the logo. Since your blade is coated, you would need to devise a way to attach the clip near the edge.

 

[Blain]

I was going to strip the ASH 2 as soon as I used it the first time and saw how much drag the coat put on the blade...

Usually, for the big choppers, I don't notice the coating having much of an effect on chopping battoning performance. Can you describe in more detail the drag you were experiencing?

 

[Niddhogg]

The only reason this worked in your case was because the solution completed the circuit. It would work a LOT better if you would attach the + lead to a bare metal spot on the blade, because then the electricity would flow from the swab, through the solution, and into the steel in the logo. Since your blade is coated, you would need to devise a way to attach the clip near the edge.

Thanks for the heads up- I know nothing about electrical stuff- this was my first go at anything like this. But next time I try my hand at it I'll know better!

Blain, this is more in the just-above-midsize size range IMO, but the drag I experienced was with clearing out some of the overgrowth out front. with the saplings and small branches (~2-3") it would seem to bind and not slice smoothly through, as my stripped blades did. Also experienced it when cutting out a holly bush on my In-Law's property, mainly with low power, limited space swings at bad angles, where the smooth coat basic went much smoother.

It hasn't been battoned, but the battoning performance of my Battle Saw improved markedly after being stripped.

 

[Bigfattyt]

Nice! I used a 9 volt battery with surprisingly good results.
Cant wait to see that ASH2 all cleaned up, I really should have grabbed one

Funny, me too!

It worked fine on my KZII

 

[rwn2000]

The only reason this worked in your case was because the solution completed the circuit. It would work a LOT better if you would attach the + lead to a bare metal spot on the blade, because then the electricity would flow from the swab, through the solution, and into the steel in the logo. Since your blade is coated, you would need to devise a way to attach the clip near the edge.

Agreed. Or go ahead and strip a small portion of the spine to attach the positive lead. Just don't let the solution get on the stripped part or you will get etching where you don't want it.